Strip test positive for my boy!!
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We had a diabetic basenji some years ago. She had lost weight and then suddenly got very sick, spilled sugar, and had elevated blood glucose. We started out with one insulin shot everymorning, she protested at first but I got very quick and pretty soon she hardly noticed. Back then, my vet treated by symptoms…if she started drinking a lot, I increased the insulin. Periodically we would check her blood sugar every 2 hours throughout a day to see how efffective the insulin was. After a couple of years we went to 2 shots a day, still not a big issue. She was about 12 when we started, so I don't know how she might have done if she had been younger, but we got another couple of great years for her before she lost sight and then got a bit senile at about 15.
That was about 12 years ago, treatments may have improved a lot since then. And there are great 'low carb' foods like EVO that should help a lot! We have freinds whose Great Dane became diabetic, very nearly died, and she started feeding him cooked ground beef, no grains at all, and he improved and lived another couple of years, I think he was about 12 when he died and had been diabetic for several years. Diabetes treatment in humans has improved a lot over the years, I'm sure it is the same for dogs. I would get him on a low-carb food right away, and see if that helps.
Good luck, hopefully with good diet control and exercise, he will do very well.
Anne in Tampa
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Switch over gradually, it is very rich and mine took a couple of weeks of gradually adding more EVO and less regular food, otherwise….diarrhea! Actually mine (not diabetic) still eat 1/4 Innova mixed with 3/4 EVO to keep their tummies in good shape. And of course talk to your vet! I am a human nurse, not a CVT, but I know lowering the carbs will bring down the blood sugar a good bit in any species. That said, food changes should generally be gradual. Best of luck with your boy.
Anne
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Anne - thanks - i keep reading info on line and it is making me a bit more nervous re complicaitons - i am hoping i caught it early and that with good treatment he will be find - no blindness etc
And let us know what the final word from your Vet is on him….
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In the old days - before Gontos and before Marker the rule of thumb was if the strip turned - check the blood for sugar (diabetes) if protein in urine and not in blood - fanconis. We've come a long way since then - with blood gases etc. I guess I would compromise - I would check the blood, get a panel for BUN (liver values etc) and the blood gas. That way you cover fanconi, diabeties and Cushings.
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In the old days - before Gontos and before Marker the rule of thumb was if the strip turned - check the blood for sugar (diabetes) if protein in urine and not in blood - fanconis. We've come a long way since then - with blood gases etc. I guess I would compromise - I would check the blood, get a panel for BUN (liver values etc) and the blood gas. That way you cover fanconi, diabeties and Cushings.
Yes, I would to… just to be sure... it is worth the cost vs peace of mind....
Also wondering, did your Vet tell you what the blood work show for liver and kidney values? Up/down??
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i asked and they said all the other tests and there were plenty were in the normal range - i will ask again re the liver and kidney values - so since yesterday he is on 5 cc of insulin humulin N 5 cc and diet food - he seems okay - he sleeps just like my other healthy b and has his appetite and despite the very cold weather here in NJ he was happy to go for a walk and he usually HATES the cold - any thing else i should be asking about ? i also bought ketone strips to start testing him on that
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I think that it is alway good to have a copy of blood work, you never know when you might be in a emerency situation and it is good to have that information with you… and it does "belong" to you so there should be no reason not to give you a copy of the blood work...
What kind of diet food? and how is he for you to give shots? -
good idea - i will ask for a copy and so far he is fine with the shots -
diet food is purina OM - its very light - my issue now is finding a kennel that will take him and treat him correctly
i can probably board him at the vet and pray then that they take my girl who is fine - they hate being apart - i travel once in a blue moon for work - know any good bergen county NJ kennels?? -
good idea - i will ask for a copy and so far he is fine with the shots -
diet food is purina OM - its very light - my issue now is finding a kennel that will take him and treat him correctly
i can probably board him at the vet and pray then that they take my girl who is fine - they hate being apart - i travel once in a blue moon for work - know any good bergen county NJ kennels??I don't, sorry… maybe someone else on the list does... any chance you could get a dog sitter that comes to the house? Many times they are Vet Techs....
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I know the complications are very firghtening, but if you can get the sugar under reasonable control, the symptoms and complications are usually not too bad. And while our worst fear was our dog going blind, when she did, we hardly noticed! Her other senses worked so well no one ever knew she was blind. I will cross fingers that you find a workable therapy that keeps him healthy and happy for a good long time!
Anne n Tampa
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Anne - thanks - when you had to go away did you kennel her? that now is my worry - it's just me and the two dogs and i would really want to make sure he was left in reliable hands - and preferably boths bs are together! they've never been apart for more than a few hours
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The vets I have gone to over the years always provided kenneling services for their clients (sick or healthy). I had two dogs for years (one B, one not) who couldn't be separated, and the vets were always understanding of this and would kennel both dogs either together (in a larger run) or side by side if only smaller pens were available. When Pepper needed IV fluids for her kidneys for a week one time, Pepper was kenneled, and I would drop Max off in the a.m. before work, and pick him up in the p.m. so that he could have company (he was the one who suffered from separation anxiety. The vet was happy to accommodate this.
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My husband and I never took a vacation together then, so one of us was always at home with the dogs. We still either take them with us, or one of us stays home. I like to travel, my husband doesn't, so it works for us! I like the suggestion that they be kenneled together at the veets. Another option would be a pet sitter that is able to give the medical care, or see if one of the vet techs "moonlights" and could drop by and give medication as needed, with a pet sitter staying with them. There are options, you just have to look "outside the box".
Anne in Tampa -
right now it's just me and that's part of the issue - actually my two b's were "inherited" from my ex - but i wasn't about to let them be put up for adoption when he left so after 6 years they are mine now - and there isn't anything i wouldn't do for them - i will ask around at animal hospitals and see what i can do - thanks
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There are several petsitting organizations on the web. Here are two that offer search functions and information about interviewing petsitters.
National Association of Professional Petsitters
http://www.petsitters.org/index.cfm?section=Find&content=findsitter
http://www.petsitters.org/index.cfm?section=PetOwnersPet Sitters International
http://www.petsit.com/locate/
http://www.petsit.com/owners/ -
My Isis hated them too, at first, Then we both got better, I got very quick, grab, jab, and gone! I used the area at the neck and shoulders (where you put Advantage) and just pinched up skin, stuck her and injected. I am a nurse, so giving a shot is easy for me, but giving one to a wiggling dog that yelped was hard at first, and I had a human helper. After a few months, I think that area got a bit numb and that helped. You may have to muzzle, then get over him, clamp him between your legs, facing forward, and go for it. Then reward instantly with a bit of chicken or something wonderful. It is a lot harder than having to give pills, but with patience and practice, you will find a way that works for you. Good luck, I am thinking of you,
Anne in Tampa
