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Hello, and thank you in advance for letting me join this forum. My Name is Donna and my newly diagnosed dog is an 11 year old PWC (Pembroke Welsh Corgi), Max. I rescued him 10 years ago and until now, he has been a typical (quirky), healthy, happy boy. He goes for a mile walk every day (weather dependent as I live in New England).
Last Spring, during a routine senior panel blood draw, the vet told me his glucose was a bit high (not alarming and probably due to stress from all the Covid protocols in place). At her request, I brought her a urine sample, to which she said there is no way this dog is diabetic. Then retested his glucose in about a month with no change.
Fast forward to about a month ago, he started drinking tons of water and peeing constantly. I was sure he had Cushing’s disease (I’ve had two Cushing’s dogs before), so made a vet appointment. She agreed with me, but before we went down that road, she took a glucose reading and it was 394. She also tested his urine at that time and he does not have ketoacidosis. He has also never had Pancreatitis. So he’s been on Vetsulin for 2 weeks now. We started at 3 units, went to 4 after a week, and as of this morning, we’re doing 5. In the last two weeks, his readings have never gone below 300 and are typically in the 400s. At 3 units, he was a frequent flier in the over 500 range. I have a Freestyle Libre sensor on him and it doesn’t go above 500. He weighs 29 pounds. He is fed ½ cup of food twice a day at 5:30 AM and 5:30 PM, adding about a tablespoon of shredded zucchini each time along with his insulin.
I changed his food from Fromm Senior to Acana Heritage two weeks ago. I read it was better for diabetes and it’s what I’m currently feeding my GSD, so an easy switch. I did look up some foods (I’m not a fan of the garbage they put in prescription diets, but I do understand they have their place and can be life saving). I have also found a food called, Ketona for diabetic dogs, but holy cow, at $40 for 4.5 pounds of food, I can cook cheaper than that for him!
I have tons of questions, but I guess first and foremost are these: Can a dog be insulin resistant? How much is too much insulin? How much can food play into this and can that be the reason his numbers are so high?
Last Spring, during a routine senior panel blood draw, the vet told me his glucose was a bit high (not alarming and probably due to stress from all the Covid protocols in place). At her request, I brought her a urine sample, to which she said there is no way this dog is diabetic. Then retested his glucose in about a month with no change.
Fast forward to about a month ago, he started drinking tons of water and peeing constantly. I was sure he had Cushing’s disease (I’ve had two Cushing’s dogs before), so made a vet appointment. She agreed with me, but before we went down that road, she took a glucose reading and it was 394. She also tested his urine at that time and he does not have ketoacidosis. He has also never had Pancreatitis. So he’s been on Vetsulin for 2 weeks now. We started at 3 units, went to 4 after a week, and as of this morning, we’re doing 5. In the last two weeks, his readings have never gone below 300 and are typically in the 400s. At 3 units, he was a frequent flier in the over 500 range. I have a Freestyle Libre sensor on him and it doesn’t go above 500. He weighs 29 pounds. He is fed ½ cup of food twice a day at 5:30 AM and 5:30 PM, adding about a tablespoon of shredded zucchini each time along with his insulin.
I changed his food from Fromm Senior to Acana Heritage two weeks ago. I read it was better for diabetes and it’s what I’m currently feeding my GSD, so an easy switch. I did look up some foods (I’m not a fan of the garbage they put in prescription diets, but I do understand they have their place and can be life saving). I have also found a food called, Ketona for diabetic dogs, but holy cow, at $40 for 4.5 pounds of food, I can cook cheaper than that for him!
I have tons of questions, but I guess first and foremost are these: Can a dog be insulin resistant? How much is too much insulin? How much can food play into this and can that be the reason his numbers are so high?
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