Kate@JIm Posted September 22, 2009 Report Share Posted September 22, 2009 Hello, thought I'd post to see if anyone has any experience with low blood sugar in their dogs. Background: - 5 year old neutered border collie had 2 grand mal seizures 5 months apart. ( both at the same time, right before dinner) After the second seizure had blood work done and found blood sugar at 26. (50 is normal) Urinalysis was normal. Very healthy dog otherwise, gets homemade diet with added kibble. Veterinarian didn't suspect epilepsy, but not ruled out. Checked with parents, grand-parents and siblings, no epilepsy. My veterinarian said to add more carbs, - barley, oatmeal, brown rice. ( I recently cut down on grain) She also said to add sweet potato, more carrots and fruit to his diet. Instead of 2 meals a day, 3-4 smaller meals are preferred, with healthy treats in-between. This dog showed no signs of being "off", high energy happy dog. So was very surprised to find this unbalance. Anyone with advice or experience. Thank-you, Kate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelpiegirl Posted September 23, 2009 Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 Look at the Pancreas. Tumors on this organ can cause precipitous drops in blood sugar, resulting in seizures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenkshipley Posted September 23, 2009 Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 thought I'd post to see if anyone has any experience with low blood sugar in their dogs.Background: - 5 year old neutered border collie had 2 grand mal seizures 5 months apart. ( both at the same time, right before dinner) After the second seizure had blood work done and found blood sugar at 26. (50 is normal) Urinalysis was normal. A seizure can actually and often does lower blood sugar levels in dogs and people for that matter. Epileptics of both species often have low blood sugar levels before and after a seizure that are normal otherwise. I have a dog who has had four seizures all right before breakfast. We believe that she is epileptic as it is in her lines, although a big, hairy secret that it is there, however, one of the things I do is give her natural, organic honey right before I go to sleep and first thing in the morning right when I get up to try to head off any blood sugar drop. Honey raises blood sugar levels very quickly and also has some healthy amino acids and other nutrients in it. You might try giving him a half a teaspoon or so of honey a few times a day. Your vet's suggestion to try feeding smaller meals, more often with the sweet potato and carrots or canned pumpkin added that will add sugar naturally is excellent too. Some good supplements to add are Taurine, vitamin E, fish oil or omega 3's and unflavored, unsweetened gelatin powder, all of which can help prevent seizures. Personally, I seriously doubt you are dealing with a tumor or cancer since the seizures were five months apart. If there was a tumor on the Pancreas it most likely wasn't hanging around for five months not causing any symptoms in between the seizures. There are also some very good Chinese and Western herbs that are helpful in preventing seizures. If you have a holistic veterinarian in your area, a consult with that person might not be a bad idea. If you google holistic veterinarian you can find a list of certified practitioners. Best, Jen Flute Enna Rising Sun's Hot to the Touch - Fever Soon to be Ignite's Molten Rush - Lava Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kate@JIm Posted September 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 Thanks for the reply, tumor in the pancreas.......yikes! His blood work came back normal for pancreas......my vet is a little stumped, that's why she thought we'd start with diet first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kate@JIm Posted September 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 A seizure can actually and often does lower blood sugar levels in dogs and people for that matter. Epileptics of both species often have low blood sugar levels before and after a seizure that are normal otherwise. I have a dog who has had four seizures all right before breakfast. We believe that she is epileptic as it is in her lines, although a big, hairy secret that it is there, however, one of the things I do is give her natural, organic honey right before I go to sleep and first thing in the morning right when I get up to try to head off any blood sugar drop. Honey raises blood sugar levels very quickly and also has some healthy amino acids and other nutrients in it. You might try giving him a half a teaspoon or so of honey a few times a day. Your vet's suggestion to try feeding smaller meals, more often with the sweet potato and carrots or canned pumpkin added that will add sugar naturally is excellent too. Some good supplements to add are Taurine, vitamin E, fish oil or omega 3's and unflavored, unsweetened gelatin powder, all of which can help prevent seizures. Personally, I seriously doubt you are dealing with a tumor or cancer since the seizures were five months apart. If there was a tumor on the Pancreas it most likely wasn't hanging around for five months not causing any symptoms in between the seizures. There are also some very good Chinese and Western herbs that are helpful in preventing seizures. If you have a holistic veterinarian in your area, a consult with that person might not be a bad idea. If you google holistic veterinarian you can find a list of certified practitioners. Best, Jen Flute Enna Rising Sun's Hot to the Touch - Fever Soon to be Ignite's Molten Rush - Lava[/quote Thanks so much for the reply!! ( I was posting at the same time) Honey is a great idea- Never thought of that. He gets salmon twice a week in his diet, maybe I'll add extra omega 3's. Both of his seizures happened right before dinner. I do see a holistic veterinarian, she uses acupuncture, Chinese herbs, and a bag of tricks! She is wonderful. We will have a follow up in a few weeks if there's no more seizures or changes in the mean time. All your suggestions are wonderful I will email them off to her............Thank-you!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelpiegirl Posted September 23, 2009 Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 A friend of mine had a dog who presented with seizures, and low blood sugar. Nothing unusual in blood work besides that. Then, they did exploratory surgery, and found the tumor(s) on the pancreas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenkshipley Posted September 23, 2009 Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 A friend of mine had a dog who presented with seizures, and low blood sugar. Nothing unusual in blood work besides that. Then, they did exploratory surgery, and found the tumor(s) on the pancreas. That's a scary thought, but were the seizures months apart? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenkshipley Posted September 23, 2009 Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 Thanks so much for the reply!! ( I was posting at the same time) Honey is a great idea- Never thought of that. He gets salmon twice a week in his diet, maybe I'll add extra omega 3's. Both of his seizures happened right before dinner. I do see a holistic veterinarian, she uses acupuncture, Chinese herbs, and a bag of tricks! She is wonderful. We will have a follow up in a few weeks if there's no more seizures or changes in the mean time. All your suggestions are wonderful I will email them off to her............Thank-you!!! Someone also told me about blackstrap molassas in place of the honey, but I haven't talked about that yet with my own vet or tried it myself. Blackstrap molassas has potassium and vitamin c and some other nutrients in it. I am looking into it and it is on my list of things to talk about at the next holistic vet visit. Best of luck with your dog, it is a very hard thing to watch and go through. Fortunately, the dogs are not conscious during a seizure, although mine knows one is coming and is very upset about 15 mintues beforehand and is very upset and fearful afterwards for awhile. You can spend a lot of money very quickly testing for causes of seizures. It might be less expensive and perhaps useful, I would check with your vet, to take an x-ray. Maybe anything abnormal would show up on an x-ray and save you the cost $350 - $400 of an ultrasound. Best, Jen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelpiegirl Posted September 23, 2009 Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 Yes. The dog would stabilize, and then go down hill. That's a scary thought, but were the seizures months apart? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenkshipley Posted September 23, 2009 Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 Yes. The dog would stabilize, and then go down hill. That's interesting. How old was the dog? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenkshipley Posted September 23, 2009 Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 Yes. The dog would stabilize, and then go down hill. Hi Kate, I did some research, gotta love Google to give yourself a good scare. Sometimes the availability of masses of information is a bad thing rather then a good thing. Anyway, a lot of what I found said an x-ray can show abnormalities in the pancreas. Also your veterinarian could perform a test to check enzyme levels. Pancreatic cancer is said to be reasonably rare. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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