<p>My dear little doggy has just been diagnosed with diabetes. The vet and I will begin the process of figuring out the correct insulin dose, feeding routine, etc. tomorrow morning. If anyone has experience, please provide words of wisdom, encouragement, useful tips or whatever positive thoughts you can(except the downers, please–the vets and I talked about possible bad outcomes, etc., but I need to think positive for now.) Dear doggy and I thank you kindly!</p>
<p>My doggy lived happily with diabetes for approx five years, a good three or four years over the expected lifespan for his breed. He did end up going blind, but he adapted very well and besides not being willing to go up and down stairs anymore it was not much different from how he used to be.</p>
<p>The shots take getting used to. My maxy dog was really good about them up until the end, and by then he was really gone mentally-- he had a lot more wrong with him than just diabetes by then, it was just his time. But before all that, he didn’t even react and I think he liked the attention he got for being a good boy for them. It was hard for the family to get used to having to curtail our social calendar around the dog’s shots, but we got used to it. Eventually it just becomes part of your routine and it’s not bad. My cousin’s labrador was diagnosed with diabetes a year or two ago as well and he is doing really great. Our biggest complaint really is that insulin is very expensive. (That, and accidentally getting peed on while you’re taking urine tests… but you get used to that, too.)</p>
<p>A tip we discovered is to draw the shot a few minutes before you are actually going to give it. If the insulin is straight out of the fridge I think it hurts them, my max would yelp if we didn’t let it warm up just a teeny bit first. But not too long, since the insulin is supposed to be refrigerated. I don’t think the lab reacts as much as my affenpinscher did. Our vet told us this was okay, yours may say differently so it’s up to you. We also found that we had to replace the insulin before the bottle was empty because it would stop working, so make sure you ALWAYS check his urine, never take for granted that his levels are where they should be. When our max had an infection or something, often his sugar would be the first thing to tip us off. His water intake also may become an indicator, that is something we always measured. We kept a little notebook with the dog food that kept track of how much water he was given, how much he drank, how much insulin he got for each shot and the time, his sugar level, how much he ate, when he peed, etc and so forth-- all those details will help you manage your dog’s health.</p>
<p>For us really it was all just worth it once we saw how much healthier and happier our dog was once we started the insulin. He was like a happy go lucky puppy again.</p>
<p>My mom had two Schnauzers that developed diabetes (mother and daughter). Both had shots for several years and did OK. The younger one went blind and also did OK with that for quite a while. You can still have a few more good years with your doggie.</p>
<p>Our Bichon had diabetes the last 3 years of her life. 2 shots a day. She got a treat (turkey) after her shot so she LOVED her shots. It took me a bit to get get used to injecting her but it really wasn’t bad. We found it a bit hard to regulate her insulin at times so we always had karo syrup around and rubbed it on her gums if her sugar got too low. (Too high = increased peeing, too low = convulsion-like shaking)</p>
<p>She was a happy dog all the way until she died (heart failure). Good luck with your doggy!</p>