OTJ Success Stories

While there are no guarantees every cat on TR (Tight Regulation) will achieve diabetic remission, those who don’t are typically very well regulated in a short amount of time, enjoying significantly improved health. A cat is considered well-regulated when blood sugars are kept within normal range the majority of the time (below 8.3/150). To read these and more success stories in further detail please visit the Kitties OTJ thread on the DCC Forum.

Tigger: OTJ after 24 days on TR with Lantus (USA)
Returning from a 10 day trip, I came home to realize the changes I’d seen over the last year weren’t due to ageing – Tigger was barely standing and was shockingly skinny and scruffy. After three days in the ER, Tigger was sent home with insulin and orders to inject 2u twice a day. I did some research, found Dr. H’s TR protocol and for some reason, the need to test BG and adjust doses made total sense – blind dosing did not. I took the leap of faith even with lots of questions. Despite my fears to the contrary; the testing, poking, shots and everything else didn’t make Tigger fear me, it brought us closer together. His zest for life has returned and we’ve now got our other cat off the dry food (aka kitty crack). The members at DCC gave me the confidence to do what I needed to, helping to calm my fears and worries, steering me to the best treatment for Tigger – and boy did it work!




Arfa: OTJ after 19 days on TR with Caninsulin (UK)
Initially Arfa’s symptoms were assumed to be the result of a heat wave; our other cats were lethargic too. TR was a steep learning curve and I was terrified Arfa was going to have a hypo. I trusted what I was told, that with a low carb diet there was very little chance of that happening – and of course it didn’t! The testing and needles bothered me far more than it did Arfa. I’m absolutely certain Arfa knew I was helping him feel better. To watch him behaving like a kitten again so quickly brought tears to my eyes as a week before starting TR, I thought I was going to lose him. It’s very sad that so many vets are blind to doing the best for the cat, because they have been taught an outdated protocol 25 years earlier! If they bothered to take the time to look at the numbers and the actual TR Protocol, they would see how well the cats do on it, with the majority eventually managing to come off the insulin. A massive thank you Dr. Hodgkins!


Kobe: Remission after 2 weeks on TR with Caninsulin (UK)
Kobe was always a very spoiled girl with a healthy appetite – relatively healthy except for some coughing episodes treated with steroids (which likely caused the FD). When Kobe was first diagnosed, she was so frail she could barely walk. My vet told me treating her FD would be very expensive and to put her down. I just couldn’t do that! Few vets I contacted were willing to help me. Soon I found DCC and first thought they would just give me advice on how to let her die comfortably, but soon found out much differently! Although my family was skeptical and the vets were not encouraging, I changed her diet, started home testing and TR, and was as nervous as could be. I know if it wasn’t for Dr. Hodgkins’ TR protocol, or for the people who run DCC out of the goodness of their hearts, and all those members who consistently give support at all hours of the day and night, Kobe would not have made it.


Tilly: Remission after 21 days on TR with Caninsulin & Hypurin Bovine PZI (UK)
Tilly was diagnosed in August and it was October before we switched to Hypurin Bovine PZI insulin and starting TR. Her symptoms of extreme thirst and poor condition continued, and I lived in an endless state of anxiety as to whether she was hypo- or hyperglycaemic. Much happier times followed however, when I discovered TR and DCC! There was a lot of information to take in, but working in the field of diabetes research all I read was so logical; I knew it had to be right. Changing to a low carb wet diet reduced her insulin needs by 75%, and started to flatten out her readings nicely but not quite enough for me so she was switched to Hypurin, and just 5 days later, Tilly had her last injection. Her glucose values normalised almost as soon as we began, and the support on the DCC forum was fantastic. Quite frankly, it feels like a miracle, but it’s not. It’s just common sense. To anyone reading this and wondering about whether to follow TR, please take the plunge! I can most definitely tell you, even though it is more work than traditional vet therapies, you will not regret it.


Patch: Remission after 2 months on TR with Caninsulin (UK)
When Patch was rehomed to us in August 2011, she came with intestinal troubles which we think were a food allergy. She was treated by the vet with a steroid shot and dry Royal Canin Sensitivity diet. We weren’t surprised she started to drink a lot because she’d been on wet food since adopted. In October she drank even more and peed all over the house, so we realized there was a problem. Initial treatment with Glipizide wasn’t working very well so Caninsulin was started in October 2011. All dry food was removed when we discovered TR in January of 2012 and since then she’s now fed mostly a raw diet. Looking back we realize now how underweight she was and that she was likely FD at the time we got her. She’s gained her weight back, has a beautiful coat and is a very bouncy girl these days. She’s been OTJ for 8 days!

Einstein: Remission after 6 weeks on TR with Lantus (South Africa)
In May of 2011, Einstein was diagnosed with FD after I noticed him drinking a lot more water than usual. Looking back, I now realize that after 8 years of being treated for a skin condition with Ovarid (a powerful hormone that predispositions cats towards FD), this was likely the cause. South Africa is very backwards when it comes to treating FD but I bought a BG meter and started testing Einstein myself. He started out on Caninsulin, and then was switched to Lantus. Einstein is now on a well-balanced homemade raw diet using the recipe from www.catinfo.org. Einstein responded quickly to Lantus, and I saw a miracle happening before my eyes as his little body slowly healed itself. Einstein started TR in August and went OTJ on September 9, 2011. DCC was the answer to my prayers!


Matisse: Remission after 12 days on TR with Caninsulin & Hypurin (France)
Matisse was diagnosed FD in June 2011, and as is standard in France, was started on Caninsulin while still feeding dry food, experiencing a lot of rebound and a clinical hypo. We made the switch from dry food to a raw diet after the hypo, eventually found DCC and started TR on July 31. After a week of TR using Caninsulin, we switched to a vet who would provide Hypurin Bovine PZI and Matisse went OTJ two weeks later on August 22, 2011. Raw food and TR saved Matisse’s life!




Mia: Remission after 9 months on TR with Lantus (Australia)
About 2 weeks before Mia’s diagnosis we noticed she was eating a lot but losing weight and drinking a lot of water. In hindsight she had symptoms a long time but we didn’t even realize cats could get diabetes. We fed the best dry food money could buy (if only we had known) and some wet food. Our vet sent us home with Lantus insulin and told us to dose twice a day 12 hours apart. Two days later Mia was really unwell, not eating, barely moving, obviously in pain. The vet diagnosed Mia with DKA and pancreatitis and kept Mia in hospital for 10 days. The whole time, they struggled to bring her pancreatitis under control and the ketones didn’t leave her system until day 9 in hospital. How she survived all this I don’t know. Mia’s numbers were always high, unregulated or then she would drop too low and have a hypo. I started searching the internet about hypos and came across information about low carb feeding protecting from them. I joined the forum and immediately changed Mia’s diet. From the beginning I knew I could trust and learn at DCC. TR made perfect sense. After 9 months on TR Mia went OTJ without any more hypos after the diet change. I still am amazed people from all around the world that started out as strangers were so giving of their time and experience.


Texas aka Texy: Remission after 52 days on TR with Lantus (USA)
With a major move and a newly diagnosed FD kitty happening at the same time, it was a lot to take in. Gaunt, skinny and eating about 21oz of food a day, 2 vets diagnosed Texy with a likely case of incurable type 1 diabetes – how many people would just give up right then and there thinking there is no chance? Within 2 days of her arrival in our new home we began TR. I was immediately engulfed by an incredible community of wonderful, supportive, and knowledgeable people who I have come to consider friends, even when I felt like a dunce or was distraught. I’d been told less than 25% of FD cats go OTJ. And of course the usual: “You can’t home test your cat, your cat will hate you!!!” Texy to this day loves the BG table and its guarantee of rubs, love and treats! Thank you Dr. Hodgkins for this amazing protocol! I am so thankful to DCC and the wise and wonderful people here. We know not what each other looks like, what we believe or how we vote, none of that matters; we are united in the belief that our furry companions deserve our compassion, respect and love and that has made all the difference.

Titi: Remission after 2 days on TR with Levemir (France)
Titi was diagnosed FD in November 2010 and as is usual in France was put on Caninsulin– he went into remission the first time in a week. In April of 2011, he became FD again so was treated with Caninsulin once more but I was not able to get him stabilized so I decided to change him to Levemir. I had a very hard time to get him well regulated, even after changing to low carb wet food. He would bounce from very high to very low numbers. When I came to DCC, an adjustment was made to his doses taking him to the very small amount of 0.1u – it was difficult to measure. In two days with TR on July 30, 2011, Titi stopped having rebound and stopped needing insulin.

Thor: Remission after 3 months on TR with Lantus (USA)
Thor was diagnosed FD March 25, 2011, started TR and had his last shot of insulin July 6, 2011 just 96 days after his first dose of insulin. I was nervous about Thor’s reaction to testing and the injections. I had never given an animal an injection but as a nurse have given shots to many adults. Everything I found regarding management with Lantus was scary and I had no guidelines from my vet (only instructions to dose 1.5U 2x/day and follow-up in 3 weeks). She actually told me not to test, stating that it was cruel to stick him so often and that it was unnecessary. That blew my mind! I would never give insulin to a human without knowing a BG so how could I dose a cat the size of an infant blindly? Simply, I could not! Dr. Hodgkins’ Tight Regulation is the way to new health for your kitty. Never doubt it… Update February 2012: Thor had a Resorptive Lesion on a tooth which caused him to go back on insulin, but we don’t expect it will be for long as his numbers and durations are already much better a couple of weeks after the dental surgery.


Mouth: Remission after 2 months on TR with ProZinc (USA)
Being a diabetic, it made sense to me to test Mouth’s BG at home after we found out he had FD – he’d been fed dry food all his life. Our vet told us Mouth’s BG weren’t that high (388/21.5) and recommended a change to low carb wet food – saying he didn’t need insulin. When we found DCC, we came to learn quickly that Mouth did need insulin, but he ended up in DKA before he had his first shot. After a few days in the ER I was told he had a 50/50 chance of survival. The new vet gave me insulin and syringes with instructions to give 2.0u of ProZinc twice a day, feed him after his shot and that was all we were told. We followed the vet’s advice to dose twice a day for two weeks without much success-Mouth’s numbers were always very high. We started TR on May 14, 2011 and less than two months later with the help of members at DCC – Mouth went OTJ on July 8, 2011. DCC is a more than a group of people here to give advice, it is a family of people from around the world, laughing during good times and there to support others if things get difficult. Thank you Dr. H for your life-saving protocol!


Sniff: Remission after 9 days on TR with NPH (Humulin N) USA
Sniff was diagnosed April 18, 2001 and the vet prescribed NPH. He was a heavy cat all his life having been fed dry food – wet food was a treat only. Gosh that makes me feel horrible! I noticed a difference in his weight and his eyes seemed glassy about 9 months before he was officially diagnosed FD and then he had troubles jumping which I thought were because he was 15 years old. A month after diagnosis we found DCC and started the Detox Process and in 9 days Sniff went OTJ.

Mieszko: Remission after two days on TR with ProZinc (USA)
Mieszko has a long and storied medical history and after a series of infections, we concluded his coat and ear problems were probably due to a food allergy. He was put on high carb Hills Z/D food and that’s when things started to go south. Within a few months he lost weight, was drinking and urinating a lot, his energy level was down and he didn’t seem like himself. He was diagnosed FD with a BG of 485/26.9. We were told to give him insulin twice a day and not to test his BG because it would be too difficult. We were told at any time we could come home to find Mieszko in a coma. We were understandably upset to hear this so looked for more information online and found DCC. We switched to a low carb diet and started home testing. When it was clear he would still need insulin, we started him with the conservative dosing scale for ProZinc and he dropped to LO on his first shot! Mieszko was very sensitive to the insulin but we followed the procedure for dealing with low numbers without incident. Immediately his behaviour changed back to his old self, playing with his brother for the first time in months. It only took us 5 insulin injections over two days before his pancreas kicked in and he could self-regulate. Our vet was not pleased that we didn’t follow her guidelines, but it was hard to argue with our results on TR. We hope Mieszko’s story serves as inspiration for others.

Cooky: Remission in one month on TR with ProZinc (USA)
More than a year after Cooky was diagnosed in November of 2009 I found DCC in January 2010 and what a difference that has made! I immediately talked to my vet about the protocol and switched her insulin from Vetsulin to ProZinc. Even though I was only able to test and dose her insulin twice a day, it took a matter of only a few short weeks for Cooky to join the OTJ club. Even though she has since been diagnosed with Hyperthyroidism, Cooky is still in remission and doing very well. I can attest to Dr. H’s protocol of feeding the right diet of low carb wet food, testing BG and using the right insulin for cats. Cooky looks and acts like a renewed baby girl.




Justin: Remission after 20 months on TR with PZI (Canada)
Justin was diagnosed with FD at the age of 8. Just before the diagnosis, he had lost weight, was drinking lots of water and had neuropathy. We started TR in December 2007. Within a couple of weeks of insulin therapy, Methyl B12 supplements and better regulated blood sugars, he was on his way to recovery.
Even though Justin was well regulated and in great health, I had difficulty believing that he would ever go into remisison, especially since it has been 20 months since we started the TR protocol. It just goes to show once again that Dr. Hodgkin’s protocol really works, but sometimes it takes longer for cats to heal all the way. Justin went “off the juice” on August 24, 2009!


To learn more about how so many cats from around the world have been able to achieve diet controlled diabetic remission, or to speak about diabetes in cats with people currently practicing Dr. Hodgkin’s Tight Regulation protocol, please join the Diabetic Cat Care forum. The sooner you can start TR the greater the chance diet controlled diabetic remission can be achieved for your cat.