What Is Hard Pad & How Can I Protect My Chihuahua From Getting It?

Hard pad is the forerunner of meningitis, fits, etc., and eventually the pads of the Chihuahua become hard. It is from this that the disease got its name. The symptoms of hard pad are similar to those met with in distemper - dullness, hot nose, rising temperature, and shivering. It is essential to call your vet in the early stages or paralysis may occur.

Nowadays you should have your Chihuahua puppy vaccinated when it is nine weeks old. It is at this age that the immunity to disease the puppy got from its mother at birth is lost. No puppy should
be taken into public places, towns, or parks without being vaccinated first. Booster doses at intervals during the dog’s life should always be carried out.

People must not imagine that because their Chihuahua is vaccinated, it cannot get hard pad. It can, although if it does catch it, the attack will be much milder and more easily cured than if it were not inoculated. It is well worth the cost. There is nothing so heartbreaking as to have reared a puppy and then to lose it with hard pad. It is a killer disease and needs expert advice and nursing.