Rosie almost died last night...

[Yoshi&Reza]

Poor baby. Can you encourage her with smaller more frequent meals? Sending good wishes to Rosie and hugs to you.

Thank you, I always have food down for her but where this whole situation went wrong was her tummy bothering her or her gums because she is teething and me not triple checking to make sure she was actually eating. I should have known better with how quickly she can decline. Although, I have always caught it if she started getting a little weak. We haven't dealt with this for a few months so I wasn't in that frame of mind I guess.

 

[Yoshi&Reza]

One reason why toy dogs stink..They are so so cute, and the best little heaters, but this 'blood sugar' issue is one that's been going on for many years. Whatever is going on I hope she outgrows it and leads a happy and healthy life.

Exactly! I hoped and prayed she would get bigger so this issue wouldn't linger. But, the vet feels she is done growing and now I just have to always watch her so carefully.

 

[Hrtofau2]

As you now know, any little thing can cause blood sugars to go wacky. In the future, even if you even think for a second she has not eaten enough, treat her as if she has not. Honey on the gums is a good way to boost blood sugars. You also may want to check in the local pharmacy. They have glucose tablets and gels that also work well. (Check in the diabetic section) If you take Rosie places, you may want to keep them in your purse just in case. They are much cleaner then toting a bottle of honey around.

 

[Yoshi&Reza]

How scary I'm so glad she's okay.

Have they found a physiological reason for her hypoglycemia? Pancreatic tumor, digestive disorder, etc.?

Sorry about all the questions, I'm curious. I suffer from severe hypoglycemia and that's scary enough - I can't imagine having a pet that suffers from it and can't talk and tell you how they are feeling!

I hope you never have to deal with that again!!

Thank you, The vet and I have talked about it every time I have taken her in for her shots. He feels it is more of her size because everything else has been fine. The e vet said maybe an ultrasound to check for a liver shunt in the near future would be good to do. When she was around 8 - 10 weeks old I would have to syringe feed her a mix of kibble, wet, and warm water to sustain her through the night otherwise she would be shaky and disoriented. This time I feel it was a combination of things...

 

[Yoshi&Reza]

As you now know, any little thing can cause blood sugars to go wacky. In the future, even if you even think for a second she has not eaten enough, treat her as if she has not. Honey on the gums is a good way to boost blood sugars. You also may want to check in the local pharmacy. They have glucose tablets and gels that also work well. (Check in the diabetic section) If you take Rosie places, you may want to keep them in your purse just in case. They are much cleaner then toting a bottle of honey around.

Oh yeah, we did all that when she was a pup. We were good for a few months. I wasn't paying enough attention to how much she was eating because she is so good about eating her kibble now. And I saw food in her bowl and assumed my husband fed her. Her adult teeth are coming in but her baby teeth haven't come out yet. I think that may have played a part in her reluctance to eat. We are back to the feeding schedule like when she was a puppy.

I didn't know she would stay so tiny, but why would anyone actively seek out such a tiny dog with these issues? I don't get it.

 

[greymatron]

Does she have seizures? An old toy dog of mine had a liver shunt and he had seizures...any other dog I've heard having that had seizures as well. I'm sure they can have it without having the seizures, too, though.

 

[RJ Noodle]

So glad Rosie is better. She is so precious

 

[Yoshi&Reza]

Does she have seizures? An old toy dog of mine had a liver shunt and he had seizures...any other dog I've heard having that had seizures as well. I'm sure they can have it without having the seizures, too, though.

No seizures but I think she was the other night but that is common if the blood glucose drops too low.

 

[BraveheartDogs]

That is so scary. I'm glad she is coming around. This is something we talk about in my puppy classes, the little dogs and risk of hypoglycemia. Something can happen so quickly. She is adorable.

 

[birdle]

so glad you caught her in time.

 

[Verivus]

So glad she's okay. I would probably keep giving her some honey every few hours until she's back to eating normally for at least 2 weeks just to make sure it doesn't happen again. The littles can be so fragile.

 

[Gen120]

so glad she's doing so much better! I can't image how scary that must have been! I have had glucose problems too (from not eating properly, long story)- & my heart rate was all messed up etc, but that's all better now. But I totally know how you feel about those kinds of things being emotionally draining..

 

[southernbirds]

I'm sure she will outgrow this problem. She is fortunate to have such a loving & conscientious owner. Keep us updated with her progress. She is a little sweetie.

 

[senorabarb]

I'm glad that your precious pup is okay!

 

[Laurul Feather Cat]

Alyssa, you cannot depend on "free" feeding to manage a hypoglycemic pet. You must monitor the amount they eat throughout the day. If you want to sit out food for "free" feeding, you need to weigh the food on an accurate gram scale and then weigh it frequently throughout the day to determine if she is eating anything. If she is not eating, then you need to make her eat by giving her something you know she will not refuse to eat. The best managment technique is to feed small but scheduled meals at least three times a day and observe your dog actually eating them. With my cat, I fed him after I got home at 9am, after I got up from sleeping at 5 PM, and left him precisely weighed dry food overnight (which I again weighed in the morning after I got home.) I also left him with a wet meal in a feeding dish which had a timer on it, set to open at 1am while I was at work. If I was off, I fed him his meal myself before I went to bed for a nap at between one and three in the morning (I worked night shift).

You need to see the dog eat, know they have adequate intake of calories and, if they do not eat, then entice them to take in calories. If your dog is anything like my cat, Whip, she will take advantage of your concern and usually dupe you into giving her wet food as a bribe for good eating!

When I was at home, I had to check on Whip every two hours to assess if he was showing any signs of hypoglycemia. Whip was diabetic and got insulin injections every morning. I also kept sweetened condensed milk available for him, as I could always get him to lick up an ounce or two of it to ward off low blood sugar if I felt he wasn't eating well. Once I found him when I got home from work, passed out on the floor and I gave him ten cc of 50% glucose IV, and rushed him to the vet. Old age did not go well with Whip and his insulin stopped working well. I found him dead on the floor at age 12; whether it was from hypo- or hyper-glycemia I will never know.

A hypoglycemic pet is very difficult to manage unless you are extremely dedicated to making sure they eat on a regular basis.