For anyone who's been wondering why I haven't posted since last August, the answer is simple. Around that time, I got whacked with the irony stick: I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
I have to say, Tony spoiled me when it comes to living with diabetes. His blood sugar was pretty well controlled in a very short amount of time, whereas mine is still not steady after 8 months. Of course, he was on insulin, and I am not.
What gets me about this situation, though, is that veterinary medicine seems to have a better handle on this disease than human medicine. I don't have a problem with my doctor, but I am amazed at the anger so many diabetics have toward the American Diabetes Association and how their recommendations differ from what I am seeing from other authorities.
I didn't have too many problems with my dog Tony when it came to maintaining his diet and insulin regimen, now that I look back on it. His vet did periodic blood sugar curve tests (over an entire day), and his insulin was adjusted based on those, but most of the so-called authorities don't seem to think it's necessary for humans to find out what their blood sugar is doing over the course of a day, ever. To be fair, my mother's endocrinologist has her testing five times a day (good thing she has Medicare; you wouldn't believe the price of test strips).
Anyway, I've got a big backlog of doggie material that I'll be sharing soon, and with a brand-new viewpoint into how it feels to be diabetic.
Monday, April 2, 2012
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Who would name a dog "Mr. Smith"?
Image via WikipediaYou'd be surprised. You might also be surprised that many of the names people find too silly or stupid are actually BAD for the dog (I'm not talking about names like Lucky, which seems to be cursed): there's a scientific explanation, which you can read about at WebMD's pet pages. It turns out that consonants count, according to Roxanne Hawn, because "Certain consonants (k, p, d) create broadband sounds with more energy across sound frequencies that get a pet’s attention. These sounds activate more audio receptors in the brain." How about that? 
Friday, August 5, 2011
New Help from the FDA
Image via WikipediaI'm a couple days late with this, but it's worth noting anyway. I've written before about the importance of reading pet food labels, and how we really need more information than is there. Now the FDA has a new pet food initiative that will at least keep track of pet food problems as they occur. Read their announcement of PetNet, which "is a secure, web based information exchange system that will allow FDA and Federal and State Agencies to share initial information about pet-food related incidents, such as illness associated with the consumption of pet food or pet food product defects." Sounds good.
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