Diabetes Mellitus - Management after diagnosis
It is always a big shock to find out your pet is Diabetic and requires glucose monitoring and insulin injections. When first stabilising patients, we need to monitor the blood glucose regularly to ensure a good “curve” of blood glucose control is achieved.
What is the Freestyle Libre?
The FreeStyle Libre Monitor is a faster, easier, and less painful way to monitor your diabetic pet’s glucose levels at home. A sensor is implanted in your pet’s skin. This can be placed either between the shoulder blades or the side of the body. The sensor measures the glucose in the fluid in the tissues under the skin (interstitial fluid glucose). There is a small difference in this measurement as compared to the amount of glucose in the blood, but for the purpose of monitoring your pet’s diabetes that difference is negligible.
The sensor remains in place for up to 2 weeks, after which it can be removed by your vet or may just drop off. An optimum glucose curve is one where a reading is scanned every 2-3 hours so that changes in glucose can be actively monitored throughout the day.
An app on your phone can be downloaded and used to scan the sensor, which can be linked to a similar app that we have here in the clinic, allowing us to get instant updates whenever a glucose reading has been scanned. Sensors can be purchased directly from our clinic or in pharmacies. Many pets manage to dislodge the sensor before the 14-day expiration.
What to do if the sensors show low insulin?
If the flash system indicates that your pet’s glucose level is low, but your pet isn’t showing signs of low blood glucose (trembling, weakness, panting, seizures, collapse etc.) you should check your pet’s blood glucose with a standard veterinary glucometer before offering any snacks. If your pet is showing signs of hypoglycaemia and the flash system is registering a normal glucose level, you should also double check the flash system against a standard glucometer.
General troubleshooting in diabetic animals.
Hypoglycaemia
This is when the insulin dose is too high and the animal gets low blood glucose – this can be life threatening as it can lead to coma and death. Signs include trembling, weakness, panting, seizures, and collapse. If you suspect this, we recommend giving some honey or glucose solution to your pet on their gums and bringing them direct to a veterinary clinic. Always have honey or glucose at home and with you on outings.
Urinary Tract infections
Animals with diabetes are more susceptible to urinary tract infections as they have glucose in their urine which is food for bacteria. Signs can include inappropriate urination, licking at the area or changes in urination patterns.
Weight changes
Diabetic animals should be weighed at least fortnightly. If weight changes, please inform the clinic as insulin requirements may be affected.
Changes in drinking patterns
Changes in drinking can mean that there are changes in the disease management and please let the clinic know.
What if my pet hasn’t eaten their meal?
Please only give a half dose of insulin as there is a lower requirement. Persistent inappetence needs veterinary attention
What if my pet needs surgery?
Please ask your vet how to change feeding and insulin dosing in preparation for surgery.
It is important to be aware that many animals develop cataracts within a year or 2 of diabetes diagnosis and this can severely impact their vision, there are surgical options available to treat this with specialists, but they can be costly.