New monitor for pet diabetes

Experts in Abbott laboratories, one of the most practical and successful diabetes accessories manufacturers are now looking to enter another emerging market related to diabetes. In this case, though, the patients have four legs. They have developed a new product which facilitates testing for blood-sugar levels in dogs and cats that have diabetes.
The new product, called AlphaTRAK, is the very first handheld blood glucose monitoring system developed and designed with cats and dogs suffering from diabetes in mind. The product will hopefully allow pet owners to administer rapid and accurate testing to their charges.
Rates of canine and feline diabetes are quite high, with up to one in 200 dogs and one in 400 cats affected. Just like some humans with diabetes, dogs and cats who have diabetes often require a daily regimen of insulin injections. Obesity, just like in humans, is also more common in animals.
The Abbott product opens up new doors for home-testing of animals, which was previously conducted in expensive veterinary visits. Testing was carried out on-site at vets and was a complicated procedure. Some pet-owners were using human diabetes testing kits, but Abbott highlighted that these would cause inaccuracy in results.
The AlphaTRAK system will be available soon.