Boarding a diabetic dog?

[Deb_and_Ed_M]

So I'm sitting in Florida and my Valentine has flown to Michigan - a quick trip to attend the funeral of his sister 😞

Jimmy is a mini-aussie/mini-poodle; and thanks to diabetes, he's also about 95% blind with cataracts. At 10 yrs old, he's still happy, funny, cuddly - and as long as he knows where he is, he seems to get around just fine. But I'm not comfortable with the thought of boarding him (nor is Ed). I would worry that someone would forget his twice-daily shot of insulin; or that he'd be so stressed by a strange place with strange people, that it would mess up his nice stable blood-sugar?

We DO re-arrange our life to accommodate his meals/shots (most of the time it's not that hard).

Am I nuts? Have others boarded their diabetic dogs?

[keepmotoring]

We had a dog with diabetes for 9 years, who also went blind. We never boarded her. I would have been a nervous wreck the whole time. If had to, I guess I would have asked my vet her opinion. Probably some of the vet techs would have been a good idea.

[Scottiemom]

I know it's too late for this time, but next time, members might post here. Like I said, I would have volunteered if I was near you and can give many, many pet references. I just know how important it is to have your baby cared for and not worry about them. I'm sure I'm not the only one who would help out.

Dale

[colliehauler]

Not only that dogs are just more comfortable in familiar settings.

[Deb_and_Ed_M]

Thanks again for all the ideas - we are in a dog-friendly condo complex, so maybe some neighbors have trusted connections that would stay in our place while we're gone (as Dale pointed out - diabetic dogs need more trips outside than other dogs)

[LJAZ]

I second the petsitter option. Don't have a diabetic dog, but we do have 4 so boarding costs add up really quickly. We use one of the vet techs at our vet who stays at the house for pet sitting so you might check with your vet's office to see if anyone there does pet sitting. There are also websites like Rover.com where you can find people who do house sitting.

[Scottiemom]

We just lost our blind, diabetic dog last month. Most kennels will NOT take diabetic pets due to the liability. We found one kennel around Indianapolis that would take her. This was a kennel run by a woman who just loved dogs. She had the cleanest kennel I have ever seen. . . never took too many dogs and was willing to give her shots. We left her there for a couple days when I had back surgery and we knew the alternative was her being left for long periods of time unattended.

Our vet was not close by, but even then, the dogs are unattended at night and they don't give the shots 12 hours apart. Sometime around 9 am and again at 5 p.m. I didn't want to risk that because especially after she was regulated I didn't want her to get off track. Plus diabetic dogs are subject to frequent urination and they are in their cage more than 12 hours at a time overnight.

I think a dogsitter might be the answer. Or if I had been in Florida, I would have volunteered to take care of your baby. Having had a diabetic dog for 2 1/2 years, I know what to do and when to do it. I did my own testing on my girlie as well.

But that is also the reason we didn't board her, didn't fly anywhere, and would take several days driving to get somewhere if there was an emergency.

Sorry for your loss. I completely understand your situation.

Dale

[Deb_and_Ed_M]

Thanks, everyone - it's good to know my fears regarding the stress and blood sugar levels, aren't just an overactive imagination.

Back in Michigan, our beloved Vet there DOES have a great boarding facility - but that still doesn't negate the crazy barking fest and activity that goes on all day. I checked with some pet sitters that would come to our house - but they don't do shots. Fortunately, most of our kids live in Michigan, so I could always teach them to give Jimmy his shots.

But here in FL, my Vet doesn't board. Ironically, there's a "pet resort" just up the road; but the recent firing of an employee caught on video abusing a dog, reminded me that they are only as good as their least-paid employee. I would rather miss the out-of-state funeral of someone I loved, than expose my sweet dogs to anything hurtful.

Thanks, Colliehauler - 20 years of MS had destroyed my Sis-in-law's body. We know she's dancing with the Angels now; although her Lhasa surely misses her.

[colliehauler]

I would probably look at a vet boarding facility as well. I have a Collie that needs daily Medication but not shots. If I have to go out of town and can't take them I have a wonderful neighbor that will come over and feed them and give him his med's. They even take time to throw the football for him.

My condolences for his sister.

[Pawz4me]

If I had a diabetic dog I think I'd either board it with my vet or I'd find a certified vet tech who did dog sitting and who had fabulous references, and I'd have him/her come at least three times a day, and preferably four times a day. I think for me it would be a hard call between those two--the dog would probably be more stressed at the vet, but would have someone around most/all the time (depending on staffing overnight), and of course a vet readily available much of the time. The dog would probably be more comfortable/less stressed at home, but much more time alone.

I would NOT do a non-vet affiliated boarding facility. Nope, nope, nope. I barely trust even the best ones for healthy dogs.

[2Rad4U]

We have a 12+ year old "shnoodle" mutt that we rescued as a pup. He is like our third child.

He developed diabetes 3 years ago and went blind very quickly. You would never know it by the way he carries on. It has not slowed him down one bit.

We board him at out regular, trusted vet with explicit instructions for his insulin. They have done great and we have never had a problem.

We take him on all of our local camping trips and he loves it. When we travel further away and/or we plan on being away from the camper for an extended period, we believe he is better off safe at the vet.

The vet staff is loving and we feel he will feel LESS stressed with this routine. He is always happy and spunky when we pick him up.

Find a good vet or boarding facility you can trust.

[ppine]

Most people do not want to care for special needs dogs.
We have a 15 year old Corgi and a 10 yo Corgi that cannot use his hind legs. Just came back from a winter trip to Elko. We just take all three dogs.
You can always board him with a vet.

[dturm]

We routinely boarded our diabetic patients (we didn't do regular boarding). The stress of a new place, other animals and different people often led to fluctuations in glucose levels. When at all possible, we recommended not to, but sometimes circumstances (life) gives you no other options.

Doug, DVM

[BB_TX]

Have never had a diabetic dog, and have rarely boarded any dog. But our long time and trusted vet does board pets. And I would trust them with a pet with health issues. But they don’t have some of the amenities that some pet resorts have such as large fenced off leash play areas, pools, extended one on one time with a caretaker, etc.

[wanderingaimles]

Cant your vet take him for a day or two? Ours will when we have asked.
And we love our Aussum shepherd too.