# seizures



## Countryboy (May 16, 2011)

As long as you keep seizures to that regularity, every three months, you have things under control. Yes, sometime you may want to start him on Phenobarb, but no rush really. 

I noticed no sluggishness in Tonka.


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## 3sps (Feb 5, 2012)

Thanks for the reassurance Country Boy. I will call my vet to let her know of the seizure and we will probably wait and watch before starting meds. You said your Tonka had no sluggishness. Does that mean he was on Phenobarb? Does he have seizures?


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## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

One of my pugs couldn't handle the phenobarbitol, so we put her on Potassium Bromide. If phenobarb doesn't work for you, you might want to ask your vet about it.

I'm sorry this is happening...I know it is scary!


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## Summerhouse (Jun 12, 2015)

It sounds a bit like Stargazing, stargazer syndrome, flycatcher syndrome all the same thing just different names.

I know in some cases taking skullcap and valerian can help if that is what it is. Which doesn't have the side effects of some of the prescription drugs. Of course consult your vet first.
Buy Scullcap & Valerian Tablets for Dogs and Cats - Dorwest | UK

These links are from a schnauzer forum but there's lots of info you may find useful. There's a couple of videos so you can see if it's similar behaviour

Star gazing ??? ? Healthcare and Welfare ? The Schnauzer Forum

Stargazing? ? Healthcare and Welfare ? The Schnauzer Forum


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

My chihuahua is almost 11 and we saw her having seizures 3-4 times. I asked the vet and she said there wasn't much to do, so she's not medicated. Since she's alone during the day, I can't be sure but I don't think she's had other ones. 

So maybe it'll be the same for your dog. Very occasionnal and random ones. I hope so.


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## TrixieTreasure (May 24, 2015)

I know all about a dog with seizures. Trina started with them at 4 months of age and continued all of her life. Phenobarb and Potassium Bromide 3x a day. But hers were definitely more frequent and she needed to be on meds for sure in order to have a decent life. But Country Boy is right, with it being every 3 months like that, it should be okay. What bothers me is the length of time that your boy is having them . 10 to 12 minutes is way too long. Is he actually having the seizure for that long, or is it from the time he starts to the time that he's finally okay again? Seizures lasting more than a couple of minutes is alarming. In fact, 2 minutes is also too long. My Trina would have one for 60 seconds, and then jump up and start being wobbly and walking into things ( kind of like a drunk would). Even though her seizure lasted only a minute, it took her a good 15 minutes before she actually could feel okay again.

Trina had the gran mal seizures quite frequently and that's why she had to be on meds three times a day. She would sometimes have 3 or 4 in a 12 hour period. When that happened and her seizures were bad, rectal Valium was needed to help slow the seizures and to help stop them.

I'm sorry that you and your boy are having to deal with this, but as infrequent as it is, I think you're okay. I would still contact the vet though to let them know, plus always document everything. Being a nurse, I know you know that.


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## TrixieTreasure (May 24, 2015)

Oh, one more thing, when Trina first started on Pheno, it took a long time to figure out the right dosage for her. When first being on it, the dog is sedated for quite a long time. Not really with it, and always wanting to sleep. I can't remember now how long it took Trina to finally get used to the Pheno, and for us to find the right dosage, but after we did, things were somewhat better for her.


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## ApricotsRock (Jan 10, 2014)

I second Trixie on they are sleepy until you get the dosage correct.

My first guy was on phenobarb most of his life - two a day and then if he had a seizure another one.

I tried to keep him out of stressful situations as I could pretty much predict that too much was going to send him into one. 

I can't remember now how frequently he had them (over 20 years ago) but I do remember the phenobarb really did help. 

Take care of yourself too. I used to get so upset and stressed over my baby.


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## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

This was Loomis with Isabel and Emilio. You can see how big he was.


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## Coco86 (Oct 23, 2014)

Our 6 and a half year old toy poodle Rosie has had random seizures since at least August 2013. She started on Phenobarbital in December 2013 and has been on one pill a day ever since. She tolerates it very well and has a lot of energy. It also improved her appetite. She is on a low dose, though, so not sure if that makes a difference in behavior. 

Her seizures are the type where she starts shaking and then cranes her head upward and falls over. We believe they are brought on by stress because they are known to happen during the holiday season, family get togethers, or times of stress in the family.


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## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

N2Mischief said:


> This was Loomis with Isabel and Emilio. You can see how big he was.


I just realized this posted here, it was not supposed to be on this thread. I apologize, I don't know why it posted here, I would remove it if I could:argh:


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

3sps - I sent you a PM.


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## TrixieTreasure (May 24, 2015)

N2Mischief, don't worry about it. Everyone makes mistakes.


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## DavidT (Apr 15, 2010)

Hi,

We have had years of experience with our male SP. The one drug that has stopped the seizures for us is Zonisimide. Absolutely no seizures as long as he is on it. The only side affect that we have noticed is that he doesnt show as much energy as he once did

Hope this helps,

David


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## 3sps (Feb 5, 2012)

*seizure #3*

Well - 4 months since the last seizure - as far as we know as they have been silent. He had his first one about 7 months ago. 

Last Friday evening he went to get into his bed in the family room and started seizing - similar to the first one but this time I could really see him and watch the timing. he remained lying on his stomach with his head up, turning it side to side and looking but not seeing, trembling.it lasted a total of 7 minutes. 

We called the vet yesterday so they also have a record.I have been watching him for the last two days (and nights - sort of) and nothing. I worry that he is having them when we are not home as he doesn't pee so there has no tell tale evidence. Anyway - so far he is fine - was a bit clingy Saturday but since then all OK. 

It is so hard to watch a seizure! He is so sweet and looks so bewildered afterward. 

One good thing - Stella just sat by my husband and watched him - 
I was worried she might try to attack him during it. Anyone have any experience with that?


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## RylieJames (Feb 3, 2016)

The two most important things when you're dog is seizing: (1) make sure they're safe (they don't fall off a couch/bed/etc., bite their tongue, obstructed airway, they're not bumping into things, etc.); and (2) make sure you stay calm. The second thing is hard, but it is really important that you don't get upset because your dog will sense it. If you're calm, it will help your dog remain calm through the event.

My standard starting having seizures at about 1 year old. She would have them occasionally about 3-6 times a year. They usually weren't too long--about 5 minutes max. At first we would bring her to the vet after each seizure, but once we knew what we were dealing with, we would just call them instead so they could document it in her chart.

When she was 13, her seizures started getting longer (around 10 minutes), much more violent, and more frequent. After her third seizure in less than 2 months, the vet determined it would be time to put her on meds. We started with the Phenobarbital. At first, she was very dopy. It took a while to get the right dosage, and things improved. But she was still weak on her feet. It didn't help that she was an older dog with decreasing muscle mass either. The combination meant she would fall into things and flop on the floor. She started getting cuts/sores from where her bones would hit when she fell.

So, we worked with the vet to get her on a different medication. With the new meds, she was much stronger and stopped falling over all the time. The meds also worked just as well to prevent the seizures. The downside was that with the new meds, she had to drink and pee a lot. Literally, she would have to go every 2-3 hours; it was like having a puppy again. This meant walking her multiple times throughout the night and going back to puppy pads for when we would leave the house. It was a lot of work taking care of her for the year and a half that she was on the meds. But, it was well worth it to keep her around and in relatively good health.

Overall, my suggestion first and foremost is to have an open dialogue with your vet. Hearing my opinion (as well as others' opinions) is great--but we don't know your dogs particular case. With that being said, from my experience, I would suggest keeping your dog off meds for as long as it is safe. The meds do have side effects and long term use can cause other issues besides what I've described. So, your dog's seizures have to be bad/frequent enough that the downside of the meds are worth the benefit. Again, this is stuff you should discuss with your vet. If your vet does suggest to hold off on the meds, I would hope my story would support the idea that a standard can live a long happy life with seizures without medication.


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## TrixieTreasure (May 24, 2015)

Coco86 said:


> Our 6 and a half year old toy poodle Rosie has had random seizures since at least August 2013. She started on Phenobarbital in December 2013 and has been on one pill a day ever since. She tolerates it very well and has a lot of energy. It also improved her appetite. She is on a low dose, though, so not sure if that makes a difference in behavior.
> 
> Her seizures are the type where she starts shaking and then cranes her head upward and falls over. We believe they are brought on by stress because they are known to happen during the holiday season, family get togethers, or times of stress in the family.




Loud noises is what would bring on seizures for Trina. Pans falling to the floor or having the TV turned up too loudly. And then again, they would come on her even when the house was quiet. Hubby and I learned early on just to keep everything nice and as quiet as possible in our home. When relatives came to visit, I would put Trina in another room. Our lives were pretty much at a standstill, for Trina's sake. When you have a dog who has seizures, your life will change considerably. But that was very much okay with us. We were committed to Trina and wanted to make her life as easy as possible. We wouldn't have had it any other way. ❤


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## TrixieTreasure (May 24, 2015)

RylieJames said:


> The two most important things when you're dog is seizing: (1) make sure they're safe (they don't fall off a couch/bed/etc., bite their tongue, obstructed airway, they're not bumping into things, etc.); and (2) make sure you stay calm. The second thing is hard, but it is really important that you don't get upset because your dog will sense it. If you're calm, it will help your dog remain calm through the event.
> 
> My standard starting having seizures at about 1 year old. She would have them occasionally about 3-6 times a year. They usually weren't too long--about 5 minutes max. At first we would bring her to the vet after each seizure, but once we knew what we were dealing with, we would just call them instead so they could document it in her chart.
> 
> ...



Wonderful and very informative post! 

The only thing I'd like to add is, along with open communication with your vet, it's VERY important to do your research. When Trina first started with her seizures, I had about 8 or 9 websites that helped me understand what seizures were, the different types of seizures, and just how to live with a dog that had seizures. There are MANY sites on the internet that will help an owner to understand and be prepared. Knowing about seizures and knowing how to act and react when your dog has them, will help both of you greatly.


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## Khaleesiandthepoms (Feb 25, 2014)

My dog Tiger is a seizure dog and has been since he was a puppy, due to a genetic neurological disorder possibly worsened by head trauma his first owner inflicted. In the 6 years I've owned him I've learned a lot about seizures. First what may help is to time the seizure and even record it, this sounds terrible I'm sure but it will give the vet a visual to better identify the seizure type and better determine if medication is necessary. 

Something that can greatly shorten a seizure I learned from my holistic vet: ice. Ice placed on your dog's spine between the shoulder blades or even right below it has been proven to reduce a seizure's length by giving those firing nerve impulses different stimuli. Turn off the lights, secure the area clearing pets and furniture or other items that can hurt the dog or cause them to fall away from them, get the room quiet, the less sensory stimuli the better.

I also decided to take my dog off of the phenobarbital he was given by his first vet, I didn't want to risk liver damage and he'd seemed to just be sleeping way too much and when he was awake he wasn't alert and I didn't want a zombie for a dog, that's no life at all (not at all saying phenobarbital isn't a great solution for some seizing dogs but it didn't work for my dog) and my holistic vet suggested raw as high protein diets have been shown to reduce seizures in 90% of dogs as well. He hasn't had a single seizure since he was taken off his meds and started on raw 4 years ago.


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## 3sps (Feb 5, 2012)

Thank you everyone, once again. I have now talked with our two vets - different offices and different backgrounds. They both agree with our wait and see approach re. meds. They both also agree that it is probably epilepsy but it is not harmful to start eliminating things that might be related. After the first seizure odie had labs done but it was over 24 hours later. All the labs were looked at by both vets and declared fine.

We are going back to our original dog food but that is the only change we are making as of now. We had started a different food about a month before the seizures started in August and it included fish which we had not fed before. Our Sadie died about 5 days after Odie's first seizure. While we don't think they are related we thought to do this one thing now, just in case. That was the only thing that we had done differently prior to his seizure. Sadie was elderly and failing and basically just laid down and let go of life, so we didn't do any autopsy or lab work after her death. She just stopped eating and didn't show any signs of seizure activity then or any other time and had no sign of any other condition that woudl have led to her death (Anemia, belly issues, edema etc. Unfortunately through the years we have seen all sorts of illnesses and traumas so I feel that it was not related to any illness, poisoning or trauma and our vet agreed.)

It is a good idea about videoing the seizure. hopefully we will nto see one soon but if so we will do that.

Thank you everyone!


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