Riley had a seizure... it was terrifying - Page 2

LifeofRiley · 12-27-2012, 10:13 PM

Nigel,

I would love to know more about your dog. How often did he have seizures.. once a year, twice a year? How severe... i.e. were you able to time them? What advice were you given from your vet?

I want to do what is best for my dog. To do so, it is helpful for me to understand other people's experiences with and without medication.

Thank you in advance for your response,
Anne

LifeofRiley · 12-27-2012, 10:38 PM

To all,

Thank you for all of your well wishes. I will keep everyone posted on what happens with my dog. In so doing, I hope to be of service to current and future dog owners who have the same very scary experience.

-Anne

TankGrrl66 · 12-27-2012, 10:42 PM

My dog has had a lot of seizures...

She had two within a month, the day after the 2nd one she had blood work and a bile acids test done. Both came back normal.

She was put on phenobarb, and her seizures became more predictable. But, they continued. She had a level done, and it was a bit low. After an episode of clusters, we upped her dose slightly (this drug is hard on the liver) and started her on levitiracetam. In case of another episode of clusters, I need to have valium on hand just in case.

She is doing very well, but we are still working on it. It has not even been close to a year since her first seizure, but we are making decent progress. As I have learned, this breed is apparently notorious for having difficult to manage epilepsy.

So far so good. I was very spooked having to legally get her re-vaccinated (rabies vac is absolutely required where I live), but she had no issues and no fits after getting the vac., so I have no idea what opinion to have on that.

I really hope this was an isolated thing for him, or if not, that he has very infrequent episodes!

TankGrrl66 · 12-27-2012, 10:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GatorBytes

Magnesium -L/U for seizures

-L/U

Forgive my ignorance, but what exactly does that stand for?

LifeofRiley · 12-27-2012, 10:58 PM

TankGrrl66,

Thank you for your story! I'm really still traumatized by the episode. I am hoping my dog has had an isolated event, even though I know that is probably not how it will unfold.... i.e. vet and neurologist unable to find an environmental or metabolic cause and thus it is likely idiopathic epilepsy which means that it will likely happen again!

So, assuming the worst, how did you know putting your dog on medication was the best solution? How often did the seizures occur? How long did they last? What was her post-seizure behavior like? How long did it take for her to recover from the seizure?

How about side-effects from medications? What has your experience been?

GatorBytes · 12-27-2012, 11:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TankGrrl66

-L/U

Forgive my ignorance, but what exactly does that stand for?

Look Up

**Lauri & The Gang** · 12-27-2012, 11:05 PM

Canine Epilepsy Resources

That is THE website for information on canine epilepsy.

Our Cocker, Tazer, had IE - Idiopathic Epilepsy. We did all the tests - nothing wrong with him.

He was diagnosed right before I switched everyone to a raw diet.

After that the only time Tazer had seizures is when he managed to get into a bunch of grains (like the time he swiped the loaf of bread off the kitchen counter) and when he had his Rabies shots.

**Lauri & The Gang** · 12-27-2012, 11:11 PM

Canine Epilepsy Resources

That is THE website for information on canine epilepsy.

Our Cocker, Tazer, had IE - Idiopathic Epilepsy. We did all the tests - nothing wrong with him.

He was diagnosed right before I switched everyone to a raw diet.

After that the only time Tazer had seizures is when he managed to get into a bunch of grains (like the time he swiped the loaf of bread off the kitchen counter) and when he had his Rabies shots.

GatorBytes · 12-28-2012, 12:20 AM

Five Vaccine Ingredients That Can Harm Your Dog

msvette2u · 12-28-2012, 01:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LifeofRiley

How long did they last? What was her post-seizure behavior like? How long did it take for her to recover from the seizure?

How about side-effects from medications? What has your experience been?

Although I am not Tank, I thought these links may help

http://www.canine-epilepsy.com/Graves.html

Canine Epilepsy Network

Epilepsy In Your Pet - Seizures In Dogs And Cats

12-27-2012, 11:05 PM	#17 (permalink)
Lauri & The Gang Moderator Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: SouthEastern WI Posts: 13,758	Canine Epilepsy Resources That is THE website for information on canine epilepsy. Our Cocker, Tazer, had IE - Idiopathic Epilepsy. We did all the tests - nothing wrong with him. He was diagnosed right before I switched everyone to a raw diet. After that the only time Tazer had seizures is when he managed to get into a bunch of grains (like the time he swiped the loaf of bread off the kitchen counter) and when he had his Rabies shots. __________________ Lauri & The Raw Fed Gang Raw Dog Ranch Winnie CGC - Corgi Mix Chimanes Spice it Up Piquin (Kaynya) - Chinese Crested Nator von Triton HIC CGC (Mauser) - LC GSD Piquins Some Like it Hot (Spike) – Chinese Crested Piquins Too Hot To Handle - (Fuego) - Chinese Crested Piquins Wasabi (Sabi) - Chinese Crested Piquins Super Hot (Clark) - Chinese Crested Banzai, Cloe, Mocha - Felines Extraordinaire Neke, Tessa, Remi, Sadie, Riggs, Sasha, Tazer - DK, Mozart, Zoe - Gone but not forgotten

12-27-2012, 11:11 PM	#18 (permalink)
Lauri & The Gang Moderator Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: SouthEastern WI Posts: 13,758	Canine Epilepsy Resources That is THE website for information on canine epilepsy. Our Cocker, Tazer, had IE - Idiopathic Epilepsy. We did all the tests - nothing wrong with him. He was diagnosed right before I switched everyone to a raw diet. After that the only time Tazer had seizures is when he managed to get into a bunch of grains (like the time he swiped the loaf of bread off the kitchen counter) and when he had his Rabies shots. __________________ Lauri & The Raw Fed Gang Raw Dog Ranch Winnie CGC - Corgi Mix Chimanes Spice it Up Piquin (Kaynya) - Chinese Crested Nator von Triton HIC CGC (Mauser) - LC GSD Piquins Some Like it Hot (Spike) – Chinese Crested Piquins Too Hot To Handle - (Fuego) - Chinese Crested Piquins Wasabi (Sabi) - Chinese Crested Piquins Super Hot (Clark) - Chinese Crested Banzai, Cloe, Mocha - Felines Extraordinaire Neke, Tessa, Remi, Sadie, Riggs, Sasha, Tazer - DK, Mozart, Zoe - Gone but not forgotten

12-28-2012, 12:20 AM	#19 (permalink)
GatorBytes Knighted Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Southern Ontario Posts: 2,152	Five Vaccine Ingredients That Can Harm Your Dog __________________ He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion. - Unknown

12-27-2012, 10:13 PM	#11 (permalink)
LifeofRiley Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 471	Nigel, I would love to know more about your dog. How often did he have seizures.. once a year, twice a year? How severe... i.e. were you able to time them? What advice were you given from your vet? I want to do what is best for my dog. To do so, it is helpful for me to understand other people's experiences with and without medication. Thank you in advance for your response, Anne

12-27-2012, 10:38 PM	#12 (permalink)
LifeofRiley Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 471	To all, Thank you for all of your well wishes. I will keep everyone posted on what happens with my dog. In so doing, I hope to be of service to current and future dog owners who have the same very scary experience. -Anne

12-27-2012, 10:42 PM	#13 (permalink)
TankGrrl66 Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: SoCal Posts: 397	My dog has had a lot of seizures... She had two within a month, the day after the 2nd one she had blood work and a bile acids test done. Both came back normal. She was put on phenobarb, and her seizures became more predictable. But, they continued. She had a level done, and it was a bit low. After an episode of clusters, we upped her dose slightly (this drug is hard on the liver) and started her on levitiracetam. In case of another episode of clusters, I need to have valium on hand just in case. She is doing very well, but we are still working on it. It has not even been close to a year since her first seizure, but we are making decent progress. As I have learned, this breed is apparently notorious for having difficult to manage epilepsy. So far so good. I was very spooked having to legally get her re-vaccinated (rabies vac is absolutely required where I live), but she had no issues and no fits after getting the vac., so I have no idea what opinion to have on that. I really hope this was an isolated thing for him, or if not, that he has very infrequent episodes!

12-27-2012, 10:58 PM	#15 (permalink)
LifeofRiley Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 471	TankGrrl66, Thank you for your story! I'm really still traumatized by the episode. I am hoping my dog has had an isolated event, even though I know that is probably not how it will unfold.... i.e. vet and neurologist unable to find an environmental or metabolic cause and thus it is likely idiopathic epilepsy which means that it will likely happen again! So, assuming the worst, how did you know putting your dog on medication was the best solution? How often did the seizures occur? How long did they last? What was her post-seizure behavior like? How long did it take for her to recover from the seizure? How about side-effects from medications? What has your experience been?

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