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An Experience I'll Never Forget... A couple of days ago, I noticed while taking Gracie out to potty, that one of her back legs, she kinda hobbled on. I checked out the leg, knee for some type of injury and she was fine, so I dismissed it thinking it was because she had been laying on her side too long...I should have taken it as a sign. This morning, at 5:00 a.m., my husband comes into the bedroom. "SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH GRACIE!" He was holding her. I immediately jumped up to hearing her panting excessively. "WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH HER?", I asked. "I DON'T KNOW, I WALKED INTO THE KITCHEN AND SHE WAS JUST LAYING THERE. SHE CAN'T GET UP AND SHE'S SHAKING!", he replied. I jumped out of bad and grabbed her. I called a very dear friend of mine who has dealt with eclampsia. It was my fear and that is what she said. "SHE'S GOT ECLAMPSIA, GET HER TO A VET, NOW!" Hung up with her and immediately went to the kitchen to get the phone book and phone. I called Dr. Barrett...one of my 3 vets. Bless Dr. Barrett. He's 90 years old and still practicing. I told Dr. Barrett my suspicions. He replied, "WELL, SHE NEEDS CALCIUM!" He met me there out of the goodness of his heart. Gracie was panting, tremoring all over her body, drooling excessively. It's something that I'll never forget. He gave her a mega dose, in the form of a shot, of calcium. It took less than a minute. The tremors stopped, the drooling stopped and she stopped panting. I'm suppose to keep her away from the puppies for 3-4 hours and he gave me Calsorb in case anything happens again and also some puppy formula. I put her on the floor to walk and that little hobble was there. Could that have been the first sign? Brought her home and she's walking fine, but her walk is something that I'll be watching for. What I don't understand is, I've been feeding her dry food, canned puppy food mixed with cottage cheese, chicken soup with rice. I hadn't been doing the calcium supplements because of the warnings against her body becoming dependent on them. Forget that, I'm going back to the calcium supplements. That same breeder friend and I had spoken about it before. Some dogs get it, some dogs never get it but once you've experienced it, you'll never forget it. I've gotta go feed the puppies but I wanted to share this with you. I was so scared I was going to loose my girl and couldn't stop crying. But for now, looks like my girl's gonna make it. |
Oh my goodness you must have been SO scared, im so happy you caught it in time poor Gracie, i hope she feels better SOON!! Ill keep her in my thoughts. Please keep us posted on how shes doing, big hugs to her from us! :getwellso |
I'm so glad tht Gracie is doing better. How terrifying for you and your whole family to go through. Thank goodness you got her to the vet in time. |
Oh Kim, I know how scared you must have been.. I have been through this in the past and at least you had a good outcome. I didn't and Cricket and her death came over me like a wave when I read your post. I didn't get the kind of help you did and I am so thankful when I hear of a case like yours. I will keep Gracie and you in my prayers. Keep a close eye on her ( I know you will ) and I am sure all will be well. |
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I just got through feeding the babies and made them potty...boy, they sure did pee a lot. :( |
scary Eclampsia is very scary. It is a miracle what a shot of calcium will do...thank God for it. I do not give a calcuim suppliment before whelping, but can find no reason not to giving it after whelping. This is the advise of vets and breeders I know well..best wishes |
OMG Kimberly I had my heart pounding reading this - THANK GOD you got to the vet in time and way to go - your husband and you did great... and I would think if you've never had experience with this - then how were you to know when you saw her hobble a little ? is that a sign of eclampsia ? What a good thing your husband was up so early and good thing you are so close to your vet & how great of him to meet you that early ! Time is so valuable when dealing with an emergency - What a great guy and he deserves a nice dinner on YOU now :) ! Big hugs to you and Gracie - Bless her heart I'm SO GLAD SHE IS OK now !! hasrv4fun///how sad for you - that really must have been hard to get over and I'm sorry about your Cricket. |
Oh Kim, I am so sorry you had to go through that!!! Bitsy had it twice with her puppies and I do think it's the most scarey thing I've ever been through :( Bitsy had it really bad both times and she had to spend the night at the vet hospital. Do keep a VERY close eye on Gracie...the wobbly legs and lethargy and excessive panting are signs and siezures...it's is SOOOOOOO scary!!! Watch her like a hawk!!! |
Thank goodness! Thank goodness you were able to react so quickly and you have a vet who was good enough to help you so fast! Give poor Gracie a hug from me, and I hope this is the last episode you both have... Good luck with the pups. You've got a lot ahead of you, poor Kim! Take care! :animal36 |
Thank you Villette- Its been 5 years , almost and I just found out while PM ing Kim that I definitely am not over it . Thats part of being a Yorkie Mama I guess, just as if it was a skin child, you just don't stop having the hurt or tears. I am just concerned about Gracie now.. But somehow I have a peaceful feeling that Kim gives her such good care and they will both be fine. :) :thumbup: |
That is scary, I'm glad she is ok now. So they need calcium supplements?? How do ya know? |
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Wow, you must have been so scared. Be grateful for your knowledge and the people around you! I hope Gracie feels better soon. |
Oh wow Kim, that is so scary. Im glad that she is ok now, and that you had a great vet that was there when you needed him the most. I will keep you both in my thoughts and prayers. I hope she feels better soon. hasrv4fun, Im so sorry about Cricket, RIP. |
Poor Gracie! I am so sorry, but very glad that you found her in time and that she is going to be ok. Please give her hugs for us and Zeus sends kisses! |
well, she's sitting in my lap right now giving me kisses. I called my boss at 6:50 and told her what happened. She said not to worry and stay home with my Gracie. God bless Mrs. Reyna! Gracie has been whining wanting to get back to her puppies. She doesn't understand why she can't be in there with them. On the way to the vet's office this morning, I started crying. Then Gracie was crying/whining. She started biting my fingers and that made me cry even more because I knew that she had to be in pain. Oh my, my poor baby...I could have lost her. :cry8: |
OMG Kimberley! I feel so bad for you and poor Gracie! I find myself watching Trixie for signs of that CONSTANTLY. But like you, I probably wouldn't have thought twice about it if she just hobbled slightly...I would have just thought she was stiff from just waking up. Thank God it was during the week and someone was up that early! :eek: I am so glad she is dong better...that is SO odd to have happened with her being on all the right supplements :confused: Please let us know if you find out anything else and to why she got this. Kisses to Gracie from me and Trixie...she will need lots of lovin this weekend (like she doesn't get it ALREADY ;) ) |
Gracie had a special angel that day....YOU. I am relieved to hear that she is doing ok and back to give you kisses and lovin! Gracie is a special girl and she's lucky to have a Mommy just like you! |
So sorry to what has happen to her. But glad that she is ok for now. I will pray for her and hope that she will be fine. (((((((((BIG HUGS)))))))) to her |
Do you know why this happen. Is this something that could happen to my peyton?? As you do know that she is going to have babies any day now. What should I do NEW after she has the puppies? What is the different kind of food that I should feed her after the babies come?? |
OMG!!!!!!!!!! Thank God everything turned out!!! How scary for you. Give her lots of kisses from us!!! Again, thank God she is fine!!!!!!!!!!! |
Kimberley- thank goodness she is okay. I never would have thought a shot of calcium would work such wonders. What a wonderful boss you have- if only there were more like her out there! Have a good day with your baby and her babies! |
Oh my, I am so sorry to hear about that episode with Gracie. I know you must have been terrified :( You're a wonderful yorkie mommy though, and you knew what to do and acted quick. It's great that your hubby was up so early! I'm so glad that she's going to be okay! That was quite a scare... I'm so sorry to hear about Cricket...I know that must be so difficult for you, even 5 yrs later...May she rest in peace |
OMG Kim!! I bet your heart is still pounding!! Since I'll never breed, I won't have to worry about a new mommy, but should the 'average bear' be worried about calcium intake? The only supplement (other than Derma Care) I use is Yogurt Drops, and I just checked - no calcium... Give Gracie hugs and kisses for me. That poor sweet baby! And a big cyber hug to you!! |
OMG Kim, I was so scared when I started reading that... :( I couldn't imagine what had happened until you got to the point. You must feel completely drained right now after having a scare like that. Thank goodness your husband found her when he did and what a blessing you had the ol' doc to help you out. Thank God for him! Let us know how little Gracie is doing. I still have kind of a hollow feeling in the pit of my tummy after reading this. Gosh! How close that was. :( |
How horrible and scary! This was like Deja vu and reliving the stories Michelle told when Bitsy went through this. There were many other breeders who posted their stories about their experiences with eclampsia...some of whom were not so lucky. It is very serious and every breeder needs to watch for it closely and be prepared. I agree with YorkieRose that calcium should be given as a matter of course after whelping. I will also never breed, but for cbrownfish and rrosenberry who asked about the need for calcium for new mommies, please use this experience to educate yourselves and take the necessary steps NOW to be prepared in case it happens to you because it is all too common. None of us want to have another mommy yorkie suffer unnecessarily. Kimberley, I am so sorry this happened to your Gracie and I hope she is fine from here on out. |
Well, from what I understand, a bitch can get it at any time. Like I said, last time, she had a wonderful whelping, wonderful milk, everything was perfect. This time, she had the runny tar poop and now eclampsia. Lord, she gave me such a scare! She's doing just fine. Fed the babies again and went to the grocery store to get goat's milk for mama. She seems to like it. She is staying right by my side. It's so pitiful, she stands by the x-pen, looks at her babies and cries. It breaks my heart everytime. I've been instructed that I can let her go back in with them but at time intervals. She can no longer nest with them as she did in the past. Puppies this young have a tendency to free feed and that's probably why she got so drained. Also, once they have it, they have a tendency to get it again but nothing is written in stone about that. Also, it is NOT hereditary from what I understand. Anyway, I'll keep everyone posted. Thank you for your kind words. We're gonna make it! :) |
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It is basic but it explains it well and gives suggestions for diet and what to fee to prevent it . I fouhd this too:Prevention of eclampsia Inappropriate calcium supplementation can predispose a bitch or queen to develop eclampsia. Once a female has had milk fever during a lactation period, there is an excellent chance that it will repeat with future litters if preventative steps are not taken. Supplementation of dietary calcium does not seem to play a large role in preventing eclampsia. In fact, over-supplementation during pregnancy may actually cause it. All calcium supplements must be in the proper ratio with phosphorus. This ratio should be about 1:1 (i.e., 1 part calcium to 1 part phosphorus). In addition, it has been suggested that dog foods high in soybeans will be high in the plant product phytate. Phytates combine with calcium and can render the calcium unavailable to the bitch’s body and therefore make her more susceptible to eclampsia. To remedy the problem, feed diets low in soybean. In conclusion, it is of great importance for breeders to be able to recognize the signs of eclampsia. If you feel your female is showing these signs, remove the kittens or pups to prevent further nursing and seek veterinary assistance at once. I hope it helps. |
What a scary way to start the day....Ugh! That had to be a horrible experience and I am glad that it turned out O.K. Our thoughts will be with you and Gracie today... |
Kimberley - I'm so sorry to hear about what happened. Luckily, you acted fast and your vet is a very qualified man. I can't imagine what must have been going through your head :( |
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