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I think my cat has feline diabetes and I dont have the money to pay for treatments for her.?

Im pretty sure that my cat has feline diabetes (excessive thirst, unexplained weight loss, a lot of urination, etc.) and Im not sure what to do. I dont have the money to pay for treatments for her but I dont want her to suffer by staying alive. Should I put her to sleep right away or wait and see if her condition gets worse? As of right now she doesnt seem to be in any pain just thirsty a lot of the time. Somebody please help me.

A lot of vets will work with you.

Ours went diabetic three years ago–the initial cost was to check his blood sugar for one day every two hours, and to see if he was shedding keytones (spelling, not sure this is right). The insulin he was put on was Lantus, which was $98 a vial. The vial CAN be used for up to 6 months if refrigerated and not shaken (you roll it gently to mix it). Breaking down his insulin cost and the cost of syringes (box of 100 from Walmart for $16, I reused each syringe once) came to $10 a month, which is AFFORDABLE. You just have to buy the Lantus at the start, which is the major cost.

However, your cat could have a thyroid condition instead of diabetes, so if the urinalysis ($15 at our vets, they do it right there) shows no diabetic problem, the blood test to check the kidney and organ function is $90, and the meds per month for the methamazole (the cream you put in the ear twice a day) or tapazole (pills, if you can pill the cat twice a day) is $35 a month. Also affordable.

I have a cat with both. I also have a very old 19 year old cat with CRF — impaired kidney function due to kidney failure. He’s stable, has been stable for 4 years, and eats a high protein canned food diet (standard pet supplies store food) with extra water added, and is not costing me any more than the other cats do with their standard foods.

ALL three of these conditions are treatable, the cost you can discuss with the vet–many take payments. I’d get the cat checked first to see what you’re dealing with. Then go to YahooGroups and join up with the feline diabetes group(s), the CRF group(s) or the thryoid cat or handicats group to talk to owners there who are dealing with this in their pets, they can give you suggestions and support.

Find out what your cat has, and then ask the vet lots of questions, do research online, and make a decision. Our thyroid cat has been on meds 4 years and is normal. Our old cat is stable with his kidney function, it’s only very slowly getting worse. Our diabetic cat was on insulin for 3 1/2 years till we lost him to a fast growing tumor this past June. Dont let yours go untreated, these are manageable diseases but the longer you wait the harder it is on the cats. Treating our diabetic was not a huge change in our daily lives, he got his shot every day at 7am and 7pm, right after he ate. He didn’t feel it and he was doing fine on the 2 units per shot. The bottle lasted a good long time, We were using the box of 5 cartridges first then switched to the bottle. The cartridges were $35 and lasted 2 1/2 months each, the bottle holds enough for 7 cartridges and lasted longer of course. You can price it out at any pharmacy, and if you explain it’s for a cat, they may even lower the cost (our pharmacist sold it to me at cost twice, his discretion).

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