Papillon nutrition on a small calorie budget

An adult Papillon weighs 5 to 10 pounds (about 2 to 4.5 kg), according to the American Kennel Club, and often lives 14 to 16 years. The AKC lists eye disease, patellar luxation and heart disease among the breed's possible health issues. At this size, the feeding decisions come down to a few specific things: keeping a young puppy's blood sugar up, controlling a very small calorie budget, looking after crowded teeth, and keeping weight off small knees.

Puppies and low blood sugar

Very small puppies have trouble keeping their blood glucose up. Veterinary Partner's article on toy-breed hypoglycemia explains why. Toy puppies often cut their teeth late and struggle with kibble, and they lose body heat easily and turn listless when cold. Both cut food intake. The brain relies almost entirely on glucose, so a puppy with low blood sugar becomes listless and uncoordinated and, in severe cases, cold, unconscious or seizing.

The same article advises that a young toy puppy may need feeding four to six times a day, with soft food if it cannot yet manage hard food, plus extra warmth and an early vet check. The risk falls as the puppy grows. Most Papillons can move to fewer meals as they approach adult size, and the vet can advise on timing at the vaccination visits.

Illness makes low blood sugar more likely. Veterinary Partner advises seeing a vet promptly for any toy puppy with appetite loss, vomiting, diarrhea, coughing or listlessness. An adult Papillon with signs of low blood sugar needs a vet to find the cause.

Calories on a small budget

The Merck Veterinary Manual gives resting energy requirement as 70 multiplied by body weight in kilograms to the power 0.75. For adults, that result is multiplied by 1.6 if neutered, 1.8 if intact and 1.4 if prone to weight gain. Puppies under four months get 3 times resting requirement, and older puppies 2 times.

Small dogs need more calories per kilogram than large ones, but very few in total. The figures are starting points: Merck notes that dogs of the same weight can differ by up to 30%. Papillons are active dogs, and one that plays hard every day may need more than the neutered figure. Weigh adults monthly on a scale that reads to 50 or 100 grams, since 300 grams is a tenth of a 3 kg dog's weight.

Treats come out of the same budget. Merck's guidance on feeding practices is to keep treats below 10% of daily calories, because most are not complete and balanced. For a neutered 3 kg Papillon that is about 25 kcal a day, and some single biscuits contain more than that, so check the calories on the pack. Weigh the food rather than using a cup, break treats into tiny pieces, and count chews.

Teeth and gums

Small dogs carry a higher risk of gum disease. In a UK study of 22,333 dogs under primary veterinary care, 12.5% were diagnosed with periodontal disease in one year, and the odds fell steadily as adult body weight rose. Toy breeds such as the Toy Poodle had among the highest odds. A Papillon fits the same 42 adult teeth as a large dog into a much smaller jaw.

Plaque hardens into tartar and inflames the gums, and over time the tissue and bone holding the teeth break down. What helps:

• Brushing, ideally daily, with a small soft brush and a dog toothpaste, started in puppyhood.
• Dental chews or diets carrying the Veterinary Oral Health Council (VOHC) seal, sized for toy dogs and counted in the calorie budget.
• Mouth checks at every vet visit, including a look at about six months for baby teeth that have not fallen out, and cleaning under anesthesia when the vet advises it.

Claims that small kibble scrapes teeth clean, or that wet food alone causes dental disease, are weakly supported. Feed a food the dog eats reliably and put the effort into brushing.

Knees

The AKC notes that Papillon breeders screen for patellar luxation, in which the kneecap slips out of its groove. VCA Animal Hospitals describes a genetic predisposition in many toy and small breeds. Owners often see the dog skip a step or run on three legs for a few strides. It is graded from I, where the kneecap returns to place on its own once pushed out, to IV, where it stays out permanently. Surgery may not be needed for grade I, but VCA notes that for most dogs surgery may be recommended sooner rather than later, to limit arthritis and cruciate ligament tears.

Nutrition cannot fix the knee's shape. It can keep the load down. On a 3 kg dog, a few hundred grams of fat is a large share of body weight, so lean condition is the main dietary measure. Where arthritis develops, VCA lists joint supplements and therapeutic mobility diets among the options that may slow it, together with weight loss for overweight dogs. Ask the vet to set any supplement dose for a dog this small.

Heart valve disease

Myxomatous mitral valve disease (MMVD) is a slow degeneration of the valve between the left chambers of the heart, which then leaks. According to the ACVIM consensus guidelines, it is more common in dogs under 20 kg, and in small breeds up to 85% show the valve lesion by 13 years of age. Most affected dogs have a heart murmur for years before any signs of heart failure appear. A murmur found at a routine check is worth following with the vet, since treatment can now start before signs develop in dogs whose heart has enlarged past set limits.

Diet has a defined but modest role. The guidelines recommend no drug or diet change in early disease, before the heart has enlarged enough to meet their treatment criteria. Once it has, they recommend mild sodium restriction with a palatable diet that keeps protein and calories adequate. In heart failure, they advise modest sodium restriction that counts salt from treats, table food and foods used to give pills. Salty human food is a poor treat for any Papillon for that reason. Fish oil and other supplements are for the vet or cardiologist to decide.

Progressive retinal atrophy

Papillons and Phalènes (the drop-eared variety) can inherit a form of progressive retinal atrophy. In a genetic study of 145 Papillons and Phalènes, researchers identified a mutation in the CNGB1 gene that caused the disease, with 17.2% of the dogs tested being carriers. The first sign is usually poor vision in dim light. The authors describe the disease in these breeds as very slowly progressive, with affected dogs often seeming to see normally throughout life because daylight vision is fairly well preserved. The authors noted that the finding makes a genetic test possible, so breeders can avoid mating two carriers.

No diet or antioxidant supplement has been shown to prevent or slow this inherited disease. A dog that hesitates on stairs at night, bumps into things in dim rooms or seems unsure in the dark should have its eyes examined. Many blind dogs adapt well at home when furniture stays in place.

Sources

1. Papillon Dog Breed Information. American Kennel Club.
2. Hypoglycemia (Low Blood Sugar) in Toy Breed Dogs. Veterinary Partner (VIN).
3. Nutritional Requirements of Small Animals. Merck Veterinary Manual.
4. Feeding Practices in Small Animals. Merck Veterinary Manual.
5. Epidemiology of periodontal disease in dogs in the UK primary-care veterinary setting. Journal of Small Animal Practice, 2021.
6. Luxating Patella in Dogs. VCA Animal Hospitals.
7. ACVIM consensus guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of myxomatous mitral valve disease in dogs. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 2019.
8. A CNGB1 frameshift mutation in Papillon and Phalène dogs with progressive retinal atrophy. PLOS ONE, 2013.