Diabetes and dogs? Any experience?

[mrsv98]

Our 10yo Lab, Sammy was just today diagnosed with diabetes (gluscose reading was 667...yikes) So tomorrow she starts on insulin and I go to have a lesson from the vet about how to give her shots.

I was really surprised at how common this is, the statistic I saw was 1 in 500 dgos so I figured someone here has to have a diabetic dog and can give me some advice.

Is it hard to give the shots? Is insulin expensive? How soon we she start to feel better? Any other advice?

Thanks for any help. We are reeling a bit from the diagnosis, but I believe we can get her stabilized and feeling better again.

 

[bballmom56]

Not a dog, but I have a cat with diabetes. I give him insulin shots twice a day. They are not difficult at all to do. For him, I go through 1 bottle of insulin about every 3 months at a cost of $70 per bottle. The needles are about $18 for 100 needles. I'm sure with a dog, those numbers will be different. It will also depend on how much insulin he needs - some need more than others. Our cat is 18 or 19 now and is really doing very well. Good luck!

 

[mrsv98]

Thanks, Our Sammy girl weighs 74 pounds so I am sure we will use much more insulin. I hate to even worry about the money but I have to be practical. I like our vet a lot so I am confident we can get this under control, it was just a bit of a shock. I am SO glad to hear you cat is doing so well!

 

[sunlver]

Yrs back I had a black lab who developed diabetes when she was about 10 as well. It was easy enough to give the shots. BUT I had a bad vet though. She should of been on shots twice a day. I was only instructed to give her a shot in the morning. By evening she was going crazy, looking for water, food etc...she was so out of sorts. She lost so much weight after awhile, was throwing up from her uncontrolled diabetes. If she were on 2 shots a day, things would of been a lot dift for her. I changed vets and they said they always put their animals on 2 shots a day. Anyways, giving the shots was not a big deal. I dont remember it costing that much either.

 

[mrsv98]

Just bumping to see if there is any more info out there. Thanks!

 

[bubie2.5]

My dog was diagnosed with diabetes on sept of last year (at 9 y/o). I took him to the vet because he was drinking LOTS of water and "releasing" it everywhere. He weights 20 pounds and is on 8 units of insulin twice a day (he started at 6 units). Is regular insulin, the kind humans use. A bottle lasts almost 2 months.

He's a picky eater so I have to make sure he eats after having his shot because his sugar levels can drop fast; it has only happened once he started walking slowly and lost his strength, luckily the vet had told me to always have some type of corn syrup in the fridge, and with just a little teaspoon he was as good as new.

He had cataracts years before he was diagnosed with diabetes and now his eyesight is almost completely gone. He’s very active and loves to play, it was becoming hard for him to find the toys after they got a little bit far, but now he has a bouncy rubber ball with lights and music inside, that my 4 yo niece “kindly” gave him, and he has no problems finding it.

I forgot to say, is easy giving him the shots, we use a different spot every time, but always on the back. I buy the 29 gauge needles. And he has to follow a diet, no more treats and only "diet" dog food (as if the regular one wasn't bad enough).

 

[alliecats]

Thanks, Our Sammy girl weighs 74 pounds so I am sure we will use much more insulin. I hate to even worry about the money but I have to be practical. I like our vet a lot so I am confident we can get this under control, it was just a bit of a shock. I am SO glad to hear you cat is doing so well!

Just FYI, in cats you can't correlate the amount of insulin used to the weight of the animal. A lot depends on diet, the state of the pancreas, the metabolism, whether the animal is on steroids, etc. I would think that would hold true for dogs, as well. So please don't worry that you will need so much more insulin, you might be pleasantly surprised!

For example, there are cats I know of, the same size as mine, who use a fifth of the insulin my cat does. Some factors include that their cats are on low-carb wet food, and mine has to take steroids and is on low-fat (meaning high-carb) food. So those factors do influence the dose, much more so than weight in my case.

My cat also has a few other chronic conditions, and I've found diabetes to be the "easiest" to deal with. So good luck to you and your dog!