I have no idea about this one!

[shanniesue2]

So twice in the past week Georgie has done this weird head shaking thing. There was one time when we were letting them outside to go to work and She stood at the door and her head was sort of slightly shaking back and forth. It wasn't part of her tail wag or anything. It looked sort of like... well you know when you see people who have tremors and their heads shake? It looked SORT OF like that. Not quite as pronounced, though. So we opened the door and let her in for a few minutes and the shaking went away. It didn't really look like shivering or just shaking from excitement... but we thought maybe that's what it was and didn't think anything more of it. But then last night, I came home from a dinner and hubby said she had done it again. That her head started shaking and her eyes were sort of unfocused... he said it lasted for about 1 maybe 1 1/2 minutes. The thing is that we have been incredibly busy in the last two weeks and haven't really been able to spend as much time with the dogs as usual... so I don't know how frequently she's been doing this. And if we took her to the vet and she didn't display the head shaking, then would they just send us away and say that she's okay? Especially since I don't even know how often or long this has been going on. Would they run blood tests and other diagnostics based on just two witnessed incidents? I don't want to just leave this untreated if it needs to be treated... but on the other hand... I'm due to have a baby any time during the next 3-7 weeks, and then I'll be taking 2 months off of work (unpaid), and I just don't know how we can financially cover a major diagnostic vet bill (and our vet expects full upfront payment)... and then if we find out she has something chronic (like a seizure disorder)... I don't know what the long term cost of that kind of treatment would be. I mean, I know that it absolutely isn't right to let an animal go untreated if they need treatment. And if we were to find out that Georgie did have some kind of chronic condition that we just couldn't afford to treat, then we would do the right thing and find some who could afford to treat it. I don't know... maybe I should just keep an eye on her for a little bit longer before I freak out about it?

Does anyone have any ideas or input? Has anyone seen this kind of head shaking thing in a dog before? I'm pretty sure I know that most of you are going to say, "take her to the vet." I guess I'm just looking for some input before I do. I'm kind of hoping that you will say, "well, since you've only seen it twice, keep a closer eye on her for a couple of weeks before you decide to take her in." But I'm pretty sure that won't be the advice. Anyway... please give me your thoughts (especially those of you who work in vet offices and may have seen this before... *cough* *ahem* wheezy)

[Dauxside]

It could very well be tremors/neurological, there are too many different problems that could cause this type of behavior to give any sound advise. Anything from tumor/virus/accident.

Speak with your vet about how you should proceed with testing.

[Dobified]

Could be focal seizures it could also be ear mites or a yeast infection. It really could be just about anything. I would call the Vet and talk about it with him.

Hope it is nothing serious.

[borzoimom]

Or it could be just a mild ear or inner ear infection. Especially if it is occuring more so with a change in temperture- ( coming from inside to out etc..) That would easy for the vet to see... Maybe just a simple physical exam would be the solution.

[shanniesue2]

Originally Posted by borzoimom

Or it could be just a mild ear or inner ear infection. Especially if it is occuring more so with a change in temperture- ( coming from inside to out etc..) That would easy for the vet to see... Maybe just a simple physical exam would be the solution.

Ohh... that would be great if it was only an ear infection issue (I mean, not that I want her to have an ear infection, but if that's all it was, it would be preferable to a seizure disorder)... I'll have to ask hubby if it happened when she first came inside... and I'll keep a closer eye on the temperature change question. I'm going to be around for much of the day today, so I'll keep a close eye on her... if I notice it happening again, I'll call the vet on Tuesday (I work a 10 hour day tomorrow, and won't have the opportunity to call from work).

I'll also make sure to check her ears today, and make sure they're clean (we usually do this weekly, but, like I said... the last two weeks have been really hectic)

[borzoimom]

Well even if you keep them clean, they can get dirty too far down for you to see. Sure would be easy enough to rule out or find..

[FairyDogMother]

My first thought was ear infection too. Phoebe has has 2 and I keep her ears really clean. It can happen. She gets the yeast type. Check to see if there's an odor. If so, it's probably a yeast infection. Could be a different type if not.
I really do hope that's all it is. Poor thing!

[alimel]

I hope it is only an issue with her ears. I know vet bills can get expensive when they are not sure what it is and so many tests have to be taken, but hopefully this will not be the case with you. My sister's Walker Hound has a very bad inner ear infection and he does strange things with his head, sort of like you described.

I will keep my fingers crossed for you that this is all it is.

[Save the Pits!]

I thought "ear infection" first thing. Have you talked to your vet? What did he/she have to say? How's Georgie doing?

[shanniesue2]

Well, I've been trying to watch her more closely the past several days... and I haven't seen the head shake thing a single time. We did squirt her ears with a cleaner last night, and then she spent about 20 minutes running around the room with her right ear on the ground... poor girl... she looked sort of like she was trying to vacuum the carpet with her ear. The vet is open late tonight. I'm going to try and take her in to get her ears checked. I mean, when I look at her ears, they don't look red or anything. But I have noticed that she's scratching her ears quite a bit. So, there's probably something I can't see.