When to put down a Blind Diabetic dog

Saying goodbye to your pup is the hardest thing to do but sometimes it’s Inevitable. In this article, we will discuss,  when and how you should put down a blind diabetic dog?

When to put down a diabetic dog? 

Diabetes can cause suffering and irreversible pain. There may come a time when the suffering exceeds the treatment and lifestyle quality of your dog. This is the point when you should consider euthanizing your dog.

Mostly this stage comes either at the last stage of an older diabetic dog’s life or when your dog’s condition has gone worse with sudden wrong treatment or no treatment at all. (Read untreated diabetes in dogs).

When you see your dog’s organs are failing,  he can’t control bladder movement, is in a coma, or has brain death,  the best option is to let him go.

When putting down a blind diabetic dog?

You have to understand here,  that when diabetic dogs get blind, their condition is going to go down gradually. A diabetic dog doesn’t go blind overnight. The first thing on a journey to suffering is eye cataracts,  eye diseases, and blindness. Then the dog will lose other senses and organs and eventually death will do your loved pup apart.

Blindness alone is not enough cause to put down your diabetic dog. For this, we suggest making a chart and enlist sufferings vs good things your dog still has to achieve in life. If suffering wins and is going to be continuous through the rest of his life,  we suggest easing his pain.

Mostly in the last diabetic stages, your dog will

• Lose a lot of weight and become weak.
• Will mostly become lethargic all the day
• Won’t participate in any activity
• Will not respond to your voice
• Lose appetite at all
• Will have severe vomiting and may vomit green or yellow color bile (read diabetic dog vomiting)
• Have diarrhea and even bloody diarrhea (read diabetic dog diarrhea)
• Seizures
• And can go into a coma leading to his brain death.

These signs pop up when your dog is having untreated hypoglycemic, hyperglycemic, or ketoacidosis for a continuous period. If you see these signs, hardly this last stage is reversible in diabetic dogs. Euthanizing him will be the right decision. Talk to your vet and he can further guide you.

How to keep my diabetic dog from going blind?

We all want to fight till the end. To keep your dog from going blind,  you must manage his diabetes well. Managing diabetes from earlier stages will help your dog to live longer. If a diabetic dog lives first three to six months, he will most probably live longer with effectively managed diabetes.

As we have mentioned earlier that blindness is the first step towards a downfall.  So adapt prevention strategies sooner.

• Keep a regular check on the glucose level. High or low glucose levels for a continuous period are destructive to the dog’s body ( Read when to test dog blood sugar).
• Make sure you give your dog a regular and proper prescribed dose of insulin.
• Ensure a good diet and exercise regime for your dog.
• Make a timetable and stick to that.
• Regularly visit a vet for regular checkups or when you notice anything weird. For example, if your dog is bumping here or there or is unable to differentiate between things. (Read diabetic dog eye discharge).

How to euthanize a blind diabetic dog?

Most diabetic dogs are killed by giving them an extra dose of insulin.  (Read double dose insulin). Excessive Insulin lowers down blood glucose to dangerously low levels and puts your dog to sleep. This way he can go pain-free without even knowing.

My little goodbye story to make you feel better.

I had a dog moti. He was not diabetic but suddenly started becoming aggressive whenever he saw someone. He even attacked three people and I noticed foam coming out of his mouth.  The vet decided that moti has got rabies and will be this way for the rest of his life. There were two options left. Either tie moti to some limited place where he won’t see anyone again and let him die there by himself or Euthanize him to set him free.

I evaluated both situations and realized that limiting him to a small space where he won’t recognize even me.  (He tried to attack me as well)  is death itself in the worst form. I knew in my heart that moti was once an adventure-loving pup. Containing him in a limited area was the cruelest thing to him. So, with Vet’s decision,  I decided to euthanize him.

How you can evaluate your diabetic dog’s situation?

I suggest making a self-analyzing chart and asking yourself “should I put my diabetic dog down?”

You can make a chart like this:

If your dog has gotten more than 30 points,  it’s better to let your dog go. Take him to the vet. The vet will decide the dosage amount for euthanizing your dog.

Conclusion:

When your blind diabetic dog is having the worst condition which is not reversible, you can consider putting him down. However, with a few strategies, you can delay and even prevent the miserable fate of your dog. Research shows that many diabetic dogs don’t die directly from diabetes.