I get some great questions from clients. They inspire me with article ideas and keep me in tune with diabetic pet owners. I enjoy interacting with our readers, and sometimes the questions are worthy of a newsletter. I bet if one person has this question and takes the time to write me, there are likely lots of folks with a similar question.
Every now and then a diabetic pet just doesn't seem to make sense. On paper it all seems so simple. You give insulin which should lower the pet's blood glucose level for some period of time until it rises again. After all, insulin drives energy into cells. After an insulin injection we expect the blood glucose to go down, but sometimes it does not. Sometimes a pet doesn't seem to respond to insulin at all. Sometimes, you get a Somogyi Swing.
I own a small animal general practice but I am also a pet diabetes educator. I’ve been writing articles about diabetic pet management and more for ADWDiabetes since 2011. I enjoy taking a subject that many folks find overwhelming and making it simple.
Many veterinary clients get irritated when veterinarians ask them to run blood glucose curves to assess the insulin dosage for their diabetic pets. When we prescribe antibiotics or anti-inflammatory medications we don't make clients poke the pet periodically to assess the dosage! Why do we pick on diabetic pet owners?
Oh boy is it hot outside! You know you live in South Florida when you can break a sweat and your sunglasses fog up while going from your house to your car. Even my receptionist at my vet clinic commented on the heat the other day.
It never ceases to amaze me the love and care some folks take with regulating a diabetic pet. It gives me great joy when clients check their pet's blood glucose - whether before giving an insulin injection OR running a blood glucose curve OR even if it is when something doesn't seem quite right.
Last week I got a new patient in my small animal veterinary clinic here in South Florida. The humans in this family are smart and conscientious! They did their research when their cat was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes.
Two weeks ago I had a client who forced my hand and made me do a blood glucose curve in my clinic. Normally I expect, and strongly encourage, my clients to run their curves at home to avoid the complication of "stress hyperglycemia". This phenomenon is when the liver turns stored glycogen into glucose when a pet is stressed.
As a veterinarian I often envy patient compliance that medical doctors take for granted. An MD tells a patient to take a medication and more often than not, the person takes the medication, for the full prescribed time period, just as the MD prescribed.
One of the most common questions I get is about feeding diabetic pets. Part of this is common sense, but let's chat about the big picture. And the big picture isn't quite the same for dogs as it is for cats.