Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

[donnaf484]

Hello,
Please help me. For the last few days my pug Harrys blood sugar has been very low but his ketone sticks have been good some days and bad others. He was taking 7 1/2 units at night and 7 1/2 in the morning. All was fine until I think he had a slight bout of pancreatitis. I've been through this before. {pancreatitis} But now his blood readings are staying way way low and the keto stick goes from green to brown. I am lowering the insulin and testing every 2 hours and his blood sugar is normal and good which seems weird. I dont want to overdose him. Does anyone know why he would have ketosis with low blood sugar? When his blood has not spiked to hyperglycemic levels?

Thank you,
Donna

[nibbles-mommy]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

Welcome!

1-Are you Home testing his blood with a meter and that's how you have determined his sugar is normal to low?

2-Are the strips Ketodiastix, which have 2 seperate lines of tests? The top set of blocks measure glucose-they turn from light green (negative for glucose) to dark brown (high level of glucose).

The 2nd test below the first measures ketones. If I remember correctly they go from tan (negative) to the pinks.

You're saying the stick goes from green to brown which leads me to believe you are reading from the glucose test, not the ketone test.

[donnaf484]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

Hi,
Yes I am testing with a meter. I also have the stick which test all of the bodys functions along with the ketones and they turn brown. It seems mostly in the mornining. I am thinking of dividing up his insulin. I only gave him 3 units this morning because his bs was 189 after he ate. I am nervous. Last night he kept on waking me up and I kept giving him food because I knew he was low low low.

[nibbles-mommy]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

What were the meter readings?

[nibbles-mommy]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?



Does this look like the strips you are using?

[donnaf484]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

yes you are right. He has high glucose and a small amount of ketones. Thank your. What does high glucose mean? should I be alarmed? thanks

[nibbles-mommy]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

are you able to post the results (numbers) from the meter?

without knowing the meter readings and trusting that he definitely is going low, there could be some rebounding going on where the body dumps extra glucose into the blood the survive/recover from a hypoglycemic episode.

if he is going really low (below 90) give some karo syrup or bread with honey to quickly bring the sugar up then follow with a food or a carby snack.

what do the blood test readings look like in the morning?

Rememeber that the urine sticks don't reflect what is actually going on at that moment for the glucose. it could reflect the day before or since the last time he peed.

I would call the vet and tell them about the ketone reading. anything more than trace-small should be correct immediately by the vet. ketoacidosis can kill.

what kind of dog is he?
how much does he weigh?
when was diagnosis?

[donnaf484]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

Hi Debbie,
Harry is a 12 1/2 year old black pug who had a severe bout of pancreatitis last year that almost killed him. He spent 3 days in the hospital and since then I have been giving him insulin and feeding him a special diet. So far so good. But i noticed the last couple of days he has been very lethargic so I did a curve and his bs is so low I am concerned. I do check his bs regularlly and it usually all over the place. veryhigh, very low and so on. He is a bit overweight at 29 lbs. But he is a big boy. I think you are right his bs reading was 189 this morning, 205 yesterday morning, 145 at noon yesterday,
42 at 10 am. It actually read low on the meter and i panicked and didn't give him any insulin the night before. I dont know whats going on but if i cant get it right I will take him to the vet. I just want some advice. Right now. I only gaave him 3 units this morning. I am thinking. 3 units 4 x a day what do you think?

[nibbles-mommy]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

Do not give more than 2 shots a day!!! 42 is very low. if you see those numbers you need to immediately give karo syrup , rubbing it on the gums will get it into his blood faster. then follow with food

more to come...

[donnaf484]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

Hi debbie
I just checked harrys blood two hours after 3 units and his blood has remained at level it was 189 this morning and now it is 142 so it didnt go down too much. I was unaware of the dump of glucose into the body that might explain it the ketones are trace. I have been such a nervous wreck as I just lost one baby 2 weeks ago. She also had diabetes
thanks,
Donna

[Judi]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

Hi Donna: What kind of insulin is Harry on?

Most of us use NPH which lasts about 12 hours so 4 shots a day would be way too often.

Is Harry on one of the different fast acting insulins?

The lows are very scary and thank goodness you and he caught them.

I agree with Debbie that it seems like there may be some rebounding going on (but I am no expert) which could cause the high highs and the low lows.

Anytime there are ketones in the urine you need to call your vet. We've had a few people around here lose their dogs recently because of this issue. It is life threatening.

Please reassure us as to the type of insulin your Harry is taking. thanks! Judi

[nibbles-mommy]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

You should feed and inject every 12 hours, twice a day. Is he eating all of his food before injections? Can you post some of the recent curves you did for him, that's really the only way you can base a dose change on. You need to determine what the highest and lowest number is and base the dose accordingly. I definetly agree with the dose decrease, but still just twice a day.

I'm gonna try to find someone mpre knowledgeable to help you, hold tight.

But definitely rub karo and feed if sugar is that low now.

[Judi]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

can you post the curve you did noting when you gave insulin, how much and when you fed him?

I'm sorry you lost your other baby, Judi

[donnaf484]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

Hi
I usually feed harry 2x a day with a little bit of food in between as too not let his belly get too empty because of the pancreas. He is on humulin N. He just started stressing a few days ago. I thought he might be getting sick again but it might have been too much insulin. He is usually high so this low thing is worrisome. He went for a short walk yesterday. He is drinking a bit more. I thought I heard somewhere you can give them 3 shots a day if some dogs need it. I am home so that is not a problem. I will do anything I need too. I am realistic. He is lively though. I have always had a problem with high not low blood sugar. So now today he was 189 this morning, 142, 2 hours after humulin N. Last night He woke me up a few times and I gave him a jar of chicken baby food. I knew his blood was low. He was fine after that.

[nibbles-mommy]

Re: Please help why would my dog have ketosis with low blood sugar?

Every dog is different, some people have found, with help from their vet, that 3 shots can work. But you have really research, and investigate before making any of these decisions. It could be that the special food just isn't enough to sustain the insulin dose. You may have to play around with addins to help stable the blood sugar all day. But without the readings througout the day we really don't know what could be going on.

Could you post your recent curve results when the blood sugar is taken every 2 hours from fasting to fasting?