That's not as bloodthirsty as it sounds. He needs insulin shots to stay alive. Dr. Becky Lee, a Fairbanks veterinarian who owns a diabetic cat, gave me a reassuring overview. There's no unusual plague of diabetes among pets in the north, but it's not rare. She hasn't seen it among pet rodents, has heard of it, but not seen it, occurring in ferrets, and has encountered a few dogs and several cats every year with the disease.
Cats often respond well to treatment.
I didn't know cats got diabetes. In fact, I didn't know much at all about the disease. And, in people at least, it apparently had a hereditary component. Well, with a research university nearby and a whole Internet a keystroke away, true ignorance couldn't hold up for long. Thus, some informal research occupied my summer.