Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Creature feature
Is diabetes in dogs related to their weight? If my dog (a Labrador mix) gets fat, will he get diabetes?
Scientists researching animal diseases are still debating the obesity-diabetes link in dogs, but they agree that canine diabetes is caused by the body’s inability to produce or use insulin necessary to convert glucose (commonly referred to as “blood sugar”) into energy.
Why some dogs develop diabetes in middle age — after age 5 — isn’t certain, but many believe the disease is linked to genetics, according to an article in the November 2011 issue of Your Dog.
Orla Mahony, a specialist in small- animal endocrinology at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University, says, “The fact that certain breeds — in particular, boxers, German shepherd dogs, golden retrievers and bull terriers — are less likely to get the disease is strong evidence of a genetic predisposition in dogs.”
Breeds most at risk for diabetes include Australian terriers, Cairn terriers, Labrador retrievers, miniature schnauzers, miniature and toy poodles, pugs and Samoyeds.
An exception to the genetic predisposition is female dogs who have not been spayed, Mahony says. Unspayed females are at “increased risk” of developing a hormone-related version of the disease during their reproductive cycle. She says that diabetes in an “intact” female usually will disappear after the dog is spayed.
About one-third of diabetic dogs also have pancreatitis, an inflammation of the pancreas, the organ that produces insulin. Chronic pancreatitis can damage the pancreas so much that it stops producing insulin, Mahony says.
The cause of pancreatitis is unknown, according to vetmedicine.about.com, but obese middle-age dogs seem to be more prone than others to developing it.
Along with obesity, other factors that might put a dog in a higher-risk category for pancreatitis are a high- fat diet, Cushing’s disease, bacterial or viral infection and hyperlipidemia (high fat content in blood).
Also, while there may not be a direct link between obesity and diabetes, being overweight can make a dog more resistant to insulin therapy used to treat diabetes.
Talk to your veterinarian about your concerns that your dog could develop diabetes, as well as to develop a nutrition plan that will ensure your dog maintains a healthy weight.
Cat owners wondering what to do with all that hair cats leave about the house might be interested in a new book, Crafting With Cat Hair: Cute Handicrafts to Make With Your Cat by Kaori Tsutaya (Quirk Books).
The book describes a matting process for the fur you brush off your cat (with a regular brush or a de-shedding tool) to create a felt-like material that can be cut and shaped into items such as finger puppets, appliques, pin cushions and coin purses.
Oh, yes, the fur felt can also be used to make cat toys.