Diabetes in cats is an increasingly recognized and diagnosed health problem. Feline diabetes most commonly occurs in cats over 7 years old, as a previously healthy cat may begin exhibiting symptoms that indicate diabetes.
Fortunately, through careful treatment and management, cats with diabetes can go on to live happy, normal lives. Quick diagnosis, aggressive early management, and especially the use of special diets for diabetic cats mean that many diagnosed with diabetes can be easily managed, and in some cases, may even go into diabetic remission.
Understanding Diabetes in Cats
Approximately 80% of cats that develop diabetes will have type-2 or sugar diabetes. In humans and animals alike, diabetes is characterized by the inability of the hormone insulin to balance glucose levels in the blood.
The food animals ingest is converted into glucose in the body, traveling through the bloodstream to feed cells and create energy. Insulin acts as the vehicle that allows cells to absorb energy from the bloodstream. Under normal circumstances, after glucose enters the body, cells in the pancreas release insulin, which is then distributed to cells throughout the body, allowing them to “capture” glucose for their own use.
The pancreas is responsible for producing just enough insulin to maintain a careful balance of glucose levels in the blood, preventing them from rising too high (hyperglycemia) or too low (hypoglycemia). However, in animals with type-2 diabetes, the body’s cells stop responding correctly to insulin. This results in excessively high blood glucose levels, as the body is unable to process the excess glucose.
The early signs of diabetes in cats include weight loss, an increased or even voracious appetite, and increased water consumption and urination. As the inability to process glucose progresses, the brain sends signals to eat more, attempting to take in more glucose. Blood glucose levels rise but cannot be utilized due to the lack of insulin, leading the starved cells to break down fat and muscle protein for conversion into sugars by the liver. As this cycle continues, excess glucose leaks into the urinary tract, drawing water from cells and causing frequent urination, which leads to a constant state of dehydration despite increased water intake.
Diagnosis and Treatment
Your veterinarian can diagnose diabetes based on a physical exam and a description of your cat’s recent behavior and clinical signs. Most importantly, blood and urine samples help make a definitive diagnosis and allow treatment to begin.
Treatment for diabetes is multifaceted and often relies on a combination of long-lasting insulin injections, specially prepared diets for diabetic cats, and careful monitoring of blood levels.
Diets for diabetic cats are the cornerstone of managing feline diabetes. Research has shown a link between the development of diabetes in cats and regular commercially prepared dry-food diets. Dry food typically contains high levels of carbohydrates, which can flood the pancreas over time with a constant high-sugar intake. By feeding a low-carbohydrate diet, the amount of insulin needed is reduced, and blood-sugar level variations are kept small and predictable.
Your veterinarian can help you select an appropriate low-carbohydrate diet for your cat. While canned, low-carbohydrate preparations are preferable (canned foods naturally have lower levels of carbs than dry foods and higher levels of digestible protein), cats that refuse wet food can be fed specially prepared prescription dry food diets. Diets containing between 3% and 9% of their calories from carbohydrates are recommended as the best choice for managing diabetic cats.
In addition to helping regulate blood sugar levels and reduce insulin requirements, lower-carb diets will aid overweight cats in losing weight. Many diabetic cats are overweight, and reducing their weight to a more normal level can have numerous health benefits, both directly and indirectly related to diabetes.
Diabetic cats should be fed only their prescribed diet, without additional treats or food changes. Once a diabetic cat is regulated on a specific food, changing that food can completely alter their insulin requirements. Therefore, it is essential that a management program ensures the diet of a diabetic cat is the only one fed.
A stable diet is especially important for the second phase of treatment—insulin injections. While a small number of cats may be controlled with diet changes alone, most require supplemental insulin to regulate their blood levels. Typically, a single slow-acting dose of insulin, administered via injection twice daily along with the special diet, will help maintain optimal blood sugar levels throughout the day.
While the prospect of giving insulin injections to your cat can be daunting, your veterinarian will demonstrate the proper method and location for the injection, helping you feel comfortable with the procedure before doing it at home. Most cats do not even notice the tiny insulin needle, making drug administration relatively easy.
Finding a balance between diet and insulin dosages can be the trickiest part of managing a newly diagnosed diabetic. Your veterinarian may run several “glucose curve” tests, where blood sugar levels are monitored at various points throughout the day to ensure they are not dipping too low or spiking too high after meals or insulin injections. You may be asked to test your cat’s urine at home periodically with Keto-sticks, which can indicate excessive glucose in the urine, a sign of uncontrolled diabetes.
Often, effective diabetes management can be achieved in just a few weeks. Once the diabetes is well controlled, monitoring blood work may only be needed every six months or so to ensure insulin requirements remain stable and to check for any issues with the cat’s other body systems (kidneys, liver, etc.).
Although a diagnosis of diabetes in your cat can be intimidating, by working closely with your vet to establish a treatment plan, your cat can continue to live a long and virtually normal life, unaffected by diabetes. With the right insulin and diets for diabetic cats, diabetes can be managed and, in some cases, even reversed.