Dog Seizures- Causes, Diagnosis, Treatment, & More
98Guide to Dog Seizures
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Causes of Dog Seizures
Just like people can have seizures and seizure disorders, so can dogs. Basically, brain cells use electrical and chemical signals to communicate, which can either activate another neuron or shut off a neuron. Seizures are thought to be caused when there is an imbalance of excitatory and inhibitory signals in the brain.
Dogs, like people, have a normal neurological activity level within the brain that keeps the brain cells from getting too excited, and when too many brain cells are excited at once, a seizure can start up.
Note: The excitement within the brain cells has absolutely nothing to do with your dog getting excited when you come home from school, or work, when he plays, or during any other activity.
Depending on your dog's age, the following medical conditions may be the cause of your dog's seizures. (You will find the list in order of more common to more rare conditions.)
- Under 8 months- Developmental Disorders, Encephalitis or Meningitis, Trauma, Portacaval shunt, Hypoglycemia, Toxins, Intestinal parasites, Idiopathic Epilepsy (rare)
- 8 months to 5 years- Idiopathic Epilepsy (most common), Developmental disorders, Trauma, Encephalitis or meningitis, Acquired hydrocephalus, Neoplasia (tumor), Portacaval shunt, Hypoglycemia, Electrolyte disturbances, Hypothyroidism, Toxins
-
Over 5 years- Neoplasia (tumor), Degenerative disorders, Vascular disorders, Hypoxia (lack of oxygen in body tissues), Hypoglycemia, Idiopathic Epilepsy, Trauma, Encephalitis or meningitis, Acquired hydrocephalus, Serious Liver disease, Hypocalcemia, Electrolyte disturbances, Hypothyroidism
Dog MRI Scan
Diagnosing Dog Seizures
Before you can treat a seizure disorder, you need to determine the type of seizures that your dog suffers may be caused by an underlying disease that when treated, may actually treat the seizures.
The different types of seizures include Primary Epileptic Seizures, Secondary Epileptic Seizures, and Reactive Epileptic Seizures. With your vet's help you can help determine what type of seizures that your dog has. Although, there is no test to 100% determine what type of seizures your dog has, your veterinarian can help you determine the type of seizure by how your dog acts during the seizure.
Many times the vet will try to treat other conditions that may be causing the seizures before he actually is able to treat the seizures. For example, if you dog appears to be suffering secondary seizures, your vet may consider an abnormal process in the brain, trauma, tumor, or an infection, or for reactive seizures you vet may consider a metabolic dysfunction, hypothyroidism, low calcium, liver failure, toxins, kidney failure, or an electrolyte imbalance.
You veterinarian will also consider the age of your dog and your dog's breed, as older dogs are more prone to seizure disorders than younger dogs and some breeds are prone to seizure disorders.
Breeds who commonly suffer seizure disorders include:
- Beagles
- Belgian Tervurens
- British Alsatians
- Collies
- Dachshunds
- Golden Retrievers
- Keeshounds
- Labrador Retrievers
Note: About 65% of dogs between the ages of 1 year and 5 years suffer primary epilepsy.
Tests that your vet may consider may include:
- MRI or CT brain scan to rule out brain tumors.
- Spinal Tap to look for infectious diseases, such as distemper.
- Antibody titers to help identify causes of an infection.
- Toxin Tests to determine if there are any toxins or poisons.
Treating Dog Seizures
Generally, your veterinarian will not prescribe medications unless the seizures persist on a regular, or semi-regular basis. Sometimes your dog may just experience one or two seizures and never any more.
Otherwise, if your dog has persistent seizures, much less persistent severe seizures, your vet can prescribe one of a number of different medications. It's up to you and your vet to narrow down the list, as with any medication there are always potential adverse side effects.
Common seizure medications and their side effects include:
- Phenobarbitol- sedation, loss of coordination, lethargy, depression, weight gain, increased thirst and eating, excessive urination, difficulty balancing, weakness in rear legs, and severe liver disease
- Potassium Bromide- vomiting, depression, lethargy, and drowsiness
- Clorazepate- drowsiness and wobbly gait
- Felbamate- liver toxicity and bone marrow suppression
- Levetiracetam (Keppra)- stiff and wobble gait, vomiting, and salivation
- Zonisamide- high salt levels
Besides medication, you can consider kindling, which is the repeated application of a low-intensity electrical stimulus to the dog's brain. I want to say that kindling is more of an experimental treatment. It is something that you can inquire about...
During and After Your Dog Has a Seizure
During the Seizure
While your dog is having a seizure, you want to stay calm. Most vet believe that the dog is not in pain, so the best thing for you to do is relax and make sure that the dog doesn't hurt himself (IE make sure that he won't fall down stairs or hit anything.)
Don't try to restrain your dog, just let him seize. You want to keep your hands away from the dog's mouth because your dog may clench down on his jaws and hurt you.
Some dogs may even attack during a seizure, so you want to keep any other pets away during the seizure.
Remember just stay calm. Talk gently to your dog, especially if dog is unconscious, as this may help him regain his consciousness. You may even want to consider dimming the lights.
If you dog has a previous history of seizures, your vet may have prescribed a medication to help ease the seizure, definitely have this ready.
Treat Dog Seizures with Natural Medication
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You can even consider a natural treatment for dog seizures. There are two more common options.
- PetAlive EaseSure is an all natural blend of herbs and other homeopathic ingredients that are meant to treat and prevent seizures.
- EaseSure Drops are recommended to use along with your dog's regular seizure medication. Do not discontinue your dog's regular medicines when using EaseSure Drops.
Before you decide on a treatment, you want to figure out the pros and the cons with any of the treatments, whether that is a particular medications, an alternative, or an experimental treatment.
After the Seizure
Some dogs may be normal after a seizure, but other dogs may be a bit disoriented.
Common signs you will notice after a seizure include:
- Pacing
- Whining
- Extreme hunger
- Blindness
- Disorientation
- Rare aggression
You may also notice difficulty walking, bumping into to furniture, getting stuck in corners, attempting to eat anything, and a persistent crying or whining.
When your dog regains full consciousness, he may want to pace around, which is normal. Help him find a place and let him just walk it off. Your dog may want to pace for a short period or as long as 24 hours.
Also offer small amounts of food and water, as some dogs may get hungry after having a seizure. The small bits of food may help calm him down.
If your dog's body temperature rose from the seizure, you want to consult your vet so that you can find the best way to lower and balance out your dog's temperature.
Disclaimer: Please be aware that the advice in this article should in no way replace that of a licensed veterinarian. The methods outlined above may or may not work for your pet. If you have any concerns, you should consult a veterinarian.
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We just lost our 11 and a half year old dachshund yesterday. She laid down, arched her back and shook about 5 or 6 times and died. She has never had a siezure before.The Vet told us she probably had a weakening in her heart and things just started shutting down and she was not in any pain because she was unconcious. She had always been healthy when she was examined and got her shots. How can this come with no warning?
My 11 1/2 yr lab started having seizures 6 mo. ago. She would have about 1 every 3 weeks and by December, she had one a week. In January, she started having two a day with what seemed like a mild seizure, then she almost came out of it only to go back into a large seizure. She took a half hr to one hr to come out of the after effects. After she had two seizures in a day, I talked to the vet about his suggestion of Valium. The other vet put her on phenobarbitol twice a day.
Within hrs of the med, she began to pace, cry and bark. She wouldn't sleep. She would drink a lot of water and eat her food (side effect). She began to urinate all over the house.
After almost two days of this behavior and crying, we took her in at 1am and had her put to sleep. It was almost like she
thanked us. I believe the pain became unbearable for her and she finally cried to let us know. It was harder for my husband
to watch the seizures than me, but after having to go through the seizures the last few days alone with her, I realized how hard it really is to watch and what she must be going through.
My dog, a golden retriever, has had seizures since he was 2. His mom also had seizures. He's now 7 and regularly has seizures. I have talked to the vet and they said they can't help me until he seizes in front of them.
My dog mutt(part beagle) Cody has had seizures since he was 8 weeks ld. He was really bad for a few weeks, having 3-4 seizures a day. Now he nly has 1-2 a month all in the same day. He is super lazy and doesn't have much of a brain, for instance he wants to chew on toys like my other dog does but he doesn't know how to.
If a dog shakes their feet in their sleep it's most likely a dream, a fit it's scary as hell. My dog has had one tonight first time and when it stopped he just laid there Tongue at the side and looked vacant, didn't respond to anything it wasn't my baby, he's a 5 month border collie, when he got up he kept trying to hide in a corner and ignored me as he is usually so well behaved. All your comments have helped me so thanks. He's sleeping now but I dare not leave his side, he also lost control in the toilet area, I think it's down to him licking cement as there is building work outside and he had it round his mouth that was yesterday. X
my beagle has seizures and she foams at the mouth. she tries to walk and stumbles.
my staffy/rodgeback cross dillon had a sudden onset of seizures this mon. he never had them before and it was as scary as hell!!! he had 5 over a 3hr period. we have had him to the vets and are awaiting the results of his blood tests though the vet has staeted him on a treatment of libromide and epiphan. he is very wobbly and restless due to the new medication but at the moment we seem to have lost all the things abouut dillon that made him who he was. i am hoping that this settles once his meds kick in and his system becomes used to them.iv rad a little about the treatments we have been given on the net and i cant say im totally sold on libromide.i know if it helps its best to keep him on it but to think we might loose his old charecter is quite upsetting. he's only 2 and we want to do our best for him. has anybody else had any experience of these drugs and the effects they had on their dogs. he my baby and cant bring myself to think that the best thing for him means us loosing who he is???? any advice would be helpful. we do have an upcoming vets appointment with him and will be raising these questions with them too. thankyou. :0)
my dog is having alot of sezures and he is only 2 years old and he is a shnoodle i need information please help !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! asap
Visit the guardian angels for dogs website. http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/ There are many things you can do to help your dogs that are realtively inexpensive. I have a rescue dog who has seizures and the people on the website have helped me alot and have provided some much needed support.
i have a pet beagle and he has got 3 seizures in 1 day .
how can i reduce this or stop this as it really pains me
to see my dog suffer
please coment on my problme
My doberman is 8 years old and had 3 seizures yesterday. He is on an IV right now, and got treated for an allergy over night. Do you think this could be a cause?
He didn't have any seizures today, he is just drowsy.
I have a 4 yr old 35lb Sheltie who has been having seizures for a little over one year now. Recently, she had three seizures within a 24 hr period...due to the time change we accidentally gave her meds to her an hour later since the clocks were set back one hour. After she has a seizure she has trouble walking, balancing and just eats and sleeps most of the time. It has been four days now and still the same. Sometimes I can get her to go out, but mostly she may urinate on the tile since she is this way. I am wondering if she has to get used to her meds all over again since these are side effects of the meds (pheno & bromide)or if it is a result of the seizure itself and any effect on the brain or trauma caused by the seizure. The last time we goofed her med time she was like this for weeks. Is she still seizing without us knowing?
My 17 yr old chihuahua has seizures that came on with old age. I feed him every 5-6 hours. while I am at work someone feeds him and I wake up in the middle of the night to feed him. Sinc he is toothless i just give him chihuahua kibble ground up and made into a cereal with bottled water. I inject that into his mouth for his early a.m. middle of the night feeding. This has stopped his siezures for the most part. If I sleep thru and am a little late to feed him, he will seize. Chihuahuas are a breed that are prone to seizures, the author left them out, don't know why..it is prevalent with the breed. Try food for your dog before medication, he or she could just be hypoglycemic.
Most of you are standing by not taking the dog to the vet.My mother waited to late and the dog is recovering.MInd state is still slow.
BEST FOR DOG SEIZURES:
Phenobarbitol
(possible to lower mg's down after a
few weeks depending on dog)
Milk thistle (aide liver from harmful side affect to liver
Teaspoon or 2 a day with food to increase low blood pressure
Petalive.Seems to help as a natural medication made from plants.
If the dog has had heavy mal seizures hopefully there is no permanent brain damage. If the dog cant walk or seems paralyzed. You will have to give him therapy.Move his or her legs manually so they dont cramp.
Walk the dog with a towel wrapped around him or her to assist walking.Or you can find or make a wheel pulley.(similar to a mini engine hoist. Or an actual dog wheel chair.
All that 15 different veggies thing is an over kill.
Meat and rice with a hidden crushed multivitamin will do the trick.
Premium bagged dog food chopped with a beet hot dog, Boiled or microwaved then washed with water.To remove most of the salt.
Check to see if your dog has an ear infection also before thinking brain tumor.
i have a 15 months old boxer bourght him from someone when he was 5 months old and he started having seizures when he was 7 months old took him to vet in the night cause wasnt sure what was wrong with him they gave him shots and put him on phenobarbital was without a seizure for like 4 months then had one night woke up with him in seizures took him in to vet for blood test everything came back fine wass good for another month then 2 nights ago went back in to seizure mode but more agressive so went to vet again and she up his dose hopefully this works cause i know what everyone here is feeling its very hard to see ur loved one go through something like this i just sit with him pet him and talk to him quietly in the dark if anyone knows of anything else a person could give extra that wouldnt harm him would like to know i love my dog hes my baby and i feel helpless
my dog abu is almost 2 years old and is having seizures this has just recently started the first time i was at work and when i came home my brother and sisters said she was acting funny i didnt think nothing of it cause prior to this i had never heard of dogs having seizures about 8 hours from the first incindent she did it again they both lasted for 1-2 mins and she got really aggressive with anyone that went near her well another 8 hours went by and she had another one that last 5-10 mins so i rushed her to the emergency vet of course the bill is expensive and they told me to take her home and monitor her we were at the eclinic for about 7 hours by the time i got her home she had another seizure this one lasted an hour and i rushed her back she stop and i follow up with a reg vet right after they did blood work and the only thing that came up was her white blood cells were off so they put her on phenobarbotrol and i have been reguarly giving it to her she was fine for about 2 weeks and then went into another seizure that lasted over 2 hours i rushed her to the eclinic and they gave her 2 shots of phenobarbotrol and valium and she was still seizing i took her to my reg vet again and they told me to keep her on the medicine i currently have her on the medicine but yesterday she started acting weird again and is gaining weight like crazy she has weighted 5 pounds up until these seizures and has gained 3 and keeps going up i dont know what to do or what really could be causing these incidents she has brought me so much joy and was the one to get me out of my depression if the medicine is not working i dont know how or what will help her to stop..
It doesn't look like ANY of the inquiries get answered on this page... sad... there are actually people who wait for an answer that never comes..
i have a pitbull and hes still a puppy hes around 7 to 9 months and hes been having seizures since he was about 5 months, overall hes had about 6 seizures and they are becoming semi frequent, from once a month to twice a month and i dont know whats wrong with him, i contacted his vet but they are rediculously expensive, we cannot afford the testing, etc, we might have to get in debt to treat our dog, but id like suggestions as to what might be wrong with my puppy, how i can help or any other types of suggestions please!!!!!!
It's been 2months since my 11yr old yellow lab had her first seizures. One of the hardest things I have had to go through in my life, I'm starting to realize the seizures are caused by a much worse condition. We chose to not do extensive testing/treatments, she will be 12 in 6months. My vet advises, through process of elimination of bloodwork, it is most likely a brain tumor. She is on phenobarbitrol now, we have had to increase her dosage over time but she is holding her own, which makes it harder. She does have both urine and bowl accidents in the house, she is limited to just the 1st floor now, we need to pull my son's rug up she has had so many accidents in his room. She has also "snapped" at me twice, once while brushing her and another as I looked at her long nail that was bothering her. The pacing that occurs after a seizure, do not be fooled, it is a sign of discomfort or pain. I don't want to keep her around for my comfort/happiness if she is in any sort of pain. In an old dog, no amount of honey or phenobarbitol will keep them around. I just hope I have the courage to do right by Jasper before she is in too much discomfort. Good luck to all...
12yrs old has had 3 seizures hes a mutt i am going to try
honey .that might work . its worth a try???1 a month ago
than 2 yesderday? foams from the mouth. saliva thick.
My dog had 4-6 grand-mal seizures per day. The vet put him on homemade food for another reason and he never had another seizure!!!!! Get off dry dog food ASAP. Use:
Eggs (cooked lightly), chicken, cooked/raw carrots, canned tomatoes, spinch, broccoli, celery, beef, rice, oatmeal, (easy on the carbs)and cottage cheese. Also his lost hair returned beautifully and those fatty lumps under the skin disappeared in 4-6 months.
Hi I am new to this and my dog has a fix 3 days ago, do these posts get answered. I have questions I would like to ask others in the same boat.
I am reading so much and getting so confused.
My chuwawa has regular seizures and the sight hurts my heart. Is it cruel to let the little rascal continue down this rough hard pathway for a lifetime? I am getting more upset at the onset of each outbreak becomes more frequent and she looks as if pain and the 1000 yard stare becomes longer? However, there has been no mention of euthanasia in any articles. I J need some direction!
have a 13 year old lab who has paralyzed trachea and takes thyroid medicine. I keep him in an air condition room during the heat and I only let him outside in the early morning or night time to do his business unless we have a cooler afternoon then he goes out to.
he drink excessive amount of water if left to his own he will drink until his abdomen is bloated. He is other words almost drowns himself. all his blood work show nothing wrong except for his thyroids that he takes him meds for. Last year while tending to my horse he came over and puked up water and then falls down and just lays there and one min later he gets up like nothing happened. another time he was walking over to me while walking my horse out of his stall and noticed he seemed off , so I turn around and run my horse back into his stall. He was down on the ground with no real bad breathing sound and laid there and one min latter he was up again like nothing happened. Now in the past 2 weeks he did this twice except some thing have changed. I gave him one cup of water and then he goes outside to pee and then he comes in the house and pukes the water up and then stumbles into my daughter room and falls down and stretched out and I was calling him and petted him and was sure he was dying. So I go to call my husband and tell him junior died, and then I hear him barking and go into the bedroom and he was standing up and acting like nothing happened. Just yesterday I was awaken by hearing hard breathing and he already had a bowel movement on the floor and looks at me and fall down and he lays there and pees allot urine all over the floor and I then one min later he gets up like nothing happened. he does have bad breath but have always bought high quality meat based dog food. i now soak his dog food and spread it out threw out the day in order for he won't choke and I also started feeding can food with his food and giving him wild alaska salmon oil for his coat. besides the can food added now he has been feed the same food without a problem. my other dogs are doing well on the food. does this sound like a seizure he doesn't go anything like I have seen other dogs seizure. he just had blood work again and finds nothing wrong with him besides what we already know. the vet said phenobarbital to help his seizures but not sure does anyone else have any ideas?
My Boston Terrier Female is 14 and she just had her first seizure on potassium bromide. Me and my girlfriend just got her three months back because her owner could no longer care for her. This was her 4th seizure and by far the worst and longest(around 2-3 minutes). She paced some when she had the first three but not like she is pacing now. Does that mean the seizure was in fact the worst and how long before she can go to sleep? She is such a sweet dog and I hate watching her go through this. Thanks and I hope everyones dog(s) on here are doing great.
My dog is half shiatzu/maltese. He is 15 and has cushing disease. He has had 4 siezures. The first he was running in back yard and then fell over and gave out a loud scream. He eventually got up and walked it off. The second was 8 days later, same happened. The third was 12 days later, same again. The vet took him off the cushings medication and put him emediately on Heart Tablets. He takes one every morning and evening. He did not have another siezure until Tuesday. The reason I believe was he had been unwell for 3 days and the VET took him off the heart tablets. He has been back on them since Tuesday evening and touch wood all is good. What I have learnt when he has a siezure is get close where he/she can see you and in a calming voice incourage he/she to get up. This has worked twice now with siezures only lastin 30 seconds to 1 minute, much better then the first two. I hope this helps.
Our dog Vinnie developed siezures. First it was maybe once every 2-3 months. Then it got more frequent. The vet put him on pheno barbitol which helped some but eventually he died of liver failure.
My 11 year old yellow lab had 5 seizures last week for the first time. We took her to a vet while we were vacationing, and it was a horrible experience. He suggested they were normal. We followed up with our vet once we got home and they tested her for lyme disease which she has had in the past. My vet suggested the seizures can be a side effect of the lyme especially since she is older now. We hope the lyme medication helps and the seizures stop.
I would suggest when seizures are sudden with your pets ask for your dog to be tested for lyme.
My mini dachshund who is 8 years old had his first seizure tonight. About 1 min. long. Called the vet and they said to keep an eye on him for the night. I'm scared to death. It's like watching a child and there's nothing you can do to help.
Thanks to all the posts here! My 9 year old black lab/shepard mix started acting funny about 3 weeeks ago. The first night she would stand and lift up her front paw. The second night she was lifting up the other paw. The third night she was standing in the living room and all the sudden wobbled and fell down. I took her to the vet and they did all sorts of physcial tests and blood tests on her and he said he couldn't find anything. She also started losing weight.
She got better and seemed ok, not quite back to her old self, but ok for the next three weeks, then at the end of last week she had another wobble and fall down episode.
Last night she all the sudden started barking/crying incessantly and running (more like slinking because her coordination was totally off) around the house for about 15 minutes. She lost control of her bladder and bowels and ended up on her side in the middle of the kitchen floor on her side with stiff legs just crying.
I took her to the emergency vet and she said it is probably a brain tumor. A $2000 MRI is the only way to confirm it, so I am now waiting for a call from her vet to see what he recommends. She has been lethargic all day today and hasn't eaten. It is so heartbreaking seeing her this way, but she has brought so much joy to our family since we picked her up off the side of the road, abandoned and abused, 8 years ago.
I hope this post helps others who may be worried about their puppies and point them in the right direction!
My 3 year old chihuahua x mini foxi has now been on seizure tablets for just over a week. It all started with her bitting the air (flybitting). She had a blood test and all came in good. The flybitting would start early morning until very late at nite. It would get the full on her lil eyes would water alot! From here on is trial and error and hope that shes going to be ok. Shes my world.
Words can't express my gratitude at stumbling on this webpage. I have a 7 month old black labrador. She's adored and has 2 very happy children to play with her. We only had her a month when she had an epic fitting episode 2 days after being micro-chipped. Unfortunately for us, she'd come with free insurance for 1 month, and after the jabs we got free pet insurance. We read the small print but took no notice of it. After her seizure we realised we weren't covered and hence have had to pay a hefty sum for vet's fees. We couldn't afford MRI scans but paid for all other tests (liver shunt, blood tests, etc) and they all came back positive. I came across advice on this page to give honey everymorning with her meal and she was doing well until last weekend when I went away and left her with other half and kids. She found and gorged on a bag of sweets! The following day the window cleaners came. An epic fitting episode ensued (to date I'm unsure where it's the sugar from the sweets or the surprise from window cleaners) and she's not been the same ever since. She fitted all day and night and I took her to the vets who kept her overnight. They upped her phenobarbitone dosage to double. She's now very upset, whining, pacing, panting, drooling and jumpy at any sudden noises. I absolutely adore her. She has been by my side since she came to live with us. She's my baby and I cannot contemplate having her put down as the vets have suggested. I can only relate to the anguish others on this site have gone through. We get so attached to our pets and they are the most endearing of nature. It's sad to see them suffer but we can only try and make them as comfortable as we can. We were due to go on holiday this week but have had to cancel as she's still not with it. She's only 7 months old but to be honest if she lives to be 2 that'll be a mega bonus. We make the most of it with our beloved.
Linda, I read your story and cried. My min pin would have been 14 in November and I had to put him down on 7/8 because of seizures, too! He had his first seizure on tuesday for about 1 minute and then was fine. Two days later he took another one so I took him to the vet. He checked his blood sugar (he was diabetic for the past 6 years but was well regulated) and it was fine. When I went to pay and leave, my dog had another seizure. He gave him valium and phenobarbitol and told me that it didn't look good since his labs were fine. I took my baby home and he paced and panted till 2:30am! He finally fell asleep on my lap and was up within 25 minutes panting. I put him down and he took about 10 steps and started seizing again. It was awful. I rushed him to the animal hospital and had him euthanized. It was very sad, but I am grateful for having him for so long and just keep telling myself that it was his time. He was spoiled rotten and had a great life. Those are the things I think about when I feel sad. I knew he was old, but he was pretty healthy and it really stinks that he was happy and healthy one day and gone the next. It's hard to deal with. I do have another min pin who is 13yo and very depressed that his buddy is gone. I give him extra love now and hope that the same thing doesn't happen to him.
I had to have my 14 and a half year old mini pin put down Saturday. I came home from town and she seemed fine. She got under her favorite blanket with me and was sleeping. I got up and walked out side and my granddaughter came to the door and said Hannah was acting funny and shaking all over. I was absolutely shocked when I saw her seizing!! She was shaking all over, her tongue was sticking out and very red, she had peed and pooed while seizing. She was paddling her legs!! I lost it. Had never seen anything like it before. After a few seconds she seemed ok. But she continued to have them throughout the nite. After a long one she paced all over the house. I picked her up and it was like she was still pacing and wanted down. She did this for over an hour. By morning she had several seizures and at that point knew me again and cuddled up around my neck. Then she began whining and howling, barking like she was in very bad pain. I couldnt stand it any longer watching her suffer so I had my son and his girlfriend to take her to the vet. They said shed be gone by 1;00 pm. Dont know what happened but she passed at 10:44 am with help from the vet. She went easy so I know it was her time to go!! She had been tripping over her front feet for awhile and running her nose in the floor but I thought it was old age. She also had knots on both sides of her hips then the end of her tail stubb swelled up really big. It would go down some then swell up again. If anyone has any insite on this please email me so maybe I can understand what happened. God I miss her soooo bad!! She was my little girl for 14 and a half years!!! RIP Hannah Nanna!!! 07/20/1996 to 07/09/2011!!!!!
I have a chocolate lab, he is 6 years old. When I first got him at about 8 months, I was sitting in the floor playing with him and he went into a seizure. It only lasted for about a minute, but it was a long minute. Then today we were at the lake on the barge and he went into another seizure this one lasted for about 5 minutes. It was very scarey. He hadn't had one in so long. It seemed to take him a good t -10 minutes to over come the wobbling. I thought that I was going to lose him for sure. But now 2 hours later he seems to be doing fine.
my shitshu had a seizures yesterday. she is 10 yrs old. she had never had one before. don t know what could have caused her to have a fit. anyone with any answers please let us no. she is still at the vet and doesnt have movement in her hind legs. how long does this go on?
After a dog has a seizure will it lay still with it's eyes open nit moving anything for a half hour or more afterwards?
I have a male chihuahua and now and again he has a seizure, he had one today for an example he aslo was sick and he pooed aswell is there anything i can do for him as the vet recommends to give him an injection when he is having a seizure but it is quiet expensive can you help me please.
My 9 yr. old yellow lab just died and I'm having a real hard time accepting it. I imagine seeing her in her favorite places around the house just sitting with her fronts paws crossed watching the family doing things around the house and hearing her bark with excitement each morning when we take the kids to school. She just loves riding in the front seat of the car. I did not know about dog seizures until she had one during one evening that occurred like every 15 to 30 minutes and continued on till morning. Prior to this, her vet diagnosed her as having diabetes and bladder infection, so she was on medications. I was concerned about the amount of medications she's getting. At first, she had blood in her urine, had pains in her back legs, then started vomiting, loss her appetite, her poop all black, and later on, there was blood in it. After a number of visits to the vet and over a thousand dollars in vet bills, he told us about having an MRI done because our pet was not getting any better. We opted for the first option to out her on pills that's suppose to increase her appetite and stop vomiting while continuing with the insulin shots. Just a few days, the seizure happened. It was scary for all of us. I stayed up all night next to her, cleaning her and changing blankets when she has urine and vowel movements which were all runny and had blood. She was awake most of the time, just blankly staring at me. My husband made a difficult decision that we should have her put to sleep because the seizures were clearly putting her in great pain. After doing some reading I wonder why the vet has never recommended any medication to at least ease/lessen the seizures, never asked to describe the seizure. The vet said they could keep her overnight, but my husband made the decision to end our pet's pain and suffering. Seeing her not able to stand up or eat was just too much. I felt we were not well informed by the vet about our pet's overall condition. I wished we were told about the MRI scan right at the beginning where we could have spent most the money rather than having spent it all on visits and consults and medications which did not do any good at all because we have no idea up to now how come she never got better in spite of all the medications we had given her. I wished the vet had at least mentioned about the possibility of our dog having a seizure, educate us about it at least, then I could have done some research about it. It happened so fast. I thought the seizure was the last stage in my pet's life, that there is no more cure. Had I known, putting her to sleep would not be the option we have taken. I missed her a lot. This summer will not be fun without her. She loves lots of attention and always wants to please.
My 6yr old golden lab had his boosters plus kennel cough treatment today and an hour and a half later gave a horrible cry then went into a seizure in our back garden for nerly 3 minutes. I phoned the vet but as he was coming out of it i was told to wait and see if he had any more problems. He is absolutely fine now but i was scared out my wits!! Vet doesnt think its related to his vaccine but i have my doubts!
My male boxer of about 11 years or so has been having seizers since Jan 2011. He had them about once a month and in the last two months he has them every two weeks or so. I had blood work done, everything came back normal. There are some possible underlying causes, tumor, etc and the vet wanted to run test and put him on meds. I declined as I do not want him having side-effects, which will make him uncomfortable. Vet was pissed but who cares.
Since Jan with the Vet, I did some research. I feed him every 5 or so hours, about a 1/4 cup of dry food and chicken or oatmeal. I keep a jar of peanut butter and give it to him if he starts to have the shakes....or acts like a "Drunk'n" sailor, as when he wobbles or looses balance. He recovers fast from those episodes. He will have a full seizer, stiffness, balder release, heavy breathing, legs in a swimming motion, foam of the mouth that last about 1 min. When he has those full seizers, I lay him on my concrete floor (Stiff as a board) to make sure he doesnt hurt himself. I wait for the leg motion to stop and while he is still foaming and breathing heavy, I rub some honey on his gums. I let him work it our. He comes to and then I feed him some peanut butter and a 1/4 cup of food with fresh water. He will wonder around, not knowing where he is, smelling things and he will have tremors, drunk n sailor motions and loose his balance. Once he calms down a little (about an half hour later, I have him rest on his bed....he finally regains his old self as if nothing happen.
His gums are still bright pink, he walks fine, no loss of eyesight, gets his energy going from time to time (like all old dogs), his "pop" is the right color and there seems to be no other indicators of his health going south.
He is an old man 77 and all good years. I will treat him holistically as long as I can and I pray he goes in his sleep or during a fit with no pain.
It has required me to adjust to a new sleeping pattern, waking up every 4 to 5 hours, making sure I have a dog nanny when I can be there in 4 hours to feed him. But, he is a fighter, he is still the leader of my pack of 3 boxers and I think he will fight it til the end.
my dog is 8 years old , has always been healthy but the last 4 weeks he started having seizures he has been put on phenobarbital his dose has been increased as he was hospitalized after having more seizures , he still has had a few fits 3 big ones and many smaller ones , i know they can happen until they get the right dose for him but i would like to know if anyone can tell me if this has happened to them is it normal ??? also my dog looks vacant alot of the time and sleeps an awful lot his personality seems to be supressed he was so lively before this , im so worried i dont sleep i CANT AND WONT leave him alone hes my babes can anyone suggest anything my heads in bits
To Quigley,
I have an Australian Shepard/Chow mix who is 2yrs old. He started having cluster seizures a year ago. I have had him to NC State Vet Hospital/School; he has been on various meds, etc. I would be glad to talk with you about him and your dog.
Feel free to contact me at jmb289@gmail.com
Hi, I've just had to put my 4year old border collie down after she began taking seizures after returning from a walk, she took 4 in the space of gettin her from the house into vets (30mins) and continued to take them at the vets over the space of 24hrs everytime the sedation wore off. She never came back round from any seizure. The vet concluded although couldn't give me accurate diagnoses that it was a lesion on her brain, like maybe a tumor, stroke, bloodclot or something. So it was decided that it was best for her to be put to sleep. She lived a fully normal happy life and was no signs of any illness until this.
My 3 year old female lab, unfixed, had a seizure yesterday. She seems to not hear as well as before and doesn't have that "pep" in her step. Will she get that back or is this permanent? I am worried about her. Please let me know your thoughts.
theres always the chance of it being caused by worms or most likely is distemper
:( ::anvay:: am sorry to hear that.
I don't have a dog, I had a tom cat :). but I sadly had to give him away.
Thank you for sharing a useful hub, its wanderful just by seeing the comments have oppened up a whole world of discussionas so now you can all help each other :)
amazing, HAppy follower
chris 25 hours ago
I found out that giving my dog table scraps cause him to have siezures. When he eats only dog foos than he is fine.