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Information for your T-cup babies!! Things you should be aware of in the T-cup babies: Print this and keep it on hand!!!! Once your puppy gets there with you, he/she will need to be in a playpen or something where he/she doesn't become over-exerted and his/her blood sugar drop out. He/She will need to be kept in a confined area for several months as they are just so tiny and just a trip across the living room or kitchen floor can or will totally exhaust them and their energy level.....dropping drastically just that fast. Playing should be minimal for several months like maybe only three 15 minute playtimes out of the playpen per day until they are older.... He/She will need nutri-cal or a bit of syrup daily before bedtime, this keeps the blood sugar up and helps with calories he/she may need that they didn't get throughout the day.... I will usually feed about 2 - 3 Tablespoons of soft dog food as well. He/She will need hard puppy EUKANUBA TINY BITE SIZE (Dry food) and Science diet Puppy sm canned food with them daily along with fresh water that has had Corn Syrup added to it to keep the blood sugar level up..... Having one of these tiny little ones is a lot of work and takes a lot of time, he/she will also not be able to be left alone until he/she is at least 6-9 months old as once the blood sugar level drops you have a matter of minutes before brain damage occurs and a coma sets in....so being there with him/her is VERY IMPORTANT!!! Once a puppy is down, you will need to first give him/her a 1 cc of straight corn syrup then wait 10 minutes and give another 1 cc.... Keep him/her in a towel while he/she is down until he/she comes around as their temperature drops during this time also. After he/she is up and walking again, they will immediately want water and lots of it, BUT DON'T GIVE THEM ANY for at least 1 hour as that will dilute the sugar and it will drop out again. After he/she is up again, offer some canned baby food. Chicken or Turkey (bland) is the best and then after he/she eats, let him/her rest. Check on them every 2 hours at least to be sure they are ok. Give the nutri-cal before bedtime to get him/her through the night... IF ever you feel he/she is having an episode that warrants the vet's assistance, then PLEASE give the 1 cc karo on the way out the door, this could be the difference of him LIVING and DYING!!! Sometimes they are down so far that they will need IV Fluids from your vet..But the karo is important to give until a Vet can be seen.. PLEASE DON'T BE AFRAID by what I have written, this is just things that you need to be informed of and prepared for in the case of it happening. It doesn't happen in all the tiny ones but is better to be SAFE than sorry. |
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More on the subject...... Hypoglycemia: This condition is caused by low blood sugar, It occurs mainly in Toy and small breeds such as Tea Cups puppies between 6 and 12 weeks of age also in dams that are nursing. Often it is precipitated by stress. The first signs are weakness or depression lack or puppy will just sleep and not want to eat. This can occur if puppy has missed meals. This is followed by muscular weakness, tremors (especially in the facial muscles) and later, convulsions, coma and death. This entire sequence is not always seen and puppy will appear to be just tired and sleep. The puppy may appear to be depressed, or he may be weak wobbly and jerky or he may be found in a coma. Hypoglycemia can occur without warning when a puppy is placed in a new home, or while being shipped. It might appear after a puppy misses a meal, becomes chilled, becomes exhausted from too much playing, or has a digestive upset. Upsets place an added strain on the energy reserves of the liver and bring on symptoms if the puppy is susceptible. Puppies who are fed human food rather than a quality puppy food are more likely to develop hypoglycemia. Their diet is deficient in certain ingredients needed to sustain the liver. Puppies may also just forget to eat! It is important to make sure your puppy is eating three meat a day. Kibble or dry food and water should be placed where puppy can get to it's food at all times. Check to see if puppy has eaten it's food if puppy has not eaten then you need to give puppy his food by hand and make sure puppy eats. Baby food is a good meal to give puppy so is chicken and rice. If your puppy does not want to eat seek medial attention immediately and give Karo Syrup immediately to puppy. Toy and small breeds of puppies have limited body energy reserves and an immature mechanism for breaking down large sugar complexes into smaller, more useable, short chain sugars. They also have a higher metabolic demand for sugar. Puppies lack the feedback mechanism between the blood and the liver. In the puppy, when the blood glucose levels fall below a certain point the liver will not start to increase conversion of food to to useable blood sugar like it would in an adult dog. Hypoglycemia treatment is directed at restoring blood levels of glucose. Begin at once prolonged or repeated attacks can cause permanent damage to the brain. If the puppy is awake give him Karo Syrup, honey, or sugar in water by mouth. He will begin to improve in 30 minutes. When he is unconscious, he will have to be given a Dextrose solution intravenously. It may be necessary to treat for swelling of the brain. A veterinarian should be called at once. Prevent recurrent attacks by feeding high quality kibble diet, and add to it syrup, sugar or honey. See that the puppy eats and drinks regularly. Don't assume he is eating and drinking regularly. Food and water must be available at all times |