Living with a Diabetic Dog

Prevent Dog Poisoning!

2015-03-12T14:39:00.000-05:00

English: Logo of National Poison Prevention Week (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I just got the latest newsletter from DogTimes, which reminded me that this is Poison Prevention Week. But the story they have really shocked me. The title is "Murder at the Crufts Dog Show & 5 things that are toxic to your dog."

Yes, murder. It looks like somebody deliberately poisoned an Irish Setter at Crufts, which is pretty horrible. Nowadays, I think most people are aware that there are those who do this sort of thing; that kind of story turns up on the news from time to time. But it's even more disturbing in this case because we assume that everyone there loves dogs.

At any rate, the article ends with reminders of what to keep away from your dog, and with all the new first-time dogparents out there, it's well worth reading.

Have you heard about the bionic pancreas?

2013-12-28T09:11:00.000-06:00

Section of pancreas of dog. X 250. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The title of this post sounds like the setup for a punchline, but it's no such thing: it's actually in clinical studies right now, spurred by a father's need to help his Type 1 son. You can read the story on TheDiabetesSite, where there is a petition going to get the FDA to move it up to the top of their review list once it is sent to them. Their goal is 10,000 signatures, and as of right now (12/28/13) they have 4,127. This petition has implications for everyone (humans and animals) with diabetes, since the more pressure that is put on the FDA for expediting new diabetes treatments each time, the better for all of us.

As it stands now, the bionic pancreas is a type 1 treatment and would not be practical for animals, but, as with any new idea, there is no way of knowing where it might lead others in their research and development efforts. I urge you to sign the petition.

TheDiabetesSite.com is part of the Greater Good Network, where users click on a box to help various causes for free. I've had a link to TheAnimalRescueSite.com since I began this blog, and I like to think that I've drawn some people to make clicking part of their daily activities.

And, today there's a bumper crop of related articles for you.

Ask your Diabetic Dog: Got Water?

2013-12-23T14:34:00.000-06:00

Bucket-headed dog (Photo credit: Paul Kidd)

It's kind of strange to feature this topic in winter, but WebMd has an article on how much water dogs need. After I read it, I realized that I often did not pay attention to how much Tony drank; in fact, thanks to the other two dogs in the house, it would have been hard to keep track. What I'm thinking now is that I should have made a greater effort. Those of you who followed Tony's story from the start may remember that my first inkling that he had diabetes was his frequent urination. However, I never thought about keeping some kind of track of his water consumption before that. If I had, I might have noticed the problem earlier and avoided some of his later issues.

Here's the basic requirement, according to the article:

"A good rule of thumb: Make sure your dog gets at least 1 ounce of water daily for each pound he weighs. That means a 20-pound dog needs at least 20 ounces of water every day. That's more than 2 cups, or as much as in some bottles of water or soda.

To help you keep track of how much water your dog drinks, make a note of how high you fill his water bowl and how far the level has dropped the next day."

Sushi the Shih Tzu- A Fictional Diabetic Dog

2013-12-19T07:36:00.001-06:00

English: Shih Tzu (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

About this time of year I start looking for novels to add to the Christmas shelf on my Nook, and I picked up Antiques Slay Ride by Barbara Allan the other day. It's a 99-cent short story ebook, and it's part of an ongoing series. I can't vouch for the other entries in the series, except to say that Sushi, a diabetic and blind Shih Tzu is one of the recurring characters. It left me wanting more Sushi, which is how I usually feel anyway.

Anyway, it's not great art, but it's about time that somebody thought of including a diabetic dog in a story. If nothing else, it raises awareness, not just about diabetes, but also about daily life in this situation. My one caveat about Sushi's treatment in the story is that her owner seems rather cavalier about giving her treats -- as you know, not a good idea with a diabetic dog.

I'm putting up a list of other Christmas stories I've enjoyed, in the box on the right. I hope your holidays are everything you want them to be.

Diabetes Awareness Month is Here- Diabetes in Animals Needs Some Attention, Too!

2013-11-08T10:05:00.000-06:00

English: Prevalence of diabetes worldwide in 2000 (per 1000 inhabitants). World average was 28.23‰. no data less than 7.5 7.5-15 15-22.5 22.5-30 30-37.5 37.5-45 45-52.5 52.5-60 60-67.5 67.5-75 75-82.5 more than 82.5 Note: I interpreted France in the data as including the overseas departments of Reunion, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and French Guiana as they are integral parts of France. China includes the SARs of Hong Kong and Macao. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

November is Diabetes Awareness Month, in case you didn't know that already, and I'm going to give a plug to another website from the Greater Good Network, this time for their Diabetes Site. When you get there, click on the box and let their advertisers pay for it, with the money going to fund diabetes research. If a cure is found, animals will benefit just as humans will, except nobody ever had a human euthanized because he or she was diabetic. Lives are at stake here.

And, check out their online store. Part of every purchase goes to research, too. I do a lot of my Christmas shopping through all of the Greater Good shops.

Worried about your dog's food? There's something you can do

2013-11-08T09:30:00.000-06:00

Oreo on WNBC for Nutro Pet Food Recall (Photo credit: SheepGuardingLlama)

You may have noticed the link to the Animal Rescue Site on this page. It's part of the Greater Good Network, which raises money for various good causes through advertising. You click (it's FREE!) on the site, the next page comes up (a combination of ads and real content), the advertisers pay money for the pageview, and the site uses it to aid in animal rescue, in this case.

Well, if you're on their mailing list, they also send you information from time to time about issues connected to animals, and the one I just received is about the possibility that the Food and Drug Administration is proposing new pet food safety regulations, just as they do for human food. It's about time, but it may not go through, thanks to lobbying efforts by manufacturers who don't want to deal with regulations. You can send a message to the FDA commissioner, Margaret Hamburg, from the website to put pressure on so that this doesn't just fall by the wayside.

I'm doing it, and I hope you will, too. If you have a diabetic pet, any contamination in his or her food could be very dangerous, and under the present system it could take months (and animal deaths) before anything is done about it, resulting in more deaths and illnesses.

Some Help for Grieving Pet Owners

2013-09-13T08:13:00.000-05:00

Old Man Grieving - Vincent van Gogh
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Got an interesting email today from Petcentric about National Pet Memorial Day, which is the second Sunday in September (9-8 this year, so they should have sent the message sooner!). I suppose that some people, even some pet owners, might think that this is somehow unnecessary, but I think I like the idea (not quite sure yet). One thing that I have no doubt about is that anytime you lose a family member (and most pets count here, I would imagine), you will go through a grieving process. When Tony died, I was pretty much devastated -- and I was shocked at that. I never thought that I would take it that hard, or that there would be so many emotions involved, especially guilt. He enriched my life so much more than I realized when he was still alive, and I think about him often, even now.

Anyway, the article offers some advice that might help you. Check it out at http://petcentric.com/Inspiration/Articles/National-Pet-Memorial-Day-Helps-Grieving-Pet-Owners-Find-Closure.aspx?articleid=65672b87-4cc1-49dd-8db1-1cd2e02d9a5c&utm_campaign=always+on&utm_medium=email&utm_source=exacttarget_PPEA_092013_02&utm_content=corporate-petcentric-NL_Both

When to think about changing vets

2013-06-27T11:30:00.000-05:00

cool dog (Photo credit: ּα)

There was an interesting article on PawNation yesterday, titled "5 Things your Vet Should Never Say to You." Although the 5 things are pretty significant negatives, I often wonder why people will stick with vets they simply don't like (or whatever more or less serious feelings they have for their vet). Would you keep your own doctor if you felt that way? I think I've written before about this, a long time ago, because this happened to me. The first vet I took Tony to was recommended by my brother in law, and her office was very close to home. However, when she came into the examining room, Tony started to shake (he never did this again -- the vets who saw him later often commented on how calm he was), and she seemed to take an instant dislike to him as well. Now, it may just have been a bad day for her, but the impression I got was that she just didn't care for small dogs. She failed my first test, in fact. Every person I ever saw encounter my pal for the first time smiled right away, and most immediately began to go on about how cute he was. I'm not saying she was evil or anything, but it just didn't seem . . . well, right. I started to tense up myself. And, we didn't go back.
At any rate, it's something to think about.

Stop the Begging, Already!

2013-02-28T11:54:00.000-06:00

Yeah, it's Doc

In my last post (the one on vegetables as dog treats), I didn't have space to address the issue of dogs who beg at the table. Sadly, I live with one of these (Doc, a 130 lb. Great Pyrenees), and his owner is dealing with the situation by taking his own meal away from the table a lot of the time. Since he feeds Doc AT THE TABLE nightly and gives him anything left over from whatever he had for dinner, Doc is understandably confused when he is yelled at for begging at the table. After years of trying to change this situation, I've had to give up (one of those times where you have to go along to get along), but for those of you who are in a position of authority when it comes to the dog in question (i.e., it's your dog, not someone else's), WebMD has some help to offer in a cleverly titled article, "How to Stop Your Dog from Begging at the Table."

Tony didn't beg at the table, but that was probably because I didn't give him table scraps very often (and never during family mealtimes) and because I rarely eat at the table myself, not wanting to deal with Doc trying to get my food. However, my father was prone to giving him the last bite of his dinner if Tony was around, which he often was, as you can imagine. Once he was diagnosed with diabetes, I was able to convince Dad of the error of his ways, and that stopped. Based on my experience with Tony, of the two solutions WebMD suggests -- controlling the dog's access to the table or teaching the dog to do something else -- I think I prefer the latter. This is probably because I had great success teaching Tony to move off the street onto grass, then sit and stay, whenever a car was approaching during our walks (there are no sidewalks in our subdivision -- you have to walk in the street. Yikes.). I think I could have gotten him to lie on his bed at our mealtimes without too much trouble, but if you think that you might have some problems there, there are training tip links with the article, too.

Good luck, and remember, to a dog, a rub on the belly is often just as welcome as a treat in the belly.

Good Treats for Good Diabetic Dogs

2013-02-28T10:54:00.000-06:00

Fruits and vegetables (Photo credit: nutrilover)

I've written before about my sometimes horrifying discoveries about treats and my diabetic dog, mainly instances where I discovered that I should have checked the ingredients (high-fructose corn syrup and other sugars turn up in a lot of commercial dog treats), but I haven't often touched on treats that are better for your pet. Recently, DogChannel.com published an article on using vegetables as treats, and I think this is a godsend. I know quite a few dog owners who routinely feed their pets whatever they themselves are having for dinner (see my next post for more on that!), which is especially bad in many cases because said dog owners are not consuming a healthful diet themselves.

With diabetes, the treat question is more complex anyway. Starches and sugars, really anything with a high glycemic index, can cause blood sugars to rise (and fall, too, for those who still are producing some insulin themselves), a bad situation when it comes to maintaining good health. So, low glycemic index vegetables can be a better choice, as long as you remember that these are TREATS, not meals, and keep the portions to an appropriate size. The article covers this issue pretty well, although it doesn't take diabetes into account. For example, DO NOT give a diabetic dog potatoes (and if you want to give sweet potatoes, keep the serving very small -- their impact on blood sugar is not terribly high like regular potatoes, but they do have an impact, after all). Starchy vegetables raise blood sugar almost as much as sugars do.

Having said that, I can recommend the article, based on what I've learned over the years (keep in mind that I am not a vet, just a well-read dog lover). I remember Tony going absolutely nuts over broccoli -- he liked it cooked but still a bit crunchy.

Let me know how it works out for you.

Puppy (and Dog) Pill Problems?

2013-02-09T11:33:00.000-06:00

Picture credit DogChannel.com

Our friends at WebMD's Healthy Pets page have a newish article that every dog owner should read, "How to Give Medications to Dogs." Believe it or not, many people give up on their dogs because of this very issue (or so I have been told by several vets and vet assistants). In my case, I had a lot of problems in this area when it came to pills but, surprisingly, none at all when it came to injections. Tony hated pills of any kind, and I was hard pressed to find new ways to get them into him. His nose always told him when a pill was hiding in a bit of food, and the only solution was to put them in more and more exciting (i.e., normally forbidden) kinds of food. This went on for a while until I discussed it with his vet, who told me that he was not getting any time-delayed pills and so I could crush them and add them to his nightly tablespoon of nonfat plain yogurt. This worked great!

My brother Eric, who gave Tony to me, told me that I should have been sticking my fingers in Tony's mouth on a daily basis from the day he came to live with me in order to get him used to me doing that. Unfortunately, he told me this three years too late. By that time Tony had gotten pretty protective of his mouth, and even though his teeth were small, I was not eager enough to start putting my fingers in there. Eric's a behavioral psychologist, and he has been known to get animals to do some pretty weird stuff on command, so I'm sure he's right about the mouth thing, and I KNOW that putting the pills in the mouth is the very best way to do it, but I started too late and was too chicken for that method. My advice: it's the same as Eric's. When you get a new puppy, check its mouth out as often as possible. It will probably pay off down the line.

The one quibble I have with WebMD's advice on injections is that two different vets told me NOT to use alcohol on Tony's skin before giving him his twice-daily insulin shots. I really don't remember the reason they gave for this, but I do know that there was never a problem with his injection sites, no infections or even irritations. So, as always, go by what your vet says (and if you don't like what the vet says, get a second opinion-- you'd do that for your own health, wouldn't you?).

Dog Flu and Harbor Seals

2013-01-17T12:24:00.000-06:00

These Mature Harbor Seals on the beach are apparently healthy (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

One source I haven't mentioned before is Mypet.com, mostly because it's run by Merck, which is a major player in BigPharma, if you know what I mean. The bottom line is that the site is there to sell you on their products, but that doesn't mean that they are automatically wrong, just that you have to consider their goals as well as your own. So, keeping that in mind, I just got an email from them about dog flu (several viruses, including H3N8). They want people to vaccinate their dogs against dog flu (which is not -- so far-- transferable to humans), and they have a point, especially if your dog comes into contact with other dogs, or if your dog has a chronic health issue (like diabetes, for example) that would make a bout of the flu more hazardous than it would be for a healthy dog. Their dog flu page is very cute, with a puppet video. However, if you want to know more, you have to leave the site for another Merck page.

Not surprisingly, WebMd has information on H3N8, which you may have heard referred to as bird flu. Horses and seals are also susceptible to it, and it can kill. A WebMd Health News article reports that "Over a four-month period beginning last September [2011], 162 harbor seals were found dead or dying along the coast of New England" from H3N8. Makes you want to get your dog vaccinated, doesn't it?

Diabetic Dogs in a Winter Wonderland

2012-12-28T08:44:00.000-06:00

English: Two Siberian Huskies (Max & Moritz)
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I hope your holidays are going well so far. I just received an email from WebMd's Healthy Dogs newsletter and was appalled to find that the article links don't seem to be working. Since others may be having the same problem (and since the search program on WebMd seems to have trouble finding pet articles, too), I thought it would be worth posting how to get to them.

The first article is on frostbite in dogs, and I found this a real eye-opener, as I never thought about it before. I mean, the dogs I've spent the most time with throughout my life have all been breeds (Pomeranians, Great Pyrenees, Siberian huskies, etc) that originated in cold climates, and you just don't imagine them having too many problems in the winter. In fact, I've always had more of a problem getting the dogs to come back indoors in the winter. It turns out that cold weather is especially hazardous for diabetic dogs, because "Prolonged cold exposure burns up stored energy and results in a low blood sugar." Their instructions on emergency care for dogs suffering from hypothermia include giving honey or sugar water as part of the treatment. Good to know!

The article on winter safety in general is also a good read, if only to refresh your memory, but it brings up a few things, for example, the hazards of doggie sweaters (!), that may not have occurred to you.

Finally, one of the things I found on my own turned out to be another good source: the vet blogs at WebMd-- I didn't know they had these, but I should have guessed that they would. There's a post from a vet in New York about winter paw care, and much more.

That's all for now. Best wishes for a happy -- and healthy-- new year!

A Terrific Source Re: Pets and Hurricane Sandy

2012-11-17T13:46:00.000-06:00

Flickr: doxella

I've been sorting through my email today, and I came across one from DogChannel.com listing their article "How You Can Help Pets Affected By Sandy." Now, I've gotten a bunch of similar messages since the storm, but this one is really helpful if you want to know who's doing what. For example, the American Kennel Club's new Sandy Fund is providing grant money to clubs in the areas hit by the storm. DogChannel.com has links for all of the 15 organizations leading the charge to provide relief to those who need it.

I should also mention that theanimalrescuesite.com is involved in relief efforts as well. If you've never been to the site, you should try it. You can help FOR FREE by clicking on the page! No, it's not a scam. The site donates the ad money generated by your click to shelters, and throughout November, all donations are going to Sandy relief.

And, while I'm at it (and considering that Thanksgiving is less than a week away), once you've clicked on theanimalrescuesite, click on each of the tabs on the top of the page to give similar help to relieve human hunger, help homeless vets, and other worthy causes via the Greater Good Network.

Thanks.

Dogs: Don't Eat This!

2012-11-17T13:20:00.000-06:00

A double whammy for dogs: Chocolate-covered macadamia nuts (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I thought I had a good handle on people foods that are toxic for dogs, but WebMD alerted me to a few that I had never heard of in this context, including avocados and animal fat. Best of all, they tell you precisely why these foods are "Dangerous for Dogs." Avocados (persea Americana) contain persin, which is toxic for dogs, and animal fat -- cooked or raw-- can cause pancreatitis. So, it's worth a look. Strangely enough, the theobromine in chocolate that is toxic for dogs is also toxic for humans, but we would have to eat quite a bit at one time (the figure I've read on this is 25 lbs!) to be poisoned.

I think I've mentioned before that I was horrified to learn (some years ago) that the macadamia nuts I occasionally shared with Tony, my Pomeranian, before he gained weight, which led to his diabetes, were extremely toxic for dogs. He never had many, but he was really crazy about them. Which suggests that if you have any, keep them where the dog can't get at them.

What am I saying?!! You've probably already got them in a secret hiding place to keep them from your greedy loved ones.

Hurricane Sandy: Time to Check your Emergency Readiness

2012-11-03T10:28:00.000-05:00

Hurricane Sandy Redecoration (Photo credit: dakine kane)

My inbox is full of messages in connection with Hurricane Sandy, including a request for a donation from the ASPCA. As usual, I'm broke, so I can't oblige them right now. I hope you can. They're doing a lot of work that is Sandy-related, and it's all laid out on their blog. It's a real relief to me to read about people doing good things for pets, as opposed to all the animal abuse stories I keep hearing.

The fact that the hurricane hit Manhattan (I've always wondered why this hasn't happened before) brings home a reminder that disasters can happen anywhere, anytime. I lived in central Florida for most of the 1980s, and we were warned every May/June about preparing for hurricane season by all the different media that were available then -- even paper grocery bags had tracking maps and lists of emergency supplies listed on them. I now live in the midwest, and while we don't have hurricanes, we do have floods and tornados, but these don't seem to get the kind of advance attention as hurricanes, probably because they don't have a season per se.

So, my advice for today is to think of what you would need if disaster struck for your family, including your pets, whether you were to stay in your home (with or without electricity) or evacuate. If you have an emergency kit, go over it to see if anything else is needed. If you don't have one, get on the stick! One thing that I bought after Tony was diagnosed with diabetes was a little cooler pack for his insulin, just for such an emergency. I think you can see why you'd need this, so I won't belabor the obvious. These run around $20, and there are different kinds of cooling involved, but I haven't seen any that are good for more than 45 hours (that would be the Frio Cooling Wallet, which gets soaked in water to activate a gel that keeps it cold, so you don't have to keep cold packs in your freezer if you don't want to). Once you've bought one, REMEMBER WHERE YOU PUT IT. In an emergency, there may not be time to do more than put the insulin in the pack.

Diabetic Dogs and Affordable Care

2012-09-24T07:25:00.000-05:00

English: Two Dogs (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I just found the time to read the July/August issue of the AARP Bulletin, and in their annual "99 Great Ways to Save" article, they have several pet items. Number 80 asks if you are having trouble affording your pet and suggests searching under that at humanesociety.org. I tried it, because I know firsthand how much it can cost to have a pet with any kind of chronic health issue, but it took some doing to get to the right page, which is at http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/resources/tips/trouble_affording_pet.html

The page lists a lot of organizations all around the country that can help, also indexed by state. None are specifically for diabetic dogs (several are only for canine cancer), but there are some that offer assistance with prescription drugs. I don't know if any will help with insulin, but it couldn't hurt to check. It turns out that the Humane Society of the United States also has a program called Pets For Life, which is aimed at underserved communities, and they offer info on how to start one going in your area.

They also have a program for people with pets who are facing foreclosure. Unlike some animal rights organizations that seem only to care about getting their names in the paper, by some pretty bizarre means at times, and soliciting donations (you probably know which one I'm thinking of here), the HSUS appears to be trying to deal with the practical needs of pets and their owners. Having said that, however, I must note that they also have their detractors, as you can see from the title of one of the articles listed below, but you can get another viewpoint from the slate.com article.

The Dangers of Ask-a-Vet Websites

2012-09-13T06:23:00.000-05:00

Veterinarian (Photo credit: Army Medicine)

As always, I am on the alert for issues concerning pet health, and I've come across one that I haven't seen before. DogChannel.com has an interesting and thorough article about the pitfalls of ask-a-vet websites (which are becoming numerous, with many charging for their services). Nikki Moustaki, a well-known writer on dogs, examined a bunch of these sites, interviewed a few REAL veterinarians (some of the sites in question don't actually have vets on hand, just "experts") about them, and found some fairly troubling issues. The one that I think is a dead giveaway is that some of them carry the disclaimer that the website and its advice are "for entertainment purposes only." Yeah, I'm sure sick dogs are entertaining . . . to some sick people.

The bottom line is that if you are worried enough to be willing to pay for veterinary advice over the web, you are certainly worried enough that you should take the dog to his or her regular vet, the one who has seen the dog year after year and has records of previous exams. Don't take chances.

Free Health Evaluations for your Pets

2012-08-27T12:53:00.000-05:00

Toby, the Rock Health dog! (Photo credit: mariachily)

I've mentioned this before, but it's worth the reminder. WebMD has a free Pet Health Evaluator available on their website. You'll get a report and tips after you answer a set of questions. If you are worried that your dog may be developing diabetes, it might be worth your while to do this periodically between vet checkups.

Another Reason to Include "Diabetes" on your Dog's Tag

2012-08-07T09:52:00.000-05:00

NEW YORK - OCTOBER 17: (L-R) Spock and Captain Kirk, Mastiffs, (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)

The ASPCA just sent me another message that relates to my last post. According to them, dogs are being stolen at an outrageous rate: "The American Kennel Club, which has been tracking pet thefts since 2007, reported a 32% increase in dog thefts last year." Their article, "Dognapping On the Rise—Protect Your Pet," gives some commonsense advice about how to prevent this, mainly having to do with not leaving your dog unattended in public places. The list ends with an admonition to get your dog microchipped. However, it occurs to me that thieves are not likely to want a dog that has diabetes, considering that, as far as they know, it could experience a crisis at any moment, possibly while they are trying to sell it. In fact, since the theft itself could be traumatic for the dog, a blood sugar crash is almost likely to happen.

So, here's another reason to put the word "Diabetes" on the front of the tag (the thieves have no reason to look at the back, do they?). Let them know that your friend has special needs. I'm not saying that they'll bring it back, unfortunately, but the next person to encounter it might.

What if your diabetic dog is lost?

2012-07-07T12:41:00.000-05:00

Space Canine Patrol Agents (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Here's an issue I've hardly touched on, and I have to thank the ASPCA for making me think about it. On the Fourth of July, I received an email from them with the headline "What to do if your pet is lost." I remembered when that actually happened to me, with the added complication that my dog was on insulin.

Tony liked to go off on his own, so we were always careful about closing doors and making sure he hadn't been digging under the backyard fence, but sometimes he just managed to slip out (little dogs can get through very small spaces). When he was first diagnosed with diabetes and put on insulin, I worried about this, so I ordered him a new I.D. tag. The front had his name, but underneath that it said "I have diabetes." My name and phone were on the back. I should point out that one of my worries with him getting loose was that the people who found him might want to keep him, since people went crazy over him every time I took him anywhere, so I had already had him microchipped.

Well, one night his new tag was tested. It was about 10PM in early September, and my brother in law Steve wasn't paying attention when he went out to get something from his car. Tony was off to the races. We all went out and searched the neighborhood, without any luck.

You can imagine how happy we were when, right after we got back to the house, the phone rang (with good news). It was a man who lived on the other side of the subdivision (I wish I could remember his name), and he had Tony. Steve (who felt very guilty) volunteered to go get him. It turned out that for some reason only a dog would understand, Tony had gone to the back door of that house and started barking. The man opened the door to see what was going on, and Tony ran in, just as if he owned the place. The man told Steve that he called as soon as he saw the tag that said Tony had diabetes. So, not only did we get Tony back, but we didn't have to spend the whole night worrying, which had happened in the past. And that was a real possibility, according to Steve, who said that when he got there, the children of the house were playing with Tony -- and they were not happy that he had to leave. I can see someone waiting to call until morning, considering it was late.

My advice: get the microchip, but be sure to put the diabetes on the dog's tag. It's a little bit of insurance that might make a difference.

A High-Risk Breed

2012-05-05T07:02:00.001-05:00

Hans on St. Vrain Trail, Colorado. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I just received the WebMD Healthy Dogs newsletter, and there is an item of particular interest. They have a slideshow of the health issues associated with the 25 most popular breeds. According to them, the Miniature Schnauzer is prone to diabetes (the problem they cite for Pomeranians is hair loss, which my Tony did not experience until his cancer was very advanced). At any rate, if you have a Miniature Schnauzer, keep an eye out for symptoms like excessive drinking and urination, and make sure he or she eats right and gets plenty of exercise. Of course, that's good advice for any breed!
I've got a couple of videos listed below with these very cute dogs performing tricks, and the first thing that struck me when I saw them was the rewards they received. I hope the humans are keeping track of how many treats they're getting.

Wait a Minute --Maybe Dogs aren't People

2012-05-02T10:41:00.002-05:00

Right after publishing my last post, I realized that I hadn't put up any pictures, so I went looking for one. Aargh! You would not believe how many REALLY DISTURBING pictures and videos of extremely overweight animals are on the web. And it's disturbing on more than one level, too. Can you say "animal exploitation"? I think it's entirely possible that some of the people who are uploading these (especially the videos) let their dogs get this way on purpose. But maybe I'm just being overly cynical and suspicious. Maybe not.

However, the thing that I found most ironic was the title of my last posting -- hence the title of this one. Unlike excess weight in people, a pet parent can usually prevent or treat this ailment without a lot of problems. This isn't true for people, for a wide variety of reasons that I can't get into here, and I know this from personal experience as well as from keeping up with the research in this area.

Now, if your dog has his or her own line of credit at the grocery store, yeah, you're going to have trouble controlling intake, but otherwise, you are the human, you are in charge of the food and exercise, and you need to make the effort. Talk to your vet. If you do make a sincere and serious effort and the weight does not come down in a reasonable amount of time, see your vet again. Also see your vet if you aren't trying to slim your dog down and he or she suddenly does it anyway: this is one of the classic symptoms of diabetes!

And no, I'm not going to post any of those disturbing images. If you can stand it, just go to your favorite search engine and search "fat dogs" --and prepare to be appalled.

Hey, Dogs are People, too, WebMD!

2012-05-02T10:28:00.000-05:00

I've talked about WebMD before, but they sent me an email about a new feature that got me very excited. It's a free online Symptom Checker. What's funny about this is that I got the email because I subscribe to their Healthy Dogs newsletter, and I (naturally) assumed it was for animals. Now that I'm writing that, it does sound like I was kind of nuts for thinking that. Anyway, I'm hoping that they will have this service for dogs sometime soon.
On another WebMD note, their latest newsletter is headlined "Is Your Dog Too Fat?" -- an issue of interest, or it should be-- for all doghumans. There is clearly a connection between excess weight and diabetes (although if you read the research on this, you'll find that nobody is quite sure what that connection means or why it exists), and trust me, you want to eliminate as many risk factors as you can. At any rate, there is a video from their Ask the Veterinarian series, and this is the third question. My own take on the connection (and no, I'm not a veterinarian or a physician), after doing a lot of research on diabetes in both dogs and humans, is that exercise seems to be the real root. If your dog (or you) is overweight AND doesn't get much exercise, you've got a lot more to worry about that those who are overweight and active.

Living with a Diabetic Me

2012-04-02T11:48:00.002-05:00

For anyone who's been wondering why I haven't posted since last August, the answer is simple. Around that time, I got whacked with the irony stick: I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
I have to say, Tony spoiled me when it comes to living with diabetes. His blood sugar was pretty well controlled in a very short amount of time, whereas mine is still not steady after 8 months. Of course, he was on insulin, and I am not.
What gets me about this situation, though, is that veterinary medicine seems to have a better handle on this disease than human medicine. I don't have a problem with my doctor, but I am amazed at the anger so many diabetics have toward the American Diabetes Association and how their recommendations differ from what I am seeing from other authorities.
I didn't have too many problems with my dog Tony when it came to maintaining his diet and insulin regimen, now that I look back on it. His vet did periodic blood sugar curve tests (over an entire day), and his insulin was adjusted based on those, but most of the so-called authorities don't seem to think it's necessary for humans to find out what their blood sugar is doing over the course of a day, ever. To be fair, my mother's endocrinologist has her testing five times a day (good thing she has Medicare; you wouldn't believe the price of test strips).
Anyway, I've got a big backlog of doggie material that I'll be sharing soon, and with a brand-new viewpoint into how it feels to be diabetic.

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