Once your dog has been diagnosed with diabetes, your vet will make some changes right away to your dog's care.
One of the first changes will be to what you dog eats.
In all probability, your vet will recommend a brand of food made just for dogs with diabetes...
with a catch.
Either your vet will sell it to you him or herself, or, more likely, give you a prescription for the dog food.
But what is this with needing a prescription just to buy diabetic dog food.
Because your dog is having difficulty managing their blood sugar, modifying the mix of nutrients your dog eats will go a long way to helping your dog's body to balance out this sugar level.
Specially-formulated meals will accomplish just that.
A prescription or therapeutic diet is one prescribed by a veterinarian to adjust a medical condition.
Commercial diabetic dog foods are formulated to target the unique metabolic processes of a dog with diabetes.
The mixture and ratio of nutrients (proteins, starch, fiber, vitamins, etc.
) in these specially formulated meals are different than general brands of dog food.
This special mix should help the bodily functions of a pooch with diabetes adjust to stable levels, functions like blood glucose levels, digestion, immune system responses and kidney functions.
Commercial dog food companies create their special diabetic dietary mixes based on scientific research that determines the best ratios of various nutrients that a diabetic dog needs.
When doing this, some nutrients are reduced and some are elevated in amounts that are outside the typical levels that are good for normal dogs.
Put another way--foods that are made especially to control irregular blood sugar in diabetic dogs are are not appropriate for normal dogs.
Therefore, food products specifically for diabetic dogs typically are available for purchase ONLY on the order of a licensed veterinarian.
Therefore, prior to feeding any dog a diet specifically formulated to modify body chemistry--in this case blood sugar levels--a veterinarian must make an appropriate medical diagnosis.
After that they then can write a prescription for special food.
Think of therapeutic diets as you would a drug (even though there are not actually drugs in them!).
This food has a special mix designed to produce a specific reaction (like a drug).
And only dogs that have been diagnosed with diabetes should be eating diabetic dog foods.