K9Diabetes in Australia

[Judi]

Welcome! My Jenny started out with Cushings and Diabetes. We overdid her cushings meds so now she has the opposite problem, low cortisol and has to take prednisone.

If your dog has cushings, he may need more insulin to get regulated but it is very very difficult to get a real cushings diagnosis while their diabetes is running rampant.

Cushings is a very very slow moving disease and all the medication does is alleviate the symptoms. So, if he isn't incontinent, ravenously hungry, looking for a cool place to lie down and/or have really bad skin and hair, I'd hold off on any cushings testing also.

Jenny originally used the W/D food and it worked really well to get her regulated. hang in there and welcome again!

[Cebe]

Originally Posted by Patty

Welcome to you and Cosmo!
I only have a minute right now but wanted to say that it can actually be difficult to diagnose Cushings in the presence of diabetes, so working on the diabetes first is the right step. Cushings is a slowly progressing disease and the medications are not to be taken lightly. I'd see if you can regulate first as you are doing.

Glad you're starting on protaphane.

Patty

Thanks for correcting me on this Patty! Don't know enough about it to comment, and I'm glad you do!

[k9diabetes]

Hi and Welcome!

We have a few Aussies here

Are you testing Cosmo's blood sugar at home?

What are his levels like?

Has he had a full blood glucose curve done recently?

Although it sounds like an eternity when you're in the middle of this process, 8-9 weeks is not an unusual amount of time to still be fine tuning regulaiton. Some dogs luck out and the right dose is found faster, but not all that often.

The cataracts probably got started before he was diagnosed. Dogs generally handle blindness incredibly well and adjust quickly to the change, especially if the cataracts come on gradually as it seems his have. Our dog was not a good candidate for cataract surgery and he was blind four of his five years as a diabetic. Most people who saw him out wading at the edge of the river, walking on trails, etc. did not realize he was blind.

Natalie

Originally Posted by rustyangel

Hi I have been reading some of the posts in the last few days and I have to admit I am so overwhelmed with all the information. Unfortunately this are done a little different here, my boy Cosmo is 13 yrs old and was diagnosed about 8/9 weeks ago.
We have had a lot of problems getting his blood glucose to an acceptable level, and not quite there yet.
10 days ago he started to bump into things and find his treats and of course he has cataracts, they are not covering his eyes completely yet.
We have decided not to have them removed surgically, because Cosmo has many health issues and even though he is 13 im sure his body is feeling much older.
We know he has liver and kidney damage from medication he has to take for Epilepsy, he was 18 months when diagnosed,and it's more than likely he has Cushing's Disease.
At this time we are just trying to regulate him and see what happens from there, so I would love to hear from anyone, but if there is anyone from Australia willing to comment...I would be grateful

[BestBuddy]

Did someone call for an Aussie?

Hi,

My Buddy has been gone for several years now but he lived with diabetes for over 6 years and was 16yo when he passed away. He was about 4kg and was on 4iu of NPH insulin. We had a few moves during this time and each of our vets did things differently. Most of them never encouraged or even suggested we home test BG levels but when we finally did it on our own it was a revelation. We had so much more knowledge and control.

Buddy also has cushings the last few years and that was another journey, he also went blind. Up until his last day he had a dog worthy life and enjoyed his life.

You are at the beginning of a journey and I hope it goes smoothly. There are a few hints I can give about where you get your insulin and needles etc. if you would like when you get over this shock stage.

Jenny

[Rubytuesday]

Originally Posted by rustyangel

Cosmo is 8.3 kgs, he is on 0.07 protaphane, at the moment he is taking wd dry and wet food and sometimes, homecooked vegetables, minced meat ( turkey,veal) and cottage cheese, and occassionally sardines. knowing an Australian does count, we are a different breed by all accounts

One thing that can go a long way in the regulation process is weighing the food, even the individual amounts of each thing, as each ingredients will affect the bg numbers differently.

If your dog isn't a finicky eater I would try to make it easy and pick one combination and stick with it until regulated.

[Shellie]

Hi! Just wanted to toss in my welcome to the forum to you and your pup! Glad you found us here and hope we can help you out!

Think eveyrone has covered the questions we always like to ask...weight, etc so I'll just say that you're doing well and that this IS a long term thing so don't expect perfection right off. Sometimes we get lucky and sometimes it just takes time. You'll hear, 'every dog is different' around here a lot but we all have our love of our babies in common!

Take a deep breath and take care!

[rustyangel]

Hi Jenny, any information that makes it easier, especially the way its done in Australia, I'm feeling very overwhelmed and Cosmo is not really responding well. Since he has started to loose his sight he has totally lost in confidence and when he makes a mistake in direction, he seems to lose his sense of direction completely.
I hear what everyone is saying about home testing, but not sure how to work out what food he would then need or amount of insulin he would need.
To be honest i'm concerned about his mental health i guess, he has about 4 blood curves done, and has to go for another soon, i don;t really want to take him at the moment while his confidence is so low.

Hi,


My Buddy has been gone for several years now but he lived with diabetes for over 6 years and was 16yo when he passed away. He was about 4kg and was on 4iu of NPH insulin. We had a few moves during this time and each of our vets did things differently. Most of them never encouraged or even suggested we home test BG levels but when we finally did it on our own it was a revelation. We had so much more knowledge and control.

Buddy also has cushings the last few years and that was another journey, he also went blind. Up until his last day he had a dog worthy life and enjoyed his life.

You are at the beginning of a journey and I hope it goes smoothly. There are a few hints I can give about where you get your insulin and needles etc. if you would like when you get over this shock stage.

Jenny

[Judi]

Hi: 2 quick things I'd like to comment on for you:

1. I'd leave his food alone and just work on his insulin for now. If you change too many things at once you can wind up not knowing what is working and it is a mess.

2. Jenny lost her vision around 9/1/2011. It took her 4 to 6 weeks to get her confidence back so I understand what you are saying. I have a little fenced in doggy area in my backyard and she seemed more comfortable out there because her nose could guide her.

Now? she is a champ getting around the house. I clap and tell her I am picking her up so I don't startle her but my husband and other dog constantly leave shoes or toys in areas where she is not expecting them. On good days, she sees a shadow and goes around them, on bad days, she trips and moves on.

She still loves to hunt for squirrels, bark at the neighbors, bark at the wind and walk outside.

hang in there. hugs, Judi (who is not know for brevity lol)

[rustyangel]

Thanks Judy, that helps a lot about the blindness, we are trying to do things to make finding his way easier, like blocking off under the bed, he seems to get lost under there in the middle of the night.

Originally Posted by Judi

Hi: 2 quick things I'd like to comment on for you:





1. I'd leave his food alone and just work on his insulin for now. If you change too many things at once you can wind up not knowing what is working and it is a mess.

2. Jenny lost her vision around 9/1/2011. It took her 4 to 6 weeks to get her confidence back so I understand what you are saying. I have a little fenced in doggy area in my backyard and she seemed more comfortable out there because her nose could guide her.

Now? she is a champ getting around the house. I clap and tell her I am picking her up so I don't startle her but my husband and other dog constantly leave shoes or toys in areas where she is not expecting them. On good days, she sees a shadow and goes around them, on bad days, she trips and moves on.

She still loves to hunt for squirrels, bark at the neighbors, bark at the wind and walk outside.

hang in there. hugs, Judi (who is not know for brevity lol)

[k9diabetes]

I agree - it's generally not an instant adjustment. It takes them a few weeks to months usually to adapt.

I remember vividly a tiny little Yorkie who lost her vision in the dead of winter and had to navigate a set of steps and snow drifts bigger than she was to go out and potty. Her person pretty much told us we were CRAZY when we said that she would likely adjust and figure things out. She all but slapped us!

But that little Yorkie did in fact figure things out and got on with her life, including roaming their acreage and playing with her housemates.

No question that some dogs do better with it than others. But in my eight years on forums for diabetic dogs, I've seen the vast majority of them work things out and go on and be happy and do most of what they used to do.

Very important to "child" proof their environment. Block access to swimming pools and sharp pointed objects. When our dog went blind, we had a glass-topped table with a sharp corner right at eye level, so we put a big throw pillow in front of it. And shortly after our dog's second attempt to jump up onto the bed and miss.... we put the mattress and box spring on the floor so he could climb up instead of jump. Got him a ramp to get into our SUV.
Those were the major adjustments. He was 62 pounds so medium to large size. Pet ramps and stairs can be very helpful. And if you have a two story house, you may have to block the stairs, especially if an open stairwell. Going up isn't necessarily a problem, but coming down can be, especially before they have worked out the layout of things.

Natalie