My Yorkie drinks a lot, pants, has high blood sugar. Is it diabetes?

Hello, most pets with diabetes will fee lethargic, have increased drinking and increased urinations. Most patients will eventually have weight loss, some may develop secondary urinary tract infections. Diabetes is proven with blood work and urinalysis. We will typically see a very high glucose, in dogs above 200, and glucose in the urine (normally there’s no glucose in urine). Additional tests such as fructosamine and a glucose curve are performed. If you have noted these signs in Bella, then you should speak with your veterinarian about obtaining bloodwork. Hope this helps and best of luck

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.

It's possible something could be going on, especially if this has happened more than once. It would be best to bring Toodie into your vet for a full exam where they can take bloodwork and a urine sample to check for things like urinary infections or other issues that could be causing the symptoms you are seeing. Small breed dogs can definitely get hypoglycemia, which is usually solved by feeding multiple small meals a day to help keep the blood sugar regulated, but if this is happening in a specific sequence or after urinating, I would have her examined by your vet to rule out infections or other concerns as well.

I am afraid Roxy is showing typical signs of diabetes: She’s started drinking more, losing weight despite eating normally and having some incontinence in the last week. Diabetes can also make a dog more prone to bacterial urinary tract infections, which is why your vet prescribed clavamox. Stress can cause higher blood glucose levels, but the elevation would be relatively small compared with a diabetic glucose elevation . A blood glucose level over 220mg/dL would definitely be higher than one caused by stress and this would be diagnostic for diabetes. However, should your dog have diabetes, it does help to keep stress levels as low as possible and to also have her teeth checked and if they are in need of a dental cleaning to have this done, as dental problems also cause stress and can compromise the success of diabetes treatment. I hope Roxy only has a UTI, but even if she has diabetes, this is relatively easily dealt with. .

Thank you for submitting your question Sophie. I recommend that she sees her veterinarian for blood and urine testing. The signs you have described are most common with diabetes. They can also be seen with kidney disease, liver problems or an adrenal gland disorder. I hope this information helps!

Hello, yes these sings if persistent could be indicative of certain deseases such as cushings or diabetes. Other causes of these signs may include something more benign such as a UTI. If he continues to have these signs or if you note increased urinations, lethargy and loss of appetite than he should be evaluated by his veterinarian. He may need blood work and a urinalysis to screen for these. Hope this helps and best of luck.

Drinking and urinating a lot can be due to a many different things. The more common problems are excess heat in environment, increased salt intake, liver disease, kidney disease, toxin ingestion (antifreeze is a common one) certain infections, diabetes and Cushing's disease. Without more information and being able to examine Tiddles, it's difficult to know what the cause is, but considering this could indicate a severe problem, it's best to have him evaluated by a veterinarian. It doesn't seem to be an emergency right now, but it's best to have him checked-out within the next 24 hours. The vet will be able to better assess his condition and recommend further testing if needed. If you have further questions or need further clarification, then you may consider having an online consult with one of our vets on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. This way, you can send unlimited pictures and have a text conversation with a vet. I hope that helps and Tiddles gets better soon.