Why is my senior chihuahua suddenly struggling to stand and tilting his head?

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Peanut. I recommend that he sees a veterinarian today. Small breed dogs are prone to neck and/or back pain which can be excruciatingly painful. He will be carefully examined to determine if this is the case or if he has another problem. Based on these results and any diagnostic testing, treatment recommendations can be made. In the meantime, do not give any over-the-counter pain medications as these can be toxic to dogs. I hope this information helps!

There are various conditions that can manifest with those signs. The most common on would be vestibular syndrome, which is quite common in geriatric dogs. Another cause could be an inner ear infection or meningitis, a brain tumor or similar. Vestibular syndrome has a sudden onset, the dog (or cat) shows a head tilt, sometimes circles, and is nauseous or even afraid, as it cannot figure out why it feels strange. We do not know what causes this, however in most cases this will go away by itself within a few weeks. Sometimes the head tilt remains. I suggest you take Rex to your veterinarian for an exam and possibly some medication to take any anxiety caused by the condition, if needed. Your vet will also be able to rule out all the other conditions.

What you are describing with Shasta may be something called vestibular disease. I am attaching a handout with more information about it below. https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=564 If Shasta has a history of ear infections, she may have a middle ear infection that is causing her signs. That is discussed in the handout above. I would recommend having your veterinarian examine Shasta and determine what might be causing her signs and the appropriate way to treat them. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Sorry to hear that Kobie isn't feeling right. In the picture, it also looks like he might have a left sided head tilt. Coupled with the other clinical signs you are listing, the basis of the condition may very well be neurologic rather than a primary orthopedic condition. I would have him seen by a veterinarian soon so that he can have a thorough neurologic exam. Depending on the results, the vet may be able to isolate and localize the condition to a certain part of the body and be better suited to direct therapy and diagnostics. In all likelihood, diagnostics are going to be required including blood work and imaging in order to make some headway in a diagnosis of the problem.

Thanks for using PetCoach! It sounds like Bruno could have "old dog idiopathic vestibular syndrome". There is more information below but we don't know why it happens and in general it usually gets better within a few days. Of course, we can never rule out a middle ear infection, brain tumor, or other problem so I always recommend seeing a vet. Even if it is the just the old dog vestibular syndrome, your vet can give Bruno some anti nausea medication for his vertigo. https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/vestibular-disease-in-dogs Best of luck to you and Bruno!

It sounds as Pelu is suffering from a gastrointestinal condition, possibly an infection. it could also be due to ingestion of a foreign body material. i would recommend taking her to the vet the first chance you get, she will need to be checked first, if the vet thinks it's a simple gastrointestinal infection she will need an anti vomiting injection, antibiotics and a special food for a few days in order to get better. if the vet thinks it is more serious she will need a blood test and possibly an ultrasound in order to find out what is wrong.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Peter! How old is Peter? The most common condition that causes trouble walking, falling over, head tilt and trembling is Vestibular disease. This is a problem with the balance center in either the brain or the inner ear. Possible causes are an ear infection, stroke, low thyroid, a brain tumor or if he is just old it can be idiopathic (meaning we don't know why). I have seen dogs become Vestibular and then be normal that quickly, though usually the signs can persist for up to 2 weeks. I am not sure about the relation to the food you are feeding. If he shows the symptoms again I would immediately take him to your Vet for an exam. Consider video taping it so you can show them in case it goes away quickly again. I hope this helps and I wish you and Peter the best!