Can a panic attack in a small dog mimic a ...

Yes it can and in any size dog. I have a chow that absolutely hates a bath and everytime someone mentions the word she starts to shake. A friend of mine thought I was exaggerating so while we were sitting outside one afternoon, he said "hey Missy you want a bath?" She immediately started shaking, but after the 3rd or 4th time he asked her she was trembling so violently that I seriously thought she was having a seisure. Her teeth were actually chattering. I had to tell him to stop because she was acting so strange I was afraid she would have a seizure. Once he stopped and I told her no, we were not going to take a bath, she calmed down immediately, quit shaking and was just fine. We can't even say the "word" around her without her having an anxiety attack. When I do give her a bath I do not mention the word bath, I just put her leash on her, have everything ready to go, along with the water running and put her in the tub before she has time to think and become anxious. She knows what's going on, but as long as I don't say the word bath, everything's ok.

Is there something that your dog fears, that may trigger the attack? Keep note of what has been said or done before your dog has the panic attack and see if you can find the trigger and refrain from doing or saying whatever it is that brings it on and see if the problem resolves itself. If not and the dog is just having random episodes, I would suggest a trip to the vet for a check-up.

 Sounds like it could be severe panic attacks, but if she gets rigid and salivates heavily or foams at the mouth, it could be mild seizures. That poor baby, with what she's gone through no wonder she's anxious. My chow was a rescue from our local Humane Society. They found her almost frozen to death in a snow bank at 8 weeks old. They didn't think she would live either. But she pulled through and except for the "bath" thing she's been a wonderful loving dog. We wonder if the jerk that dumped her, maybe tried to drown her first and thought she was dead and threw her in the snowbank, and maybe that's why she has such a horrible fear of water. It's the only explanation we have come up with to account for her terrifying fear of water. You may have to put your little one on a mild sedative for a few months, until she calms down and learns to adjust to her new and wonderful life. I think when they have suffered trauma like that it takes a long time for them to forget about it and they have to learn to be comfortable with their new surroundings to completely calm down. My Vets suggested giving mine benadryl about an hour before her bath to keep her from spasing out. She's 11 years old now and I worry that she COULD have a stroke or some other vascular problem as hyper as SHE gets, so we do the benadryl and it works. You might have to give yours a capsule in the morning and again in the evening for several weeks or months before she calms down completely. Otherwise, Prozac works very well too, but is A LOT more expensive! You really should give her something to calm her, because it's not healthy to let her get that stressed out. That poor thing must have had a horrible life before you got her. Thankfully she's with you now and won't have to suffer any more abuse. 

The only problem with rescue animals is the fact that you have no idea what kind of abuse they have suffered or injuries they might have incurred at the hands of an abuser or in the case of your dog, other animals. Try the benadryl for several days or a week and see if there is any improvement, if not you may have to put her on anti-seizure medication. She could at some point have suffered a head injury, which could also cause her nervousness and bring on seizures.

 I wish you luck and thank you for caring so much for the welfare of that sweet little dog. I hope the little stinker is ok and everything turns out for the best for her sake and yours.

My toy poodle as of late is doing something very strange that mimics a seizure, and the vets aren't exactly sure if that's what it is and want us to film it if possible.  All he is doing is getting glassy eyed and then stiffening his limbs and trembling a bit.  No drool, no urination.  He has had extensive testing and it appears that everything is normal.  We'll be going to a neurologist on Tuesday.  I'm wondering if my poodle is actually having panic attacks? 

yes, they said that small dog got more rabis than a adult dog