HOW TO TREAT HYPOGLYCEMIA
BY MARY ROSENBAUM
All of the Toy breeds are prone to hypoglycemia, especially when they are small puppies, and even a few in the juvenile age group. The definition of hypoglycemia is simply low blood sugar, similar to diabetes in us. The signs and symptoms of hypoglycemia are weakness, listlessness, becoming lethargic, lack of coordination, seizures, nervousness, tremors and hunger. In severe cases, the dog may become unconscious. Because of the Pomeranian's small size, they have high energy requirements, and in cases of illness or stress, which would include changes in diet, weaning, vaccines, new home, etc., they can be predisposed to episodes of hypoglycemia.
I have especially noticed this problem in Pomeranian puppies when they are being weaned from their dam. This is the critical time to watch that each pup is eating well and not showing signs of weakness, listlessness and becoming lethargic. From time to time, I will have a pup that doesn't want to eat with his litter mates and hangs back still trying to nurse his dam that has very little milk left. Another time for high stress is going to a new home. Please give your new pup time to adjust slowly, watching food and water intake and monitoring play time and rest time to avoid stress.
I always keep Nutri-Cal, Karo Syrup and Pedialyte handy. I have also found a new product, Pet Nutri Drops, which I feel works the best. It is important to have these type of things around at all times because during a hypoglycemic event, you need to raise the blood sugar level in the puppy quickly with Nutri-Cal or Karo Syrup. Then treat with fluids, so I also keep on hand products for dehydration. There are a lot of products in the pet supply catalogs that offer electrolyte/dextrose packs that you mix with water and are used to replace fluids lost due to the dehydration a puppy suffers when it is affected by hypoglycemia. I use one of these products (electrolyte/dextrose mixtures) in the water of all pups at the time they are being weaned and up to about 3 months of age. These products can also be mixed into their food. Meat baby food in a jar and some small syringes (needle removed) come in handy also.
If you find your puppy in serious condition, including unconsciousness, this is the time to rub Karo Syrup on its gums. When the pup is revived, I use a 3cc syringe and slowly put small amounts of Pedialyte in the corner of the pup's mouth, but only when the pup is conscious, otherwise it could choke on the water. I also try to give it small amounts of baby food in the jar. I do not recommend canned dog food and I have found baby food works really well with a syringe. I then place the pup in a box away from its litter mates and keep it warm and quiet. To keep the pup warm, I use a heating pad on low covered with a towel. I place this in only HALF of the box, giving the pup a spot to go if the heating pad gets too warm. I also cover the top of the box with a towel to keep the pup quiet. Don't be surprised if your pup also has diarrhea because this is also a symptom of hypoglycemia. This goes away once the blood sugar level is back to normal.
You might have to keep the pup confined this way until it is back to eating and drinking normally again. Usually when they have recovered and are returned to the rest of the litter they will do just fine. The trick is to keep the pup warm and give small amounts of electrolytes until their blood sugar is back to normal. Before I figured out my own treatment for a puppy with hypoglycemia, I used to take them to my veterinarian for an IV with ringer solutions.