Hypoglycemia is a disorder of the central nervous system caused by low blood sugar. It occurs most often in small, young stressed, or active dogs, such as Yorkie puppies. These dogs aren't able to store enough readily available glucose, so when the available glycogen {the form in which the body stores glucose} is depleted, the body begins to break down energy stored in fat. Small puppies have little subcutaneous fat, however, so that energy is soon depleted. When that happens , the brain, which depends on glucose-derived energy to function, ceases to function properly. Signs such as appetite and coordination may appear suddenly. Left untreated, the condition can worsen until the dog has seizures, loses consciousness and dies. A Yorkie puppy under the age of  7 months should not go more than 4 hours without eating. Because this is seldom practical in the middle of the night, they should be kept warm and confined at night so that they don't expend a lot of energy playing and barking.

Meals should be fairly high in protein, fat, and complex carbohydrates. Complex carbohydrates slow the breakdown of carbohydrates into sugars, which should lead to more
efficient utilization. Avoid semi-moist foods because of their high sugar content, as well as other simple sugars such as syrup unless your dog is already showing signs of hypoglycemia.

If you suspect that your dog is having a hypoglycemia episode, immediately feed him a food high in sugar content such as corn syrup even honey {Karo syrup is recommended}. If the dog can't eat, rub syrup on his gums and the root of his mouth, but don't try to put anything down his throat because he could choke. Keep hi warm. You should see improvement within 2 minutes; use this time to alert your veterinarian that you are bringing him in immediately for treatment, possibly with intravenous glucose. After he is stronger and can swallow, it's important to immediately give him a small high-protein meal, such as beef or chicken baby food.

Hypoglycemia is mostly a problem of puppies {it maybe related to immaturity of liver cells}, and most Yorkies will outgrow it by the time they reach about 7 months of age. All Yorkie owners should be aware of the symptoms and treatments for the entire life of their dog, however, especially in times of stress. Feed your Yorkie, especially your young Yorkie, regular, frequent meals.

The above information is an excerpt from the Yorkshire Terrier Handbook. This book is written by D Caroline Colle, PH.D. and will guide you in acquiring your new Yorkie as well as Care and Feeding, Grooming and Training, Health Care and Understanding Yorkie behavior. This book can be obtained at Borders Book Store.

It is my experience that a puppy properly taken care of will never exhibit this condition. I never ship any puppy with signs of hypoglycemia. Before buying any new puppy this  is a subject that should be discussed. Find out if the puppy has a history of Hypoglycemia. Extra care is to be taken with any puppy but 24 hour monitoring is required for a puppy who has this disposition.

. The regular diet I would suggest to feed any puppy displaying hypoglycemic symptoms would be a mixture of totally melted cottage cheese mixed with Hills Prescription diet A/D, goats milk, and Beech Nut Stage 1 Rice cereal for babies. This may need to be administered with a feeding syringe. Nutri-Cal is not to prevent seizures and should only be used when one occurs.