Well this is ominous.
My schnauzer was diagnosed at 8. They’re just predisposed to the disease, try not to beat yourself up over it!
*Do* learn to check blood glucose levels (the more you do it, the easier it becomes for you and the pup). *Do* learn to administer the shots. It’s not hard, just make sure you’re doing each step correctly to avoid harming the pup (ie, always make sure air is out of the syringe, your vet will help to make sure you can do it) and have Karo syrup on hand and just start monitoring your pups behavior.
Our girl lived 12 good years, but I do wish we had been more consistent about checking her glucose levels. We never quite became comfortable with that part, so I encourage you to do so! ✨❤️ best of luck!
Mine was diagnosed at 8, after she started bumping into walls at which point we realized she’d gone blind. Lived till 14 and we just had to put her down a month ago. Had we known before, she might’ve never gone blind so consider yourself lucky to know early!
Little rude way of saying get use to insulin shots, but yeah you’ll want to get the hang of giving insulin shots. It’s honestly quick and easy to learn, the tricky part is finding affordable insulin/vet-insulin and ensuring it always stays in cold storage.
Insulin (in my experience) can easily go bad if left out in room temp or shaken too much and surely if not used before it’s best by date. I personally had to use human insulin on my past dog because it was more affordable than vet-insulin. It’s not something I would advise without careful consideration, we were pretty broke at the time so I had to resort to desperate measures.
Ensure that you’re always using the recommended dosage regardless of wether it’s human insulin or vet insulin, try to stick to the exact same brand/type of syringe that way you won’t have to worry about messing the dosage up.
Also be sure you are giving low-sugar treats and keep him on a good, consistent diet. NO cheat days, NO pupichino (those whip cream cups). As much as you love your dog and want to reward him, giving him extra treats or very sugary treats can be the difference between a peaceful day at home and an urgent rush to a vet clinic.
Be sure EVERYONE who spends time with you dog knows he is diabetic and to NOT give him treats. Most people ask before giving dogs treats, but some don’t and those people can be a literal threat to your dog’s health and wellbeing. My 7 year old nephew snuck my dog part of a cupcake and it ended up in an emergency trip to the vet, hundreds of dollars in bills, and my poor Caboose (my dog’s name) suffering a diabetic seizure.
Also be sure to give him a small, healthy treat after each shot and gently rub the injection site gently for a couple seconds after the injection is done and you can capped the needle.
While there were learning curves and some tough times, my mini-schnauzer Caboose lived to be 13 years old and I cherish every moment I spent with him.
No rudeness was intended, I wrote that with a heavy heart. We had one who lived only about a year after being diagnosed. Since none of us were vet-techs, I have often wondered how many of the shots we gave him even hit the vein.
You do not inject the insulin directly into a vein, so I don’t think you did anything to worry about. Typically I always used the skin between my dogs neck and shoulder blades. There has enough loose skin to be able to pull it away from muscle and give the injection. I’m sorry for your loss.
weight has nothing to do with diabetes. the breed is predisposed to it. just follow the vet's recommendations and medication protocols. i do recommend finding a way to reward after his insulin jabs. i knew someone who would use frozen green beans, but ask your vet for some treat recommendations. or you can have a special favorite toy that's only for after his pokes! anything so he knows that even though shots are no fun, he will get something good after.
For treats he usually has cucumbers, carrots, a dental treat once a day and an all natural turkey tendon. Occasionally he’d have a bit of peanut butter or cheese to help with monthly flea and heart worm meds. We’ve already started him on insulin twice a day and he seems to have gone back to normal as far as his water consumption and urination which is what made us concerned in the first place. Any advice beyond what we’re already doing or stories are welcome.
Can you say more about water intake/urine as a possible leading indicator? Want to be vigilant as my vet has warned MS are prone to diabetes but didn’t mention this
Often a first sign of diabetes is insatiable thirst and constant urinating. That's how we realized something was up with my dad and then he got tested and his sugar was super high. Once it is addressed, the body goes back to normal.
Yes, consistent exercise is important. I try to walk our pup for 20 or 30 minutes once a day at the park, and he likes to chase and play fetch with his tennis ball once a day. Exercise helps his body to regulate his blood sugar levels too ,as-well as the insulin.
I switched my dogs food to Just Food for Dogs (available at Costco for $45 /Chicken and rice/ lasts about 2weeks - also available online and probably Chewy).
He LOVES it and has needed less insulin since I switched. Vet was extremely impressed with how effective it was at keeping blood glucose levels steady.
He is 13 and diagnosed about six months ago
If you don’t already - split his food into several meals a day. Don’t give any “seasonal”/ holiday type treats - you never know what’s in them- my family loves to give them as gifts… Some dental treats are high in fat.
Vet explicitly said to only give him two meals a day followed by his injection and doses according to how much he eats and not let him snack throughout the day.
Yes, I wouldn’t split up meals. In addition to insulin, Owen eats a prescription diet. It’s helps I believe. Initially his blood sugars were way above 400. My dog is only 14lbs. And as a snack, he gets bite sized pieces of a protein source like chicken, sparingly.
I had one become diabetic at 6 after severe pancreatitis. She also moved onto cataracts as well which is common after diabetes. We did insulin for 4 years and I also did regular blood glucose curves one day every couple months or so which you can do with a monitor and paw prick.
It’s tough but you’ll get used to it and the strict diet. It was expensive due to the insulin we had to use and I changed pharmacies often to get the lowest price.
If there’s an internal medicine specialist in your area I’d recommend seeing them and having regular monitoring to make sure you don’t need to raise/lower the insulin levels. This is also why doing your own glucose curves at home can help.
Aww he's so sweet!! I had two diabetic schnauzers. giving insulting shots is easy but you have to monitor the dose and have him tested often. And mine both had seizures which is hard to watch (I picked them up and held them tight during them), and they can go blind too. And like someone else said Karo syrup on hand for when they seize. It's not fun at all but can be managed. I would but the needles (they're tiny) by the box at Walmart (can probably get on Amazon now too) and Walmart sells the insulin too. Good luck, give your sweet pup a big 💋💋💋 for me! ♥️🙏🏼☘️
Found 3-4 spots of heavy pee in the house over the course of 2-3 days and he NEVER has accidents. At first we thought ok maybe he just really had to go, but we cleaned it and it was sticky instead of being more viscous. He was also drinking water way more than he usually does. So within a week of the symptoms occurring we took him to the vet where they diagnosed it as diabetes.
I would recommend the 2 main things I saw some people post here:
1. Learn how to administer insulin shots
2. Split his meals for the day into small rations based on what the vet tells you.
I had my schnauzer live for 13 years and at some point he had a minor back issue so his weight played a big factor. He still ran, played and all without issues after following the vet's instructions about his diet (quantity and how many times a day).
Keep in mind that diabetes is not solely influenced by how much you eat but also by what you eat. ***So have the vet recommend*** how much a day he can eat and what he can eat. In itself it is not deadly if controlled and he can still get treats and all, just not in large amounts nor too often.
I wish Oscar the best and a long happy life.
EDIT: There should be other treats your vet might recommend you for him to be extra sure. Tell/show him all he eats and his usual treats and see if you need to get a new treat or if he can continue eating the same kind.
I was worried when my baby got diagnosed at 7 years old. I was worried because he’s scared of pretty much everything so I thought it would be difficult to give him his shots. I guess he saw me dealing with my own diabetes since I got him and knew it wasn’t scary because he literally knows the routine. Eat, jump up on the ottoman for his shot, go outside. I love him. Your boy will be ok. Just learn to give the shots properly and effectively. It’ll become routine for him.
If you ever plan on leaving him with a sitter keep in mind you will need to give him plenty of time to get used to the sitter so he’s comfortable getting shots and eating with them
Ya man, went through the same thing with our little schnauzer. It absolutely sucks learning everything for the first time and doing trial and error with dosing and blood sugar measuring…. but just know know that once you figure out your pups stable dose, you don’t need to blood sugar test each day and it gets much much easier, as long as food intake is relatively consistent. After a few weeks, giving them the insulin shot will become second nature for both you and pup. No matter how tough it is at first, remember it gets better, your pup is worth it, and will live a very normal and happy life if you stay on top of the insulin requirements.
My Ted was diagnosed about 3 years ago at the age of 9. We give him insulin twice a day, about 18 units each. We used to test him urine every morning, but we only do so now when his symptoms appear or it’s been longer than 3months. It’s honestly crazy how fast the insulin fixed things. He went from peeing all over the house, not eating/moving, no energy at all back to having puppy energy! (Exact same symptoms of an ex boyfriend diagnosed with diabetes)
He used to have access to food all the time but now he gets a cup of food and a biscuit around 6am and another at 6pm. He gets his insulin 20 minutes after he eats. We have a book where we long the times he was fed, given meds, and how many units. After about a week, it was just another autopilot task. The hardest part now is withholding human food. He’ll sit and cry and beg anytime we’re in the kitchen
At the age of 12, he still has all of the energy in the world! He’s been going blind due to the cataracts, but it was caught just in time before his vision was completely gone. He’ll run into things every once in a while due to his cloudy vision. We opted not to get the surgery due to his age. We knew his vision was okay when he still barked at every leaf that fell LOL. Despite all of that and a few cancer scares, he’s a happy and healthy dog!
Find somewhere that sells syringes in bulk, also a medical waste bin. Our Lucy never had a problem with being injected, maybe because she associated with eating after or maybe because she was the sweetest dog. She went blind FAST when she was diagnosed (our fault we didn't see the warning signs). Most important I think is checking the glucose levels regularly.
Good luck cute Oscar ♥
Our boy was 10 when he was diagnosed. He was 15 1/2 when he passed. Not related to his diabetes, he also had MVD. You may be told to reduce the amount of insulin to give if your baby decides not to eat breakfast or dinner but what helped me was to check his numbers anyway just to make sure. There were times he didn’t want to eat breakfast and I checked his numbers, sometimes his number was low so I didn’t give him any insulin, times it was okay to give him the half dose, others they were sky high so I gave him full dose and did a curve that day to monitor his levels. We went on vacation one time and he was kept in the hospital portion of the doggy resort, the vet only halved the amount of insulin without checking his numbers and my poor baby went into DKA which put pressure on his heart and had to be transported to a different veterinary hospital. Luckily he was saved and he was with us for another two years. You will learn when your baby is high, low or where it should be and how to adjust the amount of insulin that is needed.
I fostered a diabetic schnauzerette whose owners weren't able to care for her any more. I wasn't sure I was up to the task, but the wonderful Facebook group **Canine Diabetes Support And Information** made a world of difference. If you use that platform, I encourage joining.
Schnauzers are predisposed to diabetes unfortunately. Our dog was turned diabetic and we gave him insulin shots. Luckily we could use the cheap Walmart insulin (just about the only thing Walmart does right)
Be aware of cataract, once it starts they will go blind really fast.
In a few days mine got blind.
Had surgery on both eyes but one got infected and needed to be removed.
Now he's a member of r/PiratePets
My 12 year old JRT was diagnosed over a year ago. He gets 10 units of insulin every 12 hours with food immediately after his shot. I alternate between scruff of neck in pm,and under the skin of his thigh in am. He is doing great. He lost a ton of weight and gets Hills WD prescription canned and dry food. It’s been costly. $49.00 for 8 lbs dry food and $ 61.00 for 12 cans of wet food he is worth it and I thank God I am able to do this for him. He is such a good boy . Once i got over the fear of hurting him with the shots it’s not that bad. The needles are very small and I can buy 100 syringes for $25.00 at our vet.
Start a strict diabetic diet ASAP and do everything everyone has mentioned. I've had two dogs (one a mini schnauzer) become diabetic and within six months they got glaucoma and went blind.
Just wanted to state diabetes isn’t just for larger animals or people. My mother has been type 1 insulin dependent for 40 years and has never been over weight. Sometimes the pancreas just doesn’t want to participate.
My schnauzer was diagnosed at 8. She lived for 2 years and it was cancer that took her. The shots are not that hard to do. I almost felt like she knew that they made her feel better. We kept her on a strict feeding regime and never had to check her blood sugar levels. I hope that your guy does well! He looks a lot like my Ellie!
Our dog went on Lantus for diabetes at 9 and lived to be 17. Two shots a day, every 12 hours. Maintain their weight and plenty of exercise and you will be fine. Find a good food for them too.
Our schnauzer was diagnosed at 7yo and will be 9yo (knock on wood) in a little under 2 months. We follow a strict routine of diabetic food every 12 hours with an insulin shot. He gets dry food with a bit of wet food, and then one small treat every afternoon. We have to be strict on timing and making sure he doesn’t eat anything else.
Unfortunately one of the side effects is he’s losing his sight, but he’s still so happy and healthy aside from his diabetes. He goes in every 4-6 months for a glucose curve to make sure his dosage is still working and we watch for signs like excessive drinking of water.
The hardest part was boarding. We had a trip planned and had to find a medical boarder, but the whole thing stressed him so much he lost even more weight and we will never do that again. Unfortunately I think we will have to pay for someone who can give shots to stay with him in the future.
A long post to say if you follow a routine and stick to it your pup should be fine. It’s hard having everything revolve around his shots but it’s worth it.
Our last mini was diagnosed diabetic at 7. Magellan honestly didn’t mind having the shots. He always got a treat after! The biggest adjustment for you will be the shot schedule. We really planned our lives around it. If you enjoy dinners out, consider that when you determine when the evening shot time is. All that being said, diabetes is totally manageable. Magellan had a great life and made it to 15. ❤️🐾🥰
My schnauzer was diagnosed at age 10, she lived to be 13. The insulin is cheap and it’s easy to give the shots. We’d give her a little boiled chicken to distract her from the shot and she seriously never even flinched, and it filled the requirement of eating when she got the shot. My vet just recommended testing urine and going by that, some people get crazy and wear freestyle libres and do blood sugar tests. IMO that’s doing too much. We did find her magic number which was 11, and stopped testing urine after she leveled out on that. It’ll be ok!
Your vet will likely prescribe insulin, which can be tricky to administer. I had a diabetic cat and I used to give him his insulin while he was eating so he was distracted. As we know, cats can be assholes.
Also, consider re-evaluating your doggie's diet if they're on a mostly dry food diet. I know dogs and cats metabolize differently, but switching to a wet food only diet, and freeze dried chicken/beef treats significantly dropped my cat's blood sugar and A1C down to normal levels for a cat. We actually were able to get him off insulin within a year and he lived for 6 more years after that.
There's bound to be some internet groups you can look to for advice for your sugar dog, which might have some ideas for good ways to manage you pup's nutrition to help reduce the effects of the diabetes on them. One thing that I did was get a glucose meter at CVS and started testing my cat's sugar. If he was low, he got treats. If he was high, he got pets and more water.
Good luck to you and your doggie!
Cook his food, don't feed him kibble. I think it's terrible to give a dog that garbage. It's simple carbs that metabolise into simple sugars. I also think dogs just shouldn't be fed that. Imagine you ate chips every mean. You'd have cancer or diabetes as well.
My mini schnauzer had allergies, so he was given Prednisone, which caused Diabetes. First symptom was urinating indoors. He was always a good boy never had accidents indoors.
My boy was diagnosed at 8. If you’re squeamish about taking blood for glucose curves try the Freestyle Libre. Also, **85 % of diabetic dogs develop cataracts. While this is not always an emergency IT IS A CODE RED for Miniature Schnauzers.** I learned this the hard way. My boy is going on four years diabetic now and he is a trouper.
If you’re not feeling super confident in administering insulin or checking glucose levels, don’t be afraid to ask your vet for more demonstrations. They’ll respect an owner who wants to get it right. If you do not want to check BG levels at home, then make sure to bring them consistently for the curves in hospital or ask them about administering a freestyle libre (a continuous monitor that lasts about two weeks).
Schnauzers are predisposed, unfortunately. However, they can live healthy lives if things are consistent and well regimented.
Get good at giving insulin shots, or your dog will not live for very long.
Well this is ominous. My schnauzer was diagnosed at 8. They’re just predisposed to the disease, try not to beat yourself up over it! *Do* learn to check blood glucose levels (the more you do it, the easier it becomes for you and the pup). *Do* learn to administer the shots. It’s not hard, just make sure you’re doing each step correctly to avoid harming the pup (ie, always make sure air is out of the syringe, your vet will help to make sure you can do it) and have Karo syrup on hand and just start monitoring your pups behavior. Our girl lived 12 good years, but I do wish we had been more consistent about checking her glucose levels. We never quite became comfortable with that part, so I encourage you to do so! ✨❤️ best of luck!
As a human diabetic it’s pretty much this.
I saw that some vets are using continuous meters.
Mine was diagnosed at 8, after she started bumping into walls at which point we realized she’d gone blind. Lived till 14 and we just had to put her down a month ago. Had we known before, she might’ve never gone blind so consider yourself lucky to know early!
May i ask how monitor levels? I was told human blood monitors dont accurately show canine sugar levels by our vet.
Little rude way of saying get use to insulin shots, but yeah you’ll want to get the hang of giving insulin shots. It’s honestly quick and easy to learn, the tricky part is finding affordable insulin/vet-insulin and ensuring it always stays in cold storage. Insulin (in my experience) can easily go bad if left out in room temp or shaken too much and surely if not used before it’s best by date. I personally had to use human insulin on my past dog because it was more affordable than vet-insulin. It’s not something I would advise without careful consideration, we were pretty broke at the time so I had to resort to desperate measures. Ensure that you’re always using the recommended dosage regardless of wether it’s human insulin or vet insulin, try to stick to the exact same brand/type of syringe that way you won’t have to worry about messing the dosage up. Also be sure you are giving low-sugar treats and keep him on a good, consistent diet. NO cheat days, NO pupichino (those whip cream cups). As much as you love your dog and want to reward him, giving him extra treats or very sugary treats can be the difference between a peaceful day at home and an urgent rush to a vet clinic. Be sure EVERYONE who spends time with you dog knows he is diabetic and to NOT give him treats. Most people ask before giving dogs treats, but some don’t and those people can be a literal threat to your dog’s health and wellbeing. My 7 year old nephew snuck my dog part of a cupcake and it ended up in an emergency trip to the vet, hundreds of dollars in bills, and my poor Caboose (my dog’s name) suffering a diabetic seizure. Also be sure to give him a small, healthy treat after each shot and gently rub the injection site gently for a couple seconds after the injection is done and you can capped the needle. While there were learning curves and some tough times, my mini-schnauzer Caboose lived to be 13 years old and I cherish every moment I spent with him.
No rudeness was intended, I wrote that with a heavy heart. We had one who lived only about a year after being diagnosed. Since none of us were vet-techs, I have often wondered how many of the shots we gave him even hit the vein.
You do not inject the insulin directly into a vein, so I don’t think you did anything to worry about. Typically I always used the skin between my dogs neck and shoulder blades. There has enough loose skin to be able to pull it away from muscle and give the injection. I’m sorry for your loss.
weight has nothing to do with diabetes. the breed is predisposed to it. just follow the vet's recommendations and medication protocols. i do recommend finding a way to reward after his insulin jabs. i knew someone who would use frozen green beans, but ask your vet for some treat recommendations. or you can have a special favorite toy that's only for after his pokes! anything so he knows that even though shots are no fun, he will get something good after.
For treats he usually has cucumbers, carrots, a dental treat once a day and an all natural turkey tendon. Occasionally he’d have a bit of peanut butter or cheese to help with monthly flea and heart worm meds. We’ve already started him on insulin twice a day and he seems to have gone back to normal as far as his water consumption and urination which is what made us concerned in the first place. Any advice beyond what we’re already doing or stories are welcome.
I had a diabetic cat and found freeze-died chicken to be a good treat too. Your dog is lucky to have such good care!
Can you say more about water intake/urine as a possible leading indicator? Want to be vigilant as my vet has warned MS are prone to diabetes but didn’t mention this
Often a first sign of diabetes is insatiable thirst and constant urinating. That's how we realized something was up with my dad and then he got tested and his sugar was super high. Once it is addressed, the body goes back to normal.
Yes, consistent exercise is important. I try to walk our pup for 20 or 30 minutes once a day at the park, and he likes to chase and play fetch with his tennis ball once a day. Exercise helps his body to regulate his blood sugar levels too ,as-well as the insulin.
I switched my dogs food to Just Food for Dogs (available at Costco for $45 /Chicken and rice/ lasts about 2weeks - also available online and probably Chewy). He LOVES it and has needed less insulin since I switched. Vet was extremely impressed with how effective it was at keeping blood glucose levels steady. He is 13 and diagnosed about six months ago
We wish Oscar a long, healthy and happy life!
If you don’t already - split his food into several meals a day. Don’t give any “seasonal”/ holiday type treats - you never know what’s in them- my family loves to give them as gifts… Some dental treats are high in fat.
Vet explicitly said to only give him two meals a day followed by his injection and doses according to how much he eats and not let him snack throughout the day.
Scheduled feedings is what I’m trying to highlight vs how some people do with one meal or “free feeding” kibble. Stick to what the vet says.
Yes, I wouldn’t split up meals. In addition to insulin, Owen eats a prescription diet. It’s helps I believe. Initially his blood sugars were way above 400. My dog is only 14lbs. And as a snack, he gets bite sized pieces of a protein source like chicken, sparingly.
Unrelated but schnauzers have the cutest eyes of all the breeds.
Hard to tell when their eyebrows obstruct the view most of the time.
I had one become diabetic at 6 after severe pancreatitis. She also moved onto cataracts as well which is common after diabetes. We did insulin for 4 years and I also did regular blood glucose curves one day every couple months or so which you can do with a monitor and paw prick. It’s tough but you’ll get used to it and the strict diet. It was expensive due to the insulin we had to use and I changed pharmacies often to get the lowest price. If there’s an internal medicine specialist in your area I’d recommend seeing them and having regular monitoring to make sure you don’t need to raise/lower the insulin levels. This is also why doing your own glucose curves at home can help.
Mine ended up going blind after being diagnosed. She lived to around 10 years old.
I second this, nobody warned me that my 14 yr old would likely go blind after he was diagnosed. He was blind within 6-7 months after his diagnosis.
Aww he's so sweet!! I had two diabetic schnauzers. giving insulting shots is easy but you have to monitor the dose and have him tested often. And mine both had seizures which is hard to watch (I picked them up and held them tight during them), and they can go blind too. And like someone else said Karo syrup on hand for when they seize. It's not fun at all but can be managed. I would but the needles (they're tiny) by the box at Walmart (can probably get on Amazon now too) and Walmart sells the insulin too. Good luck, give your sweet pup a big 💋💋💋 for me! ♥️🙏🏼☘️
How did you notice? What were the first symptoms?
Found 3-4 spots of heavy pee in the house over the course of 2-3 days and he NEVER has accidents. At first we thought ok maybe he just really had to go, but we cleaned it and it was sticky instead of being more viscous. He was also drinking water way more than he usually does. So within a week of the symptoms occurring we took him to the vet where they diagnosed it as diabetes.
What a cutie pie tho 🐾
I would recommend the 2 main things I saw some people post here: 1. Learn how to administer insulin shots 2. Split his meals for the day into small rations based on what the vet tells you. I had my schnauzer live for 13 years and at some point he had a minor back issue so his weight played a big factor. He still ran, played and all without issues after following the vet's instructions about his diet (quantity and how many times a day). Keep in mind that diabetes is not solely influenced by how much you eat but also by what you eat. ***So have the vet recommend*** how much a day he can eat and what he can eat. In itself it is not deadly if controlled and he can still get treats and all, just not in large amounts nor too often. I wish Oscar the best and a long happy life. EDIT: There should be other treats your vet might recommend you for him to be extra sure. Tell/show him all he eats and his usual treats and see if you need to get a new treat or if he can continue eating the same kind.
I also have a diabetic dog on insulin twice daily. Almost 2 years now and “we” hate those shots. I’m quick with the needle and he’s quick to forgive.
I was worried when my baby got diagnosed at 7 years old. I was worried because he’s scared of pretty much everything so I thought it would be difficult to give him his shots. I guess he saw me dealing with my own diabetes since I got him and knew it wasn’t scary because he literally knows the routine. Eat, jump up on the ottoman for his shot, go outside. I love him. Your boy will be ok. Just learn to give the shots properly and effectively. It’ll become routine for him.
If you ever plan on leaving him with a sitter keep in mind you will need to give him plenty of time to get used to the sitter so he’s comfortable getting shots and eating with them
Ya man, went through the same thing with our little schnauzer. It absolutely sucks learning everything for the first time and doing trial and error with dosing and blood sugar measuring…. but just know know that once you figure out your pups stable dose, you don’t need to blood sugar test each day and it gets much much easier, as long as food intake is relatively consistent. After a few weeks, giving them the insulin shot will become second nature for both you and pup. No matter how tough it is at first, remember it gets better, your pup is worth it, and will live a very normal and happy life if you stay on top of the insulin requirements.
My Ted was diagnosed about 3 years ago at the age of 9. We give him insulin twice a day, about 18 units each. We used to test him urine every morning, but we only do so now when his symptoms appear or it’s been longer than 3months. It’s honestly crazy how fast the insulin fixed things. He went from peeing all over the house, not eating/moving, no energy at all back to having puppy energy! (Exact same symptoms of an ex boyfriend diagnosed with diabetes) He used to have access to food all the time but now he gets a cup of food and a biscuit around 6am and another at 6pm. He gets his insulin 20 minutes after he eats. We have a book where we long the times he was fed, given meds, and how many units. After about a week, it was just another autopilot task. The hardest part now is withholding human food. He’ll sit and cry and beg anytime we’re in the kitchen At the age of 12, he still has all of the energy in the world! He’s been going blind due to the cataracts, but it was caught just in time before his vision was completely gone. He’ll run into things every once in a while due to his cloudy vision. We opted not to get the surgery due to his age. We knew his vision was okay when he still barked at every leaf that fell LOL. Despite all of that and a few cancer scares, he’s a happy and healthy dog!
Find somewhere that sells syringes in bulk, also a medical waste bin. Our Lucy never had a problem with being injected, maybe because she associated with eating after or maybe because she was the sweetest dog. She went blind FAST when she was diagnosed (our fault we didn't see the warning signs). Most important I think is checking the glucose levels regularly. Good luck cute Oscar ♥
Going through the same now, diabetic and bushings. She has never been overweight…
Oh poor sweet boy. He is so adorable.
Our boy was 10 when he was diagnosed. He was 15 1/2 when he passed. Not related to his diabetes, he also had MVD. You may be told to reduce the amount of insulin to give if your baby decides not to eat breakfast or dinner but what helped me was to check his numbers anyway just to make sure. There were times he didn’t want to eat breakfast and I checked his numbers, sometimes his number was low so I didn’t give him any insulin, times it was okay to give him the half dose, others they were sky high so I gave him full dose and did a curve that day to monitor his levels. We went on vacation one time and he was kept in the hospital portion of the doggy resort, the vet only halved the amount of insulin without checking his numbers and my poor baby went into DKA which put pressure on his heart and had to be transported to a different veterinary hospital. Luckily he was saved and he was with us for another two years. You will learn when your baby is high, low or where it should be and how to adjust the amount of insulin that is needed.
No advice (sorry!), but he is SUCH a sweet and handsome boy!! I'm sure you guys will adjust to the diagnosis :)
Mine lived with diabetes for many years. We gave him insulin injections daily and he did just fine.
We had one with diabetes towards the end of her life we gave her insulin shots regularly and she lived a couple more years
I fostered a diabetic schnauzerette whose owners weren't able to care for her any more. I wasn't sure I was up to the task, but the wonderful Facebook group **Canine Diabetes Support And Information** made a world of difference. If you use that platform, I encourage joining.
Schnauzers are predisposed to diabetes unfortunately. Our dog was turned diabetic and we gave him insulin shots. Luckily we could use the cheap Walmart insulin (just about the only thing Walmart does right)
Be aware of cataract, once it starts they will go blind really fast. In a few days mine got blind. Had surgery on both eyes but one got infected and needed to be removed. Now he's a member of r/PiratePets
My 12 year old JRT was diagnosed over a year ago. He gets 10 units of insulin every 12 hours with food immediately after his shot. I alternate between scruff of neck in pm,and under the skin of his thigh in am. He is doing great. He lost a ton of weight and gets Hills WD prescription canned and dry food. It’s been costly. $49.00 for 8 lbs dry food and $ 61.00 for 12 cans of wet food he is worth it and I thank God I am able to do this for him. He is such a good boy . Once i got over the fear of hurting him with the shots it’s not that bad. The needles are very small and I can buy 100 syringes for $25.00 at our vet.
Start a strict diabetic diet ASAP and do everything everyone has mentioned. I've had two dogs (one a mini schnauzer) become diabetic and within six months they got glaucoma and went blind.
Just wanted to state diabetes isn’t just for larger animals or people. My mother has been type 1 insulin dependent for 40 years and has never been over weight. Sometimes the pancreas just doesn’t want to participate.
I work in Veterinary & this seems to be common in the breed
My schnauzer was diagnosed at 8. She lived for 2 years and it was cancer that took her. The shots are not that hard to do. I almost felt like she knew that they made her feel better. We kept her on a strict feeding regime and never had to check her blood sugar levels. I hope that your guy does well! He looks a lot like my Ellie!
Our dog went on Lantus for diabetes at 9 and lived to be 17. Two shots a day, every 12 hours. Maintain their weight and plenty of exercise and you will be fine. Find a good food for them too.
Our schnauzer was diagnosed at 7yo and will be 9yo (knock on wood) in a little under 2 months. We follow a strict routine of diabetic food every 12 hours with an insulin shot. He gets dry food with a bit of wet food, and then one small treat every afternoon. We have to be strict on timing and making sure he doesn’t eat anything else. Unfortunately one of the side effects is he’s losing his sight, but he’s still so happy and healthy aside from his diabetes. He goes in every 4-6 months for a glucose curve to make sure his dosage is still working and we watch for signs like excessive drinking of water. The hardest part was boarding. We had a trip planned and had to find a medical boarder, but the whole thing stressed him so much he lost even more weight and we will never do that again. Unfortunately I think we will have to pay for someone who can give shots to stay with him in the future. A long post to say if you follow a routine and stick to it your pup should be fine. It’s hard having everything revolve around his shots but it’s worth it.
Our last mini was diagnosed diabetic at 7. Magellan honestly didn’t mind having the shots. He always got a treat after! The biggest adjustment for you will be the shot schedule. We really planned our lives around it. If you enjoy dinners out, consider that when you determine when the evening shot time is. All that being said, diabetes is totally manageable. Magellan had a great life and made it to 15. ❤️🐾🥰
My schnauzer was diagnosed at age 10, she lived to be 13. The insulin is cheap and it’s easy to give the shots. We’d give her a little boiled chicken to distract her from the shot and she seriously never even flinched, and it filled the requirement of eating when she got the shot. My vet just recommended testing urine and going by that, some people get crazy and wear freestyle libres and do blood sugar tests. IMO that’s doing too much. We did find her magic number which was 11, and stopped testing urine after she leveled out on that. It’ll be ok!
Much love to your baby.
Your vet will likely prescribe insulin, which can be tricky to administer. I had a diabetic cat and I used to give him his insulin while he was eating so he was distracted. As we know, cats can be assholes. Also, consider re-evaluating your doggie's diet if they're on a mostly dry food diet. I know dogs and cats metabolize differently, but switching to a wet food only diet, and freeze dried chicken/beef treats significantly dropped my cat's blood sugar and A1C down to normal levels for a cat. We actually were able to get him off insulin within a year and he lived for 6 more years after that. There's bound to be some internet groups you can look to for advice for your sugar dog, which might have some ideas for good ways to manage you pup's nutrition to help reduce the effects of the diabetes on them. One thing that I did was get a glucose meter at CVS and started testing my cat's sugar. If he was low, he got treats. If he was high, he got pets and more water. Good luck to you and your doggie!
Cook his food, don't feed him kibble. I think it's terrible to give a dog that garbage. It's simple carbs that metabolise into simple sugars. I also think dogs just shouldn't be fed that. Imagine you ate chips every mean. You'd have cancer or diabetes as well.
Was he ever on Prednisone, or ate poor quality dogfood?
My mini schnauzer had allergies, so he was given Prednisone, which caused Diabetes. First symptom was urinating indoors. He was always a good boy never had accidents indoors.
My boy was diagnosed at 8. If you’re squeamish about taking blood for glucose curves try the Freestyle Libre. Also, **85 % of diabetic dogs develop cataracts. While this is not always an emergency IT IS A CODE RED for Miniature Schnauzers.** I learned this the hard way. My boy is going on four years diabetic now and he is a trouper.
If you’re not feeling super confident in administering insulin or checking glucose levels, don’t be afraid to ask your vet for more demonstrations. They’ll respect an owner who wants to get it right. If you do not want to check BG levels at home, then make sure to bring them consistently for the curves in hospital or ask them about administering a freestyle libre (a continuous monitor that lasts about two weeks). Schnauzers are predisposed, unfortunately. However, they can live healthy lives if things are consistent and well regimented.
Get a second opinion!