Teacup Chihuahua -problems with eating and low blood sugar

Question
I have a 3 year old teacup chihuahua, at certain times, she refuses to eat and then when you pick her up you can actually hear her stomach making horrible sounds, sometimes even from across the room, I have also noticed at other times, she will just get up and run under the bed when her tummy makes those sounds, im certain it's from the pain and this breaks my heart.  We rescued her from a puppy mill, she still has her little soft spot as well. When we first got her she had a pancreatitis attack but I took her straight to the vet and he gave her a shot of phenobarbital for the seizures she had with it and sent her home.  Since then we have been scared to death she will have another episode or seizure so I watch her closely and that's when I noticed the stomach noises and her not eating and getting up to run and hide.  A friend of mine told me to give her a dose of Karo syrup because her mother had raised chihuahuas and she'd seen that type of low blood sugar problem with them and it always seemed to help them get back on track and eating again within hours. I tried this and it does seem to work, do you have any other suggestions for us?  Thank You.

Answer
Hi Staci...

I think it's wonderful that you rescued this little one from a puppy mill! It's so unfortunate that dogs are kept in such horrid conditions and not surprising at all when they sometimes present with medical or emotional problems when they're rescued.  Some of the symptoms that your little one is presenting with are very familiar to me and I have some questions that I want to ask you right away. How long have you actually had her?  Did you rescue her directly from the puppy mill or did you get her through a rescue group?  Has she been seen by a veterinarian for this problem?  Have you had blood work done on her recently?  What do you feed her and how many times per day do you feed her?  Is it dry or canned food?  How much does she weigh?  Has she been spayed?  If so, how did she do under anesthesia? What are her stools like?  Did the veterinarian check your dog's glucose levels at the time of the seizure?  Low blood sugar can cause seizures and I would think that a veterinarian would have tested your dog's glucose levels and then made an attempt to find out exactly what was causing the low blood sugar (IF it was actually found). Generally, veterinarians don't give phenobarbitol for a single seizure, nor do they prescribe it right away.  Usually, phenobarbitol is prescribed after a dog has had a number of seizures over a specific period of time.  

Adult dogs usually don't have problems with hypoglycemia (which is low blood sugar) unless there is an underlying medical condition like pancreatic cancer causing it. Hypoglycemia is something that is more commonly seen with Chihuahua puppies. However, with very small adult Chihuahuas, you just might see some problems with low blood sugar if the dogs are not fed often enough during a 24 hour period. Having said that, I'm really concerned that what you are experiencing with her is more than just a low blood sugar problem.  If you haven't already done so, you should have a full blood panel run and pay particular attention to the liver values and make sure that they're not high. If they are, I would strongly suggest running what's called a Bile Acid Test which gives the veterinarian more information on how the liver is functioning.  The Chihuahua breed is known for having liver shunts - both congenital and acquired.  Chihuahuas that have liver shunts don't eat well, ofen refuse food and some are said to have gurgling stomachs.  There are other symptoms that present in some dogs, but I wanted to cover the ones that are known that you have mentioned. You should also have the veterinarin check her glucose levels.

I have a little Chihuahua here that is a hardy eater but was presenting with "episodes" where she almost seemed to be in a trance and would become very needy. We were afraid that she might be having what is called focal seizures. Like you, I noticed that her stomach was gurgling quite loudly when these "episodes" occurred.  I also noticed that she tended to be a bit constipated at those times. I had a blood panel done and a Bile Acid Test done and then consulted with a board certified internist who did an ultrasound, re-ran the Bile Acid Test and also ran a urinalysis.  Her conclusion was that my dog had a problem digesting kibble. I was taken back by this but followed her advice and put my dog on a very high quality canned dog food that was advised by both my holistic vet and a nutritionist at a very reputable veterinary college.  My dog improved. I was thrilled! Over time she improved more and more! I was very careful with her diet and tweaked it here and there over the last two years and my little Chihuahua is like a completely different dog than she was back in the days when I was feeding her a high quality, premium kibble. Looking back, I realize that those "episodes" that we thought were focal seizures were actually a display of stomach discomfort.

As you can see, we had to rule out the potential for other medical problems before we could get the diagnosis that we did.  I strongly urge that you have your dog seen by a qualified veterinarian that is familiar with this breed and who has familiarity with liver shunts, etc., and get a proper diagnosis.

The soft spot on your dog's head is called a molera and the molera doesn't close all the way on many Chihuahuas. People ask me all the time if my smallest Chihuahua is a "teacup" and I always try to take the opportunity to educate people and tell them that there are only two types of Chihuahuas - smooth coat and long coat.  I explain that the term "teacup" was devised by unethical breeders trying to turn a large profit for potentially small Chihuahuas that are most often prone to health problems. Now you can pass on that same information and join me in making people aware of the negative results of puppy mills and unethical breeding.

It would be wonderful if you could get back to me with answers to the questions that I've asked above.  While seeing a qualified veterinarian and having the correct tests run is your best bet, I'd be interested in having more information on your little one and knowing if you already had tests run, etc. Hopefully, the problem that your little dog is having will be a simple one, but you may have to find that out by having the blood work done that I've mentioned and ruling major health problems out first.

Jo Ann