Murray is a beloved dog in my household. He just turned 9 years old in June and over the last two weeks, I’d started noticing a huge change in his personality. For one, he was having accidents in the house. He’d not had an accident since he was housetrained years ago. In fact, Murray is so well trained that he can hold it for more than twelve hours, even when he is practically begging to get out the door. He was also showing signs of tiredness more often. He lost ten pounds and he was drinking tons of water.
Thyroid Problems
Murray’s been on thyroid medication since he was three years old. We’ve been trying to trim back his weight for years, but we’d always had that thyroid to contend with. Suddenly, the weight we’d wanted him to lose was now falling off. I monitored and took notes of his behavior and actions for days. Saturday, I was more worried than before I started taking notes on his behavior and condition.
We took him to the vet for a check up and I described the symptoms. One blood test later and I felt my heart sink. His blood glucose level was 594. A normal range for a dog should be between 40 and 173. The 594 count meant that he was no longer producing enough insulin to cope with his eating habits.
Insulin Shots & Care
An hour later, I left armed with a prescription for insulin and the dosage amounts. We’ll be going back to the vet a couple three times over the next few weeks to monitor his blood glucose levels in order to pinpoint the exact dosage amounts to give him. Currently, he is receiving 9 units of insulin twice a day at 12 hour intervals.
I just gave him his fourth shot this morning – it 48 hours on the insulin – the difference in him is profound. He is no longer urinating every hour. He is eating and drinking less and he seems dramatically more comfortable. He is sleeping more than he was before, but it seems to be real sleep and not the restless behavior he was showing before.
His mood is also more improved. He is happier and he was playing last night, something he hasn’t done in the last couple of weeks. While diabetes is not the end of the road, I feel awful for my sweet Murray dog. He doesn’t bat an eyelash when I give him his shots. He’s always been an easy to care for dog, but when you consider that I have to inject him with insulin twice a day – it would be harder – it’s not.
I’ll keep you posted on how he is doing, but for now – my 9 year old dog takes two types of medication daily and he is maintaining a great and upbeat mood. Here’s hoping that he maintains this level of upbeat happiness and I’ll definitely do my part with the medication and more. I’d love to have another 9 to 10 years personally.
Have you ever had to give a pet insulin shots?
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