Puppy and Diabetes help

[shay90]

Hello,

I recently found this website and I'm looking for any and all advice. My 6 month old female was just diagnosed with diabetes. Her vet and all the other vets in the building have never seen this in a dog so young and have basically told me I won't have long with her. They spayed her yesterday hoping it will help. They do not make diabetic puppy food, so the experts they called said to add metamucil into her puppy food. She has been given insulin but not started it yet, as she was just spayed yesterday and they wanted me to wait a day. She eventually will be on 2 units per day. I have the pee strips to test her and last nights results were very low and promising, but it is higher today

If anyone has any information or advice, that would be great.

[k9diabetes]

Re: Puppy and Diabetes help

Juvenile diabetes in dogs isn't very common but we have seen a handful of puppies with diabetes over the years - and there's no reason to think it means that your puppy won't grow up and have a good long life.

I strongly encourage you to learn to test her blood sugar at home.

The big challenge with puppies is that their insulin needs tend to constantly increase as they grow and it's hard to know whether you are giving the right amount without testing blood sugar.

Also, testing blood sugar lets you know if it's low, something you can't do with urine strips.

There are a couple of pet meters - AlphaTrak is one, I forget the name of the newer one but hope another member will mention it.

And if you want to use a human meter, I recommend the OneTouch Ultra because it most consistently gives close to actual readings in dogs.

You can see tutorials on how to get a blood drop at www.k9diabetes.com/bgtestvideos.html - many different sites on the body you can use.

And I have a few links to prior members whose dogs were diagnosed as puppies.

http://www.k9diabetes.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6259

http://www.k9diabetes.com/forum/show...light=juvenile

http://www.k9diabetes.com/forum/show...light=juvenile

http://www.k9diabetes.com/forum/show...light=juvenile

http://www.k9diabetes.com/forum/show...light=juvenile

As you can see, we have seen quite a few puppy diabetics here.

Natalie

[jesse girl]

Re: Puppy and Diabetes help

hi and welcome

i think all the puppies did well that were on the forum that i have seen

there is no reason why your pup cant have a long happy and normal life with maybe some limitations

to have success its up to you to do all the heavy lifting as natalie sugested that starts with testing blood sugar at home . urine testing is ok but it doesnt give the specific information you need as your puppy grows

the spay was a good idea and yes some dogs can return to not being diabetic but there isnt a large percentage of them

i would dismiss the account that your puppy will have a difficult time to survive. from what we have seen on the forum thats just not true

[shay90]

Re: Puppy and Diabetes help

Thank you for all the helpful information! This makes me feel a little bit better and gives me some sort of starting point.

[Zeva.the.Fierce]

Re: Puppy and Diabetes help

Good morning, I am new here, and also have a border collie puppy, Zeva, diagnosed about a month ago (at 4 months of age) She has only been on insulin for 2 weeks.

The only solid info I have to share at this point is on food. I have done a lot of research, and surprisingly, or maybe not, most food labeled as "diabetic or diabetic friendly" is still filled with simple carbohydrates...I have looked at a lot of foods and have found Only Natural Pet to be a great low carb, high protein, grain free, affordable food. I am feeding 'Wholesome Homemade Dehydrated stew' with a little added 'Power kibble' for crunch. https://www.onlynaturalpet.com/produ...od/999795.aspx high animal protein and they use lentils and Garbonzo beans for added protein, they are complex carbs and low glycemic. The stew also has chia seeds for a good fiber source, although I may supplement a little more fiber to her diet soon.

I did raw for about a week while I was waiting for food to arrive and before we started treatment. Since she is so young, and this is SUPER rare, they wanted more diagnostics to rule out other issues before starting insulin. She dropping weight so fast and was nothing but skin and bones, something had to change! The raw diet made a HUGE difference for her, and she had been on grain free food. I am planning on switching back to a raw diet once she is done growing. I want to make sure she gets a very balanced diet while I getting this figured out.

I just ordered a AlphaTrax2 glucometer and it should be here on Tuesday.

With a growing puppy, I think monitoring is going to be key. Its $120 to do a gluclose curve with the vet, and they want to do it every 2-3 weeks...I have read that urine strips give a very general reading, and many variables can affect the test, but I have no personal experience. We just did a gluclose curve at the vets on Thursday,and she still has high blood sugar, but her water consumption is fairly normal.

Many vets use only this for "indication of control" If your vet says that is an accurate indication, it could be, but may not. I'm starting to think puppies are going to be somewhat different than the typical older dog that most vets are use to working with. We also have Zeva's litter mate, who is very healthy, she has been a helpful comparison for activity level and water. I want to get her stable and back to normal weight so she can be spayed in February.

I am excited, not that your pup has diabetes, but to find another person with a young puppy to share experiences. There is almost no information available for controlling diabetic puppies, even my vet has confessed I know as much as she does...but she is in contact with a specialist, who in 30 years of practice has only had 2 puppies diagnosed. I live and work on a cattle ranch, Zeva is going to be a fantastic working dog, showing amazing ability at 5 months. I know she wont be able to be a "normal" dog, but my hope is to let her do what she was born to do.

[shay90]

Re: Puppy and Diabetes help

Good morning, I am new here, and also have a border collie puppy, Zeva, diagnosed about a month ago (at 4 months of age) She has only been on insulin for 2 weeks.

The only solid info I have to share at this point is on food. I have done a lot of research, and surprisingly, or maybe not, most food labeled as "diabetic or diabetic friendly" is still filled with simple carbohydrates...I have looked at a lot of foods and have found Only Natural Pet to be a great low carb, high protein, grain free, affordable food. I am feeding 'Wholesome Homemade Dehydrated stew' with a little added 'Power kibble' for crunch. https://www.onlynaturalpet.com/produ...od/999795.aspx high animal protein and they use lentils and Garbonzo beans for added protein, they are complex carbs and low glycemic. The stew also has chia seeds for a good fiber source, although I may supplement a little more fiber to her diet soon.

I did raw for about a week while I was waiting for food to arrive and before we started treatment. Since she is so young, and this is SUPER rare, they wanted more diagnostics to rule out other issues before starting insulin. She dropping weight so fast and was nothing but skin and bones, something had to change! The raw diet made a HUGE difference for her, and she had been on grain free food. I am planning on switching back to a raw diet once she is done growing. I want to make sure she gets a very balanced diet while I getting this figured out.

I just ordered a AlphaTrax2 glucometer and it should be here on Tuesday.

With a growing puppy, I think monitoring is going to be key. Its $120 to do a gluclose curve with the vet, and they want to do it every 2-3 weeks...I have read that urine strips give a very general reading, and many variables can affect the test, but I have no personal experience. We just did a gluclose curve at the vets on Thursday,and she still has high blood sugar, but her water consumption is fairly normal.

Many vets use only this for "indication of control" If your vet says that is an accurate indication, it could be, but may not. I'm starting to think puppies are going to be somewhat different than the typical older dog that most vets are use to working with. We also have Zeva's litter mate, who is very healthy, she has been a helpful comparison for activity level and water. I want to get her stable and back to normal weight so she can be spayed in February.

I am excited, not that your pup has diabetes, but to find another person with a young puppy to share experiences. There is almost no information available for controlling diabetic puppies, even my vet has confessed I know as much as she does...but she is in contact with a specialist, who in 30 years of practice has only had 2 puppies diagnosed. I live and work on a cattle ranch, Zeva is going to be a fantastic working dog, showing amazing ability at 5 months. I know she wont be able to be a "normal" dog, but my hope is to let her do what she was born to do.

Oh wow I am also excited to find someone going through the same thing! I am currently deciding on what meter to go with and I'm getting a lot of mixed reviews. I was told not to give my pup anything but her dog food mixed with metamucil and green beans (which she HATES..refuses to eat them). Someone just recommended on using husk powder instead as it doesn't have the additives.

[Zeva.the.Fierce]

Re: Puppy and Diabetes help

Hope things are going well for you and your pup. I just received our Alpha Trak2 meter last night and did our first test this morning. I am to do a curve today and call my vet this evening.

Growing up our family had Great Danes (and border collies) and I had a retired Borzoi (randomly met a breeder who decided I needed one of her dogs) We fed a raw diet for many year, veggies can be tricky. How are you preparing the green beans? Dogs have a hard time digesting veggies, if you can run them thru a food processor to make a paste, she might be more likely to eat them. The extra fiber will help a bit with feeling full and wont affect blood sugar. Unfortunately since dogs have only type 1 diabetes, it wont help as much as it would for a cat with type 2. If your food is not low carb, you wont get diabetes under control without massive amounts of insulin. What dog food are you feeding? Most foods that are low carb, are also higher protein, and are labeled for all life stages.

[Scooterspal]

Re: Puppy and Diabetes help

... I was told not to give my pup anything but her dog food mixed with metamucil and green beans (which she HATES..refuses to eat them). Someone just recommended on using husk powder instead as it doesn't have the additives.

I know I must sound like a broken record to the regulars here by now... but try substituting plain Old Fashion Quaker Oats for the Metamucil and beans... with your vets permission, of course,

Add 1 tablespoon per four pounds of weight (max of 4 to 5 tbsp) to each meal, mixed well. Dry, right out of the container.

[Raysaint]

Re: Puppy and Diabetes help

Green beans are low in carbs but have great nutrients for their eyes. I'd leave the green beans in, and just add fiber and carbs like oats or brown rice or whatever.

[Scooterspal]

Re: Puppy and Diabetes help

Green beans are low in carbs but have great nutrients for their eyes. I'd leave the green beans in, and just add fiber and carbs like oats or brown rice or whatever.

One of the Cesar food packets I used to give to Scooter had peas in it. Maybe a dozen or so. When he finished, I'd find the peas all in a neat pile in one corner of the otherwise cleaned bowl.

You might try using one of those small food processors to pulverize the green beans first, then mix them in.

[Raysaint]

Re: Puppy and Diabetes help

Yes, pureeing the veggies makes it easier to mix into their food. I put the cooked green beans and steamed spinach into the food processor with a little water if needed, and then freeze Glad bowls of the puree.

[Teenarn1956]

Re: Puppy and Diabetes help

I have a GSD puppy who was diagnosed 12 weeks with juvenile diabetes. She has been a worry and we are doing everything we can. She is 21 pounds now at 16 weeks. Presently on Levemir 1 unit bid. Her sugars are still high. We've done several glucose curves her lowest at 139 six hours after morning dose. She is on Royal Canin development with a grain free kibble. I'm looking for any suggestions on regulating her. She is so sweet we love her.

[k9diabetes]

Re: Puppy and Diabetes help

Bringing this thread forward for a newly diagnosed puppy.

Natalie