Diabetes Mellitus has unfortunately become very common among canines.
Do you suspect that your dog’s pancreas isn’t functioning properly?
You can be proactive! It’s possible to check their blood, or urine, for signs of abnormal glucose or insulin levels.
In any case, don’t worry yourself too much.
High glucose AKA diabetes is treatable, especially when know what’s going on with your dog early on.
Here we’ll go over the signs and also recommend excellent monitoring kits.
Dogs Can And Should Be Checked For High Blood Glucose
There are relatively easy ways to check for diabetes.
AlphaTRAK’s blood glucose monitoring system kit is the top of the line for testing your dog’s blood. Vets utilize it too.
Special urine testing strips are also good, though they aren’t quite as effective.
Factoid: Two breeds most susceptible to developing diabetes are Cairn Terriers and Samoyeds.
Symptoms to Watch For
First and foremost, weight loss could point towards a glucose issue.
Here are a few other signs indicating insulin levels are out of whack:
- Excessive thirst
- UTIs
- Frequent urination
- Dehydration
- Loss of appetite
Daily insulin injections, or perhaps a certain medication, may be what’s needed for your dog to live out their remaining days.
Of course, these problems are linked to other medical conditions as well.
Have your dog checked out by a professional to truly determine what is going on. It could be diabetes or something entirely different.
Prevention For Pets
If you regularly test your dog you’ll be able to prevent nerve damage and cataracts.
These are two typical side effects dogs experience due to undetected diabetes or high glucose levels.
What’s worse, Ketoacidosis could develop if you do not address diabetes.
Basically the liver begins to destroy itself which leads to your dog suffering with depression, serious vomiting and they can even fall into a coma.
Thankfully you can expect your friend to live just as long with proper insulin treatment than if they never had diabetes in the first place.
Canine Glucose Levels
900 to 1,800 milligrams per liter is a normal blood glucose level for most non-diabetic dogs.
That range is considered regulated.
Your dog has good glucose and a normal functioning pancreas if you get a reading between these amounts on a regular basis.
Testing your dog’s glucose is much easier, by comparison, than administering a vaccination.
Too High or Low?
You need to get a reliable tool for evaluating your dog’s glucose levels.
This is particularly important if you have an already diagnosed dog.
Hypoglycemia is another concern with diabetic pets, especially with puppies.
Watch this informative video for more information. Prevention is always key.
The Bottom Line
You can certainly test your dog’s blood sugar levels.
In fact, high glucose or low insulin monitoring can be done at home using either urine strips or a blood testing kit.
It is concerning that diabetes continues to be on the rise among canines.
With that in mind, getting a clean bill of health or at least catch this condition early on makes a lot of sense.