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Hypoglycemia
or low blood sugar is a common
problem with all toy breed
puppies including the yorkshire
terrier. Hypoglycemia is the
medical term for low blood
sugar, which is a condition in
which there is a drastic, sudden
drop in the level of blood sugar
in the Yorkie puppy . In small
breed puppies from post-weaning
to 4 month of age, the most
common form of hypoglycemia is
called Transient Juvenile
Hypoglycemia: “Transient”
because the symptoms can be
reversed by eating; "Juvenile"
because it is seen in young
puppies. Veterinarians
unfamiliar with toys often mis-diagnose
the condition as viral hepatitis
or encephalitis. As a toy yorkie
breeder or pet owner, it is
important to recognize the
symptoms of hypoglycemia and
know how to treat it.
Hypoglycemia is easily treatable
in the early stages, but fatal
if allowed to progress. Many
puppies including yorkshire
terriers are lost needlessly to
hypoglycemia because of
ignorance on the part of their
owner or veterinarian.
It is
important to understand that
just because a puppy has an
episode of hypoglycemia, it does
not mean that the puppy is truly
"hypoglycemic." True
hypoglycemia is a chronic
condition caused by
overproduction of insulin by the
pancreas. Even though the
pancreas may normally function
properly, toy puppies can still
have an isolated hypoglycemic
incident in reaction to stress
or fasting. Pups of any breed
are more likely to develop
hypoglycemia than adults,
because their skeletal muscle
mass and liver size are smaller
and brain size, larger, in
proportion to the rest of their
body. Therefore, there is less
glucose being put out into the
blood and more being used by the
brain, which is dependent upon
adequate glucose in order to
function. In small and toy
breeds, this discrepancy is more
pronounced. Even a brief period
of fasting or stress in a toy
breed puppy can trigger a
hypoglycemic "attack. Yorkie
puppies with Transient Juvenile
Hypoglycemia have normal liver
size and function, but
inadequate glucose precursors or
glucose in its stored form (body
fat). Hypoglycemic incidents are
almost always preceded by a
stress of some kind. Some
examples of common stresses
include: weaning, teething,
vaccinations, a change in
environment, shipping,
over-handling, cold
temperatures, intestinal
parasites, infections, anorexia,
etc. Many yorkie puppies simply
play too hard and stress their
system or forget to eat. I have
heard of young males
experiencing hypoglycemia when a
female in heat is around. They
become so worked up over the
female that they do not eat and
their blood sugar drops.
The first
sign of hypoglycemia is the
yorkshire terrier puppy slowing
down and then acting listless.
The puppy will then begin to
tremble or shiver. This is a
reaction caused as the brain is
starved for glucose. More signs
of an attack are a weakness,
confusion, wobbly gait, frothing
or drooling from the mouth -
sometimes even a seizure and
drain of blood from the head.
His body will be limp, lifeless,
and a check of the gums will
show them to be pale, almost a
grayish white in color rather
than a healthy bright pink.. The
body temperature will be
subnormal. After a time, the
puppy or Yorkie puppy will
become comatose and may even
appear to be dead. The puppy can
go into shock and, if not cared
for properly and promptly, may
even die.
If Yorkie
hypoglycemia is caught in the
early stages, rub Nutri-Cal
(Caro syrup will do if you have
no Nutri-Cal) on the puppy's
gums, under the tongue, and on
the roof of the mouth. Get a
heating pad or heating blanket
and slowly warm the puppy to
proper body temperature. If the
puppy responds, all is well.
Feed a quality, canned food
containing, high-carbohydrates
and protein right away (you may
want to mix it with egg yolk)
and then monitor the puppy to be
sure that the condition does not
recur. Be sure to eliminate the
stress that caused the episode
if at all possible.
If Yorkie
hypoglycemia is caught in the
more advanced stages, rub
Nutri-Cal or Caro in the mouth,
and carefully insert a small
amount in the rectum. Slowly
warm the puppy to normal body
temperature (101-102 degrees F)
and keep him warm continuously
with light heat. If the yorkie
puppy still does not respond,
carefully eye dropper dextrose
solution or Caro water into the
mouth, a little at a time only
if the dog can swallow. Call
your veterinarian immediately
and inform him that you have a
hypoglycemic yorkie puppy.
Make sure the Yorkie puppy eats
and that's very important.
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