TorontoBarks.com

QUESTION:
We have a Springer spaniel puppy that is 6 months old.  Since about 4 mths. she has developed a tremor in her jaw.  While petting her, you can actually see the tremor starting as the muscle along the jaw line start quivering, as does her eye.  She does not seem to be in pain, but then again, often humans don't know when their dog is in pain.

We have had blood work done which has shown her liver is not functioning 100% as there is too much ammonia in her system.  While she was being spayed, the vet also took a liver biopsy to rule out problems there - they did notice that her liver was smaller than they anticipated, but the results of the biopsy have not come back yet.

While having these tremor's she is aware of what is happening around her (does not loose consciousness) and is able to walk over to us, as if asking for our help.  Her diet has not changed as she is still on the puppy food
the breeder gave us when we purchased her.

Have you any insight into what may be causing the tremors?

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

K. Backshall

RESPONSE:

Tremors like this can be caused by a problem called a liver shunt, which is an abnormality that puppies can sometimes be born with, so the bloodwork and biopsy investigating the liver was a very good thing to do.  At this point, we really need to wait for the liver biopsy to come back to give us an idea of whether or not the liver tissue looks normal.
 
If a shunt is suspected, then it can sometimes be surgically corrected, but would most likely need referral to a specialist for surgery (and possibly for diagnosis).  If the liver biopsy comes back looking normal, then we need to be concerned about other types of neurological problems.  Anti-seizure medication could be tried to see if it helps the tremors, but probably the best bet would be referral to a neurologist if the liver biopsy was normal.  It sound like the veterinarian is doing a good job of trying to work this problem up, and the vet would be able to speak to the owner once the biopsy results are back to see if referral to a specialist is a good idea or not.
 
Hope that helps,
 
Allen Gignac,
Yorkville Animal Hospital