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Vetdle Archive

Archive Case #7: Canine Insulinoma

Dog veterinary case - Hard - March 10, 2026

Clinical Clues

  1. A 10-year-old Boxer.
  2. The owner reports episodic collapse, especially after exercise or excitement.
  3. During these episodes the dog appears weak, trembles, and occasionally seems disoriented before recovering after being fed.
  4. On examination between episodes the dog is quiet but otherwise only mildly weak, with no obvious cardiac or orthopaedic cause for collapse.
  5. Blood glucose is repeatedly low at the time of signs, with an inappropriately normal to high insulin concentration.
  6. An autonomously secreting pancreatic beta-cell neoplasm causes persistent hypoglycaemia and intermittent neuroglycopenic episodes.

Diagnosis

Canine Insulinoma

Insulinoma is a functional pancreatic beta-cell tumour that causes recurrent hypoglycaemia. Affected dogs often present with episodic weakness, collapse, tremors, or seizures that may improve after eating.

Learning review

Review the case evidence

Use the paired clues to explain how the evidence in this dog case supports the provided diagnosis, Canine Insulinoma, then compare your reasoning with the case explanation.

Evidence checkpoints

Clues 1-2

  1. Clue 1: A 10-year-old Boxer.
  2. Clue 2: The owner reports episodic collapse, especially after exercise or excitement.

Clues 3-4

  1. Clue 3: During these episodes the dog appears weak, trembles, and occasionally seems disoriented before recovering after being fed.
  2. Clue 4: On examination between episodes the dog is quiet but otherwise only mildly weak, with no obvious cardiac or orthopaedic cause for collapse.

Clues 5-6

  1. Clue 5: Blood glucose is repeatedly low at the time of signs, with an inappropriately normal to high insulin concentration.
  2. Clue 6: An autonomously secreting pancreatic beta-cell neoplasm causes persistent hypoglycaemia and intermittent neuroglycopenic episodes.

Self-review prompts

  1. After clues 1-2, what evidence from this dog case shaped your initial interpretation?
  2. When you compare clues 3-4 with clues 1-2, what changed in your reasoning about Canine Insulinoma?
  3. How do clues 5-6 align with the case explanation for Canine Insulinoma?

Educational Use

Vetdle archive cases are educational veterinary games for diagnostic reasoning practice. They do not provide veterinary advice, diagnosis, treatment, or professional medical guidance.