Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi,

My name is Linda. I have an 8 year old Dachshund, Millie. She suffered a sever bout of pancreatitis this past January and was subsequently dx with canine diabetes. She is currently using Humulin Insulin 7 units twice daily. She is fed at 7am and 7pm and insulin is given after her meal.

As a result of being a canine diabetic, Millie developed cataracts. Her left eys has a full blown cataract, but her right eye has only at 25% occlusion. In an effort to slow the progression of the cataract in her left eye, the vet opth prescribed Antiox-10. The active ingredient is Grape Seed Extract (Vitis vinifera) 10mg. Millie receives one capsule daily. I should also mention that we also have been giving Millie 400 I.U. Vitamin E every other day, and had been doing so long before we began the Antiox-10

Since starting her on the Antiox-10, Millie's blood sugars have spiked 100 to 200 points. While Millie's blood sugars have been a challenge to regulate, we have never seen such severe peaks and lows.

Can you tell me if Antiox-10 may be causing these wild swings in Millie's blood glucose? Or, can you refer me to someone or someplace that may have information about adverse side effects of Grape Seed Extract in canines as it pertains to diabetes.

Any help you could provide would be greatly appreciated.

Regards, Linda

If the Antiox-10 is the only change Millie had, it is likely that that is what is causing the sugar spike. You can test it by stopping the Antiox-10 for 3 days while still measuring the blood sugar levels exactly as you have been doing.
Cineraria maritima eyedrops 3 times a day will often dissolve cataracts.

Wow, Dr. Tobin, thank you so much for the information. Could you be so kind as tell us where we might be able to purchase the Cineraria maritima eyedrops?

Also, have you had any experience in using these drops in dogs with full blown cataracts? We understand that every dog is different, but we were wondering what the percent of success rate was in dissolving cataracts in dogs using the Cineraria maritime eyedrops. As I mentioned previously, Millie has a mature cataract in her right eye and a 25% occlusion in her left eye.

Thank you again for your assitance.

Regards,

Linda

I've had quite good success with the Cineraria maritima eyedrops, but I don't have any numbers from my own experience. I read about it many years ago, and have never again been able to find the citation, but they stated that it completely resolved 24% of the cases, and showed improvement in many more.