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Skiddish senior kitty with diabetes.
My kitty Romeo age 15 recently was diagnosed with diabetes (9/29/25). We adopted him 9 1/2 years ago, he’s always been skittish. It took over a year for me to be able to pet him (I’m the only one who can go near him). Now that he needs insulin 2x’s a day, now, every time he sees me with a bowl of food in my hands, he runs under the bed. He goes to the far corner and I have to slither under the bed to give him his shot. (The bed is too heavy to move or lift). I’m not sure what I can do. It just breaks my heart. TY
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4 Replies
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Hi Carol, I am really sorry to hear about your kitty getting diabetes and the difficulties you’re having. One of my own cats has diabetes, but I have been very fortunate that giving him injections has not been stressful. I do them while he eats and it provides an excellent distraction. Having a cat that does not like to be handled or is easily distracted from eating by close contact, noise etc., makes it very difficult to do insulin injections in a low stress way, especially when the injection itself is not really what is causing the cat distress. I’m sure having to fish your kitty out from under the bed is not helping his stress levels.
Cats can feel anxiety and stress in people, so you may need to try another time where you are both more relaxed. What’s most important about insulin injections is that a full meal has been eaten. You can give the injection shortly after. Some cats after eating, go to find a comfortable place to rest. You may try doing the injection more at that time if your cat has now associated the food bowl with stress. Maybe there is a very high value treat you can use separately from the meal.
Or if your cat is always going to be scared of handling or injections (but at least is not aggressive or at risk of causing you harm). You can try some gentle restraint methods with a blanket or grooming sling, especially if someone else at home can help. While the injection may still be stressful, this could help separate the association from mealtimes. After the injection, giving some high value reward can also be helpful to desensitize a cat to something stressful.
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Thank you for your response Chris, it’s gotten somewhat better. I used to give him the shot when he ate, it didn’t always work. He’s okay with the shot. ( actually I was able to give him the shot under the bed). I started to feed him first, then he normally will go back into his room onto the bed & give him the shot. Sometimes he’s a bit picky but I just bring him something else to eat & make sure he eats. He’s looking better & is almost always on top of the bed. He’s has an appointment at the vet this week, for a 4 hour blood sugar check. He won’t like it, but I’m sure he’ll be ok. I keep telling him about it 😉❤️
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Aww poor Romeo and poor you that sounds so hard. He is scared because he connects food time with the shot now. Try giving him treats or a little playtime before and after so he starts to feel good around it again. Maybe change the routine a bit so it feels less like a pattern. You are doing great caring for him he just needs time to trust the process again.
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Thank you, I’ve changed things up a bit & he’s doing better. He’s sometimes a bit picky now, although I give him something else. I just need to make sure he eats. I’ve been giving him (I also have Tiki, his sister, she’s 16) different foods & started using toppers, when he doesn’t want to eat.
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