Let's Do a Little "Housekeeping"...

We’ve talked about a lot of topics:  Diagnosis, Journaling, Testing, Supplies to have on hand, Food, How to do a curve at home, and now we are going to talk about the things that often slip our minds.

Are your files complete with all of your dog’s records from the vet? Every time that you go to the vet, you should get copies of any labs that were done, any BG (blood glucose) readings, if they were hospitalized, what for and what was the treatment. Your files should be as up to date on your pup as your vet’s are. It may not seem important,  until it is.

If you have an emergency over a weekend or after hours (because they never seem to happen during business hours!), you want the ER to be able to treat your pup efficiently and quickly without wondering when the last blood panel was done, or when was the last insulin increase, or a myriad of other things. I haven’t had it happen, but many have, that when you find another vet that you prefer or for whatever reason you decide to change practices, some vets won’t give you your records! WHAT? You paid for them; it’s your dog… why can’t you have the records? We won’t go into the many excuses that you may encounter, so the best way to avoid that is to make sure that you never leave the vet office without the notes for that visit.

Is your dog microchipped? I hope so. If not, please consider having it done. If you have a chip, PLEASE call the company that tracks the chip and update your pup’s records to include that he or she is now diabetic and insulin dependent. Updating your microchip information isn’t something that most people think of. Have you moved since the chip was activated? Does your pup have any other medical conditions that should be updated? If you got your pup from a rescue, most good rescues will put the chip in their name when the pup comes into rescue. Did you ever update that info to reflect that the dog now belongs to you?

Does your pup have tags on his or her collar or harness? Do you have a tag that says “I’m Diabetic and Insulin Dependent”? There are many options out there. I bought mine on Amazon and on the front it said, Diabetic / Insulin Dependent and on the back it had my name, phone number and vet info. Some have special collars made on Etsy with similar information. My point is that there are several options in all different price ranges and they are worth the purchase.

We always want to keep our pups safe and do all that we can to ensure that in any scenario, they are protected.

As always, please feel free to share your experiences, ask questions, suggest topics for discussion or just say hi in the comments below!