Rosie's Emergency Vet Visit - advice, please

[Yoshi&Reza]

This afternoon was pretty bad and scary. I noticed that I hadn't seen Rosie for a couple of hours so I went searching for her. I lifted the blankets on my bed and saw her in horrible condition. She was barely breathing and her heart rate was very slow and irregular. Her jaw was clenched tight, couldn't open her eyes, wasn't responding, and was limp. Yelled "babe!, Rosie, emergency" to my husband and he came in and got her while I grabbed the syrup to rub on her gums for the drive. Always seems you hit every red light in these situations. Got her there and told them she needed glucose now. Thankfully, they were able to stabilize her and brought her temp from 92.2 back up to 99 over the course of 4 hours and let her come home.

Unfortunately, this is the second time I have taken her in like this. First time was worse... the vet tech was immediately saying we have to resuscitate her now- do you approve?! Ever since she was a puppy we have always had issues with her glucose levels being stable. Then last June she started having seizures in her sleep. Back to the vet we went where they did many tests on her. They even had a specialist come in and do an ultrasound on her brain and liver. There was no real reason found as to why she was having seizures. We decided that if she didn't have any more then no medications. She was seizure free for about 5 months. I am not sure if she had a seizure today and then the hypoglycemic episode followed or what. Rosie only weighs a little under 2 pounds and is a little over two years old. So when something is wrong, she goes downhill quickly.

I'm wondering if anyone has any ideas or further testing I could have done for her. The e-vet we saw today mentioned testing for Addisons Disease. But, is there anything else?

She always has an appetite and I feed her Wellness Toy Breed which she loves. I could say that she seems to always be up and down though. Most of the time she is good but other times, its as if she is depressed or something.

 

[Birdbabe]

To keep her blood sugar more even, feed her 4 or 5 small meals a day, little pups have little tummies and livers, they run out of glucose quickly. Hope she's OK.

 

[Karen]

She sure is a sweetheart and so cute! I hope she's feeling better soon.

I read this on a website;
Hypoglycemia - Low Blood Sugar

Severe hypoglycemia: If your dog is severely hypoglycemic, especially if it is having seizures or unconscious, you must give Haggen-Dazs vanilla ice cream immediately. Carefully rub small amounts of ice cream on the inside of the cheeks and gums. Do not put a lot of liquid in the dog's mouth, and be sure the dog does not choke. Do not stick your fingers inside the teeth of a dog that is having seizures - you may get bitten. Then, call your veterinarian if you feel you need further guidance. If your dog continues to be unconscious your dog should be taken to the veterinary emergency room immediately.

Moderate hypoglycemia: Hagen-Dazs plain vanilla ice cream should be given, either alone, or combined with food. Ice cream can be mixed in with wet food or drizzled over dry food. The ice cream will help bring the blood glucose up quickly, and the food will help keep the blood sugar elevated for a longer period of time.

If your dog has a tendency towards low blood sugar after a seizure and you travel or take your dog on rides, carry honey with you whenever you take your dog out of the house, even for a short walk. In an emergency, you don't want to be searching for sugar and honey is a good substitute for ice cream. Here are some ways to carry honey in your purse, pocket, doggie pack, or car:

**** Use small screw-top plastic bottles from a sporting goods store or "travel-size" plastic bottles from the drug store.

**** Packets of honey.

**** Fill a 1-ml syringe (no needle) with honey. With a syringe, it is easy to get the syrup in the mouth without being bitten.

**** Some people find it helpful to connect a small pouch with a plastic bottle filled with honey onto their dog's harness. This way sugar is always with them on their walks or travels.

 

[Aubrey]

OMG! How scary I have no advice or suggestions. I'm sorry.

But Rosie is so cute! I hope you find a solution!

 

[Ankou]

I have no advice on how to deal with small dog glucose issues or what may cause them. But I will keep her in my thoughts and prayers.
I hope she is doing well and recovers soon.
And pray that you find a cause or a better way to prevent this from happening again.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

I have no advice but I must say that Rosie's huge sweet eyes and adorable face make me want to go out and get a little one just like her. Hope you can get her glucose levels under control, those episodes must be so scary for you all.

 

[webchirp]

Oh gosh I hope she is okay

 

[sunnysmom]

I hope she gets better. Such a precious little dog.

 

[Yoshi&Reza]

Thank you everyone. She is doing better today... she just needed lots of sleep.

Her regular vet has said her sugar levels shouldn't be dropping the way they do. That is why I was wondering if maybe there was a test or something that hasn't been brought up. The vet at the time was focusing on her seizures and during one test realized her levels were low even though she had ate earlier that day. When we got her spayed I was so paranoid about them having her for the day, I kept calling to make sure she had eaten or at least giving her glucose. They even wanted her to eat that night/morning since she is so up and down.

 

[Karen]

Has you vet done all the blood work, chemical blood profile, diabetes testing and urinalysis, etc.?

 

[Yoshi&Reza]

Has you vet done all the blood work, chemical blood profile, diabetes testing and urinalysis, etc.?

Yes, we did a lot of labs. I also did the full work up on her before she was spayed to be safe. Some liver values came up high and they wanted to put her on meds for it. I waited two weeks and went back for more labs and it came back down to normal without the meds. Unfortunately, my mom was holding her and dropped her on our tile floor so I thought maybe she had bruised her liver or something and that was why the liver values were high. Definitely took Rosie in right after that; but they said she was fine. I can't remember the one it was but when I read up on it, it was something about damage to the tissue. I am not sure if they specifically tested for diabetes though.

I am thinking maybe it is time to go to a specialist or something. The e-vet needed a referral for Addisons disease testing.