Steph, I am sorry you are going through this. Had a cat with the same. It was very difficult to know how much insulin I was giving him. And I started questioning what food could be given. A diabetic plan isn't easy for our animals.

Wish the best and hope he continues to get better.

So glad to hear that he is doing better today--sending prayers that he continues to improve!

boy took a bad turn this a.m. When I went out in the a.m. to feed him I noticed his left leg (arm?) was terribly swollen - looked like if I touched it that it might explode. that was by the 'elbow' joint. the lower part was double the size of his other leg (arm?). he had trouble getting out of his house to get to his food. I had to help him.

I went in and called the vet immediately and got appt to take him in. poor little guy! I know that those with diabetes can have problems with their limbs and didn't want to take any chances with him. He was able to walk to the car (I backed it in close to the door to his man cave).

they had to drain it and gave him 2 shots. shots that would last for a wk so I didn't have to keep giving him antibiotics and maybe something else. I'm also back giving him the 2 meds they had him on the other wk before knowing he was diabetic. anti-inflammatory and pain. plus a solution to clean it with and I'm to put a hot compress on it for 20 min thru out the day.

and he can't be on dirt. so I'm carpeting his man cave - lol! he has a runner and 2 small rugs for tonight and tomorrow I have a piece of carpet from my sister's to cut and put on more dirt area. he doesn't lie down in the east side of it so I just have to do a small section on the west half yet.
next he'll want a lamp and easy chair...

oh, and I had to put the dreaded COLLAR on him. my tv is coming in very clear tonight.

he is doing well with it on! he can drink from his pool. I didn't realize that earlier and was dipping water from his pool into a dish and holding below his mouth for him.

he got thirsty when i wasn't out there and the jig was up!

hopefully his leg will feel better tomorrow - but my pocketbook won't! I'll be shopping at the flooring remnant store for vinyl now...that's not a major deal. I realized after looking at cushion step by armstrong yesterday that I don't need the really good stuff except in the kitchen. I'll have a runner in the hall and area rugs in the center of most rooms.

He is so worth it all tho!

and they trimmed his nails to prepare for his future on the 'inside'. he's never had them trimmed. neither has my girl - she'll be next!

What caused the inflamation? I feel so bad when one of my "kids" get sick. Wishing him well.

I'm so sorry Steph. I never thought about how you would test a diabetic animal for insulin levels. Will you have to bring him in the house eventually?

thx emagineer - not sure - could be several things. he had cracked scabby looking 'elbows' anyway. I think it must have broken open somewhere. the flies sure were attacking him - including the elbow. I'm sure they added germs to it. he would lick it also. maybe dirt got into it?
I should have put a HUGE bandaid on it I guess - ?

you prick an area at the edge of their ears for a drop of blood.

yes, he'll come inside when it's safe for him to do that. but he will still spend most of his time outside in the fall-spring when the weather is good. He hasn't been a house dog in all of his yrs and I don't see him liking it over the outside - except in the extreme heat of summers and any extremely cold nights we have in the winter.

Steph,
Try a bandage over the wound. Then put a big sock on his leg, bind with duct tape. This has worked really well with my guys. They can't get to the bandage and things tend to stay cleaner.

At least it is coming winter for him to get used to being in the house as before. If he is feeling rotten, I'd bet he'll be glad to be near you, wherever it is.

I use something from the vet called "VET WRAP" which sticks only to itself. Mostly I wrap bird perches with it, to make them less slippery. It does not pull out the hair on a dog or cat because it sticks only to itself.

I am curious about what meter you use to test the blood sugar for Boy? A regular sort of human meter?

I also think that the dreaded TICKS which carry Lyme disease can smell a diabetic person or animal even without a break in the skin. That is my personal theory anyway. The deer ticks seem to know I am around, and they can leap off of shrubbery close to a walkway and be on me in an instant. I am deathly afraid of them. It is one reason I do not like to come north before the frost causes them to go dormant.

My little maltese boy Moonpie, had Lyme disease and was paralyzed for a time. But he recovered, with only stiffness in his knees. I tested negative, but that was not unusual, and I am still afraid that Lyme disease accounts for my inability to climb stairs or use my arms and legs. While I'm up north this time, I'll find a doctor who is more familiar with this affliction than the doctors are in Alabama.

Hope Boy recovers, Steph.

"I am curious about what meter you use to test the blood sugar for Boy? A regular sort of human meter? "

yes, I'll get a human one then call the readings into the vet and they'll convert into 'dog' language! I sure hope it's gone down this week. I was to do it tomorrow but they want to see him at noon to check his 'elbow' area so I guess I'll do it Tues. I'm guessing 1 day doesn't matter. I have to get to W yet to get it and some strips.

for ticks - eucalyptus limbs help keep them away. I'm getting some from my sister to put around boy's man cave. and I'm planning to plant 3 or 4 eucalyptus trees here soon.

they also help with fleas.

the vet wrap and sock are both good ideas that I'll go with for a dog emergency kit at least if doc says not to cover it - along with some betadine. I'm wondering if I'd put betadine on it if maybe it wouldn't have gotten infected... that's good to have in the house anyway.
I keep thinking of all of those flies tho. I put that strip catcher up but it only 'caught' about 20 - out of hundreds. poor guy. there's only a few hanging around now. I did note that they swarmed his urine on his potty spots. doc said because of the sugar. i've been calling him 'sweetpee(a)' now.

I am anxious for him to be inside! I hope he likes it better this time around. he was terrified in this place - but as I've posted before, so am I!

he moved his house last night and got in it - it had dirt in it. I didn't think he could get into it being weakened, in pain and having a helmet on... I cleaned it out today in case he gets into it again. at least the dirt is gone!
i don't know if he got cold - yep, chilly at night here now. or scared - some bozo was setting off firecrackers!

moccasin you get to a doc up north. ask around for a doctor who is knowledgeable in lyme disease. If you posted about your arms and legs I forget ... what's wrong with them?

Don't use the duct tape on the hair. I just wrap the outside of the sock tight enough to stay on.
Then just cut the whole old sock off, use another one after meds. I stock up on old socks, cotton are best.

thx emagineer! I'm going to make up a few later - after i nap. I'm exhausted. after all his meds, cleaning it etc and trip to vet I'm beat.

my mind has been speeding around trying to figure a fix for it as the vet doesn't want it covered - also doesn't want it open where the flies can get at it. really wants him inside - can't do that. for one thing it's a bit warmer this week and the only room with a/c is my bdroom and there is no room in here for 1 more animal. girl and I are already tripping over each other and boy is bigger than she is.
so for now i've come up with the sock with a hole cut in it with some shade cloth sewn over it. will do that later.

all you crafty people got any other ideas? if I could think of a way to keep it up higher over the open sore area I could put some nylon net over it or screening. don't want anything to actually touch the sore. it needs air - but not flies!

i'm also gonna look at those nose covers (from dust etc) at W later and see if it can be used in some way - or part of it.

Poor Boy. So glad he has you Steph to take care of him.

No ideas on how to bandage with a non bandage. I know Doc said no cover over it. But if needed I used panty liners as bandages when I was treating the tumors. They do not stick. Cheep to buy light weight and you can cut them to fit.

Hope he is feeling better soon.

thx shades! panty liners! great idea to have on hand in my soon to be dog emergency box.

I wish I had a working camera now to take pics! dang it...

I found a piece of lightweight plastic 'net' (like plastic canvas - but ltweight). I cut out the center of a nose protector/breathing thing and sewed a piece of that plastic over it. tied it on his leg. will check shortly to see if still on. misplaced my sock since yesterday. misplaced my brain too... it's been a ruff few days on me...

I might go to W again later and get some velcro strips.

tried over and over to get blood drop earlier to do sugar check... stabbed myself 2 or 3 times. went thru several strips and 'stabber' needles (they have a name - no clue right now tho).

I think boy feels sorry for me... I think I heard him say 'mom's a bozo'. as I stabbed his ear 6 or 8 times trying to get 1 tiny tiny droplet...

AW Steph. Poor both of you. You will not know if you are testing his blood or yours. :^((( Get some rest and try again tomorrow.

shades - that's what i did. it still hurts to even walk today tho. went to W - and forgot the velcro! dang it!
boy dumped his pool and was in the mud again when I got home.
major sigh here - cause I'm out of water too. forgot to check it sooner...but they're bringing me more in the morning. I filled 4 jugs while out today. not sure how much boy is drinking (but it's more than normal). will put 2 bowls out for him and see how fast the water disappears. can run down and refill jugs later if needed for overnight.

gonna give him a pain pill then in about 40 minutes go out and clean him up (wash out sores and put compresses on).

and if I survive that maybe try another blood check.

I found a good msg board on it this a.m. They say to forget the gizmo that pops the needle out to get the blood and just hand use the lancet. they say it works better and that it takes a lot of time to get the hang of doing this.

I thought giving him the insulin would be the worse part - that's easy compared to getting blood for a test!

it doesn't help that my left hand (trigger thumb) decided now it the time to act up. I'm used to having trouble with the right hand, not so much the left. Now I feel like I have 2 bad left hands...lol!

Steph I had trigger thumb last fall and it lasted for months. I discovered if you keep working it in close to your fingers and bending it closed then open it will get better. Deep massage at the base of your thumb helps too. Took me a couple months to be able to bend it again but I am so glad I kept at it.It is not 100 percent but I can use it and the bit time pain is gone. AND no surgery as was suggested I needed by several and no steroid shots either.

I hope Boy will start to behave for you after all you are trying to do for him LOL Poor guy. They do not know not to get in dirt and mud. To them it is good fun. Sigh

Chris

I don't have any advice--just encouragement. Your boy must have a wonderful temperament, to let you take care of the necessities. Hope you're both feeling better today.

it's also cooling for him in this heat. it cracks me up that he figured out how to flip his pool up. sometimes he just lies down under it then. I was calling him my 'little piggy' (now I call him 'sweetpee')

water just delivered so I'll clean and fill his pool and hose down his rugs! he'll be set for a bit.

I washed his face off a bit ago and there was something on his eyelid edge - thinking it was dirt I scrubbed over it a bit - oops, it drew blood! was one of those skin tags I guess. taking advantage of the blood... I ran in and got the glucose meter and took a reading! yea! the 2nd I've managed to get with 20 + attempts at it. guess I shouldn't rub it open tho every time I need blood for a test...

I also took him for a little walk last night and another this morning already. so good to have him walking - we went about 50' this morning. a good stretch for him these days.

he's just gotta feel so bad inside and doesn't know why - or why he has that collar on.

It's back down under 100 starting today and going down more each day this coming week. We might even get some rain in the next few days. being it's into Oct now I doubt it'll go back up over 100. That'll make it so much easier on all 3 of us!

shades - I'd think bending it would make it worse! but I'll try it. I had to have a shot in the right one yrs back. don't want to go thru that with the left one!

mama g- I need all the encouragement I can get! he is a wonderful little boy. He has growled at me tho - and has whined and pulled his leg away from me. I think the rag was just too hot! they said as hot as I could stand it - but what about him? he's the one with the open sores! i backed off the heat a bit.
He is very precious - most days I go out he is lying there with his front legs crossed and his helmet on. Looks so cute.

I finally manage to get a few glucose tests done today. I just used the lancet (needle part) and got blood 3 out of 4 tries! That makes me feel better since I won't have to be stabbing him so many times or just plain messing with his ears. he doesn't really feel it but he does know I'm doing something around his ears. When you don't feel good anything like that is bothersome.

He has been coming over to the door and whining - wants a walk, so i've taken him out on a few short ones.

He now has an ulcer (caused by meds he was taking). So I was off to the bank today for money and on over to the vet for pills to coat his ulcer plus he'll be taking pepcid for the next 10 days.

girl doesn't like me to walk him and yips the whole time. I told boy that she was just cheering him on and was so happy to see him up and about again.

He stops every time by where his pen used to be and just looks at the area... I wouldn't have thought he'd do that.

Hi Steph, I haven't been around for awhile but I wanted to say that I'm so sorry your boy is having trouble. You sound like a wonderful doggie mom!

It's so hard when our furbabies suffer - it would be so much easier if we could explain things to them. (We are facing putting one of our boys down this coming week)

I thought I'd offer our 'bandage' solution when our dog had leg surgery - it may be too hot in your climate though.
We cut the arm off of a long sleeved t-shirt including leaving some long pieces of the chest and back to use as ties. Then we put his leg through the sleeve and taped it around the bottom near his paw. We then used the long ties to tie around him. It protected the staples and kept him from licking the wound open.
Hopefully this makes some sense ....

I wish you all the best with your boy.

Missy

"We are facing putting one of our boys down this coming week"

oh Missy! i'm so sorry to read this! that is just agonizing! been there many times and I see it around the bend for me again... My heart is already saying it can't take it again, it was younger for the others...

thx for the info on the T-shirt. I did do that (similar) when my neighbors dog that I was 'sitting' got injured. She was nursing 8 babies so it was difficult tho! Her injury was on the side of her - but the idea of a long sleeve and tying it at t he bottom is something I need to remember.

it would be too hot right yet during the day hours - and the vet really doesn't want it covered up. He has collar on so he can't get to it - but the flies can.

I wish I could take a pic of the contraption I figured up for him... I did find velcro strips (wrap arounds) that stick to themselves to put around it all and hold it on his leg. the 'net' over the hole I cut in it allows for air flow to it.

He looks so precious when I look at him lying out there with his helmet on and one front leg crossed over the other...

Thanks for your kind words, Steph. This is the first time we've gone thru this with a pup and it is truly horrible. I don't want to hijack your thread though.

Can you take a picture of your boy with his helmet and crossed legs? It sounds very cute. I'd love to see it.

Steph it sounds like you have worked up a good way to keep the bugs off of it. Hope he is feeling better soon.

Prairie-girl, I am so sorry to hear your sad news. Hugs to you.

Chris

" I don't want to hijack your thread though."
don't worry about that! a pup? whoa - many hugs to you!

"Can you take a picture of your boy with his helmet and crossed legs? It sounds very cute. I'd love to see it."

I wish I could! but my camera stopped working about 2 wks ago and I haven't bought a new one yet. I'm still debating myself on which one... a canon or a nikon (p and s). I want it to take good videos also.
If my sister comes over today I'll ask her to bring her camera and try to catch him like that.

Oh, sorry for the confusion, he's not a puppy. We just call him our puppy cuz his face has never turned into an 'adult' face, and we got him after our other dog. He's about 9 yrs old - we've had him for 8 years. He was a 'rescue' from a reserve near here, found in terrible shape. He has had a wonderful life but it's def time to let him go (herniated disc in his back).

Hopefully your sister comes. I'd love to see pics of both of your 'babies'.

Steph, just a thought...if you have a cell phone, does it have a camera?

With the latest software update on my Blackberry, it now does video with sound, as well as still images. And who'd a thunk it would be any good but it really is. Just not high pixels, I think maybe 3 is all. Anyway, just a thought.

I have a really cute still picture of MOUSE EXTREME SPORTS. iT IS A mouse in a helmet, sitting in front of a cheese baited mousetrap. And of course you know that he is going to have a go at grabbing the cheese. I've managed to hang on to it through about 4 computers, and I just laugh every time I see it.

prairie-girl - we had a dog that we pretty much always reverted to 'puppy' also. She didn't have a name for about 6 months during which we called her puppy. We ended up naming her Shadow - after dd jumped off of my bed one day to go somewhere and 'puppy' jumped off after her and followed her, as usual!

It's almost 5 now and she's been sick most of the day. I thought I might get out and go there but I'm exhausted.

moccasin - no, my cell phone is a tracfone so no pics. my sister gave me her 'old' one (not very old at all) but I haven't figured out yet how to get time on it (no contract kind).
my camera only has 2 MP! lol! if it only worked. I tried to look up the error code today but didn't find it.

helmet mouse - I think some of his relatives moved in with me... maybe a trap shaped like a football would work...

How's he doing, Steph?
Updates?

he's doing pretty good! looks better, acts better! the sores seem to be healing up ok - swelling down this past week. He's walking better. I've upped him to 4 small walks a day this week.

he's sugar level hasn't gone down as much as it should... doc upped the insulin units for the a.m. dose this past week. Tomorrow I do another glucose curve on him (check sugar every 2hrs over 12 hr period) and will drop that off to the vet on Wed and see how it's doing now.

but he is active and attentive - which is soooo much better than he was 2 wks or so ago!

and his ulcer seems better also. i'll find out in a few days as he only has pills for another day.

thx for asking about him!

This sounds like good news Steph. So glad to hear it. I did talk to friend with kitty with diabetes and he did have it for 10 years. He did pass away but he was a really old kitty . Not from the diabetes. He told me they only had him tested once a year. He said you could tell if he needed more insulin because he would act weak. He also said it is always best to under dose than over dose with the insulin. Also the diabetes does slow healing. Abner had a really good life with these people and it would have been impossible to know there was anything wrong with him.

Chris

yes, it's so good to see him being a bit more normal now. he trotted down the length of his man cave tonight for his dinner. and he goes to the west end to watch (and whine) while I walk girl. he's standing / walking on all 4 legs!

i 'spect once you get the right dosage going for them you will then notice any negative changes. once we get him on the correct units and he's on it awhile to level out I'll feel much better about it. I'll certainly be more intune to any changes in him in the future, not pass it off to the heat, rolling in mud, depression from a move etc!

does your friend ever check kitty's glucose level at home?

then again, once you've got the dose correct maybe you don't need to as much. I check boy once a wk now to see if the prev wk's dose has lowered his glucose level. It didn't last wk and the vet upped the morning dose. he's on 13 units in the a.m. and 11 units in the evening.
The first wk I took him to the vet for them to do the curve test and it cost about 150.00! I can do it at home for about 10.00 and my time, a 12 hr span.

I'm so glad to hear your pup is doing better! I am so glad to hear some good news (pet related)! Thanks for the update. :o)

Thx prairie girl!

Steph, glad to hear that Boy is stabilizing. With diabetes, it is a hard thing to keep it stable, as I've been fighting it for a long time now. When I get sick otherwise, my sugar goes crazy, and when I have stress, that affects it too. Right now I'm having trouble regulating it since arriving in MA last month. When it gets erratic, as it is now, I test several times a day. Those strips are over $1/each.

oh no! you mean I have to make sure he doesn't get stressed out? lol! I think he does when I take girl for a walk and he doesn't get one also! or when he's hungry and it isn't time for his dinner yet!

those strips are terribly expensive! I only have a couple left - will need to buy more before I do another curve on Friday. the container of 50 was 60.00! and those suckers get error msgs so often before i can get it to 'read' the blood! there are times I put one in and it goes straight to an 'error'. so it's no good! I've gone thru 3-5 just to get 1 reading!
maybe when i get more comfortable doing it I won't go thru so many. It doesn't help when my hands shake tho!

he's getting 15 units in the a.m. and 12 in the pm now.

LOL Steph. NEVER stress the dogs. The kitties here stress the dogs and then it stresses me. LOL

my little guy got his helmet off this morning! his owies look healed (even last wk they did) so I took it off. will watch him today to be sure he doesn't lick them.

he looked sooo cute with the helmet on tho! I'll have to put it back on for a photo session when i get a new camera - that'll probably stress him out!

Boy is in a great home. Bless your heart, Steph.