What is Diabetes?

Diabetes is a disease of the pancreas that affects the body’s ability to control its blood sugar levels. The pancreas is responsible for producing a hormone called insulin which keeps blood sugar levels balanced.

Glucose is produced from the breaking down of starches and carbohydrates. It is absorbed through the wall of the digestive tract and passes into the bloodstream.

Insulin allows glucose to leave the bloodstream and enter the body’s tissue where it is then used as energy for the cells. With diabetes, the body either produces insufficient quantities of insulin or does not utilize insulin effectively. Glucose then builds up in the bloodstream and causes an elevated blood sugar level.

High levels of glucose can lead to a number of complications such as cataracts, liver and kidney disease, increased infections, heart disease, gastrointestinal disorders and even coma and death.

What are the symptoms of Diabetes in cats and dogs?

Certain symptoms are common in cats and dogs with diabetes. However these signs may also indicate other diseases or conditions. The best way to determine if your pet has diabetes is to have his blood sugar levels checked by means of a blood test.

If your dog has been diagnosed with diabetes, early treatment by your veterinarian will help prevent further complications from this disease. Your pet may be saved from the painful experience of nerve damage as well as avoiding blindness. Conventional treatments will go a long way to keeping your dog healthy.

Insulin Injections

Depending upon your dog’s needs, insulin injections will be given one to two times daily. The amount of insulin used for each dose and how often these doses are given will depend upon your veterinarian. Some dogs will be able to take tablets instead of being given shots.

Insulin doses are typically given in smaller amounts at the start of treatment so that the blood sugar levels can slowly stabilize. Under extreme circumstances this may require your dog to be treated in the hospital for a few days. If his diabetes is more stable, then your dog may receive outpatient treatment.

During this period, your dog’s blood sugar will be monitored every hour in order to determine the exact dose of insulin he will need on a regular basis. Once the correct measurement of insulin has been reached, your veterinarian will instruct you to monitor your dog by testing his urine and/or blood.

Treating diabetes in cats and dogs involves regular monitoring of diet, blood sugar levels and insulin levels. The monitoring needs to be done on a daily basis and pet owners obviously cannot be expected to visit a veterinarian daily for the daily insulin dose. Understanding the basics of home care helps to manage a diabetic dog effectively.

Once the symptoms of diabetes in cats and dogs have led to a confirmed diagnosis, the goal of treatment for diabetes is to control the level of glucose (sugar) in the blood. Efficient control can help your pet in leading a comfortable life On the other hand uncontrolled hyperglycemia (abnormally high blood sugar) can shorten life span due to complications like kidney disease, retinopathy and arteriosclerosis.

Insulin Injections

Insulin must be administered at the time suggested by the veterinarian. Administration of the correct recommended dose is also important. Try to keep the dose as close as prescribed by understanding the markings on the syringe that you are using. Note that the markings on syringes may vary according to size of the syringe.
Injections administered should be subcutaneous and learning how to inject needs practice. Such a skill comes easily once you have done it in front of the veterinarian for a couple of times.

Diabetes mellitus or simply diabetes is a common condition in dogs. Howsoever scary it may sound it is not the end of the world for your dog because diabetes in canines is manageable if proper care is taken. Diet, regular monitoring of blood sugar levels and medication are key aspects of adequate care.

Diabetes, however, can cause an early death of the dog if it is not treated. High blood sugar levels produce clinical symptoms of diabetes in dogs and cats that can help in early detection.

Diabetes is a condition where blood sugar levels rise due to the inability of pancreas to produce enough insulin to manage glucose (a primary sugar) in the food that the dog ingests. In another situation, cells become resistant to the action of insulin, which also results in a high blood sugar level. If not managed within reasonable time, it leads to abnormally high blood sugar levels, a condition known as hyperglycemia.

While you may not mind a bi-monthly or quarterly visit to the veterinarian for check ups, the matter does not end there if the symptoms of diabetes in cats and dogs have been confirmed and the pet shows high blood sugar levels.

Treating diabetes is a long process that sometimes may last a life time. If your pet has been diagnosed for diabetes, there is a strong possibility that you will be required to take care of the pet at home. Home care of a diabetic pet involves monitoring blood sugar levels and injecting insulin on a daily basis. This necessitates the need for some expertise in checking blood sugar and injecting insulin.

Diet modifications can help manage blood sugar levels in many cases. However, administering insulin is almost a key aspect of the treatment of diabetes in cats and dogs. While you learn the process of injecting insulin from your veterinarian make sure to ask about the type of syringe that should be used for the injection.

Diabetes 3 Ways To Keep Your Dog From Getting Diabetes

There are essentially three ways that you can help prevent your dog from getting diabetes. This disease is one that you want your dog to avoid so that he lives as long and healthy as possible. And although it’s rare, there are many dogs whose diabetes go into remission just by having their diet, supplementation, and exercise all in good order.

1. Lower the carbohydrates. Most dog foods sold in pet stores contain ingredients that are as high as 98% carbohydrates. By reducing the amount of carbs in your dog’s daily meals, this moderate carbohydrate level can go a long way towards diabetes prevention.

Diet is especially important for dogs that are genetically at risk for diabetes. It is critical that you study up on your dog breed and make sure that he is getting the right nutrients so that the gene which can store diabetes will not be triggered off.

Golden retrievers are among the most popular pets that dog owners have in the United States. Unfortunately, many of these retrievers get diabetes because their owners did not do enough research for their breed type in order to get their diet correct from puppy hood.

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes is a disease of the pancreas that affects the body’s ability to control its blood sugar levels. The pancreas is responsible for producing a hormone called insulin which keeps blood sugar levels balanced.

Glucose is produced from the breaking down of starches and carbohydrates. It is absorbed through the wall of the digestive tract and passes into the bloodstream.

Insulin allows glucose to leave the bloodstream and enter the body’s tissue where it is then used as energy for the cells. With diabetes, the body either produces insufficient quantities of insulin or does not utilize insulin effectively. Glucose then builds up in the bloodstream and causes an elevated blood sugar level.

High levels of glucose can lead to a number of complications such as cataracts, liver and kidney disease, increased infections, heart disease, gastrointestinal disorders and even coma and death.

What are the symptoms of Diabetes in cats and dogs?

Certain symptoms are common in cats and dogs with diabetes. However these signs may also indicate other diseases or conditions. The best way to determine if your pet has diabetes is to have his blood sugar levels checked by means of a blood test.

Did you know that diabetes is becoming increasingly more common in our household pets? The latest research shows that 1 in every 100 dogs gets diagnosed with diabetes. Therefore it is only reasonable that you understand what causes this disease and take preventative measures to protect your dog’s health.

How Do Dogs Get Diabetes?

In some cases, specific dog breeds are genetically prone to developing diabetes. Such dog breeds include the golden retriever, miniature schnauzer, and the standard poodle. These breeds may develop diabetes at a young age simply as a result of the type of dog they are.

For other dogs, it is theorized that diabetes is the result of another disease in the animal which destroys the cells of the pancreas, thus branching off to diabetes. However, for most dogs, diabetes is caused by too many carbohydrates in the diet mixed with an inactive lifestyle, which of course leads to obesity, and ultimately – diabetes.

The Lowdown On Carbohydrates

A simple sugar, glucose, is what the body needs the most to supply energy to the various body cells. This is provided through a complex process known as metabolism. One of the most important functions that go on in the body is to transfer the body’s main fuel, glucose, from the blood stream to the cells.

For transferring glucose to different cells, the pancreas in the body secretes insulin that acts in three ways.

* It prevents the liver from producing excess amounts of glucose.
* It helps the body in storing sugar for use in the future.
* It creates pathways to deliver glucose to the cells so that they get the energy they need to grow.

A defect in the pancreas due to inflammation, infection, injury or otherwise can hamper this process and the resultant condition that leads to high levels of blood sugar is known as diabetes mellitus, or simply diabetes in cats, dogs and other animals. Of the two types of diabetes mellitus, insulin dependent diabetes is more common in dogs.

As in humans, most of the diseases that affect canines result from genetic disposition, abnormalities, diseases, injury or parasitic or bacterial infections. Diabetes in dogs is similar to diabetes in cats or for that matter in humans.

The two forms of canine diabetes, diabetes mellitus and diabetes insipidus, are endocrinal diseases and are related to the endocrine glands or their secretions. Diabetes insipidus is a rare form of diabetes resulting from a deficiency of vasopressin (the pituitary hormone that regulates the kidneys) and is characterized by the chronic excretion of large amounts of pale dilute urine which results in dehydration and extreme thirst.

Diabetes mellitus, the more common of the two types, is a relative or absolute deficiency of insulin, the hormone that is critical for processing glucose in the body. This condition is further divided into two types – type 1 and type 2 and related to insulin in different ways. The former occurs due to insufficient production pf insulin and the latter occurs due to the inability of the cells to respond to insulin.