food for diabetic cat

Question
  My cat Chunk has always been very healthy until 2 month's ago. To make a long story short. He is diabetic.(500, not sure what the vet meant by that) My vet has not talked to me about food for him. My vet has him on pills. Next is shots. He has always been a very big cat and is 13yrs. old. He is so skinny now. I changed his food to Taste of the Wild dry (all natural no grains) and Fancy Feast (no gluten) can. He is eating better but his muscle is all gone. I am just not sure what to do for him.
  I saw that you recommend Wellness, Nature's Variety and raw. Do I have to get this from a vet? What is the best kind chicken, fish or turkey? When you say raw, can I just buy in grocery store and how much do I give?
  I'm not sure what I am doing so any advice would help.
  Thank you, Anna  

Answer
Hello Anna,

I wouldn't feed dry food to a diabetic kitty - or any kitty for that matter. Dry food is very dehydrating because it contains a lot less moisture at around only 10% and kitties need around 75-80% moisture in their food. Kitties derive moisture from their food and have a poor thirst mechanism unlike dogs. They simply cannot drink enough water on their own to make up for what is lacking in dry food.

Most also contain ingredients such as potatoes and fruits and high-glycemic vegetables and most dry foods contain anywhere from 15-50% of their calories in the form of carbohydrates. Not a good idea for a diabetic kitty.

Because of the lack of moisture, dry food also causes them to have very concentrated alkaline urine (kitties urine is naturally acidic). This increases the risk that struvite crystals will form. Even without crystals, these diets contribute to bacterial infections and bladder inflammation (cystitis).

No, you do not need to get Wellness (Wellness can cause digestive upset in some kitties [diarrhea/vomiting], so not one of my first choices), Nature's Variety (use the Instinct variety, not Prairie), or raw, from a vet. Back when I fed canned food I had to order from www.onlynaturalpet.com because I live in a small rural area.

Of special note: Be sure to read labels (more on that below) for the ingredients in canned foods - I am an avid label reader and you would be amazed at what they try to get past you. :) Even read the labels of the canned foods mentioned above, because manufacturers can change their formulations.

I make my own raw based on Sandy's recipe from Holisticat. Here's the link: http://www.holisticat.com/Keeping-Cats-Well-Fed/ There is a boneless and bone-in recipe - the bone-in would need to be ground so you would need a grinder, and also information on choosing a good canned food. If you decide to go with raw, please pay particular attention to how important the calcium to phosphorus ratio is. She also has a wonderful book that you would find very informative and has diet info in it, too, among a ton of other great info: http://www.holisticat.com/Books-N-Things/ It is sold on Amazon, or you can get it directly from her (she'll autograph it for you :)).

Regarding raw, yes, you can buy grocery store meats to use.

Some advice on diabetic kitties in particular:

---Feed small frequent *meat* based meals (not by-products - it should say human-grade chicken, duck, turkey, etc. on the label and listed as the first ingredient).

---Diabetic cats sometimes need a little bit more moderately fermentable soluble fiber in their diet than non-diabetic kitties. 1/8 teaspoon of either rice bran (NOW brand is a good one - can get at iherb.com if you can't find it locally) OR 1/8 teaspoon of psyllium husk powder (Vitamin Shoppe [or www.vitaminshoppe.com] is a good brand with no other ingredients) Mix with 2 tablespoons of water - the additional water is particularly important with psyllium (you can add the 1/8 tsp of psyllium to warm water and let it form a gel before adding it to food if you want).

---Make sure his diet has no simple carbohydrates which are converted into sugar very quickly in the body. Pay particular attention to labels because some "low-carb" foods might not have grains, but contain potatoes, fruits, and other high-glycemic ingredients.

---You should keep honey on hand if he becomes hypoglycemic or starts shaking. Just rub some along his gums to bring blood sugar levels up.

I would invest in a glucose meter to monitor his blood glucose. Some kitties at the Holisticat forum (www.holisticat.com/forum) have been able to completely get off insulin with diet management alone.

Oh my, hope I have answered your questions! If not, please ask away.

Hugs to you and your sweet Chunk. Cute name, by the way!

Jules