possible hydrocephalus

[2yorkiesformama]

Hi everyone! I am new to Yorkietalk. Hope all of you can give me some advice.
My 4 month old Zoey Grace could have hydrocephalus. She falls over when she tries to stand up and she shakes. Also her front paws will fold under her. My problem is, how much do I put her through? The vet has her on prednisone. They also suggested that I can take her to Purdue, where they may be able to run all kinds of tests. That will run between $2500-3500.
I love her very much. I've only had her for 1 month. She weighs 1lb.11oz.
What should I do?

Thank you
2yorkiesformama

[Wylie's Mom]

Oh, gosh, my heart is breaking for you! I am so sorry that your new baby is sick. I don't have a lot of experience in hydro - but I know there are folks on here who do - and they will chime in with advice. ALL the best to you, Ann

[Mom to Hot Rod]

I'm so sorry to hear that your baby is going thru this. My little one has an small open fontenal (sp) and I worry about it. I hope someone can answer your questions, I'd like to know myself.

[bjh]

Originally Posted by 2yorkiesformama

Hi everyone! I am new to Yorkietalk. Hope all of you can give me some advice.
My 4 month old Zoey Grace could have hydrocephalus. She falls over when she tries to stand up and she shakes. Also her front paws will fold under her. My problem is, how much do I put her through? The vet has her on prednisone. They also suggested that I can take her to Purdue, where they may be able to run all kinds of tests. That will run between $2500-3500.
I love her very much. I've only had her for 1 month. She weighs 1lb.11oz.
What should I do?

Thank you
2yorkiesformama

My heart goes out to you. The prognosis for hydrocephalus puppies is usually not good. Without knowing the severity it is hard to tell you what to do. Have you talked to the breeder about her? Is her head swelling? Did this problem occur because of a head injury or did she show signs of this when you bought her. If the problem is from an injury then I would tend to think she might possible get better but if it is a congenital condition then I would be more concerned that she will never get better. My prayers go out to your and your baby.

Hydrocephalus in Puppies & Dogs

[LoveMyJake]

I had a pup with Hydrocephalus. There are different degrees of severity of this illness. My little one had a severe case, and she was very young. Unfortunately, she had a rough start with a bad breeder....long story, but the short of it is that she would have had a better chance if she had been treated sooner. Is she eating okay for you? Getting her to drink water is important, as it helps with the fluid build-up on the brain. Sometimes vets will also prescribe diuretics to help with this. There is a procedure that can be done where they put a shunt in to help drain the excess fluid, but that would depend on the severity.

It's important to keep them in a quiet environment, as noise can affect them. My little Lily would get very upset if there was too much noise. She would cry and scream, it was heartbreaking. She also started to have seizures, and this was just too much for her little body to handle.

I would sit down with the vet and discuss in detail what your treatment options are, what your puppy's chances are, and how severe her case is. I'm not trying to scare you or discourage you, but these puppies need alot of extra care, and it can be very costly.

Have you contacted the breeder to let them know about this?

We have a member here whose baby has Hydrocephalus, and she was so helpful to me when I was dealing with this. I will PM her to let her know about your post. Maybe she can help offer suggestions.

I wish the very best for you and your little one.

[2yorkiesformama]

Zoey Grace went to the vet again today. The vet that has seen her since she has been born said she thinks Zoey could have a concussion. She did not feel or see any fluid on her head and her head is not misshaped. She uped her dose of prednisone and said that would be the first treatment for either the hydro or concussion. It will take a little bit to see if this is going to work. If she doesn't get any better or gets worse, then we will have to take her to Metropolitian (Louisville, Ky.) so they could do further testing.
The breeder we got Angel and Zoey from was very helpful. She got us in to the vet without an appointment and drove us there. She was very concerned about Zoey.
I really appreciate all the care and support from everyone of you. Thank you all so much!!!!!
I will keep you updated and hope and pray everything comes out alright.

[mojo]

Poor baby. They think she has a concussion? Do you know if she fell / hit her head at some point? I am so sorry, I hope she feels better.

[bjh]

I think that is good news. I was praying that it not hydrocephalus but something due to a head injury. I pray she will continue to do better. These little babies can hurt themselves so easily. I talked to a man one time that had a young yorkie that died because the yorkie was running and playing and she ran head first into a coffee table. She did have an open fontenal, so I am sure that did not help. Some of these injuries are beyond our control, just freak accidents.

[drawlins27]

Hi There, Welcome to YT!

My little Lily has hydrocephalus. She is almost 1.5 years old and is currently doing very well. Her hydrocephalus is moderate but has caused some neurological problems.

Has Zoey had a bile acid test done to see if she has any liver disease? Liver disease releases toxins into the body and causes neurological symptoms that mimic those of hydrocephalus. A BAT test is fairly cheap (I paid around $45) and is a must for a yorkie. That is the first thing I would rule out.

Does she have an open font? An open font would make congenital hydrocephalus more likely to occur. If she has had a head injury that resulted in a concussion, then she could have secondary hydrocephalus.

You said that your vet did not see or feel any fluid on her head. Unfortunately that does not mean that she does not have hydrocephalus. That just means that it is probably not severe. The only way to diagnose it is with a MRI or CT scan. If she has an open font, then they can do a cranial ultrasound through the font which is how Lily's was diagnosed.

It is a must to have this diagnosed correctly! If you catch it early enough, you can improve the severity of the hydrocephalus. If you don't treat it, it will get worse. It is usually treated with corticosteroids and diuretics as long as no liver disease is present. It can also be treated with a shunt but our babies are too small for that. Lily also has MVD/HMD so she is limited as to what medication I can give her. She takes Buspar and also sees a Holistic vet who has prescribed various supplements for her hydrocephalus including a natural diuretic and it has made a huge difference.

Please let us know how she does and what you find out, Our prayers go out for you and Zoey.

[Yorkieluv]

Originally Posted by drawlins27

Hi There, Welcome to YT!

My little Lily has hydrocephalus. She is almost 1.5 years old and is currently doing very well. Her hydrocephalus is moderate but has caused some neurological problems.

Has Zoey had a bile acid test done to see if she has any liver disease? Liver disease releases toxins into the body and causes neurological symptoms that mimic those of hydrocephalus. A BAT test is fairly cheap (I paid around $45) and is a must for a yorkie. That is the first thing I would rule out.

Yes, many times the symptoms of hydrocephalus mimic those of liver problems...First things first, a bile acid test should be done to rule out liver disease. It is a relatively inexpensive test and is fairly easy to rule out. Good luck and keep us updated!!

[MyPeanutAbbyGra]

Hello,
I don't have any helpful info to share. I just wanted to welcome you and tell you that I hope your baby gets well soon.
I'm also from Indiana It's nice to "meet" you.

Tammy

[morgan111]

Originally Posted by LoveMyJake

I had a pup with Hydrocephalus. There are different degrees of severity of this illness. My little one had a severe case, and she was very young. Unfortunately, she had a rough start with a bad breeder....long story, but the short of it is that she would have had a better chance if she had been treated sooner. Is she eating okay for you? Getting her to drink water is important, as it helps with the fluid build-up on the brain. Sometimes vets will also prescribe diuretics to help with this. There is a procedure that can be done where they put a shunt in to help drain the excess fluid, but that would depend on the severity.

It's important to keep them in a quiet environment, as noise can affect them. My little Lily would get very upset if there was too much noise. She would cry and scream, it was heartbreaking. She also started to have seizures, and this was just too much for her little body to handle.

I would sit down with the vet and discuss in detail what your treatment options are, what your puppy's chances are, and how severe her case is. I'm not trying to scare you or discourage you, but these puppies need alot of extra care, and it can be very costly.

Have you contacted the breeder to let them know about this?

We have a member here whose baby has Hydrocephalus, and she was so helpful to me when I was dealing with this. I will PM her to let her know about your post. Maybe she can help offer suggestions.

I wish the very best for you and your little one.

you say there is a member here that has a baby with Hydrocephalus could you PM her for me i would like to ask her some questions thanks