Symptoms of Idiopathic Head Tremors in Dogs
The signs of head tremor in dogs include:
Types of head tremors
Your dog is scared or stressed
Dogs get freaked out just like us humans, and tremble when theyâre scared. Some causes are unsurprising, from fireworks to a car suddenly backfiring. Some dogs are also just scared of new things, people, and places. A new rescue dog especially needs time to adjust to their new surroundings â the most familiar thing to you, say, the AC on a hot day, could be utterly terrifying for a dog thatâs never enjoyed such modern comforts. Be patient with them; understanding where theyâre coming from can also make sense of their shaking.
Dogs with a true anxiety disorder will also shake often (and often uncontrollably). Signs that there isnât just a situational or environmental trigger causing your dog to tremble include pacing, excessively panting, whining, and obsessively licking their lips and paws. They can also either shut down, frozen in fear, or frantically try to escape. A certified behaviorist can coach you through training techniques to assuage your dogâs anxiety. You should always exhaust all training options first, but if your dog isnât making progress after months of work, talk to your vet about anti-anxiety medication.
âIf youâre already actively training your dog to deal with stressors, you should know that by the time they reach the fearful shaking/shivering phase, youâre way past their point of comfort,â says Lauren Novack, a dog behavior consultant at Behavior Vets in NYC. If youâre trying to get your dog used to unfamiliar terrain or circumstances, you need to take it in bite-sized steps that are comfortable to them. âYou should never take a dog for a walk that is stopping in their tracks, tucking their tail, trying to get away, and shaking â thatâs a very, very scared dog. The goal is not, Iâm going to place you outside and youâre going to deal with it. You need to be really proactive with their training â you want your dog to be participating in their socialization.â
Shaking from excitement can appear deceptively similar, but is less worrisome. Your dog may shake (and whine and pee) when you come home from work because they just are just so happy to see you. Getting equally excited â as you obviously are â will only reinforce this behavior, so if you feel like your dog is getting too worked up or needs to stay calm for medical reasons (they have heart problems, are recovering from surgery, or are a fragile little senior), try to make comings and goings chill affairs. As hard as this may be, donât acknowledge your dog when they are in this frenzied state. Wait until they calm down to give them the affection they seek.
The first sign of distemper â a deadly virus â is eye and nose discharge, so itâs not always easy to diagnose early. What follows is coughing, fever, diarrhea, and vomiting. Then come the shakes. When the disease progresses, it attacks the central nervous system and dogs begin showing neurological symptoms like uncontrollable muscle twitches, convulsions, and seizures. Distemper is part of a puppyâs core set of vaccines, so itâs mostly seen in very young puppies that have not gotten all their shots yet.
âDistemper is so serious because there is nothing that can treat this disease. We can usually only provide supportive care,â says Dr. Ochoa. âWith these dogs being so young, their immune system cannot fully help them fight this disease and it is usually fatal. If not, it causes neurological issues, many of which are not reversible.â Itâs also highly contagious so if you adopted a puppy from a shelter that doesnât routinely vaccinate litters, get your pup checked out by your vet ASAP.
What Do Tremors in Dogs Mean?
In some cases, history and context can help determine what tremors mean in your dog, but it becomes more complicated when an illness is the cause.
A veterinary neurologist can provide you with an accurate diagnosis following:
If all of the tests are negative, the tremors in your dog are idiopathic, meaning the cause is unknown. Idiopathic tremor syndrome and idiopathic head tremors are two such diagnoses of exclusion.
Also known as little white shaker syndrome, generalized tremor syndrome, or steroid responsive tremor syndrome, idiopathic tremor syndrome is an autoimmune (meaning the body is attacking itself) condition causing full body tremors in dogs.
“Immune-mediated diseases, or diseases that don’t have an infectious cause, are the most common forms of inflammation in the central nervous system we see in cats and dogs,” says Dr. Daniel Blake Webb of Southeast Veterinary Neurology.
The condition is often noted in small white dogs such as the Maltese, West Highland Terrier, and Poodle, but can occur in any dog and usually begins before two years of age.
These tremors tend to improve or resolve when the dog is resting and worsen when the dog is active or stressed. Most dogs are otherwise normal, but the tremors worsen over time until the dog receives treatment. Fortunately, the condition is not painful and doesn’t affect the dog’s consciousness.
Although the cause of idiopathic tremor syndrome is unknown, it can be treated by suppressing the immune system with steroids. Improvements are often seen within a week, and once the tremors have resolved, the steroids will gradually be tapered to the lowest effective dose to minimize side effects.
The prognosis of idiopathic tremor syndrome is excellent. Most dogs’ tremors fully resolve and can be controlled with long term usage of low doses of prednisone.
“Overall, patients have a great quality of life, but relapses are possible,” explains Dr. Webb.
Idiopathic head tremors are a series of horizontal “no” gestures, vertical “yes” gestures, or (more rarely) rotational “bobble head” motions. They are mostly seen in young dogs and certain breeds like Dobermans, Bulldogs, French Bulldogs, Boxers, and Labradors, but they are possible in any breed.
Like idiopathic tremor syndrome, the cause of idiopathic head tremors is unknown, and they are neither painful nor upsetting for the affected dog. Unlike idiopathic tremor syndrome, idiopathic head tremors only occur in the head, happen while a dog is at rest, and do not respond to steroids.
Although there is no treatment for idiopathic head tremors, the good news is that the condition usually resolves itself as the dog grows older.
Perhaps the most unique characteristic of idiopathic head tremors is that they can actually be stopped in the moment by simply distracting the dog.
Dog Head Shaking – Idiopathic Head Tremors
Dog head shaking can mean different things to different people. Let’s begin by differentiating between a dog intentionally shaking its head side to side and a dog’s head shaking involuntarily.