Shaking in the wee hour.
These past couple of weeks I noticed some strange habits/behaviors in Lola. The habits are mainly her waking me up at six o'clock every morning to her shaking uncontrollably. No matter what I do I can't seem to cease her shaking so the event will go on for a couple of hours. Worried that she was having seizures I posted a blog right away and contacted the vet to make an appointment.
I did make an appointment for the vet and have made two visits over there this week. The first visit we found that Lola's sugar was at the low point of normal, however; it could not be accurately tested since I had already fed her that morning and also was told that her liver levels had changed slightly. After a twelve hour fast and monitoring her every night we returned to the vet this morning (12/13/13), to retest her sugar. We found that it was pretty below average at 62 when the normal levels are between 80-120.
Reasons as to why her levels are dipping so low at night are still unknown but as instructed I am to divide Lola's meal portions into numerous small meals a day, as well as snacks throughout the day, a snack just before bed, as well as keeping corn syrup next to my bed to rub on her gums when/if she goes into an episode.
I myself did go through a spell of a mysterious illness that turned into five years of numerous doctors appointments a week, and seemingly endless amounts of tests. So I do know the ordeal that she could be going through and am willing to do what it takes to make sure she gets better and remains as comfortable as possible. Because of this I feel like she chose me for a reason.
I do fret for her health and safety, and although this is a difficult time for this to start, I'm ready and willing to do what it takes to get her healthy.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Beth on
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Yes, that's why I was thinking of the automatic feeder type I linked to with a lid over an open compartment; that way you could just put some treats in it rather than a whole meal. Dog might still need to potty though; it depends on the dog.
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Permalink Reply by Lola and Paige on
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I looked at the treats and will have to order some a little later this week when I pick up my check. They look really good and I know Lola would love them. The automatic feeder would be good and I'll have to think about it. Otherwise I'm pretty good at waking up at around six to feed her a little something.
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Permalink Reply by Vicky Hay on
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Agreed with Anna: Don't borrow trouble. It may not be as big a headache as you fear. And also sorta seconding Beth: don't know enough about diabetes (human or canine) to comment but wonder if some protein might help, too. Possibly consider baking some thinly sliced chicken or beef on "low" in the oven until it turns into jerky, which will allow you to keep it out of the fridge by your bed at night. Might even baste it with a little of that corn syrup or honey to get a little of both substances into the dog in one swell foop. Since she seems to be improving, it sounds like you're on the right track.
Yogurt has a lot of advantages besides the protein, BTW: gives the pooch a good dose of calcium, and it contains beneficial diarrhea that aid digestion.
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Permalink Reply by Karen Dadisman on
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Be sure to use regular yogurt and not the artificially sweetened kind. Artificial sweeteners can be very bad for dogs!!
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Heee! Did I really write "it contains beneficial diarrhea"? What on earth was I smoking yesterday???
That oughta be "bacteria," o'course. :roll:
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Yeah I'm not to worried about the stress is may entail and I know we both can handle it. It's not the worst I've dealt with so I'm prepared to do whatever I can.
All of these treats ideas are so great! I don't know about the automatic feeder and will have to think about it. Otherwise I'm pretty good at getting up near six to feed her or take care of her. Must get it from my mom who gets up at around three o'clock every morning!
For the baked chicken does 400 degrees sound like a good baking temperature? That way I can get started on preparing some nummies for her including boiling some eggs and getting some other treats from the store. Those treats that I looked at with the link online look good so I'll have to order some later this week.
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On the home-made jerky: No, you need the temp to be very low. Let the chicken sit in the low heat for a number of hours. It's basically using your oven as a dehydrator. Here's a how-to describing how to make it for dogs: http://www.justjerkytreats.com/homemade-chicken-jerky-for-dogs/ . She suggests 160 degrees for four to six hours. Some ovens won't go that low, but 200 will work, I think, if you prop the door open.
But you can use just about any recipe for the heating & drying stage -- just don't add ANY spices or salt or garlic. Just plain chicken (or thin-sliced beef or pork or a solid fish like salmon) can be turned into jerky. Dogs love it. Tastes pretty good to humans, too. ;-)
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Ok I'll have to look up and try making some of that jerky then! It's sounds like a good project to try! I'll research some of the yogurt stuff too so that she can have a variety of treats. She's kinda a chow hound but I don't want her to get bored with it.
Haha I saw the diarrhea thing yesterday and was kinda confused but it was funny. I knew what you were trying to say though!
She had another good night last night, I made sure when I got up in the middle of the night to get her a snack. Poor thing was half asleep and so confused! She gave me the look kinda like "what time is it? Why am I getting food now?" Haha she kinda laid on it for awhile before finally deciding to eat it. Now I'm just waiting and hoping that today I get a call from the vet for another step towards figuring out what this is.
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Just got a call from the vet. We informed her about Lola's slight rise in energy level and te decrease in her shaking (except for this morning because the neighbors did something that scared the crap out of us both), as she suggested two options. The first was we could just continue with our new feeding routine and leave it at that, otherwise; she preferred that we go in at eight o'clock tomorrow morning to get her blood drawn again. The vet prefers the latter option since her liver levels were a little out of whack last time.
I told her we'll come in tomorrow morning to get her blood tested just to be sure there's nothing else that's more serious going on. So starting tonight I'm gonna have to put her on another twelve hour fast, I'll have to bring food with to feed her immediately after her first blood drawing. After I feed her they said that I'm going to have to leave her for two hours, so I'll have to find something to do, then return around the two hour mark to get her blood drawn again. I hate leaving her at the vet!
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Permalink Reply by Chris Payerl on
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When we had this test done with Sophie, I brought a book and stayed at the vet; they let me keep her with me in one of the exam rooms that wasn't being used instead of putting her in a holding crate for the two hours. As long as they didn't need it I could stay there (they never needed it while I was there) and they wouldn't charge me a crate fee. It worked out great. Sophie got to be out of a crate, I got to read uninterrupted for awhile, plus I didn't have to pay a crate fee. Both of us felt better about it. I could take her out to potty, too. Ask about this arrangement if you can spare the two hours.
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Seems wise to follow up with the vet to me. Please let us know how the tests turn out.
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