High Protein Low Carb Food diet

[Pariah81]

Hi,

I have been struggling to regulate my 12yr old staff.

He currently has a high dosage of 18 units twice daily before each main meal.

He eats 3 times. 2/5 in the morning, 1/5 in the afternoon and 2/5 at night.

80% royal canin diabetes dry, 20% w/d diabetes wet

Investigating the w/d nutritional content it has c. 50% carbs which just seems wrong. I know there is a difference between good and bad carbs but this just seems high in general.

I'm searching the internet for alternatives but am struggling.

The royal cabin wet has lower carbs but higher fat.

I am considering using human food i.e. ham slices (non glazed) to fit my high protein low fat/carb requirement.

If anyone has thoughts or recommendations please share. Thanks in advance!

[jesse girl]

Re: High Protein Low Carb Food diet

the carbs seems to work well with insulin for dogs because of how dogs metabolize insulin . they may need some food to digest quickly to get some sugar into the body to work with the strength of insulin and thats the logic i believe in the prescription foods . now i understand they dont read all that well but they have a good track record for diabetic dogs

now its not mandatory to feed the prescription foods my jesse is on a homemade partially raw diet . now diets like barf would not work for jesse just to much meat she does need some carbs and fiber to tame insulin

curious why your feeding 3 times a day ?

[Pariah81]

Re: High Protein Low Carb Food diet

the carbs seems to work well with insulin for dogs because of how dogs metabolize insulin . they may need some food to digest quickly to get some sugar into the body to work with the strength of insulin and thats the logic i believe in the prescription foods . now i understand they dont read all that well but they have a good track record for diabetic dogs

now its not mandatory to feed the prescription foods my jesse is on a homemade partially raw diet . now diets like barf would not work for jesse just to much meat she does need some carbs and fiber to tame insulin

curious why your feeding 3 times a day ?

After diagnosis we moved to a strict 2 meal diet though we found him getting hungry in the day.

As I have read that insulin is most effective 6 hours after an injection I did not think it would be a problem to give him 20% of his daily food intake 6 hours after his first injection. Do you disagree? Thoughts welcome.

[MomofGus]

Re: High Protein Low Carb Food diet

From everything I've read and comments from those here with more experience, high protein/low carb diets do not work very well for the diabetic dog. Also, pork products (including ham) is not good for dogs, as it can contribute towards pancreatitis. So, if I were you, I would rethink adding ham.

I know so many tend to want to back away from the prescription diabetic food (Hils w/d) because of ingredient list. However, I'm a firm believer that the prescription diets are created with what is best for the specific medical reason for the animals. The ingredients in w/d work well for most diabetic dogs, despite what we humans think of the ingredients. My dog has been on w/d for a year and half now since diagnosis. The only additive I've added to my food is a little canned pumpkin, which seems to help stabilize the sugar. And, just recently I've added a very small amount of boiled plain chicken breast only because I want my dog to gain back a little weight. Don't know if that will work, but I am trying.

There are many here who cook their dogs meals, but for me, that wasn't realistic thing for me unless I totally had to do it.

I too am wondering why you feed 3 times a day. It's recommended only twice a day, 12 hrs apart just prior to insulin given. That is, unless your dog has another condition that requires feeding more often.

[jesse girl]

Re: High Protein Low Carb Food diet

After diagnosis we moved to a strict 2 meal diet though we found him getting hungry in the day.

As I have read that insulin is most effective 6 hours after an injection I did not think it would be a problem to give him 20% of his daily food intake 6 hours after his first injection. Do you disagree? Thoughts welcome.

It all depends on the dog some have there strongest insulin affects write before next shot i have seen the whole spectrum with jesse 2 hours 6 hours and 12 hours

the thing with this disease you cant take things for granted and generalize that one size fits all. what we have learned on the forum it doesnt and its very individualized for each dog

now it possible 3 meals may work but you havent seen any evidence of that with regulation its very possible the 3rd meal is elevating blood sugar . you must remember if insulin peaks at 6 hours and you fed at that time the added blood sugar may come into play a couple hours later when insulin is getting weaker spiking write before shot

my jesse only gets one meal a day very unusual but it was the only way to stabilize her .how we did it was through constant monitoring of her blood sugar and trial and error to come up with a routine best for her no guessing

the thing about blood sugar if it is elevated it can actually create hunger because the body cant metabolize the nutrition giving the feeling of needing to be fed all the time

usually if a dog is overly ravenous there maybe something else going on especially if this change came along with diabetes possibly other medical conditions can have an affect also

[amydunn19]

Re: High Protein Low Carb Food diet

Just like the others have stated, you can't necessarily apply the principles of human diabetics to dogs. Diabetes in dogs is more like type 1 diabetes in humans and dogs process insulin faster as well. Using intermediate acting insulin, you have to think about elongating that insulin action, and feeding higher protein foods cause them to use up the insulin faster. High protein food tends to be higher in fat which is not great for diabetics.

I fed Maggie four times a day because she had pancreatitis and did better with food more often. But, only two of those meals were her actual kibble. She got boiled chicken, frozen yogurt for dogs, a bit of canned food, or small meat treats. She never would eat the prescription diets which made life a bit challenging but there are many choices - prescription is not required.