# Emma's Head Injury



## ~*Jessie*~

We had quite a scare on Sunday... and figured I'd share it on here as a reminder of how fragile these little dogs are. It's really hard for me to type this entire story, but I think it's important for other chi owners to hear.

The chihuahuas had just finished their breakfasts, and Rory (our 35lb Border Collie) was still eating his. We weren't paying much attention, as Rory is very gentle. All of a sudden Emma started screaming and she had a bubbly looking bump on her head right on her soft spot. It swelled and swelled and her head was huge. We rushed out of the house to the emergency vet and placed a bag of ice on her head. We're not sure if Rory bit her or knocked her head with his chin.

The ride to the e-vet was the longest ride of my life. It took about 10 minutes, but felt like it was hours. We thought we had lost Emma on the way... she began to vomit, and her head was VERY large.

The vet took her right away and put her on an IV with medications to stop the swelling and vomiting. They said they wanted to hold her until that night. I was sooo worried, as Emma only weighs 2.7lbs and has a HUGE molera.

I didn't think she'd make it... it was horrible... the worst day of my life. 

We picked her up at 8pm, and the swelling had gone down a good bit. It's getting better and better every day. She's getting a helmet for whenever she is around Rory or playing rough with the others... because there is a chance that her head could swell back up.

Her motor skills are perfect... she's full of energy... no signs of neurological damage. We're going to a neurologist once the swelling has come down to see what they think about any longterm effects.

Here is Emma the day BEFORE the head injury:


intheyard-101120-12-3 by Chihuahuaesque, on Flickr


intheyard-101120-12-2 by Chihuahuaesque, on Flickr

And this is what she looked like the day after it happened... her tongue was only out because she was trying to eat leaves:


intheyard-101122-12-2 by Chihuahuaesque, on Flickr


intheyard-101122-12 by Chihuahuaesque, on Flickr

Please continue to keep her in your thoughts for a full recovery.


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## flippedstars

Oh my gosh! I would have been soooo terrified too, I'm so sorry oyu had to go through that and I hope she continues toward a full recovery. Seriously that is sooo scary


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## cprcheetah

OMG how scary. Glad she is okay. These little guys are so delicate.


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## *Chloe*

how scary  hope she recovers soon x


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## 18453

Omg that really upset me she must be in so much pain do they think it'll go back to normal or what exactly is causing the swelling


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## ~*Jessie*~

She's acting like her normal self... running, playing... it's hard to keep her still!

The swelling is from when her head was hit, and it should go down with time. Kind of like if you bumped your head, it would be raised.

Right now her head looks much better... it's more of a localized bump rather than her entire head.

It was terrifying. I kept telling her that I loved her and rubbed her belly the whole way to the vet. 

Tiny chihuahuas with moleras are scary... I'm going to be such an overprotective mom now.


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## foggy

Oh my gosh, how scary.  So sorry that happened to your little Emma, you must have been so worried. I'm so glad she is home with you and doing better, I'll be keeping her in my thoughts. Give her a kiss and a cuddle for me. xx


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## MChis

OMG poor Emma!  Those photos are heart breaking. I hope she recovers 100% & continues to do well. Did you ever figure out what caused the swelling? It looks like more of a bump than a bite. I know Rory is great with the Chi's though... Still you can never be too careful I guess. This is a huge reason why we asked my dad & step mom to take our Zander. He was huge (80lbs though he was 115lbs when he passed away a few weeks ago) but he was very bouncy & hyper & just didn't know his own size. I just couldn't risk it any longer but I was SO happy my dad & step mom took him in as they are right next door...

Anyway, we'll be thinking of Emma & sending positive thoughts her way!!


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## woodard2009

OMG!! I'm so sorry! That poor baby! Even tho Rory is so gentle, when dogs eat, it's important to be very careful that they don't fight over food. You'll be in my prayers and please keep us informed.


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## efinishya

Oh Emma poor girl. I hope she'll get better soon.


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## ~*Jessie*~

woodard2009 said:


> OMG!! I'm so sorry! That poor baby! Even tho Rory is so gentle, when dogs eat, it's important to be very careful that they don't fight over food. You'll be in my prayers and please keep us informed.


Rory is normally so easy going about his food... he lets the chis stick their faces in his bowl, etc... but we are feeding them separately now. We are going to be more careful about their interactions.

Mchis, I'm not sure if his chin hit her head, or if his teeth did. I was standing across the room while my husband was feeding them. It's definitely a bump caused by blunt head trauma... the force was strong enough to make her head swell.


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## ~*Jessie*~

Thanks for the thoughts and prayers. I don't know what I'd do without my little Emma bug


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## Terri

Oh poor baby!!
Those pics!!
I would have been in a real state of panic too, must have been terrifying for you!!

Am glad she is on the mend now, bless her.
xx


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## Chihuahuasloveme

poor emma that's very scary I hope she makes a full recovery


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## 17428

OMG how horrible!!
I would have freaked out too!!
Poor baby girl!!!!!


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## ExoticChis

How scary !!


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## N*T*M*4U

OMG....I'm feel so bad for Emma...good thought and speedy recovery....xoxo..


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## Brodysmom

In this case, I think that Emma's big molera was her saving grace! Her brain and soft tissues had a place to swell. If the trauma was enough to cause that much swelling and her molera was closed - she probably wouldn't be with us now. The molera allowed for expansion of the tissue and that was a good thing, although it looks scary.

We recently had a little chi here have head trauma or a possible aneurysm from an unwitnessed injury and unfortunately, she died. So you are very lucky that Emma is doing so well. Thank goodness!

What a good reminder of how fragile our little guys really are.


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## AC/DC Fan

How harrowing!! It is amazing how easily they can be seriously injured. I can only imagine your panic and fear on the ride to the vet (and hope to never experience it). I'm sure that was just awful. Thank God the vet knew what to do immediately.
I'm sooooooo glad she is better and hope that there will be no long term damage. She is a doll!


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## ~*Jessie*~

Brodysmom said:


> In this case, I think that Emma's big molera was her saving grace! Her brain and soft tissues had a place to swell. If the trauma was enough to cause that much swelling and her molera was closed - she probably wouldn't be with us now. The molera allowed for expansion of the tissue and that was a good thing, although it looks scary.
> 
> We recently had a little chi here have head trauma or a possible aneurysm from an unwitnessed injury and unfortunately, she died. So you are very lucky that Emma is doing so well. Thank goodness!
> 
> What a good reminder of how fragile our little guys really are.


That makes a lot of sense. At least her head had a place to swell, rather than being trapped inside of her skull. 

I remember reading about little Maya and thinking how that could've easily been Emma's outcome. It's so scary. 

I forget from time to time that chihuahuas ARE tiny dogs and can get hurt more easily. This was the scariest thing I've ever been through with our dogs, and I'm very, very glad that the vet was able to save her.


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## Aquarius

Poor little thing, I hope she fully recovers, you must have been so scared.


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## rache

OMgoodness Emma you poor thing.

Sounds like her little soft spot was a blessing in disguise. 

Hope she heals quick hun. Keep us posted x


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## Aust Chi Mumma

I am fighting back tears after seeing those photos! This is so heart wrenching! I am so glad you got her to the vet in time and that she is recovering well! Emma is definately in my thoughts!


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## harperleechi

What an awful scare!! Emma will certainatly be in my thoughts! I truly hope she has a strong and steady recovery!

Regards,
Whitney and Harper Lee


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## Deme

phew I am so pleased to read that she is okay, your quick thinking and speedy trip to the vets probably saved her life.

Some people say don't treat a Chi like a fragile ornament they are still dogs, I disagree these little dogs need more care, they have little bones and internal organs etc that can easily be damaged compared to a great Dane.

Red jumped off my ponies back and I was in total panic mode, luckily the ground was very soft and he was okay but I won't get in that situation again.

As for feeding I even feed Jake and Red seperately but that is because given the chance Jake would scoff Red's food and poor Jake is on a diet.


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## woodard2009

How is Emma doing? How's the swelling went down at all?


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## imadigger

OMG. Poor little Emma. I'm so glad that she's doing better and there's no damage. I knew that chis were fragile, but never thought that a bump on the head could do so much damage. My chi, Chico likes to rough house with my 15 lb. peke, Shanghai. When I see them getting kinda wild, I separate them and tell them to 'chill it.'' 
Please keep posting her recovery so we know she's doing well.


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## ~*Jessie*~

The swelling is continuing to go down... Her head is still very swollen.

Emma is very, very sweet and is such a strong little girl. She's been very spoiled these past few days for being such a trooper!


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## sugarbaby

so scary poor little girl , glad she is on the mend


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## Muzby

Oh no! Healing thoughts to Emma!!

Goose has a pretty large molera as well, we are forever worried he's going to smack it on something.  Even playing fetch, we have low cabinets that have corners right at head level so we have to be sure never to throw the toy around them or he goes after it full tilt and we're terrified he's going to smack his soft spot. 

Where do you get these helmets?!


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## Chimom4

Oh my goodness! How terrifying! We were visiting my parents this weekend, and my parents golden retriever kept wanting to play with Chip and was really getting crazy, although there was no meanness, she just wanted to play. Chip was scared to death of her, and at one point he was hiding behind the pugs, and they were so funny... They closed ranks around him and growled at the Goldie. They were protecting their baby pack-member! I had to pick him up and keep them separated for the rest of our visit because I was afraid she would hurt him by accident- just because of her size. My parents were saying i was being paranoid. Thank you for sharing your story. I'm going to share it with my family so that they all see how delicate chi's can be!


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## chideb

~*Jessie*~ said:


> The swelling is continuing to go down... Her head is still very swollen.


Bless you little Emma.. I am so thankful to know the swelling is continuing to decrease. Healing prayers for you, little one..


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## Dazy Mae

Poor baby....I pray that she will continue to heal and that all will be well....


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## KittyD

How terrifying!
I do not let my Chi's near large dogs, you just never ever know.
I'd be really cautious with my larger dog and maybe go out of my way to keep them apart for the time being! how scary 
I am glad she is on the mend.


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## cherper

So thankful she's ok! I hope she continues to get better and better.


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## Tink

Wow! That had to have been VERY scrary! I'm glad Emma's such a strong little soldier! Tango has a large molera too, and it's worrisome, though in your case it sounds like that fact actually saved Emma's life! 

It's a very fine line I walk with my chis, that we all do I guess......I treat them like dogs because that's what they ARE, but at the same time I'd be stupid to not take into account their small size and fragile bone structure. They're dogs, so they get walked around on leash whenever we're out and not held and carried all the time, but they're small and fragile so I scoop them up into my arms whenever there's a threat.....and that threat could be something as simple as a 10 lb dog (which is still a very small dog) whose owner isn't keeping it under control. A 10lb dog is almost 3 times Tango's weight, and could do some serious damage in a heartbeat. 

Please keep us updated on Emma. She's a lucky dog to have come through this as well as she has so far, and that you were so quick to get her taken care of.


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