This Page is primarily for the articles and other interesting tidbits I have linked to on other pages and posts all compiled to give you a place to get a few helpful tips on caring for your dog. No, I am not an expert but I have done a lot of research, lived through a health nightmare and a wrongful death of a pet and have a smattering of intelligence. I will, of course, cite my sources wherever possible or at the very least explain my rationale and you can verify any statement's veracity on your own if you wish.
Thank you
Michelle
July 31, 2012
Wet Food Recipe makes 2 meals
3 tbsp Oat Bran Cereal
1 heaping tbsp. Red River Cereal
4 tbsp Large Flake Rolled Oats --limited processing = longer
1 tbsp psyllium husk digesting time = less likelihood of
2 tbsp freshly ground flax seeds a major glucose spike post-prandial
2 tbsp ground cinnamon ---great for lowering blood glucose
2 tbsp cottage cheese ---protein, calcium and fat source
1c chopped Kale ---wonderful all the way around; “free veg”
70 g chicken, chopped ---sometimes replaced with 120g of fish
water ---just enough to mix to a wet, stir-able mixture.
 |
| Cereals already combined in bowl |
 |
| Add cottage cheese |
 |
| Mix well with water |
 |
| Add chopped chicken |
 |
| Add chopped Kale |
 |
| finished product |
1. Mix cereals, cinnamon and water until a thick pancake mixture. As it sits it will thicken more and you will need to add more water. Add chicken or fish, chopped fairly small. Add cottage cheese and Kale and mix well. Microwave for 1 min. 25 sec.( in a 1100w microwave.)
2. Weigh and divide amount by half; feed one half and save one half for next meal. Mix with a dry food amount that has been decreased to compensate for the calories in the wet food. Add water if your dog is like ours and won’t drink water too often or if your dog is used to/likes water with the dry food.
Approx. 370 calories + 330 calories dry Blue Buffalo, twice per day.
Supplements:
1 Kelp, 2 Lycopene, 3 Alfalfa, 2 Omega 3-6-9, 1 cranberry, 1 multi-vitamin-- tablets crushed and omega’s drained into food.
I make each recipe every night which enables me to keep a tighter control over using the freshest ingredients. I also make only single recipe at a time to ensure she gets the same nutrients in each meal. Consistency is very important with diabetics.
Snacks:
Cucumber pieces
Broccoli pieces and stalks
Pork Rinds
Green Beans
She also gets these foods together in a ‘lunch’ to help tide her over until supper. She seems to really enjoy the ritual of hearing me prepare it and she doesn’t seem to get tired of it even though she snacks on the same vegetables through out the day.
Edit: update to BooGirl's food: I have added one tbsp of ground Chia seeds(blood sugar and fibre) and one tbsp of ground Amaranth seeds(30% more protein than any other grain). I have taken away one tbsp of Oat Bran to make caloric room for the added grains. I have also upped her protein per recipe to 85 grams of chicken (but the fish amount remains the same). To her supplements I have added 1500mg of HDL Glucosamine for her arthritis.
Note: dogs can only digest one form of glucosamine and that is the HDL type.
Diabetes Watch
There are a few common symptoms for canine diabetes. They are:
- excessive thirst
- frequent urination
- large appetite
- unexplained weight loss
- heavy panting
- vomiting
- weakness
- acetone-breath; smells like nail polish remover
Here are a few links you can check out
Video Links for Injecting Insulin in Dogs
Healthy Hints for Diabetic Dogs
- Exercise. Such a simple thing has a great impact on regulating your dog’s glucose. Since Lucy’s blindness some of the activities she used to do can’t be done anymore but she still gets her exercise with walking, swimming, wrestling, and even playing soccer—she’s still great at defence!
- Be consistent with the food. Feed the same amount of the same calories at the same time every day. Some people will tell you that their dog craves variety but that can be taken care of at snack time with “free foods” that have little to no impact on blood glucose levels. Keep meal times the same.
- Learn all you can about what can affect your diabetic dog’s health. For example, your dog’s liver can take a beating so go easy on the high fat foods.
- Do a regular curve on your dog (six months or so) and a daily test at the same time every day just to keep an eye on the numbers, even after you have ‘stabilized’ your dog’s numbers.
- Don’t look at this as a death sentence. You're doing both of you a grave disservice.
- Purchase the best food your money will buy. If the food isn’t the best, add to it. Veggies, especially the green ones like beans and broccoli can be added as well as extra proteins and fibre like ground flaxseeds.
- Follow all the directions your vet gives you as long as it jibes with what you have learned from other sources. If something doesn’t sound right, follow up on it.
- Cataracts can develop slowly or quite quickly. Some tell tale signs are a tinge of blue or a cloudiness that can be seen if the light hits the animals eyes in the right way or in pictures. If you have an overweight pet or are just worried about your dog’s susceptibility to getting the disease, take lots of pictures of your dog in all light conditions and analyze the photos. Looking back through a few of ours, I think I can see signs that we missed looking right at her but that the camera caught.
- When injecting the insulin, before pushing the plunger make sure of the following: you are not pushing through the other side of the tented skin; you are under the skin and above the ‘meat’; you are not trying to inject through the scar tissue that can build up; you are not injecting in the same spot where the last one was done.
- Purchase insurance when your puppy comes home and keep up with the payments. Diabetes can get expensive and we all know that sometimes, with some pet parents animals + vet bills = euthanasia. Insurance helps alleviate some of the wallet pain which in turn helps with other pains.
Crating Your Dog
aka Doggy Prison
Crates, cages, or portable kennels, however you say it, are thought of by some as doggy prisons. I know I was unsure what to think before bringing our pup home whether it was barbaric or perfectly harmless. I waffled between wanting to have a smooth and easy puppyhood with her and cringing at the thought of peering at that little face through metal bars. I'm not usually a mushy type person but slap some fur on something and I lose muscle tone in my knees. We decided we could not do crate training and so we opted for the dog bed in our bedroom. Briefly.
Here are a few tips on crate training gathered through experience and online resources of which I have no memory of where I got it so you won't see any source links. It was eight years ago so suffice it to say it was absorbed into my brain and it is mine now. :) There are gobs of information out there about crate training and I highly recommend you check them out.
First off, get the notion out of your brain pan that crating is cruel. Anything can be cruel if abused but the crate itself is both a shelter and a useful, harmless and beneficial tool in housebreaking your dog. If done properly it becomes your dog's home, their bedroom just like the one you have for yourself. It is your safe haven, and your dog needs one as well. Also it bodes for a healthier environment when there is separation between pet parent and pet at times during the day or night both for the parent's ability to sleep and the pet's confidence at being left alone. We all have to work but leaving a puppy or young dog alone and loose in the house while we are gone is a very bad and potentially expensive idea.
We started out with the crate size that would be needed when the Boo Girl was full grown and weighing 60-70 lbs with the respective length of body. There should be room to lie down, stretched on one side and to be able to turn around in the space. Since she was tiny still we blocked off 2/3 of the crate with a non-splintering board of MDF to give her a smaller space and kept moving it back as she grew. To help her feel snug and safe I donated a super soft velour type Italian towel a friend brought back from Italy for me--yeah, I know, it must have been love. We also threw in her toys, especially her 'baby', the monkey mentioned in the linked post, and I tied a toy above her head so she could play to occupy herself. All the comforts of home and we were all set....until I wimped out and yanked her out at the sound of the first whimper. Sheesh. Don't fall for that. Stick it out or she will learn within a short time how to manipulate the situation. If you think it is the 'I gotta pee' whine or bark, let her out into the yard and then zip her right back in again. Barking is the same. Wait until she has stopped long enough not to associate you letting her out with her barking or she will do it all the time. The idea to be learned is "here is where I am supposed to be, everything is okay and I can relax". It is important to remember that it will take a few days to get past this but you won't ever get past it if you cave in consistently.
The easiest way to help your puppy adjust to the crate is through food rewards. Let her sniff all around the crate, bringing her interest back if she begins to wander. Encourage her using even, soft tones to get into the crate, gently lift and assist her into it and immediately praise her and give her a treat. I used Lucy's kibble bits as a reward. Let her come out and start the process again a short time later, this time for 5-10 seconds, leaving the door open. The next time close the door, pet her through the bars and praise her with a treat. Let her out after 20-30 seconds. The next few times try for ten minutes, twenty then a full half hour with all the praising and treats of the other times. If you must, repeat these steps again and soon you will be able to leave for an hour or two and she will be just fine. The next step is the overnight stay and that is hard but you can do it. At first your puppy's bladder is tiny and she will be needing to come out a few times per night but as she grows, her time in crate can be increased but I would not recommend more than 7 hours.
In the morning, before putting her back into the crate so you can leave for work, exercise her, feed her and make sure she voids everything. While dogs aren't supposed to want to soil their 'den' they will if they have to or if the space is too big which allows them to designate a sleeping area and the toilet area. She will have accidents regardless but if you are diligent they will be rare. I suggest leaving her shut within the kitchen or large bathroom out of the crate with paper on the floor if you cannot be there to let her out during the day. It will take longer to housebreak her if you paper train but it does happen, it's just messier and takes longer. It is better than forcing her to mess her home with her 'business' as we put it in our house. Once she is comfortable in the crate you will be pleased at how easy the whole process becomes. Some dogs will go in to have a nap without you directing them and some will never totally embrace it and give you a long suffering stare before giving the cold shoulder. Which ever type your puppy is, this is for her own good.
Crates, cages, or portable kennels, however you say it, are thought of by some as doggy prisons. I know I was unsure what to think before bringing our pup home whether it was barbaric or perfectly harmless. I waffled between wanting to have a smooth and easy puppyhood with her and cringing at the thought of peering at that little face through metal bars. I'm not usually a mushy type person but slap some fur on something and I lose muscle tone in my knees. We decided we could not do crate training and so we opted for the dog bed in our bedroom. Briefly.
Here are a few tips on crate training gathered through experience and online resources of which I have no memory of where I got it so you won't see any source links. It was eight years ago so suffice it to say it was absorbed into my brain and it is mine now. :) There are gobs of information out there about crate training and I highly recommend you check them out.
First off, get the notion out of your brain pan that crating is cruel. Anything can be cruel if abused but the crate itself is both a shelter and a useful, harmless and beneficial tool in housebreaking your dog. If done properly it becomes your dog's home, their bedroom just like the one you have for yourself. It is your safe haven, and your dog needs one as well. Also it bodes for a healthier environment when there is separation between pet parent and pet at times during the day or night both for the parent's ability to sleep and the pet's confidence at being left alone. We all have to work but leaving a puppy or young dog alone and loose in the house while we are gone is a very bad and potentially expensive idea.
We started out with the crate size that would be needed when the Boo Girl was full grown and weighing 60-70 lbs with the respective length of body. There should be room to lie down, stretched on one side and to be able to turn around in the space. Since she was tiny still we blocked off 2/3 of the crate with a non-splintering board of MDF to give her a smaller space and kept moving it back as she grew. To help her feel snug and safe I donated a super soft velour type Italian towel a friend brought back from Italy for me--yeah, I know, it must have been love. We also threw in her toys, especially her 'baby', the monkey mentioned in the linked post, and I tied a toy above her head so she could play to occupy herself. All the comforts of home and we were all set....until I wimped out and yanked her out at the sound of the first whimper. Sheesh. Don't fall for that. Stick it out or she will learn within a short time how to manipulate the situation. If you think it is the 'I gotta pee' whine or bark, let her out into the yard and then zip her right back in again. Barking is the same. Wait until she has stopped long enough not to associate you letting her out with her barking or she will do it all the time. The idea to be learned is "here is where I am supposed to be, everything is okay and I can relax". It is important to remember that it will take a few days to get past this but you won't ever get past it if you cave in consistently.
The easiest way to help your puppy adjust to the crate is through food rewards. Let her sniff all around the crate, bringing her interest back if she begins to wander. Encourage her using even, soft tones to get into the crate, gently lift and assist her into it and immediately praise her and give her a treat. I used Lucy's kibble bits as a reward. Let her come out and start the process again a short time later, this time for 5-10 seconds, leaving the door open. The next time close the door, pet her through the bars and praise her with a treat. Let her out after 20-30 seconds. The next few times try for ten minutes, twenty then a full half hour with all the praising and treats of the other times. If you must, repeat these steps again and soon you will be able to leave for an hour or two and she will be just fine. The next step is the overnight stay and that is hard but you can do it. At first your puppy's bladder is tiny and she will be needing to come out a few times per night but as she grows, her time in crate can be increased but I would not recommend more than 7 hours.
In the morning, before putting her back into the crate so you can leave for work, exercise her, feed her and make sure she voids everything. While dogs aren't supposed to want to soil their 'den' they will if they have to or if the space is too big which allows them to designate a sleeping area and the toilet area. She will have accidents regardless but if you are diligent they will be rare. I suggest leaving her shut within the kitchen or large bathroom out of the crate with paper on the floor if you cannot be there to let her out during the day. It will take longer to housebreak her if you paper train but it does happen, it's just messier and takes longer. It is better than forcing her to mess her home with her 'business' as we put it in our house. Once she is comfortable in the crate you will be pleased at how easy the whole process becomes. Some dogs will go in to have a nap without you directing them and some will never totally embrace it and give you a long suffering stare before giving the cold shoulder. Which ever type your puppy is, this is for her own good.
There are a few things with crating you should never do and they are: never use the crate as punishment; never yell or bang on the crate to stop whining or barking; don't leave her in the crate as if it were a playpen. If you are home she should be out of the crate with you to supervise her. It is important that she be integrated into your routine and family life in order to know her place in it. Most important never let her suffer from your lack of consistency in training her. She needs to learn how to live with humans on their terms and you are her teacher. So, teach her.
If you do your research, buy the right-sized equipment, have everyone involved in training the puppy be consistent (if they can't be consistent, they can't be involved), exercise patience and love your puppy, things will turn out all right. Your pup doesn't have to use the crate forever, just until you are sure your dog is past the chewing-on-everything stage, does not exhibit signs of separation anxiety and has truly caught onto the 'outside to do your business' concept. Lucy kept using hers during the day until around 4, I believe, and as we travelled a lot (and it seemed to reassure her and the hotel owners both), at night in strange places. At about 4 she suddenly matured and we realized she had moved into a new state of adulthood, just as we would, and it was no longer necessary so we retired it to the basement. Some dogs will grow out of it sooner than others so careful observation of your dog will tell you when it's time.
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