Head Tremors in 6 month old Puggle :(

[picklz]

I'm hoping someone has some ideas about what is going on with my fur baby . My 6 month old female puggle has been having head tremors. It started about 1-2 weeks ago. The first time it happened we had just woke up her head started bobbing almost like a shiver but it was only her head. It didn't happen for about 1 more week then it started happening more frequently. She has also had a higher body temperature 102.6 F and has had the cold shivers on and off. She has been lethargic every time this has happened. Yesterday she slept all day (had 3 attacks and was quite shakey, glassy eyes and just generally unwell) but today she has had more energy until this afternoon when she got quite sleepy and had another attack. She was on Urinary SO food and we were in the process of changing it over to a new food during this time as well. She had quite a bad reaction to the food changeover (black runny poo) so we have since put her back on the urinary so food. Her lymph nodes behind her jaw are a little swollen. She has also been incessantly licking lips and other things(last night we woke up with wet sheets because she was licking them all night). We took her to the vet today but when we went she was feeling a lot better. So we decided to wait and see. Now it has happened again and she is lethargic again. Does anyone have any idea what might be going on?

[kathryn]

Welcome to the forum.

Where did she originally come from? The more history the better. Has she been fully vaccinated? What vaccines has she received and how many times? Has she had any recent blood tests or xrays? Is she dewormed?

Normally for something like that, depending on the history I would think either distemper or parvo, if not vaccinated and from a place like a petstore or back yard breeder... Otherwise off the top of my head I can't think of anything else. Before this started, anything unusual happen? Did she get into the garbage? Any recent visits to dog parks?

[SamIam]

Could be a chemical/electrolyte imbalance due to the same reason you were using the special food in the first place. Did the vet do another urinalysis or any bloodwork, or just recommend you go back to the special food?

[picklz]

We picked her up in Vancouver Washington. We live in Vancouver, BC. She has had all her vaccination. The 3rd set was in January2011. She unfortunately has had a bit of a bad go. At the end of November 2010 she has a UTI and crystals in her urine and because she was straining so much to pee she gave her self a hernia. She has the hernia surgery in the beginning of dec 2010 and at that time has bloodwork that was not remarkable. She was last dewormed in Jan 2011 when she had her last shots.

A few things have happened in the same time period. We moved one town over at the beginning of the month. We also changed her food because we were taking her off the urinary so food. She is still eating and pooping regularly (other than the digestive issues she was having because of the food change).

We thought it might be related to when she was eating but it has happened both before and after she eats. I am still able to get her attention when it is happening so I don't think its epilepsy but I am at a complete loss of what else it could be.

Any thoughts you have would be greatly appreciated.

[picklz]

SamIam: The vet did do another urinalysis about 2 weeks ago (right before we changed the food) and it was fine but they may have only been looking for crystals not other things.

[SamIam]

I'm worried for you, picklz, doesn't sound like your vet said anything today to help you understand what might be going on or to know when it's serious enough for an emergency visit.

[kathryn]

What kind of diet is she on now? How often is she eating?

I would do a CBC/Superchem screen. It's not cheap but it will check liver, kidney and pancreatic functions as well as blood counts and other basic info.. your dog might have some kind of imbalance that needs to be corrected with medication.

[picklz]

She is back on the Urinary So wet food as that wasn't upsetting her tummy. We are going to bring her back in tomorrow. Our vet is in at 9am so I am going to get tests run. We luckily have pet insurance so at least some of this is covered I hope. The poor girl is known at the Vets office I feel so bad for her. Anytime anything happens are vet runs through the warning signs of the worst things that can happen "because it's pickles" and if it can happen it will happen. It's just the strangest thing. I am almost wondering if two separate things are happening at once and clouding a proper diagnosis.

[MaxaLisa]

My boy had those head tremors. I did three things, so I don't know what actually helped:

he's been treated for tick disease (lots of doxycycline),
he's been treated with acupuncture and chiropractic, and
I removed collars and front clip harnesses and only use back clip harnesses now.

I hope you find a solution for your pup!