3 month old chihuahua with strange symptoms.

by Heather
(San Jose, CA)

I just adopted a 3 month old chihuahua. He is about 4-5 lbs. He seems to have a slightly rounded tummy and breaths quite rapidly ( like he is constantly sniffing).

He also seems to have trouble seeing. I call him and he "looks" for me even though i'm right in front of him.

He also walks all over his food plate sniffing as if he can't see his food? Is this normal?




Hi Heather
It's impossible for me to know for sure whether this is normal for your puppy or not I'm afraid. They are all different, and sometimes a perfectly normal behavior can seem abnormal to someone who's never taken care of a puppy before.

Puppies often breath more quickly than you would expect, and it can even be a bit erratic when they're sleeping. However, they shouldn't breathe heavily or seem to struggle to breathe when awake.

A rounded tummy an simply be due to genetics (ie it's a body type that the pups' mom or dad has), or it can be due to puppy worms, other parasites, or even swallowing too much air while eating.

Chihuahuas are tiny dogs and are very fragile in lots of ways. I would recommend that you take your pup to your veterinarian for a full exam so that you can be sure he's healthy.

The things you mention could be absolutely nothing to worry about, or they could be a sign of an underlying health condition/s that needs to be evaluated and treated. It's always better to be safe than sorry so make him an appointment as soon as you can.

I wish you lots of luck and hope your pup is doing much better soon.