DIABETES AND PETS
Symptoms - altered appetite, increased thirst and urination, weight loss, lethargy, depression. Fat pets are more likely to become diabetic. In about quarter of the cases diabetes can be reversed by dieting. Diagnosis is a urine test. A vet will probably keep the pet for a couple of days while stabilising its condition.

WHAT IS INVOLVED The aim is a balance of eating, exercise and insulin. In many cases you will have to inject the insulin daily. Use a sterile needle and keep the insulin in the fridge with a fridge thermometer. You will also have to test your pet's urine daily with little strips of colour-changing paper. You will probably have to feed the pet just before injecting, then several hours later when the insulin reaches its peak. So you will have to establish regular routine, being back at home at key moments or getting somebody else to do it for you. Ideally the pet should lead the same kind of life every day, ie take the same amount of exercise. A vet may recommend keeping a cat indoors all the time or allowing outside access only in a run.

 

HELP FROM VET She/he should teach you how to inject (usually in the scruff of the neck) and test.

BOARDING You need to find kennels/catteries who take insulin dependant animals. Some vets will board the pet. Or take a UK holiday making sure the hotel can keep the insulin in a fridge for you. Pack it in an insulated box with an icepack - check this against instructions.

FOOD The vet should advise on a diabetic diet. Pedigree and Hill Science both make prescription diets. If your pet won't eat this, follow the vet's advice on alternatives. You will have to make sure your pet cannot get hold of any other food -- food from neighbours, dustbins, fallen fruit (for dogs) scavenging on walks etc.
Says a reader: "I found it was essential to feed my cat five hours after the insulin injection. It was then that the insulin peaked. I got to learn when Catullus was suffering from too much insulin/too little food. He behaved oddly and once he became unconscious. Apart from that one time he was unconscious, when I took him to the vet, I would feed him about six Cat Love treats and within minutes he would perk up."

Hurry Up  KNOWING YOUR PET It will help if you are good at reading your pet's body language - changed behaviour may mean too much or too little insulin. Like human diabetics, you will have to be ready to feed snacks if the pet is going hypo. Take biscuits or dextrosetablets on walks for dogs. You will need to read when your pet needs to go to the loo, and be there with the test strip! In warm weather you may need to reduce the daily insulin, particularly if your dog pants a lot.

YOUR PET'S TEMPERAMENT A friendly fairly docile pet will probably adapt to all this. A nervous or wild pet may not.

NOTEBOOK Keep a notebook, with details of daily test and daily amount of insulin given. "At first I was told to ring the vet every day with the test results, and they would tell me how much insulin. After a bit, I felt I knew more than they did," says an owner who did this.

HELP AVAILABLE The two pharmaceutical companies who make insulin for dogs provide a back-up service for owner with handbooks, collars tags, record sheets and even a video to borrow. Ask your vet or the veterinary nurse for their address. There are special high fibre treats available for dogs called Fiber Formula dog biscuits sold by Arnolds and available only from vets. Pedigree Petfoods also do special low fat treats on prescription. These may be OK for diabetic dogs.
Cats Protection has a Diabetic Cat Register listing people who have had experience with diabetic cats and will share their non-veterinary knowledge. Contact helpline@cats.org.uk