It is not only the human kind that can develop diabetes. Even our beloved pets, no matter how well we care for them, can develop diabetes. This is often a scary situation for the pet owner and the first question that is usually asked of the veterinarian is “will my pet need to be put to sleep”? Of course this is a difficult issue and the answer may vary on the overall age and health of your pet.
Many older pets that are diagnosed with diabetes go on to live many more happy years, but this takes commitment and close care of your pet. Diabetic cats and dogs can live just as long as perfectly healthy pet if the diabetes is diagnosed and treated properly by both the veterinarian and the owner.
This takes great commitment from the owner. Pets must be cared for and watched daily with a high level of care and patience. There can be no feeding the cat and forgetting until the next day. There is no leaving the pet along to go on a trip. Every day your pet will need medication, fed a proper diet and his behavior will need to be monitored closely. This doesn’t mean you will have to give up your job and stay home full time with your pet, but it does mean you will have to pay more attention to what his behavior is and know what to do if the situation should change. It is also more of a financial obligation to have a sick pet. So it is something that should be discussed in length with your vet.
All too often we get sick but ignore the symptoms we may be feeling, shrugging them off to a cold, stress from work, or just not feeling well. There are certain symptoms that shouldn’t be ignored if they develop. These symptoms could lead to blindness, amputation of limbs, coma or even death.
Symptoms of type 1 diabetes often come on suddenly and are severely dramatic. The extra stress of diabetes can lead to something called diabetic ketoacidosis. Symptoms of ketoacidosis may include nausea and vomiting, which may also lead to dehydration and serious problems with the blood levels of potassium. This could lead to a diabetic coma and ultimately death.
Other symptoms of diabetes may include extreme fatigue. We all get tired at times, but diabetes triggers a more severe fatigue than normal. People with diabetes also experience unexplained weight loss. This is because they are unable to process many of the calories they consume. Losing sugar and water in the urine also contributes to the weight loss.
Extreme thirst is another symptom of diabetes. Diabetes develops high blood sugar levels and the body tries to compensate by diluting the blood, which translates to our brain that we are thirsty. With this is also excessive urination. It is another way our bodies have of getting rid of the extra sugar in our system. But this can also lead to dehydration.
One of the hardest symptoms to deal with is poor wound healing. Wounds heal slowly, if at all when the carrier has diabetes. This along with infections that are not easily remedied can attribute to ulcers and loss of limbs.
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