Need to Find a vet...FAST!!

I take all my animals to Indian Prarie Animal Hospital on Rt 59 and 75th street. It does sound like you need to get to the vet soon. I had a diabetic cat and it is treatable. Best of luck.

There is the animal hospital behind the Culvers on Ogden. I believe they do regular appointments but if not, im sure they can reccommend a vet nearby. They are open 7 days a week so you can call anytime. I cant remember the name but you can look up animal hospital near downers grove/lisle etc.

Hi N. - I'm sorry to hear about your kitty. Coincidentally, we also have a 13-year-old cat, and he was diagnosed with diabetes a few years ago. Since then, and much to our chagrin, we have spent thousands of dollars on vet visits and purchasing insulin and syringes, all of which is by prescription only. There is no way around it unless you opt to put your cat to sleep, which we can't bring ourselves to do because of how much our kids love our cat.

We live in Wheaton and take our cat to Glen Ellyn Animal Hospital (GEAH). Their website is www.geahvet.com, and their number is ###-###-####. Dr. Lyn Edmonson has done a great job regulating our cat's diabetes and patiently working with us to address our cat's constantly changing insulin needs. It's an ongoing process that requires regular visits to the vet at least every 6 months to conduct "glucose curves," for which GEAH charges $25 each. Typically, a diabetic cat will need at least 3 glucose curves per visit, but it's usually more (anywhere from 5-8), to determine how many units of insulin you should be injecting every 12 hours. A bottle of 100 units of insulin costs anywhere from about about $55 to over $100, depending on the type prescribed. Depending on how many units of insulin you are supposed to be giving your cat each day, a bottle can last anywhere from a couple of weeks to more than a month. We currently give our cat 5 units twice a day. A box of 100 syringes is, I think, about $20. If you go to GEAH, tell Dr. Edmonson that Roebuck's owner sent you. :)

Even though our cat's insulin levels are now better-regulated, he continues to drink excessive amounts of water and pees outside the litter box. I know you didn't ask for advice about the peeing part, but I'll offer you some anyway. After replacing various rooms of carpets numerous times, we have finally gotten the situation under control by putting up baby gates everywhere to keep the cat out of rooms with carpeting, and we have gradually learned that, while our cat won't always pee in the litter box, he will at least restrict his out-of-the-box urination to a plastic grating with tray that is made for pottytraining dogs. Go to www.target.com and search for "indoor dog potty." I don't know why, but our cat has been willing to use it instead of peeing throughout the house.

Good luck to you. It's a difficult and expensive matter to have a diabetic cat.

L.

We loved Naperville Animal Hospital. Care does vary by vets and what they will try to talk you into...my favorite was going to a vet north of Carol stream and they wanted very badly to do chemo on a boxer that was 16 years old and very much ready to be out of her misery. Please remember that you can't explain to an animal why they are going through all of the pain and why you are taking them somewhere to have some more...unless a direct easily seen benefit is going to be felt by the family member consider letting them go. Idid like them for the guidance they made with our pets as I still want my dogs and cats back but they no longer have pain.

I second MamaT's recommendation of Hobson Valley Animal Clinic. Another good one is Brumley Veterinary Clinic on 53 just north of Maple. I don't think either place is out of line cost-wise, but I think veterinary care in general is pretty expensive nowadays. Good luck with your cat, I hope it is nothing serious.

We go to Hobson Valley Animal Clinic by Clara's on Rt 53. They have cared for 3 of our dogs. Two which we had to put down. They are very thorough and caring. Although pet care is costly I don't feel that they have ever ripped me off. In fact they recommend generic drugs and also are very accomodating when getting meds via Fosters & Smith. The vet tech's are wonderful and equally caring and have a great attitude. My friend takes her pets to Green Trails (on College Ave south of Benedictine U) and is very happy there. Just FYI if you have to take your cat to Emergency Vet care...be in for a shock because it is $95.00 just to walk in the door and see the vet. Hobson's number is ###-###-####.