Category Archive

famous chihuahua would like to introduce it’s readers to samson the miracle chihuahua puppy born without eyes and with cerebral palsy. we instantly fell in love with little samson and we are moved by his story and it’s message of genuine unconditional love.

chihuahua puppies with disabilities are born everyday. many of them end up in shelters or are euthanized because no one wants to home these precious creatures. people feel they must have a perfect pet in order to be happy. this is simply not true. little sampson is a perfect example of the kind of unconditional love that comes with adopted chihuahuas.

samson was born with a condition called anophthalmos, which is the absence of one or both eyes and in this case, it may have been caused by premature closing of the molera or soft spot. anophthalmos is very rare and it can only be diagnosed after intensive study. most of the time the condition is actually michophthalmos; which has at least a little of the eye formation.

either condition is not a cause for wobbling in a pup who has developed balance. a blind pup will simply take longer than a sighted one to develop it –  usually by five months of age. anothalmia/microphthalmos and/or blindness (in itself) is not associated with a lack of balance.

it was suggested that samson might have been born with water in his brain – a condition called hydrocephalus and hydromyelia. his family didn’t accept this assumption because they did not see samson suffer from symptoms of this condition; such as his balance getting worse, hitting his face with his paws, signs of pain, and even seizures, etc.

samson’s family continued to wonder if his wobbling would ever be completely gone. tests for a medical diagnosis would be expensive and troublesome for little samson, not to mention, they would not solve or help him in any way, but these tests would be done out of curiosity and not a need. so they resorted to forums, websites, online support groups and videos for answers.

samson is now a very happy and healthy five months old and his family has diagnosed his condition as cerebellar hypoplasia, also known as cerebral palsy. the signs in samson (although mild) are present and include: poor balance, feet planted far apart, stiff or high-stepping gait, and head and back leg tremors (which increase when he is excited and are altogether gone when he is at rest).

cerebellar hypoplasia is a disorder in which the cerebellum (the part of the brain which deals with balance and motor skills) is not completely mature at birth. there is no cure for this condition, and it varies from mild to severe. animals with this condition do not get worse or better, but they do learn to live with it and can be expected to have a high quality of life in a loving and understanding home.

affected puppies have normal mental alertness. sometimes cerebellar hypoplasia can be confused with cerebellar abiotrophy, but difference in abiotrophy is that a puppy will have a normal cerebellum at birth that will gradually deteriorates as they get older, around two months of age.

Read More