Veterinary Medicine - May 2008 - (Page c22) “We need 2. “We gave our dog the insulin for to make about a month but then stopped. It didn’t seem to work.” sure clients Frequently remind the owners that this is a lifelong treatment for a lifelong understand disease. Anytime something does not that they seem to be working, there is a problem. We can usually control the clinical signs can manage of diabetes in dogs and cats. Unlike the situation in people with diabetes chronic where strict control of blood glucose 4. “My neighbor, an astrologer, told is necessary to prevent diabetic-related diabetes and me to treat Skippy with ground eye of complications, that is not the case with and so I stopped pets. Our job is to stop clinical signs. If that most dogs newtinsulin.organic spinach,something the I wanted to try we can control polyuria and polydipsia, slow or delay the progression of cataand cats do natural.” While I have no problem with owners racts, prevent hypoglycemic reactions, well with it.“ using nontraditional and complementary and maintain ideal body weight, we have medications to treat their diabetic dogs, they must do so in conjunction with insulin, and their use of complementary methods must be done under the direction of a veterinarian who is educated in this eld. “I have diabetes, so I’ll use my insulin. It’ll be cheaper that way.” well by the time it is due for its next insulin dose, it needs to see a veterinarian. It’s that simple. We also need to recognize and tell owners of diabetic dogs that things will go wrong. Some will be minor and annoying, such as accidents in the house—and others, such as seizures due to hypoglycemia, will be scary and can be life-threatening. You should also make clients aware of the potential for unexpected costs to arise, such as with urinary tract infections and pancreatitis. U-40 syringes from their veterinarian to avoid confusion. done our jobs. And we can accomplish this not by strict glycemic control where the goal is euglycemia, but simply by keeping the blood glucose below renal threshold (180 mg/dl in dogs) for the majority of the day. “I’m afraid Daisy won’t do well with diabetes.” 3. 1. Online tools For knowledgeable support and practical resources for both you and your pet owners, visit the Vetsulin website. 22 Many of our clients with diabetic pets are themselves diabetic, and because their insurance covers expenses for insulin and syringes, it’s natural that they’d inquire about using their products on their dogs. However, it is not acceptable for veterinarians to write prescriptions for insulin or insulin syringes using the client’s name. The prescription needs to clearly indicate the medication is intended for a dog or cat. Another frequent mistake that diabetic owners make is using their U-100 syringes for administering U-40 insulin. This can result in signi cant under-dosing of the patient. Owners need to purchase We need to make sure clients understand that they can manage chronic diabetes and that most dogs and cats do well with it. Having been the proud owner of a diabetic poodle for 10 years (Beau Bruyette), my approach to treating diabetes changed a great deal as I went from being a doctor to a client. Experiencing it from a client perspective allows me to help clients deal with their diabetic pets. Maybe all veterinarians should have a diabetic pet. We would all nd it easier to convince clients that their pets can live long and healthy lives with minimal e ort on their part. And after all, that is why we do what we do.
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