The only way to prevent dog diabetes is to make sure your dog doesn’t become obese. For most dogs however, diabetes is an unavoidable condition, due to abnormal function of the pancreas. It’s more important to manage your dog’s diabetes with diet.

If your dog has diabetes, there is plenty of information on how to best manage its condition. Each pet will be different; be sure to tailor your regimen to your dog’s special needs.

A Maintenance Diet

A maintenance diet may be the most important step to take to manage your dog’s diabetes. This diet will limit daily calorie and sugar intake and should be given very regularly. If your dog receives two insulin injections each day, you will want to feed it four small meals. Most dogs will respond best to a high carbohydrate, moderate fiber diet. Fiber can be added with a supplement (powder) or another food source.

Dog Food

There are many types of dog foods for diabetic dogs; no one knows how effective these foods are. You’ll have to monitor your dog’s condition and reaction to certain foods. While there are wet and dry foods, many vets will recommend a dry food, as it usually has less sugar than wet. Your veterinarian may have a specific recommendation as well.

What If My Dog Is Overweight?

An overweight dog should be fed a lower calorie diet, but be sure to introduce the diet slowly. You don’t want to immediately cut back the amount of food you give your dog, or change the food type drastically. Slowly introduce a new food, and eventually give smaller quantities. Be sure to incorporate exercise as well.

Can I Give My Dog Treats?

Yes. Be sure the treats are low sugar though. You can find low sugar treats or make your own. Some owners will pour a little chicken broth over normal dog food, or give the pet a different kind of food as a treat. A little piece of cooked meat or jerky is a great treat as well. You don?t want to deprive your dog of all treats.

What If My Dog Doesn?t Like Its Food?

It’s important to find a food that your dog will eat. You can try mixing in another food source to make the food more appealing. Some owners have found success with baby food, pureed pumpkin (high in fiber), low-fat chicken broth, tuna, shredded meats or bread. Whatever you try, be sure it is low in sugar and fat. You don?t want to aggravate the dog’s diabetes.

Diet alone will not be enough to treat your dog’s diabetes. Your dog will need daily insulin as well as regular exercise. The combination of diet, exercise and insulin control is the most effective way to manage your dog’s diabetes. With careful monitoring, your dog will live a normal, happy life.

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When choosing a food for your dog, there are many factors to consider, including age, weight, lifestyle and any health problems. Always be alert to your dogs behavior; it’s the only way your dog can tell you if it has a problem.

Dog’s Best Diet

The best diet for your dog depends on its age, size, how active it is and if it has any health problems. When looking for a dog food, choose one that has meat or meat meal as the first or second ingredient. Choose a food rich in protein, carbohydrates, fiber and fat. The levels of each ingredient depend on the needs of your dog.

Food Allergies

Dogs may often develop allergic reactions to specific foods. The most common triggers of allergies are beef, dairy products, chicken, wheat, chicken eggs, corn, and soy. These foods are also the most common ingredients in dog food.

Sugar and Dog Food

Sugary foods should not be fed to dogs. Excess sugar can lead to obesity, diabetes and dental problems. A dog with low blood sugar will display low energy, weakness, listlessness and may have seizures. A diabetic dog will lose muscle mass and weight, have low energy, and may drink and urinate more than usual.

If your dog is showing signs of depression, be sure to see your vet. Lethargy, weakness and lack of interest are signs of depression, but can also be indicative of many other physical ailments.

Signs of Depression in Dogs

Signs of depression can include

• Lethargy
• Reduced appetite
• Reduced thirst
• Loss of initiative
• Weight loss
• Lack of interest in games it usually enjoys

Again, be sure to visit your vet to rule out any physical health problems before seeking help for depression.

Changing Your Dog’s Diet

If you decide to change your dog’s diet, be careful how you do so. Do not simply stop one food and start the other. The new food must be introduced slowly into the dogs diet, over the course of seven to ten days. Begin by mixing a bit of the new food in with the old. As the days go by introduce more and more of the new food to the dog’s diet. Eventually you can serve the dog only the new food.

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Your pet has diabetes. The next step is to make sure its blood sugar levels remain steady, and to determine a regimen best suited for your pet. Your veterinarian will be able to help you with this, but ultimately the responsibility is yours.

What Are Blood Sugar Levels?

Blood sugar levels, also called blood glucose levels, measure the level of sugar in the blood, thereby determining the amount of insulin needed. A healthy blood sugar level will vary in different animals, and from one pet to another. Just like humans, pet diabetes require treatment specific to the individual.

What Is A Glucose Curve?

A glucose curve is a measurement of daily sugar levels. You measure your pet’s sugar every two hours for a day and plot these measurements on a graph. This will show you the time of day your pets sugar levels drop and will help you determine when and how much insulin to administer. The ideal curve should be as level as possible; you don’t want your pet’s insulin levels to fluctuate dramatically during the day. This is usually done when your pet has first been diagnosed with diabetes; once the curve is stabilized, you won’t need to test the blood.

What Are All These Numbers? I’m No Mathematician!

Understanding blood glucose readings can be confusing at best. You’ll need to determine the sugar levels best suited for your pet; working with your veterinarian will help you determine the appropriate steps to take. Education is the best way to control and manage your pet’s diabetes. On average, a dog should have levels between 100 mg/dl and 200 mg/dl. A cat’s levels should be between 100 mg/dl and 300 mg/dl. But remember, these levels can vary dramatically depending on the stage of diabetes and the type of pet you have. Be sure to follow your veterinarian’s recommendations.

Symptoms of Low Blood Sugar

A pet with low blood sugar will appear listless, weak or tired. Severely low blood sugar may cause seizures and even induce a coma. If your pet shows these signs, immediately rub some honey or corn syrup on its gums; this will revive your pet. Then be sure to check its blood sugar levels. See a veterinarian if it doesn’t respond to the sugar. Be careful when administering insulin. A large over dose can result in seizure, brain damage or death. If you think you gave your pet too much insulin, be sure to take it to the vet immediately.

Your diabetic pet will require special care and attention. However a diabetic pet is just as rewarding as a healthy pet, and with proper management of the diabetes, you can expect your pet to live a normal life.

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Here are answers to more frequently asked questions about diabetes.

Did I Cause My Pet’s Diabetes?

There is no short answer for this question. Some pets are born diabetic, just as humans are. However, pet obesity is on the rise, and obese pets can readily develop diabetes. In fact, the best way to prevent pet diabetes is to keep your pets weight under control.

What’s The Difference Between Type I and Type II Diabetes?

Type I diabetes is where the body produces no insulin, and usually requires daily shots. Type II is where the body can’t make enough or can’t properly use insulin. This is also known as adult on-set diabetes.

What Is The Life Span Of My Diabetic Pet?

Unfortunately there is no accurate date on this question. It’s only very recently that pets have begun to receive treatment for diabetes; in the past they were simply put to sleep. It is thought however that a pet treated appropriately and monitored well for their diabetes should live a full, normal lifespan.

Will My Pet’s Diabetes Go Away?

Some cats have a condition called “transient diabetes” where the pet occasionally doesn’t need insulin. Sometimes the insulin levels can be affected by other problems. The cat may or may not need insulin in the future.

How Is Pet Diabetes Diagnosed?

Your vet will diagnose the behavioral symptoms of diabetes and check sugar levels in the blood and urine.

What Are Symptoms Of Diabetes?

Symptoms of pet diabetes are similar to human diabetes. Frequent urination, thirst and appetite are common symptoms, as are weight loss and bad breath. You may notice your pet eats more, but seems to be losing weight.

How Do I Manage My Pets Diabetes?

You will need to make sure your pet eats an appropriate diet and gets regular exercise. Especially for obese pets, regular exercise and a well monitored diet are essential. A veterinarian can teach you how to monitor your pet’s blood glucose levels, and you may need to administer daily shots of insulin.

What Are Complications Of Pet Diabetes?

Hypoglycemia can occur due to low blood sugar; symptoms can include wobbliness, seizure, weakness or coma. If you think your pet is hypoglycemic, rub some Karo syrup onto its gums. If it can, have it eat some food mixed with Karo syrup, which will bring sugar levels up. Other complications include cataracts and blindness in dogs, hind end weakness in cats and nerve damage.

Diabetes doesn’t mean the end of your pet. With proper and attentive management, you can expect your diabetic pet to live a long, happy life. Remember, preventing obesity is the easiest way to prevent pet diabetes.

Do you often wonder why your dog is suddenly losing weight and increasing his water intake? Well of the many things that could be wrong you may want to consider diabetes.

Because our pets can’t tell us what is wrong like a human can we have to look closer for symptoms in the pet. Some additional symptoms are excess urination, an increased appetite but still having weight loss, dehydration, development of cataracts, or sugar in urine.

Because the dog has such a build up of sugar in its blood stream it will cause the dog to drink more water and in turn urinate more often. Weight loss would occur because the dog can not use the carbohydrates from the food it has consumed.

Instead it would use the energy from the fat and tissue of the dog. This would increase the dog’s appetite however with the increased appetite you would still see the pet losing weight.

Along with the supplement or insulin injections there are a few other things you will want to do to help your dog with his diabetes: You will want to make sure he is getting the proper exercise everyday and try to make sure that the exercise is at the same time everyday. Any dog with diabetes will need to have a daily structure for meals, exercise, and when they take their medication or supplements.

If you change the amount of food the dog eats in a day then obviously the dog’s blood sugar level is going to change that day as well, the same with the amount of exercise the dog gets in a day. This is important if giving your dog insulin for his diabetes because you will need to change the dosage according to the blood sugar levels.

This is another reason I choose to go with an all natural supplement, if I was to give my dog too much insulin it could be harmful or even life threatening. With supplements if I give him too much there is no negative side effect and it is not life threatening to him.

It is hard to regulate my dogs exercise while living on a farm some days he is running around in the fields others the only exercise he may get is when we take him for his daily walk so supplements are easier to give then the insulin for us.

If left untreated, diabetes in a dog can lead to muscle depletion, dehydration, depression, kidney failure, loss of sight, and even death. You will want to contact your vet to see if your dog has diabetes right away. Treatment options do include insulin injections however I’ve found to spare my dog the pain of daily injections there are all natural supplements available as well.