underweight diabetic dog and food

[rocketdog]

Hello! Rocket is a 13yo shepeard mix who was found diabetic about a month ago. He's around 50lbs, which is roughly 25lbs lighter than he was before being diagnosed. He's pretty frail, and he doesn't eat that much. He's on insulin, around 11 units every 12 hours.

The food we're currently feeding him is Hill's Science Diet H/T. I've been thinking about switching to another kind of food since we're mainly concerned about his weight and want him to eat more (especially since when he doesn't eat, we can't give him a shot), but I'm reluctant too since I don't know his levels at home and how much a new diet would affect them. He also has a tendency to lick his lips quite often, which my vet has told me is him feeling nauseous. He's thrown up once.

Any suggestions overall? Kinds of dog foods and treats? Any tricks to get him to eat more? Thanks!

[Raysaint]

Re: underweight diabetic dog and food

Generally once a dog, or a human, starts to get their blood sugar under control and regulated, they will gain some or most of the weight back.
My concern with your description is getting him checked for pancreatitis, which diminishes their appetite, causes nausea and vomiting. If he has it, he needs treatment now. No tricks or treats will overcome that.
Pancreatitis seems to be one of those concurrent conditions that affects many diabetics.

[CraigM]

Re: underweight diabetic dog and food

Have you tried home blood testing? Most on the forum test at home and find it more convenient and accurate than the frequent trips to the vet clinic. You said he is on 10 units per injection. That is a common starting dosage for a 50 pounder. What dosage was he started at, and how frequently has his dose been adjusted over the past year?

Increasing / changing food might not do much for his weight if his blood glucose is high out-of-control. Basically, without proper insulin the food is converted to glucose (high blood glucose) but isn't used by the body's cells and is expelled in the urine. I'm not familiar with Hills H/T, I'll take a look at it in a few minutes.

Craig

[CraigM]

Re: underweight diabetic dog and food

I couldn't find anything about Hills H/T, could it be H/D?

[rocketdog]

Re: underweight diabetic dog and food

Oops, sorry it's actually Hill's W/D. I always get the letters confused.

Concerning his insulin dosage, we've only started giving him insulin within the past month since he was diagnosed. He's been steady on 11 units.

I definitely want to look into home blood testing as a money saving cost. I've read a bit about it but have yet to make the jump.

Regarding pancreatitis, our vet didn't seem to think that was an issue. I'll be keeping an eye on him for any other symptoms concerning this.

[Daisydog10]

Re: underweight diabetic dog and food

Daisy was diagnosed in January and has been losing weight. I recently upped her food intake and soon realized how a slight change in food can radically change her BG levels to the point of re regulation of insulin.

Daisy has only had one curve at the vet when she was first diagnosed and I am so thankful I test and do curves at home- for her sake. I can catch any lows that need to be addressed immediately and adjust the highs and believe me, we've had them all.

I think you'll be much more at ease home testing.

[CraigM]

Re: underweight diabetic dog and food

Oops, I misread your post and thought Rocket was diagnosed one year, not one month ago.

Many vets go for w/d, or one of the other "diabetic" formulas. Many folks say they work well for diabetes, but they are also a weight control type of food. It may be hard to gain weight on this type of food. w/d is 240 kcals per cup of kibble, whereas the kibble of normal food may be 350-400 kcals per cup. The diabetic foods are also high in fiber (a good thing in general), but have you noticed the size of Rockets poop?! Huge!

I started on another brand of diabetic food, but after several months I reverted to a more traditional, non prescription, food because my Annie was loosing weight.

Are you scheduled to return to the vet for an insulin adjustment? Most want to evaluate / adjust every week or two. There is a good chance Rocked needs a higher dosage, but you won't know without a blood test. Just as an example, my 18 pounder is getting 9 units. You do have to remember that every dog / situation is different, so every dog will need a different dosage.

Which insulin are you using?

Craig

[Raysaint]

Re: underweight diabetic dog and food

Oops, sorry it's actually Hill's W/D. I always get the letters confused.

Concerning his insulin dosage, we've only started giving him insulin within the past month since he was diagnosed. He's been steady on 11 units.

I definitely want to look into home blood testing as a money saving cost. I've read a bit about it but have yet to make the jump.

Regarding pancreatitis, our vet didn't seem to think that was an issue. I'll be keeping an eye on him for any other symptoms concerning this.

I don't think your vet should just guess about pancreatitis. It's a simple test they can do in their clinic with results right away. It needs to be taken seriously and why not know for sure.

[jesse girl]

Re: underweight diabetic dog and food

actually we had a member diagnosed (decker ) with pancreatitis with no symptoms but came up positive

my jesse had a sever bout and it almost took her from us