Does My Pet Have Diabetes?

November is Diabetes Awareness Month. Diabetes is a disease in which the body is not making insulin like it should. Insulin is made by the pancreas, and “pushes” blood sugar into cells. Without insulin, the sugar cannot get into the body’s cells. The consequence of this is that the cells start to starve, and the blood sugar gets very high. Symptoms include drinking and urinating excessively, being “hungry all of the time”, and losing weight. Dogs tend to get Type I diabetes, which means that they require insulin injections to manage their diabetes. It is very important that if you notice signs of diabetes in your dog, that you bring her to the veterinarian right away. Side effects from diabetes, like cataracts, can develop very quickly, sometimes within a couple of weeks. Early diagnosis and management is critical.