Dietary changes and feline diabetes

[RawLibrarian]

I noticed that my beloved old cat had been drinking and peeing excessively. We took him to the vet on May 30 and had his urine and blood tested. The results came back a few days later saying that his glucose levels were high and he was diabetic.

Well, I changed his food to EVO right after we saw the vet. This is not raw, but is a very high quality food that has no grain in it and is very low in carbs/high in protein--no awful fillers, but real organic meat and vegetables.

We were gone the first week in June, and a friend looked after our cat and feed him the EVO and told us that our kitty was not drinking or peeing excessively, and since we have been back, I noticed the same thing. We took our cat back to the vet today, and in two weeks, his glucose levels are NORMAL!! :) :) :) :) The only change has been his food. The vet was very pleased and told us to keep feeding him EVO and to monitor his drinking and elimination closely. No insulin needed!!!

This reminds me of the 'Raw for 30 Days' DVD, in which people with diabetes went raw and those who stuck with it for the whole 30 days either no longer needed glucose (type 2) or needed far less than before (type 1).

I am thrilled. Years ago I had a cat with diabetes and it was very sad. I'm so glad that there is better food available now, and more info about animal nutrition.

[Seabie]

Hi, I also have a diabetic cat and we use to feed them EVO and California Natural. My cat had to be put on a food especially for diabetic cats. The Evo didn't help. Plus once I learned about the law suit against the makers of EVO, California Natural and their other products I decided not to feed this to my pets. You might be interested in reading the info. at the following links.
Natura is the maker of EVO and California Natural

http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202422055276

After reading the info. at the begining make sure to scroll all the way down to the comments on the link below.

http://hubpages.com/hub/Innova-EVO-C...lthy-Pet-Foods

http://hubpages.com/hub/Class-Action...ing-and-Biting

[Shuu]

http://hubpages.com/hub/Innova-EVO-C...lthy-Pet-Foods

I'm sorry but you need to do better research than this. I work at a holistic pet food store that also sells natural remedies, supplements, etc, as well as raw food. Of all the kibble that we sell, Evo is the best. Of course raw is always the optimum choice, but many people are uncomfortable feeding meat to their dogs.

I'll address some concerns on the page in the quote:
Animal fat - in this grading system, they want to see "animal fat," i.e. an unidentified animal. Herring oil is used for omega fatty acids, much like flax oil. Chicken fat is a preservative which you'll see with almost all holistic pet foods.

Potato is used minimally and its sole purpose is to bind the kibble, else it would be a powder. Very little protein actually comes from the potato. In addition, potato does little to the sugar levels and so is good for diabetes, etc.

Flavour - this is the chicken liver flavour they spray onto the kibble to make it more palletable. All pet food manufacturers do this.

Egg - are you kidding me? This is from chickens.

Sprouts - I think we all know the benefits of sprouts.

cottage cheese - probiotics etc

Microbials - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unicellular

Potassium Chloride would be a salt substitute, but would cause no harmful effects because there is such a low dose.

lecithin - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lecithin



Also, this "class action" law suit was actually baseless and a concoction by one person. Natura actually intended to counter-sue for defamation of character. The company itself sent the sample the woman sent to them to a third-party lab and found no issues. Natura sources all its ingredients from the United States and so could not be involved in the menu foods debacle.


In over 2 years of working at this store and working with the owners who have been selling Natura products for 5+ years, never has there been a problem with the food itself. Please don't take a bunch of biased half-truths to heart without taking all sides.

[Seabie]

This was never meant to be a one sided point and I am sorry but I have done more research. Those were only 3 given as examples. I have done a lot of research on any food I decide to feed my pets. The judge ruled that there is enough evidence to continue with the lawsuit. That was only one site that contained information about the commercial pet foods. I have indeed read many more on both sides of the issue. Some of the companies were stating "human grade" when the food is actually not fit for human consumption. False advertising!

Egg - are you kidding me? This is from chickens.

The obvious isn't always the case when it comes to commercial pet foods. For example, there is one company that list "animal plasma" on their list of ingredients. Ok, someone would assume that this would be blood from the type of meat used in the food so why bother questioning this. Most would assume that if it's a chicken flavor pet food then the plasma would be chicken, if it's a beef then the plasma would be beef...Something about the use of "animal plasma" instead of stating "poultry plasma" or "beef plasma" bothered me. I contacted the company and they stated that the plasma is not the from the source of meat used. Oddly it is from a animal source that isn't contained in any of their pet foods. Maybe they use that source of plasma to add to the protein % - who knows. Their message stated that specific ingredients and the content of their message is considered private. Written consent has to be given in order to post the information. Not doing so would be in violation of their copyright agreement. So if anyone sees "animal plasma" on their pet food ingredient and would like to find out more I would suggest contacting the company. The point is what seems logical and the obvious answer is not always the case.

Just because all food makers follow a certain practice or all use a specific ingredient doesn't mean it should be done that way or that it is best for our pets.

Natural Flavors as defined by the FDA with respect to flavors, pet foods often contain "digests," which are materials treated with heat, enzymes and/or acids to form concentrated natural flavors. AAFCO defines Animal Digest as, “Material which results from chemical and/or enzymatic hydrolysis of clean and un-decomposed animal tissue. The animal tissues used shall be exclusive of hair, horns, teeth, hooves and feathers, except in such trace amounts as might occur unavoidably in good factory practice and shall be suitable for animal feed.”

Digests, which are materials treated with heat, enzymes and/or acids to form concentrated natural flavors. Only a small amount of a "chicken digest" is needed to produce a "Chicken Flavored Cat Food," even though no actual chicken is added to the food. – FDA http://www.fda.gov/cvm/petlabel.htm

Digest – process food (substances) in the body into a form that can be absorbed and used or excreted.

Manure – animal excrement (waste material, particularly feces, discharged from the body)
The definitions sound close and some sources have suggested that animal digest is just another way for some pet food companies to use manure.I wonder why pet food companies often list animal digest along with animal fat on the ingredient list of pet foods. If one or the other is already listed why would the company be required to list animal “fat” twice? Just a thought!For example with a person, when a person begins the "digestion" process food is placed in the mouth for chewing. Digestion continues as the food passes to the stomach and is broken down by the stomach acids and enzymes to pass into the intestines (where more enzymes are located) for further digestion. Digestion is complete once the person has had a bowel movement and evacuated the food from the human body. Why would obtaining animal digest be any different from human digest?

If animal fat is used the source of animal fat is a concern. AAFCO states that animal fat is "obtained from the tissues of mammals and/or poultry in the commercial processes of rendering or extracting. It consists predominantly of glyceride esters of fatty acids and contains no additions of free fatty acids. If an antioxidant is used, the common name or names must be indicated, followed by the words "used as a preservative". In actuality the animal source is not specified or required to give the origin of slaughtered animals. The rendered animals can be obtained from any source. There is no control over quality or contamination and any animal can be used including dead, diseased, disabled, or dying prior to slaughter.
Most of the fat processed comes from slaughterhouses but fat also comes from restaurant grease, expired meat from grocery stores, the carcasses of euthanized and dead animals from animal shelters, zoos, and veterinarians. Many of the animals used to make animal fat have died on farms, in transit, etc.

Animal Fats are used to encourage a pets to eat ingredients they normally would not eat. Many times the ingredients used to produce pet foods are made from something a cat or dog would not eat (grains) in the wild. Cats and dogs would refuse to eat these products if the pet food producer did not add something to make the pets believe they are eating something besides the actual poor ingredient content of pet food. Chicken Fat and Herring Oil can be used to encourage pets to eat ingredients they normally would not eat.

Potassium Chloride - used as the third of a three drug combination in judicial execution through lethal injection and used for making fertilizer. The chemical compound potassium chloride (KCl) is a metal halide salt composed of potassium and chlorine. Maybe this is used at a low dose and some are totally comfortable with it being included in their pet's food. I don't care for it in mine.

Some feel that Milk Products should not be given to a pet past weaning age. One opinion is that Adult Cats and Dogs do not produce enough of the enzyme to break down milk products. If your comforatable with it fine. I have a cat that had pain and gas when consuming milk products.

Potato Peelings and Green Potatoes contain Oxalates, which can affect the digestive, nervous, and urinary systems. Often they are used as cheap fillers. Cats have no need for potato and they also have no need for a lot of fruit.

Lecithin is included in pet food as an emulsifier - which means it protects the pet food from breaking down. However, lecithin is sometimes used as a synonym for pure phosphatidylcholine, a phospholipid that is the major component of its phosphatide fraction. It may be isolated either from egg yolk or from soy beans, from which it is extracted chemically (using hexane) or mechanically.

Some people like seeing that their food has an AAFCO approval. AAFCO will approve pet food if 8 dogs (cats) begin a 6 moth test of a product and 5 of them are still alive at the end of the 6 month study. No additional studies are required of the 5 remaining dogs/cats. That is simply alive! Not that they are thriving on the diet, just simply alive and only 5 of them.

I have indeed read both sides of the issue! These were the foods I fed my own pets for many years! Some are biased in their belief that the commercial pet foods aren't harmful. I use to be one of those people. I put all of my trust into these companies. I didn't want to believe that there were any problems with the "premium, human grade" foods I was purchasing. I worked in a pet food store that sold only premium brand pet food such as these. Do you know what pet food most of the workers and the owner now feed our own pets? We all make our own! Several of us are now switching to raw but we will still prepare it ourselves.

Some of the information that I think is iintersting are in the books Foods Pets Die For by Ann Martin. The info. on commercial foods is valuable, I do not really agree with the info. on home made diets.
Real Dogs Don't Eat Kibble(Natrally Healthy Dog) by Sandra Bailey
http://www.blakkatz.com/dryfood.html - The Truth About Dry Cat Food
http://www.catinfo.org/
http://www.yourdiabeticcat.com/ - Your Diabetic Cat- under the Diet link they menion Innova, Evo. Even if someone does prefer to stick with their Vet treatment plan the diet and food information on this site is useful to learn.

IMO none of the commercial kibble foods are perfect. Even with the problems some are way worse than this. We also have a traditional vet and a holistic vet. for our pets. Both of which I consulted with before making my decision for changing my pets food. It was the holistic vet that strongly suggested the raw food diet change.

If anyone is comfortable with all of the ingredients and it is working well for their pets then by all means use it if that is your choice. Pet's with special health issues may need different diets. There isn't just one thing that is right or good for all. Pets like people are indivduals and sometimes they have individual needs that should be addressed. I would love to trust all of the sales pitches I've heard from commercial food makers. After reading and researching on my own I just don't. My choice is to take control over what specific ingredients are in my pet foods. I won't be using most of the ingredients used in the commercial pet food for some of the reasons listed above. We all love our pets and want what is best for them. That's why we are on this forum - puttiing in the time to ask questions and make the choice that is best for us and our pets. Whatever choice is made I wish you all the best health and many happy years with your beloved pets!

[VeggieMel]

I have a diabetic cat, too. I've been feeding him Blue brand weight control. I've taken him off of insulin. He seems to feel okay, but he has been drinking lots of water and peeing more. I so want to cure him.

[RawLibrarian]

I have a diabetic cat, too. I've been feeding him Blue brand weight control. I've taken him off of insulin. He seems to feel okay, but he has been drinking lots of water and peeing more. I so want to cure him.

Drinking lots of water and peeing a lot are symptoms of diabetes--your cat still has the disease. Does your vet know about and agree with your decision to take him off insulin? Please talk to the vet--cats are experts at hiding it when they feel bad, and your cat is still diabetic.

Here is an excellent website, written by a holistic vet, about diet and diabetes. I urge you to read it:

http://catinfo.org/felinediabetes.htm

Here is another site about feline diabetes:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/diabetic-cat-diets.htm

[rawlight]

I have several friends and my parents who have diabetic cats. It's interesting that diabetes is becoming as common with our pets as it is with us humans????!!

[the1stpsycho]

Feline diabetes is a man made disease. Cats bodies are not developed to process carbohydrates. They are obligate carnivores. Dry food is the absolute worst thing to feed a diabetic cat. Any high protein low carb wet food is better than dry. The absolute best thing is a raw meat diet.

If you would like more information on diet for feline diabetes and a insulin dosing program for feline diabetes please visit

http://www.yourdiabeticcat.com

You can also visithttp://www.catnutrition.org
http://www.catinfo.org

Feline diabetes can be reversible and there are many testimonies to the Tight Regulation protocol on the Your Diabetic Cat site. Good luck with you kitties and remember in the future that prevention is the best medicine!

[juliebove]

I'm not a cat but I do have diabetes. I do not believe diabetes can be cured but can be controlled.

I am no expert on feline diabetes but I don't think all cats who have it need insulin, just like all people who have it don't need insulin. Unfortunately at least for the time being, I am a person who needs it.

Things change. I would not take the cat off of insulin without consulting the vet. Could be one day your cat won't need it. But you can't base things on symptoms alone.

Currently, my cat is being treated for hyperthyroid. I wish there was some sort of dietary change I could make for that. I have added kelp to her diet. And she does consume Sea Rave. But aside from those things, I don't think there's much else I can do except to give her the prescription med and try to get her to eat more.

[the1stpsycho]

You would be amazed at the number of cats that have been 'cured' using the Tight Regulation Protocol that Dr. Hodgkins outlines on the Your Diabetic Cat message board. They have a full thread called KOI (kitties off insulin). For cats who have been diabetic for a shorter period of a time, their pancrease is very good at healing itself when given the proper nutrition for a carnivore.

The unfortunate part is that most veterinarians are way behind in their treatment of the disease in cats. They shoot blindly twice a day, feed a high fiber, high carb, low protein diet and hope for the best. I have seen a numerous amout of cats that come into the clinic DKA, or hypo that could have been prevented had their humans learned how to home test. You absolutley should work with a veterianrian but many are very reluctant to try anything new when it comes to feline diabetes. Human diabetics, I am sure, would never shoot blindly and hope for the bests. Why should it be any different for out cats?