New member need advice for my pup

[BebeGirl]

Hey everyone after hours of research I've stumbled upon this amazing forum -
Here is my situation.

My dog Bebe is a 12 year old 30lb Oripei and we've been treating her diabetes for about a year or so now. Last week was the roughest time her life.. She was non-stop vomiting, uncontrolled diarrhea, wouldn't eat, very lethargic, and urinated all over the house. We ended up taking her to the emergency room where she was treated for early stages of ketoacidosis (most likely from complications of her diabetes). She was then treated with fluids and medication which completely turned everything around. Now she is eating on a bland diet (white rice and ground beef) and is currently taking 10 mL of insulin twice a day. However, she continues to frequently drink lots of water and urinate. It has been getting out of control. Do you think it's the insulin intake or the diet that is contributing to the frequent urination and water intake? Any advice would be highly appreciated. It has been a stressful time for the family and we want to get her diabetes under control. Thanks!

[Daisydog10]

Re: New member need advice for my pup

Do you home test?

[Raysaint]

Re: New member need advice for my pup

If she had ketoacidosis, then her blood sugar was way high. So it may take a bit of time for her body to reregulate. And rice is very high in carbs.

Any idea why her sugar got so high? And how many syringe units is 10ml?

[BebeGirl]

Re: New member need advice for my pup

Do you home test?

I currently do not home test. I did see a lot of people using the Alphatrak2 for home testing which I'm going to purchase. Is it recommended to home test on a daily basis? I'm not familiar with home testing as we've always taken Bebe to the vet for any testing she needed.

[BebeGirl]

Re: New member need advice for my pup

If she had ketoacidosis, then her blood sugar was way high. So it may take a bit of time for her body to reregulate. And rice is very high in carbs.

Any idea why her sugar got so high? And how many syringe units is 10ml?

I was surprised she bounced back so quickly after the ketoacidosis flare up last week, we really thought we lost her. Also, would brown rice be a better option? I'm trying to find an optimal diet that is low on sugar, following the bland diet recommended by the vet.

No idea how her sugar got so high. Her symptoms started out of nowhere. And sorry for the confusion - she's receiving 10 syringe units (twice daily). I really appreciate all the input, this has been both mentally and emotionally exhausting for the family. But she's on the right track, the main concern with her is the frequent urination and excess water drinking.

[jesse girl]

Re: New member need advice for my pup

Well do you know how well your dog was controlled as far as blood sugar (regulated ) ? Did your vet do complete curves ( testing blood sugar every couple hours for 10 to 12 hours in a day ) every week or two till your dog diabetes was controlled ( regulated )

It sounds like your dog wasn't monitored very well and the reason for the DKA .You do want to get your dog out of higher numbers and must have been pretty hi to have to be hospitalized and so sick Which is unusual to see for a dog that has been receiving insulin for a year .

Usually the bland diet is more of a pancreatitis diagnosis which tries to give the pancreas a bit of rest with food that is easy to digest . Did they say that also was in the picture ? What did the vet say on this bland diet ? How long is bebe suppose to eat it and what will she transition back to ? Lots of questions I know .

Well I agree on home testing . This would have never happened if your vet suggested you do it . Lots of information on the site about that . Its time for you to take control of bebes health . Its a bit of a learning curve but once accomplished its no big deal .

[BebeGirl]

Re: New member need advice for my pup

Well do you know how well your dog was controlled as far as blood sugar (regulated ) ? Did your vet do complete curves ( testing blood sugar every couple hours for 10 to 12 hours in a day ) every week or two till your dog diabetes was controlled ( regulated )

It sounds like your dog wasn't monitored very well and the reason for the DKA .You do want to get your dog out of higher numbers and must have been pretty hi to have to be hospitalized and so sick Which is unusual to see for a dog that has been receiving insulin for a year .

Usually the bland diet is more of a pancreatitis diagnosis which tries to give the pancreas a bit of rest with food that is easy to digest . Did they say that also was in the picture ? What did the vet say on this bland diet ? How long is bebe suppose to eat it and what will she transition back to ? Lots of questions I know .

Well I agree on home testing . This would have never happened if your vet suggested you do it . Lots of information on the site about that . Its time for you to take control of bebes health . Its a bit of a learning curve but once accomplished its no big deal .

When she was hospitalized last weekend the vet was able to regulate her blood sugar well and upped her insulin intake from 12 to 14 units. And yes the vet did do a complete curve at the hospital just for the day, but never mentioned anything about performing it every week or 2 until the diabetes was controlled.

I'll be honest we haven't monitored Bebe's blood glucose levels up until now. Only during vet visits would she get her blood glucose measured.

Pancreatitis is another issue that was brought to my attention during her hospitalization, hence the bland diet. As far as the bland diet goes - the vet recommended we feed a bland diet for the next few days then transition back to her regular dry food.

And home testing was never an option provided by the vet, I only learned about it through you guys here and researching online. I will be making a follow up appointment with my vet to get clarification on how to properly regulate her blood glucose levels going forward. This certainly has been a learning curve - especially trying to get the entire family on board with the consistency required for this disease.

[jesse girl]

Re: New member need advice for my pup

A diagnosis of ketoacidosis and pancreatitis are quite different in respect to each other . Usually a dog would need to see very high numbers Maybe 500s and higher for a period of time which should have manifested in ever worsening symptoms starting with high volumes of drinking water and urinating ( symptoms of uncontrolled diabetes )

Now Pancreatitis can come on quickly and symptoms of both can be similar .

Now here is where you have to be observant. numbers may have been temporarily higher do to the situation leaning more to pancreatitis . So that higher dose to combat that may not be needed as the pancreas heals and the dose may return to its original amount

Now they do have a test for pancreatitis . high ketones tested for can determine DKA

Glad bebe is doing better but it maybe a bit of time to fully recover

[Raysaint]

Re: New member need advice for my pup

Brown rice is a better option. As for home testing, you need to do it because the increased dose of insulin may be too much. And being you’ll go back to the other food, that will change blood sugars again.

Some vets just don’t want to lose the control or the fee for all your visits. Take a lesson from Nike, just do it!
Testing at home lets you adjust as needed, to make steady progress.

[amydunn19]

Re: New member need advice for my pup

Some vets aren’t in favor of home testing. The reasons I have heard are varied but are not really good enough not to do it. I simply didn’t give the vet a choice. Initially, our first vet said no monitoring was necessary. Unfortunately, she had no idea what she was doing and had an 11 lb dog on 9 units of insulin, grossly overdosed. Luckily, after a seizure from low blood sugar, I was able to straighten it out with some jelly, and I decided right then that I would find another vet and test at home. I had a friend who recommended a local vet who was also an internal med specialist. I told him in the beginning that I was home testing and It was not negotiable. He had never had a client who wanted to do it but he made me a deal. I had to promise him I wouldn’t make insulin adjustments without his approval. From that point on, we were a great team and within a couple of months, he told me that I didn’t have to call him every time. He was 100 percent confident in my decision making.

Some vets don’t want anyone taking initiative, some are afraid you might freak out when you see a low or a high and just randomly start adjusting before understanding how diabetes and insulin work. My vet always felt like his clients would be afraid of tackling it or wouldn’t want to put the effort and commitment into it. He even had some that he felt the dog was lucky that the owners were willing to buy insulin, that they would just say euthanize than do all the work. Whatever the reasoning, not “allowing” clients to home test is depriving them and their dog of a wonderful tool. Maggie would have died without home testing - she was too inconsistent and opposite of normal that controlling her diabetes without it would have been impossible.