Joy the Mini-Schnauzer

[Martin]

Hi all, great to have this place to share and learn...I have been learning a lot reading and need some help.

Joy is a 10 year old Mini Schnauzer who has been diagnosed with Diabetes about 3 months ago. We have her with the CGM FreeStyle Libre.

We are giving her 6 units of Insulin twice a day...I am attaching the daily graphs of the last 3 days, which are representative of how her blood sugar has been.







We are feeding her cooked ground beef with squash, fibers and Balance IT.

Her energy levels are good for dog of her age, thirst is good...

What I need to know is if these curves are normal to expect, should I be doing something different?

I am really concerned that she is above 500 maybe 3-4 hours a day...Am I being an "overprotective father"?

Thanks in advance for any input.

Martin

PS: for example now she has been close to 500 for 3 hours...I am waiting to feed her, but isn't there anything I can do when this happens? for example, one question I have is: is it advisable to go for a walk when she is close to 500? Thanks a lot to any direction!

[Daisydog10]

Re: Joy the Mini-Schnauzer

Hello!

Two questions:
What kind of ground beef and how are you cooking it?

I've heard from others that use the Freestyle Libre that it is not accurate and they also need to test their dog with the strips and meter.

One more question- Vetsulin for the insulin?

[Pippi's Mama]

Re: Joy the Mini-Schnauzer

<div> Hi, Martin,

Her blood glucose levels are going way too high and there is too much swing in the curves.

Isn’t the CGM FreeStyle Libre a human meter? If so, her blood glucose levels are probably higher than what the chart is showing. I use a dog glucometer, but do have a human one for backup. My human one reads about 80 points lower than the dog one, so I factor that in when I occasionally use it.

Hamburger meat makes my Pippi’s blood glucose go up, even if I give her a little bite. I think it might be the fat in it. However, every diabetic dog is different. And there are different fat levels in hamburger.

Is Balance IT food a prescription diet? How long has Joy been eating the particular diet you are feeding (Balance IT, hamburger & squash)? Does she get fed only 2x a day right before insulin injections?


You mentioned that Joy is getting 6 units of insulin 2x a day. What brand of insulin? How much does Joy weigh?

Have you shown your vet these high numbers? If so, what does he/she suggest?

[k9diabetes]

Re: Joy the Mini-Schnauzer

I suspect the diet could be improved by adding some carbs.

For many dogs, meals that are primarily protein are not digested quickly enough to match up with their use of insulin. So you get the kinds of ups and downs you are seeing. At breakfast, you feed and inject and the insulin immediately starts dropping her blood sugar, long before she's digested any of the food.

Then, when she does digest the food, there's not much insulin circulating to go with it and the blood sugar rises sharply.

The best curve is the flattest curve possible. That allows you to give the tightest regulation. Plus she will feel better when she isn't going through such sharp drops and spikes.

Plus, 6 units could be too much.
- How much does she weigh?
- What kind of insulin is she being given - NPH, Vetsulin, other?
- Is she getting two meals and injections per day?

We can be more helpful if you can fill us in on the details.

I see lots of vets are using continuous glucose monitors. I don't think much is known about how well they work with canine blood. There are differences that affect the accuracy of monitors meant for humans. But you can still see the patterns and that the blood sugar is going through sharp drops and rises that you want to level out.

But we need more information about what she's getting when, how much she weighs, etc. to know if the insulin dose is concerning.

Natalie