Introduction
Once a veterinarian confirms that your dog has diabetes, he or she will immediately establish a treatment plan for the animal. In many cases the course of treatment involves drug therapy as well as diet changes.
Treating Diabetes in Dogs
Medication
Insulin therapy is easy to do, and your veterinary health care team will show you how to carry this out at home. It is very important to follow instructions for administration carefully. Improper storage, improper mixing and errors in dose can all have significant effect on the efficacy of the insulin treatment. The very fine, small insulin needles are well tolerated by dogs.
After insulin therapy has begun, a blood glucose curve will be recommended. This test is used to check how quickly a particular dog processes the insulin type prescribed, and how effective the combination of diet, exercise, and insulin is for reducing blood sugar swings, and for lowering average blood sugar levels. This test is very important for the safety of long-term insulin therapy.
Oral hypoglycemic drugs may also be discussed in Type II diabetes as an alternative to insulin injections.
Diet Changes
Diet must be customized to each patient. Generally, twice daily feeding is prescribed, coinciding with insulin injections. Obese dogs particularly benefit from high fiber diets. The fiber slows food absorption and this leads to reduced blood sugar peaks and troughs.
A low blood sugar crisis may occur if a dog receives an insulin overdose, or does not eat in association with an injection of insulin. This will produce weakness, lethargy, difficulty in arousing from sleep, and sometimes seizures. Application of corn syrup to the gums, and a prompt visit to the veterinary hospital is indicated because additional intravenous glucose will be needed until the pet is stabilized.
Treating diabetes takes commitment from the owner. It is essential to follow up with recommended re-evaluations and ongoing therapy adjustments in order to provide adequate care. However, with proper care dogs can have a good quality of life.