# My Chihuahua is in mystery pain



## 327amc

Hello everyone. 
Well, this one has baffled me for a couple years now. I have a white short hair. She ofcourse is always very active and alert. But a couple years ago, i noticed one day just like a light switch, she was slow or not moving at all. Just looked really depressed so to speak. And when I would go to touch her, or pick her up, she would yelp in pain. So I examined her as best I could, all over, poked and combed. I couldnt get consistent reactions from any sore joints or anything. Then I noticed a tick on her ear. I pulled it off, and it was within a couple of minutes she was back to her normal self. 
Well, I thought that was it. The tick was the problem. 
Then it was a great while later before she had ever gone back into this sore/depressed mode. One day she hid under the bed and would just dread being touched. So I left her there and went to work. When I got home, she was running and jumping like her normal self. This baffled me even more. 

So I decided to pay extra close attention. And after an hour or so, she slowly faded down into that depressed/in pain dog I seen before I left for work. But within a day she was back out of it again, and was a long while before her next episode. 

Her next episode was about 4 days ago. So I examined her carefully (she yelps and bites at me when I touch her.. but only when she's like this). I found a tick under her neck. I thought, AHA! I pulled it (he wasnt fully attached yet), and her behaviour didnt change this time. 

So she has been like this for several day now. Enough time for me to try to rule some things out. If I leave for a while, and then come home, she is up and happy, and tail waggin, and I play fetch with her. And when we are playing fetch, i poke her and cant find any pain. But the happiness wears off, and eventually she goes back into that sensitive state, and wont even look at her ball. She lays in the oddest locations when she's like this also. Just weird spots in the house. 

She eats normal. Ive ruled her food out. Her poop is solid, but normally brown. Lately its a shiny orange. I assume it is from the stress of what ever has her in pain. But idk. No worms appear to be in it. She has no distended stomach or bloating look. No lumps I can find. 

The one thing im leaning towards is fleas. She is like a flea factory. I have given her 2 flea baths in one day, and picked off fleas during. And yet, she is flooded with them soon after. Im sure she picks them back up from her environment. So im working on that. 
She cant wear a flea collar. I tried years ago, and she would throw up everything, even water. So I never tried that again. The only thing I do now, is a flea bath (with 2 diff shampoos during each bath), and D.Earth. I just started the D.E. 2 days ago. And I cant give her a bath because I cant even pic her up. She cries in pain the whole time, and god help me if I hit a really sensitive spot, then she bites at me (out of pain). 
I have petted her lower back, and she has yelped. And petted her head and she's fine. Then later that day, it will be reversed. She will nip at me if I touch her head, but her lower back area is ok. 

Another common symptom is that she doesnt seem to want to move at all when she is like this. She will be in the yard laying down. I will call her to me, and she will get up, walk 2 steps towards me, and then look around almost like there is an obstacle infront of her, and she turns around and walks back to her spot, pacing like this several times. 
And my back porch has 2 steps. All her life she has always jumped them both when coming in. She doesnt even mess with the middle one. Now, when she is like this, it takes her 5 minutes to decide to even make it up the first step. She just paces back and forth at that first step like its a mountain. 
So this worried me that it might be her joints. So Ive had her on Flexicose for over a year. But one argument against the joint theory is, this syndrome just turns on like a light switch, and turns off like one also. Also, i have pulled and poked on her legs, and cant get consistent reactions which would indicate sore joints. 

My words really cant explain it properly. I hope it makes sense, and I hope someone has some ideas as to what might be wrong. 
Thanks all.


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## Ember

hi and welcome to the forum, i'm sure you'll find plenty of help and information here. 
i'm sorry to hear your little dog is in pain. 
i'm sure someone else will offer some advice to you soon but here's what i think.

as far as i know, the most common cause for orange poop is liver problems, which could explain the pain she is experiencing. 
please take her to the vet and tell them what her symptoms are and ask them to do blood tests etc.
as for the flea problem, it sounds like your enviroment is infested with fleas.
fleas don't normally live on your dog, they will hop on for a feed and then hop off again.
you need to treat your home (carpets, sofa, dog bed - everywhere your dog has access to) to get rid of the fleas, not just your dog.
i hope that helps.


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## michele

I think you should see your vet,she seems to be in a lot of pain and you say this has been going on for years ? have you seen a vet at all ?


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## Brodysmom

Your dog sounds like she is in severe pain. I would get to a vet immediately. They can prescribe a flea treatment that will WORK. Flea infestation can cause anemia along with other problems. Ticks carry a myriad of diseases. Just google tick borne illness/disease in dogs and you will see how dangerous they are. You need to take care of her parasite problem! There may be an underlying disease process going on as well that would explain her behavior. She needs to see a vet, plain and simple. Please take her.


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## Angel1210

Doesn't she go for yearly checkups? Don't rule out Lyme disease. I had a cockapoo that was fine except, he didn't want to play and didn't want to be touched. Turns out he had Lyme disease. After being treated, he was fine! I do hope it is not her liver!!
For fleas, after my husband started using fertilizer with some kind of bug killer, no more flea problems. But I had one chi years ago, that any time you could pick him up and he would be loaded with fleas, and he was long hair!! But my other 2 mutts, had none! Crazy.
Hope she is better.


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## susan davis

I too, think that this dog HAS to SEE a vet asap. I think that this pup probably has lyme disease too. Long time. PLEASE take this dog to a vet. Maybe the ascpa would have a low cost clinic, if you are strapped for cash??? Sue


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