Personalised expert diabetic control
Every diabetic dog or cat is different and so requires individualised care. Their owners are also unique and must incorporate caring for a diabetic pet into their current lifestyle. The Animal Diabetes Australia service finds solutions for the particular challenges of each case. A key to success is that the same vet (Linda Fleeman) sees the pet each time.
Diabetes education
Diabetes is a disease that requires life-long management in dogs and cats. The treatment is mainly administered by the animal’s owner and thus is associated with considerable responsibility on their part. To succeed, it is crucial that owners of diabetic pets have a very good understanding of the disease and its management. The Animal Diabetes Australia service provides personalised education for owners on all aspects of diabetes care.
Loan of blood glucose meters honours the memory of Mr Cosmo
Loan of blood glucose meters
Glucose meters are available for loan to any clients of Animal Diabetes Australia interested in trying measurement of blood glucose at home. Testing a cat or dog’s blood glucose can often assist with management of their diabetes, especially when other means of monitoring in the home environment do not provide sufficient information. However, this option will not suit all owners or all pets and so we offer a ‘try before you buy’ opportunity. This idea came from the owner of Cosmo, who was a handsome black and white cat who enjoyed a healthy and happy life for 6 years after becoming diabetic at 13 years of age.
Effective diabetes management can reduce long-term cost of treatment
Efficient and effective diabetic management will decrease the time that pets experience poor diabetic control, resulting in improved health and welfare and reduced long-term costs. Options for cost-effective insulin therapy, nutrition, and diabetic monitoring are provided for each case.
Advantages of home support for owners of diabetic dogs and cats
One of the main advantages of the Animal Diabetes Australia service is that we can provide support for owners of diabetic dogs and cats when the pet is going well. There are simple practical ways to monitor a diabetic animal at home that provide information to confirm that the diabetes is optimally under control or to warn that a problem might occur soon. One of the most serious life-threatening complications that can affect a diabetic pet is insulin overdose causing hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar). Hypoglycaemia can occur without warning in diabetic dogs and cats that appear to be well controlled. Strategies to reduce the risk of this occurring include close monitoring, timely adjustment of the insulin dose, and ensuring accuracy and precision of insulin dosing and consistency of meal feeding. Hypoglycaemia is especially a concern for diabetic cats when close to diabetic remission. Another potentially serious complication that can occur in diabetic dogs is pancreatitis. Although the cause of pancreatitis in dogs is not fully understood, there are nutritional strategies that can be successful in reducing the risk of it occurring.
An initial consultation with Dr Linda Fleeman
It is important that the veterinarian providing home support for owners of diabetic dogs and cats is very familiar with the case and has a detailed understanding of the individual situation. Therefore an initial 1 hour consultation is scheduled when Dr Fleeman begins management of a diabetic dog or cat. During this consultation, all previous history is reviewed and recommendations made on the most practical, convenient, and cost-effective treatment and monitoring regimen for the dog or cat’s diabetes.
The first 3 months of email and telephone support for owners of dogs and cats with newly-diagnosed diabetes
There are a lot of adjustments required for both owners and dogs or cats during the first three months of treatment of diabetes. This transition period is made a lot easier if email and telephone support is provided and there is education on all aspects of diabetes and its management.
Ongoing email and telephone support for owners of diabetic dogs and cats
When a diabetic dog or cat is going well, it is often helpful to receive regular veterinary review of routine records kept at home by the owner of the pet. An Excel spreadsheet for this purpose can be downloaded for diabetic dogs or diabetic cats with an example first row filled in. The updated spreadsheet containing the individual pet’s home records is then submitted by email once a week for Dr Linda Fleeman to review, who responds with email or telephone advice each week or whenever it is requested. This allows individualised improvements to be made to the diabetic dog or cat’s treatment regimen without the need for frequent in-person consultations at the veterinary practice. It also allows for early recommendation for an in-person consultation whenever this is indicated.