Penny is acting freaky - help anyone?

[ParrotLady]

First of all, our 24 hour clinic gets terrible reviews and unless it was life or death I would NOT take Penny there because people say they don't know their head from a hole in the ground.

Penny has been strange today, but when she gets her feelings hurt she sometimes acts this way, so we just thought that was the problem. She jumped when hubby was playing whiffle ball with her and got popped in the face, but not hard.

Well, off and on today she has been normal, wanting to play and be with me while I work on the computer and such. We have played ball and wrestled on the floor, she has been eating, drinking and eliminating normal too. Just off and on she would hide under a chair when I would get up as if I would hurt her, and we have NEVER spanked her or hurt her on purpose. This is just how she acts when we lock her out of our room or something sometimes.

Anyway, tonight while eating dinner, she started biting her leg like she had a flea and then suddenly spun around like something bit her on her rear. She layed down quickly like nothing happened after that.

I got on the floor to play ball with her, she chased it a bit and then suddenly acted like I was a monster and hid from me. I decided to lay on the floor and see if she could come get on me like she always does. Nope, she stayed hidden. I crawled over to her and she slunk away to another hiding place.

Has anyone ever experienced this? I am thinking something must have stung her this morning and we just attributed it to the ball hitting her, but I don't know. I really don't know if our vet would even know if we take her in tomorrow.

If anyone has ever experienced this, please let me know. We hate it when she acts like we will hurt her, when we never have. We want so much to comfort her, but we only seem to make her more distressed.

[Ellie May]

No idea.

In my opinion, whatever happened this morning probably didn't set her off because why would she be fine with you playing with her earlier?

These symptoms do sound odd and I think it's worth talking to the vet about.
When she spinned around, how many times did she do it? Just once?

[ParrotLady]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

No idea.

In my opinion, whatever happened this morning probably didn't set her off because why would she be fine with you playing with her earlier?

These symptoms do sound odd and I think it's worth talking to the vet about.
When she spinned around, how many times did she do it? Just once?

Yes, just once. She looked like she jumped in the air and spun a 180, as in half way around. Then it was like, "Hmmm, nothing is there" and layed down. I got on the floor to play with her and she seemed fine and then suddenly after going after the ball about the 3rd time she just slunk under a chair like I was going to beat her or something. Very weird!

Since I posted this she has eaten, run to the window to bark at things etc. As a matter of fact, she is playing ball with my husband now.

Thanks for replying even though you don't have a clue either. Just knowing people are here somehow helps.

[amandawash]

I would hedge my bets that she has one or possibly both knees locking, also called luxating patellas. I would make an appointment for a vet check, where they will need to do palpations and possibly radiographs to determine if it is in fact her knees.

[sushidoodidoo]

Sounds pretty weird, and hopefully its nothing serious to worry about. Just whatever you do, don't take it personal. It's not about her hating you or anything. It's just that something's bothering her or freaking her out. You're still her mommy, which she loves dearly. Guaranteed.

[kjc]

I would check her anal glands. Looking at her butt, hiding, And just not acting right can be indicators.

[ParrotLady]

Sorry, I didn't get on yesterday. Yesterday Penny was fine with Terry, she played ball with him but would not play with me. I figured she associated the pain with me because I was the one playing with her. By last night she played with me and got back to normal.

Today, however, she is scooting on the carpet constantly as if her bottom itches. I will start another thread for that one.

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by ParrotLady

Sorry, I didn't get on yesterday. Yesterday Penny was fine with Terry, she played ball with him but would not play with me. I figured she associated the pain with me because I was the one playing with her. By last night she played with me and got back to normal.

Today, however, she is scooting on the carpet constantly as if her bottom itches. I will start another thread for that one.

That would be anal glands.
Since she is having such a hard time with it, they will have to be expressed.

[ParrotLady]

Originally Posted by kjc

I would check her anal glands. Looking at her butt, hiding, And just not acting right can be indicators.

How does one check anal glands and what would be wrong with a 1 year old Yorkie's anal glands?

[Ellie May]

Anal Sacs

They are glands, so they fill up with fluid.
Usually dogs express them themselves when having a BM, but some don't for whatever reason. One reason could be that their stool isn't firm enough. Sometimes vets tell you not to express them if there isn't a problem because there can be undesirable side effects (like not being able to do it themselves anymore). However, if they are full and the dog isn't expressing them, infection and impaction can result meaning major problems, so sometimes it's best to just go ahead and do it. Your vet/vet tech can do it or owners can learn how if they don't get grossed out easily.

This may or may not be related to the odd symptoms lately.
Scooting can also be a sign of worms.

[ParrotLady]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

Anal Sacs

They are glands, so they fill up with fluid.
Usually dogs express them themselves when having a BM, but some don't for whatever reason. One reason could be that their stool isn't firm enough. Sometimes vets tell you not to express them if there isn't a problem because there can be undesirable side effects (like not being able to do it themselves anymore). However, if they are full and the dog isn't expressing them, infection and impaction can result meaning major problems, so sometimes it's best to just go ahead and do it. Your vet/vet tech can do it or owners can learn how if they don't get grossed out easily.

This may or may not be related to the odd symptoms lately.
Scooting can also be a sign of worms.

Thanks, the link mentioned adding more fiber to her diet, Legacy seems to produce harder stools, so I will give that to her today and see if this helps. If not, then we will visit the vet.