Boarding a diabetic dog

[Rooskie50]

I feed and give my mini schnauzer his insulin every 12 hours, religiously! His levels have remained status quo!
Now I find I must go away for a week, and board my pup!
Not many places will even take a diabetic dog.
Boarding him in someone else's home is not an option as they will restrict him to one room.
Oh yes with this brother who is 4 years younger.

I have found a wonderful place that boards dogs, only they feed at 7:00 am and then again at 4:00. Not 12 hours. They will administer the insulin right after my pup eats, but not in the 12 hr time frame he is used to!

I am concerned this will throw his levels off and cause some concern for his health.

Any suggestions?

[Eddie]

Re: Boarding a diabetic dog

Might they be prepared to feed a bit later if you pay extra for their time and trouble? Presumably they might have to work later than usual to achieve it so paying a bit of "overtime" money might persuade them to be more flexible?

Alternatively you could explore house/pet sitters. We use them as we have quite a lot of animals but they would doubtless cost a lot more than boarding kennels.
Antonia

[amydunn19]

Re: Boarding a diabetic dog

I just couldn't do the boarding schedule. I would be afraid the 4:00 feeding would cause overlap and havoc. Plus, I have serious reservations about employees at boarding places having zero experience with diabetes. I have two or three great boarding places locally but as great as they are, they have no understanding of diabetes and I would never leave my dog there. JMO.

I would prefer the limitation of one room if the schedule could be maintained. Check with a vet tech at the clinic you use. It would be pricey but you might could get a young broke vet tech to house sit at your home. Or a trustworthy college aged kid.

[Judi]

Re: Boarding a diabetic dog

I was thinking college kid like Amy. You could lower his dose if you had to to try to prevent overlap but I would worry. It is for exactly this reason I quit boarding Jenny.

I know there are pet sitters in my area who will give shots.

could he do doggy day care during the day and maybe stay with the family at night or is that too much hassle for them to pick up?

the 12 hour thing is the kicker.

judi

[harleychik66]

Re: Boarding a diabetic dog

I would talk to my vet. I would be scared to death in a boarding situation...what if he got too much exercise, what if he didn't get enough, what if, what if. I know some vets do boarding and at least there they would be better equipped to handle a diabetic dog. I also know that vets can give great referrals at times....perhaps there is someone who is a regular and would be more than happy to house sit or stop over to your house xx amount of times in a day or even take your guy into their home for the time you're gone.

[ceruleanblue]

Re: Boarding a diabetic dog

I work at a dog boarding facility, but I personally would not board my diabetic dog. My boss's rule is that we don't take diabetic dogs (even though all of us who work there do have experience with diabetes). There's just too many variables, and dogs don't always act the same or eat the same when they're not at home. Plus, we can't keep the 12 hour schedule. Opening early is a problem because not all of us can get there extra early, and going in after closing means all of the dogs need to go out again (plus the boss has to pay overtime).

If all of us ever have to go somewhere, I'm going to have to train the neighbors, unless I could find one of our friends that could keep to the 12 hour schedule. If there was absolutely no other option, I'd probably take her to the vet to be boarded, but try to find one that has a tech there overnight.

[jjefferjo]

Re: Boarding a diabetic dog

If Time permits
Try and find a pet sitter that is good with special needs and has references. I have one with over 20 yrs exp
She stays here when I have traveled, worth her weight in gold