My dog drinks a lot, eats constantly. How do I give insulin shots?

I am so sorry to hear about Pepper. This is a sort of in-depth discussion that might work best as a consultation if you need more guidance. There should be a link below or you can go to the doctor page and request a consultation with me (or any doctor you wish). My first thought is making sure Pepper was correctly diagnosed so seeing some bloodwork/urine results would be very helpful. If this were the case the insulin itself could be making her very sick and weak. This is a life-threatening emergency. My next thought is that she was correctly diagnosed but she has some secondary complication- namely diabetic keto-acidosis. This is a life-threatening complication of unregulated diabetes which causes vomiting, dehydration, lethargy and can even progress to shock and death. Either way, I am extremely concerned and would STRONGLY recommend you visit the emergency vet IMMEDIATELY. Pepper could absolutely die in the next 48 hours depending on what is going on. If you absolutely cannot get to a vet I encourage a consultation as we may be able to ask some better questions and walk you through some steps to help figure out what’s going on. Best of luck to you and Pepper.

Hello, and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I'm sorry to hear that Abel has diabetes! Abel will need to be started on insulin, which will need to come from your vet. If Abel has been lethargic and not eating much, my recommendation would be to have him hospitalized at the vet as soon as possible to get his blood sugar under control, so I'd call them right away and see how quickly he can be seen again - even if the vet isn't free to talk to you when you call, I'd recommend you ask the front desk how quickly Abel can be seen. Untreated diabetes can definitely make a pet become much more sick very quickly, so now that you know it's diabetes I would get Abel rechecked. That way when you bring Abel in, you can talk further about the diabetes diagnosis, and your vet can help you become comfortable with measuring and giving the insulin. When I diagnose new diabetic animals, I usually have the owner practice giving injections of saline to their pet in the hospital so we know they will be comfortable with drawing up the correct dose of insulin and giving injections at home. Your vet will also likely want you to start Abel on a prescription diet formulated to help maintain a more steady blood sugar. I hope this helps and he feels better soon!

Diabetes is a disease that needs to be treated with insulin in dogs - there are no appropriate holistic or herbal treatments that could replace insulin injections. Most dogs tolerate injections well - the needle is very small and the injection is over quickly. I recommend distracting dogs with a tasty treat that takes awhile to eat - some canned dog food smeared into a thin layer on a plate works well - so that they don't notice the injection as much. A well regulated diabetic dog can have a normal life span with a good quality of life.

Yes, he should get some insulin now. The usual starting dose is about ¼ unit per pound of body weight. Thus, a 20 lb. dog would start at 5 units; 40 lb. at 10 units, and so on. So at 29 pounds, he should get about 7 units of insulin. Check his glucose again in a few hours and see where he is to make sure he's not getting too low. If he does get really low, you can help bring it back up by giving some honey or Karo syrup.

Diabetes and Cushing's disease are caused by two different things, and both need to be treated. While you can see an increase in blood sugar when a dog has Cushing's, it's not as high as the blood sugar levels of diabetic patients. Gabe will need to be treated for both.

Drinking more water is more likely to be a sign of high blood sugar. Panting is not really specific to either low or high blood sugar. If you’re unable to check Fidget’s blood sugar at home and you feel something might be wrong you may want to contact your vet to see what they recommend based on her history. It is dangerous to change the insulin dose without first consulting your vet so I would recommend continuing the current dose as long as she is eating, not vomiting, and not having trouble walking or acting lethargic.

A couple of dieases come to mind with the symptoms you are describing - diabetes and Cushing’s disease. Both of these can cause excessive drinking, a distended abdomen, and lethargy. The irritability Breezy is displaying is probably because she is just not feeling like herself. I would recommend taking her to a vet as soon as possible. Your veterinarian will probably recommend running some lab work and possibly doing some X-rays to determine what is going on. Until you are able to get her to the vet try to keep her as calm and comfortable as possible. Offer her plenty of fresh water as long as she is not vomiting it up. I would also recommend keeping her away from other dogs for the time being since she is grumpier than usual. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.