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Name: Victoria
Breed: PWD
Age: 11 ½ years young
Weight: 55 lbs
Diagnosed Diabetic: 12/26/11
Type of Insulin: Humulin N (now Walmart) 12 units twice daily
Diet: Homemade Chick, Barley, Lentils, Veggies & Chickpeas / 1 lb & ½ can W/D twice daily
Testing: Urine only
Here's our story – long and confusing but maybe someone can offer advice how to get this under control and what I may be doing wrong
In early December 2011 we thought our girl was slowing down, becoming stubborn, perhaps even exhibiting dementia. We live in New England where ticks are prevalent and she has been bitten by many this past season. We do not use topical repellant, just not convinced that it would not poison her as well as the ticks so have become pros at tick removal. We brought her to a holistic vet to have her tested for lyme disease (snap test) and the results came back positive for lyme and anaplasmosis. The vet was not convinced that she truly had the disease and put off medicating with doxycycline only to do an exam and manipulate her hind quarters and also to start her on Adequan. This was 12/10/11. She needed three more doses of Adequan 7-10 days apart so went back on 12/20 for next dose. No real changes – just a little stiff but figured old age setting in. Christmas Eve she was acting off and for the first time did not want to eat or drink anything. She went off to another room while we were getting ready to leave – totally unlike our “Velcro” dog. We came back in a couple of hours to find our living room was like a small pond. She had leaked previously – first time diagnosed with urinary infection about a year earlier and more recently in October while on vacation & we assumed it was just being in a new place. The day after Christmas we got her to her regular vet first thing and did blood panels, and urine were down only to show BG at 476. Also discovered giardia so she was put on Panacur for ten days and 7 units Humulin N BID. She had lost 7 pounds in two weeks. We were told to feed 4 cans W/D daily along with probiotics. Not being able to afford 250.00/month to feed her in addition to all the other costs we started making our own approx 1/3 chick breast/ 1/3 pearl barley & 1/3 veggies, chickpeas & pumpkin. Only testing urine her numbers weren’t looking great and she was not gaining – she was also falling up and down the stairs – looked just awful. Really began to suspect that the tick borne diseases were compromising her health as well and with some support from others I advocated getting her put on doxycycline for what turned out to be one month 2 tablets BID. After about a week we noticed some improvement in her mobility and activity levels. Finished meds by end of January and all has been like a rollercoaster since.
Her numbers via urine go from several days of negatives (no color change) to between 500-1000. Insulin raised twice since 9.5 units for about six weeks and then just last weekend things got bad, tested 650 BG at the vet, drinking quite a bit, a few accidents, goop in her eyes, first yellow/green, then after compresses with warm water, just goop, but constantly rubbing her eyes all over everything – even gets up in the middle of the night to do so. Vet tested for dry eye and said they were fine, recommended saline eye drops as needed. Her pattern is feeding and insulin around 7am & 7 pm, we are pretty consistent with that – vet just upped insulin to 12 units and increased her food 200 calories per day now about 1300 calories. Our mixture is pretty consistent, only the composition of veggies may change. She has a habit of waking around 11:30 pm to drink, rub eyes and bark to go out. Since vet implemented these changes numbers went down between 100 -250 and then several days negative only to be back up to 500+ the past two days. Also, we are very concerned that she is quite wobbly on her feet esp. when standing still. She can walk just fine – even run, but standing still is a challenge to where she frequently will topple over.
If anyone has any suggestions as to diet & calories, insulin, how and where to take blood (we tried along with two vets and a tech who couldn’t do it in our presence) what type and size lancet, and to explain why when she was first diagnosed her BG was much lower than when treated with insulin. Also, does anyone have any idea whether Adequan or the tick borne disease could have compromised her pancreas. This whole thing is just way too strange the way it came about.
I sometimes feel like I am fighting a losing battle and can’t get any control, as soon as things look good, no sooner do they look bad. If I were to plot her good and bad days it almost seems she starts out pretty well beginning of week and goes off the charts after Thursdays. I am open to any and all suggestions or questions. She is the best, most beautiful dog otherwise along with all of yours and I just want to keep her stable.
Thank you for reading my very long post and for the info you have all posted for others. Hoping to be able to blood test soon.
Amy & Victoria
Breed: PWD
Age: 11 ½ years young
Weight: 55 lbs
Diagnosed Diabetic: 12/26/11
Type of Insulin: Humulin N (now Walmart) 12 units twice daily
Diet: Homemade Chick, Barley, Lentils, Veggies & Chickpeas / 1 lb & ½ can W/D twice daily
Testing: Urine only
Here's our story – long and confusing but maybe someone can offer advice how to get this under control and what I may be doing wrong
In early December 2011 we thought our girl was slowing down, becoming stubborn, perhaps even exhibiting dementia. We live in New England where ticks are prevalent and she has been bitten by many this past season. We do not use topical repellant, just not convinced that it would not poison her as well as the ticks so have become pros at tick removal. We brought her to a holistic vet to have her tested for lyme disease (snap test) and the results came back positive for lyme and anaplasmosis. The vet was not convinced that she truly had the disease and put off medicating with doxycycline only to do an exam and manipulate her hind quarters and also to start her on Adequan. This was 12/10/11. She needed three more doses of Adequan 7-10 days apart so went back on 12/20 for next dose. No real changes – just a little stiff but figured old age setting in. Christmas Eve she was acting off and for the first time did not want to eat or drink anything. She went off to another room while we were getting ready to leave – totally unlike our “Velcro” dog. We came back in a couple of hours to find our living room was like a small pond. She had leaked previously – first time diagnosed with urinary infection about a year earlier and more recently in October while on vacation & we assumed it was just being in a new place. The day after Christmas we got her to her regular vet first thing and did blood panels, and urine were down only to show BG at 476. Also discovered giardia so she was put on Panacur for ten days and 7 units Humulin N BID. She had lost 7 pounds in two weeks. We were told to feed 4 cans W/D daily along with probiotics. Not being able to afford 250.00/month to feed her in addition to all the other costs we started making our own approx 1/3 chick breast/ 1/3 pearl barley & 1/3 veggies, chickpeas & pumpkin. Only testing urine her numbers weren’t looking great and she was not gaining – she was also falling up and down the stairs – looked just awful. Really began to suspect that the tick borne diseases were compromising her health as well and with some support from others I advocated getting her put on doxycycline for what turned out to be one month 2 tablets BID. After about a week we noticed some improvement in her mobility and activity levels. Finished meds by end of January and all has been like a rollercoaster since.
Her numbers via urine go from several days of negatives (no color change) to between 500-1000. Insulin raised twice since 9.5 units for about six weeks and then just last weekend things got bad, tested 650 BG at the vet, drinking quite a bit, a few accidents, goop in her eyes, first yellow/green, then after compresses with warm water, just goop, but constantly rubbing her eyes all over everything – even gets up in the middle of the night to do so. Vet tested for dry eye and said they were fine, recommended saline eye drops as needed. Her pattern is feeding and insulin around 7am & 7 pm, we are pretty consistent with that – vet just upped insulin to 12 units and increased her food 200 calories per day now about 1300 calories. Our mixture is pretty consistent, only the composition of veggies may change. She has a habit of waking around 11:30 pm to drink, rub eyes and bark to go out. Since vet implemented these changes numbers went down between 100 -250 and then several days negative only to be back up to 500+ the past two days. Also, we are very concerned that she is quite wobbly on her feet esp. when standing still. She can walk just fine – even run, but standing still is a challenge to where she frequently will topple over.
If anyone has any suggestions as to diet & calories, insulin, how and where to take blood (we tried along with two vets and a tech who couldn’t do it in our presence) what type and size lancet, and to explain why when she was first diagnosed her BG was much lower than when treated with insulin. Also, does anyone have any idea whether Adequan or the tick borne disease could have compromised her pancreas. This whole thing is just way too strange the way it came about.
I sometimes feel like I am fighting a losing battle and can’t get any control, as soon as things look good, no sooner do they look bad. If I were to plot her good and bad days it almost seems she starts out pretty well beginning of week and goes off the charts after Thursdays. I am open to any and all suggestions or questions. She is the best, most beautiful dog otherwise along with all of yours and I just want to keep her stable.
Thank you for reading my very long post and for the info you have all posted for others. Hoping to be able to blood test soon.
Amy & Victoria
Glad to have you with us.
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