The Bond With Your Diabetic Dog

Today we talk about how special your Diabetic Dog is and the bond that we have/had with them. 

I have shared previously that when my Max was diagnosed that I was overwhelmed, scared, panicked and not sure that I could give injections let alone manage this disease.

If you look back to the very first blog post entitled, “My Dog Has WHAT?” you’ll see that I didn’t receive the news very well.  That I realized that the vet was still talking and that I had missed everything that he said after the word Diabetes. I managed to pull myself together in time to hear him say, “Or we can just euthanize him right now.”  Well that snapped me right out of my haze.  WHAT?!?! Euthanize him??? Are you kidding me???  He’s not just a dog, he’s my child!!! He’s a member of my family!!!  You see it was just me, Max and Finn; we were a “family”.  I was incensed that this man was suggesting that I would put my baby down because he has Diabetes.  At the time, I didn’t know exactly how manageable it was, nor did I care.  I decided that much like you, I would do anything in my power to give Max a long, full life.

The purpose of this post is to acknowledge each and every one of you for taking on this challenge and stepping up to do everything that you have to do to give your babies a long, full life.  It isn’t easy in the beginning to hear the words, “Your dog has Diabetes”, but each of you have heard it and have been proactive in doing research, finding community and doing your very best to take care of your pup.  For that I applaud you!  That alone is reason to be proud of yourself and I’d imagine seeing your pup every day is more reason.

I’m not sure that we give our pup’s enough credit for realizing that we have done a lot for them.  I truly believe that they know.  If they could, I think that they would thank you with every cell in their bodies!  They know that there is no more sleeping in for you, not ever! They know that you aren’t going to dinner with friends so that you can be home for tests, meals and shots.  They know that you passed up that once in a lifetime vacation to stay home because you didn’t trust anyone to take care of them the way that you do.  They know that what you do every day for them (test, feed, inject) makes them feel good enough to play, chase squirrels, bark at the mailman and just be a happy dog!!!

Your bond with your “sugar baby” was strong before this disease became a part of your world, but now, it is even stronger.  I have shared before that I had to go through the motions with my Finn because he was certain that he was missing out on something when I was doing our “ritual” with Max.  So up on the table Finn went for his “pretend test, treat and make-believe injection” so that he didn’t feel left out of the “special time” that Maxie had with Mama.

I will take this opportunity to speak for your pup and say a HUGE thank you to each and every one of you.  Somewhere deep inside, they know that without your tender care twice a day, they wouldn’t be here.  They can’t speak the words, but if you notice their behavior each day, I think that you’ll soon start to see that they know.  I’ll never forget the nights that we laid in bed with just the light of the TV, Finn on the mattress at the foot of my bed and Max by my side facing me.  He would look deeply into my eyes for minutes on end… He knew