Diabetic Dog won't eat-PLEASE help!

Taylor · 05-20-2006

My diabetic dog (who lives with my aunt because we got a puppy last summer and already had another dog, so she went to live with her, still live in the same city) hasn't been eating, yet her blood sugar has been going up and down for no apparent reason. The vet my aunt has been seeing really isn't an expert in diabetes, and hasn't been a whole lot of help. We've tried different food, insulin adjustments, etc., and we haven't been seeing much of a difference. I'm afraid that this behavior could be slowly killing my dog, please help!

debralong · 05-29-2006

did you ever get an answer. My dog has recently been diagnosed as a diabetic and won't eat. We are in the honeymoon station which means we are in the emergcy clinic every weekend.

Taylor · 05-31-2006

No, we never did. She did start eating though. First it was (raw) meat (no carbs, so it would hopefully level the blood sugar out more) mixed with flax seed, and then she stopped eating it . Then my aunt started grilling the meat (it's a LOT of work), and that's what she's eating now. But my aunt did notice that she was starting to eat some regular dog food two days ago, so she's going to try and slowly wean her off the meat, and see if she'll ever eat regular dog food again. As far as I'm concerned, she never really went through a honeymoon phase; in fact, the vet never told us about it, and we never learned what it was until my sister was diagnosed this year (just a few months after the dog was diagnosed). So, perhaps this could be part of the honeymoon phase?

Taylor · 06-01-2006

Okay. So I was flipping through my sister's Pink Panther Diabetes Book, and found this:

Q: When our son was diagnosed with diabetes, he had been vomiting and had kept no food down for over 24 hours. Yet his blood sugar was over 1,000 mg/dl (55 mmol/L). How could that be when he had not eaten any sugar?

A: Insulin has several actions in the body. One is to alow all (or any) sugar to passs from the blood stream into cells where it can be burned for energy. A second function, which is emphasized in this Pink Panther book, is to shut off the body's own production of sugar (primarily from the liver). When insulin is not available, as in your son at the time of diagnosis, the liver production of sugar can be enormous. This likely accounted for the high blood sugar even though no sugar had been eaten.

So maybe we have a breakthrough? Also, my aunt wanted me to ask you if your dog was/has been on any medications other than insulin at this time. Her/Our dog (Caty) started all of this after she went on a heartworm medication, and we're wondering if this has an effect on her blood sugar, or -now that I found this new information- her liver.

chloe · 10-21-2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by Taylor

My diabetic dog (who lives with my aunt because we got a puppy last summer and already had another dog, so she went to live with her, still live in the same city) hasn't been eating, yet her blood sugar has been going up and down for no apparent reason. The vet my aunt has been seeing really isn't an expert in diabetes, and hasn't been a whole lot of help. We've tried different food, insulin adjustments, etc., and we haven't been seeing much of a difference. I'm afraid that this behavior could be slowly killing my dog, please help!

i just signed up after reading "help my dog wont eat". i went through that for almost 2 years, it was a living nightmare, i was a wreck, i lost weight, no sleep, so frustrating. The 1st year she ate pretty good but her sugar was always wacked out and at the vet twice a week and calling often, i guess he got fed up with us, even though we spent at leat a $100 a week, so he finally tells me to use my own judgement and give her whatever dose of insulin i think!! so we switched vets and he wanted to do a curve ASAP since her level was at 453. When we brought her home, that was it, she stopped eating breakfast, she would eat a cookie or 2 then i could give her a shot. i would 3-4 cans of food, dry food, nothing worked, I would just sit down and cry. Then this past january I tried hard boiled eggs and scrambled with a little bacon bits, sometimes rice and some pasta and it worked and in a couple months she was back to can food again until a few weeks ago, she started snubbing her nose to breakfast again so its back to my old tricks. The problem is that her sugar is wacky again, she hardly sleeps at night and she paces the house for hours, plus she went blind and she's bumping into everything until she finally passes out. The vet says we have to switch to Vetsulin, since her Humulin L is discontinued and I'm scared of this because this means another curve and not eating and trying to get regulated again. Hope this helps alittle. Also anyone out there switch to Vetsulin?

Scenie · 01-13-2007

Hi, My name is Scenie and our 15 year old dog was diagnosed in November with Diabetes. The Vet started him on Vetsulin and the poor fellow has had so many problems since November. He started with no appetite and vomitting and excessive thirsting and frequent urination(uncontrolably). They started giving him 5cc twice a day and gradually got him up to 8cc twice a day and the vet also changed his food right away to W/D. My doggy does not like that food. WHen his insuling level is high he is starving and when it is very low he won't eat and he vomits too no matter if it is high or low. He has lost over 3 lbs since November. This is not good as he is a Chihauhau (sp). We are at the vet's office 3-4 times a week. His insulin this last visit was only 30 so the vet started decreasing his insuling once again and gradully giving it back to him and now we are up to 7cc again. He goes back on Monday to stay all day again so the vet can check his insulin at 11 and again at 3. I think it is just guess work on his part right now. The vet doesn't seem to be very informative on dogs with diabeties. My mother suggested to boil chicken and pull the meat off bones and give it to him (no skin). And to feed him fresh cooked veggies. To treat him just like a diabetic human. I know his vet has referred to his condition as the same as a human. WIll this help or harm him. I don't have a way of checking his insulin to see if it is high or low. I just have to watch his behavior.
I know nothing on dogs with diabeties! Vet has nothing to offer us as far as information goes. Can anyone help by telling us what we can do to help our dog? He nees to eat but we're afraid to give him anything other than W/D. The vet really stresses the fact that he shouldn't eat anything but that. And he sells the stuff.

Thank you for any info you can share. I am very grateful!
Truely,
Scenie

shelley023 · 01-13-2007

I think I would follow what your mom suggested. Diabetes in dogs isn't much different than humans. I don't like a vet suggesting a certain food when they sell it themselves. Make sure you boil the chicken, not roasted,and you can mix white rice with it. A scrambled egg is good also. If your dog still refuses to eat, maybe you could look for a second opinion for the severity of his condition.

carolinababe2007 · 01-13-2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scenie

Can anyone help by telling us what we can do to help our dog? He nees to eat but we're afraid to give him anything other than W/D. The vet really stresses the fact that he shouldn't eat anything but that. And he sells the stuff.
Thank you for any info you can share. I am very grateful!
Truely,
Scenie

HI, I am Pat, I am new to this board, but when i saw u had a diabetic furbaby I wanted to post.

I have a toy poodle her name is Baby she was Dx in Oct of 2002, Just aweek ago she got switched on the insulin she was on, she was taking the human L insulin, well now she is taking the Vetsulin.

With her being a Diabetic my Vet Highly recommends the I/d can food, instead of the w/d, baby use to eat that, but the i/d is alot better for a diabetic furbaby!!! Maybe you could give that a try.

carolinababe2007 · 01-13-2007

The boiled chicken with out the skin would be fine, that is what i had to start baby out on when she was first Dx... My vet told me it was ok to feed her that. but make sure all the skin is OFF, b/c you do not want to give them pancreas problems more than what they already have.

Also you can get the dip urine test sticks that are made by Bayer to check for Glucose in the urine. It is color coded on the bottle. Ihave been using them for years on Baby. It does not give you a straight out reading like ametter would, but it would tell you if it is high, by going by the colors on the bottle, You compare them colors to the color of the urine stick after 30 seconds. Follow me? They are about 10 bucks for 50 count of them, can be found at any drug store. and i normally test baby 3 to 4 times a day.

when she was fist dx her glucose was over 700. she is doing really well now, but since they quit making her human L insulin and we had to go to the Vetsulin we are having to get her regulaed all over again, on the new Insulin.

GoodLuck to you and you're furbaby!

Poohbear · 01-14-2007

Scenie, If you go the chicken and veggie route, make sure to cook and puree the veggies, as a dogs digestive tract cannot deal well with veggies. That way pureed, he will digest alot more.