Diabetes is a diagnosis no Westie owner prepares to receive. As you shepherd your Westie(s) through life, very few of us wonder if their terrier will become diabetic. Do many of us wonder about cancer and other diseases? Probably. Over the past few years, I’ve read numerous articles stating that cancer is on the rise with all dogs. I’m sure different diseases crossed or infiltrate your thoughts, but maybe not diabetes.
Perhaps today, or recently, you and your Westie left the vets office with a bottle of insulin and instructions on how to give twicedaily injections. You may have landed on this page after Googling “Westie diabetes.” Maybe you are reading by luck and have no idea how you arrived here – and that’s ok. Westie Insider is here to help you through your journey caring for a diabetic Westie. Today we write what is the first of several articles where we discuss diabetes and share ideas and even advice. As always talk to your vet with any questions.
Emotionally, humans react in different ways, and stages, to bad news. The day my Westie was diagnosed with diabetes, I felt numb and scared. It was only a few days later that the tension lifted and I shed tears. The initial days were riddled with anxiety as I’d never given injections before, let alone handled needles. One thing to understand immediately about diabetes is it’s a new way of life.
And, after a period of adjustment, twice daily injections become a regular pattern as mundane as brushing your teeth. It may not seem like it now, but living and caring for a diabetic Westie is simply a change of routine. And over time, that new routine becomes a pattern. Just like when you turned into an adult, and after a day working, you go home and prepare dinner. Sometimes we don’t realize it, but our lives are a grid of habits and patterns and caring for your diabetic Westie will fall into a new habit.
Days One and Two Learn to administer injections. Familiarize yourself with the insulin bottle and the needle. Remember, never shake insulin. Instead, roll it between the palms of your hand or on a countertop. Throughout the day, practice lifting your Westie’s skin and then pressing an object such as the eraser on a pencil or the tip of your finger. This familiarizes them with the motions of insulin injections and knowing something will poke their skin.