Living with a diabetic dog

There is plenty of information on the internet and through your vet regarding how to care for your dog medically.

What I'm talking about is the practical and emotional parts of helping your dog enjoy life to the fullest.

My dog was diagnosed at 9 1/2 years old and lived a very happy life, to the age of 12. I'd like to share some of what I learned.

We first noticed a couple of behavioral changes that led us to visit the vet. First, we noticed that our girl was drinking lots of water, more than usual. Then, she had a couple accidents in the house, which was very unusual for her. She hadn't done that in years.

By the way, whenever a dog suddenly starts having accidents in the house, you should see the vet right away regardless of any other symptoms. It could be something simple, but it should always be checked out just to be sure.

A simple urine test showed that my dog had diabetes. The vet scheduled an overnight visit for further testing, which was needed to determine the right treatment specifically for her.

In our case, insulin injections were needed. Our vet taught us how to prepare and administer the injections. Poor dog! She got about 6 shots of saline solution in one visit while I learned how to do it properly.

The hard truth is that dogs with diabetes frequently develop cataracts and lose their sight. It's also true that the human family usually has more trouble dealing with blindness than the dog.

Remember that your dog is very much in tune with your moods and feelings. As difficult as it may be, do not dwell on feeling bad for your dog. It does nothing to help her learn to cope.

She may still be able to see shadows and light, but chances are that she can't see much more than that.

Getting insulin shots every day is probably no fun for your dog - I wouldn't like it. But if you pair the experience with something your dog loves, you can make it much easier for both of you.

My dog loved to eat, and peanut butter was the treat of choice. After a meal (or while she was still eating) I'd prepare the injection, and ready a spoon with peanut butter on it. My dog, in the meantime, would be dancing around in anticipation of the peanut butter.

If you've taught your dog the "stand" command, now is a great time to use it. My dog would stand still and allow me to give her the insulin, knowing that the treat was coming. (Actually, sometimes her happy tail would be going too much and I'd have to still it before I could give her the shot.)

Immediately after the injection, I'd have that spoon right in her face.

A dog associates what is happening (getting a treat) with the event immediately preceeding it (the shot). So by giving her the treat right away, she learned that the shot really wasn't such a bad thing.

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Here's something my vet did to test my dogs sight - if your dog is interested in food or treats that fall to the floor, try this yourself.

Get a few cotton balls handy, then call your dog to get her attention. When she is watching you and trying to see if you have a treat, let a cotton ball fall to the floor. (Don't make a throwing motion with your arm, she may see that. Just drop one.) If she follows the motion of the falling cotton ball or checks out where it landed, that probably means she can see it. If she continues to watch you and ignores the cotton ball completely, she probably did not see it fall.

Cotton balls are useful for this little test because they don't make sound when they hit the floor, so your dog won't be responding to something she heard rather than saw.

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If your dog has lost her sight, you can make life easier for her by looking for ways to help her live a normal life while avoiding running into things or hurting herself.

For example, don't rearrange the furniture. She will memorize where everything is and be able to move around the house without much trouble.

Try to keep things picked up off the floor so she doesn't trip.

Teach her a warning command, such as, "Wait!" or "Stop!". Whenever you see she is about to run into something, bark out your warning word. She will quickly learn the meaning, and you can avoid many collisions that way.

Try to start right away on this one. We didn't realize my dog was losing her sight at first, and she ran into trees, doors, even the edge of the dishwasher. She knocked several teeth out and bloodied her nose a couple of times, too. We could have prevented a lot of pain if we'd caught on sooner.

When your dog is beginning to lose or sight or very recently lost it, she may become easily startled by other animals or even you approaching. To help her hear where everyone is, place bells on the collars of other pets and on your shoes (at least for outside).

We had 2 other dogs, so we placed a large bell on the collar of the larger dog and a small bell for the smaller dog. That way, our blind girl could know which dog was where. We found different sized bells on parrot toys.

We placed "jingle bells" on our outside shoes. Inside the house, we just walked a little more firmly so she could hear or feel us approach, and usually spoke to her as well.

Some people have suggested using different scented automatic air fresheners in different rooms of the house so your dog will be able to navigate more easily. We didn't need to do that as our house is smaller, but you may find it useful.

Baby gates at the stairs may prevent your dog from falling. Also, place textured rugs at the top and foot of the stairs. Your dog will learn the feel of these rugs and be able to tell where the stairs are.

Actually, textured rugs or different floor coverings that have different feel can help orient your dog anywhere in the house. Just be sure to keep each rug in it's proper place so she doesn't get confused about where she is.

Your dog may not wish to run or walk much when she loses her sight. Putting her on a leash may help a great deal.

Our dog wouldn't do much more than go outside to potty, then lay in the sun. But when we put the leash on her, she felt much more secure and would run along side us (whew!) knowing that we were directing her and she would not run into anything.

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Diabetes can have other accompanying health issues. Talk with your vet about the possible problems that may come up, and don't be afraid to ask lots of questions. Knowing what to look for can help you help your dog.

Remember that she is still the same dog you've always loved. She just needs you a little more.

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