2 grand mal seizures in a row....

[babalubird]

Years ago, I had a collie/retreiver mix that got hit in the head by a car which started siezures.

Yes, as she got older, the siezures were longer with a longer recovery period as you described.

Hopefully, meds are given more responsibly now, I don't know. The vet put her on such a strong med from the get-go, she was a zomby all the time. I chose to take her off and we just endured the siezures until I lost her.

Connie

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

Even with people, doctors would rather have medicated zombies than a seizure every now an then. I has 2 the other week. Mind you I'm getting my teeth pulled around the same time. It was my first ones in about 7 years. 5 of which was non medicated. The ER said there was nothing new in my brain scan but I had to start taking meds again, stop driving an an start seeing a neurologist again....... I threw it in the trash an have been fine. I have a few every 5 to 10 years an they always try to pull my DL an turn me in to a zombie. I never do what they say an I'm fine for years at a time.

 

[horsejody]

Rebelcowboy is right about the flea stuff. Frontline and all of those chemicals are terrible for epileptic dogs. Also, don't use fabreze on anything and never use cleaners with a name that inds with "sol" (pinesol, lysol, etc.). Especially don't use those cleaners on the floor or any place that the dog spens a lot of time. The manufacturer, and even some vets, will tell you otherwise, but if you read the epileptic dog forums, you will discover that owners have found differently.

Also, did your dog happen to have a distemper shot within 45 days of the onset of this problem? I ask because some dogs do have a reaction of swelling in the brain if the live virus distemper vaccine is used. We don't know if Leo's problem is genetic or vaccine related, but he did have the shot shortly before his first seizure. A few dogs have a rare reaction to the live virus and swelling is caused in the brain, and it can take up to 45 days. The killed vaccine has risked too because it is mixed with ingredients that many dogs have allergic reactions to. Of course, not vaccinating is a poor option too because it's a horrible disease.

 

[horsejody]

Quote:
FYI, my vet told me that dogs that start a pattern of having seizures at night, almost always don't have them during the day. Look for signs before going to bed. Does the dogs seem clingly or needy acting? Does he act strange and keep wanting to go outside or be a room he doesn't normally spend time in? Is he overly active and lot more playful than usual right before bed? Does he do any of the OCD stuff like snapping at invisible flies, smacking his lips or wierd eating (eating like he is starving and gorging himself, or eating grass, rocks, dirt, etc.)? Is he just staring at you a lot like he really wants your attention? Does he show any unusual anxiety problems like tail chasing? Does he normally sleep on the floor or at the end of the bed, but suddenly want to sleep closer to you? There are often signs. You'll need to learn what his are. Some dogs have triggers that set them off, like stress, barometric pressure or certain foods. Every vet that I've talked to has told me that studies have shown that an appropriate vitamin can help. They all seem to reccommend one called Dynalode because it was used in a seizure study and shown to help reduce the seizures. Leo is a 20 pound dog, and he takes 1 1/2 tablets of it per day.

If you ever see your dog exhibiting strange behaviors or acting confused, don't let other pets or children near them. A dog in this state is prone to biting because their hearing, vision and smell are often distorted. The toddler that they normally love can be mistaken for an attacking enemy. Dogs in this state are prone to aggressive behavior if startled. Once, after a particularly bad seizure, Leo didn't seem to even know his name or his friends for 2 days.

 

[PintoPasoFino]

Interesting discussion, I am learning a lot!

Anyone have any insights to what this may be? I am thinking they might be small seizures.

Not often, my small dog has what I think is a seizure. He appears to know it is coming as he comes to me and wants to be held. His muscles stiffen up, and he usually holds one front paw up. He growls and gets angry if one of the other dogs comes near. Last about 30 seconds if not shorter, then stands for a minute, his legs look a bit wobbly, then just goes on his way.

He is 9, this started about 2 years ago. Is not frequent, seems to be triggered by stress. My vet has examined him and has chosen not to medicate at this time.

 

[horsejody]

Quote:
Yes, my friend had a doxie that had seizures like exactly like that. He was recently put to sleep because of congetive heart failure. The heart problems were because of a tumor on his heart. As it turned out, the tumor was probably the cause of the seizures, but it went undetected by the vet for years. I would recommend very strongly that any animal with seizures should see a specialist. Most general practice vets know very little about the cause of seizures and don't have the specialized equipment to diagnose the cause.

 

[thebritt]

Althea got her distemper vax in July, but has had seizures before then. She tends to have them in clusters from 1 to 2 months apart, but once there was a 3 month period with none

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We have no children in the house (dd is 18).
Althea is my daughter's dog - she came to us as an abused rescue when dd was 10, and Althea was 4 mos old. They've done agility together for 7 years - Althea has 2 or 3 titles. This dog lives for my daughter, so it's hard to tell when she's being "needy", as she follows her everywhere when she's home anyway. Sometimes I think she seeks attention from me because she may feel a seizure coming on, but then she doesn't have one.

 

[horsejody]

Does she have the more often during certain seasons? Watch the barometric pressure.

 

[Wifezilla]

Diet can effect seizures. In people, a very low carbohydrate diet is used to treat children with epilepsy that doesn't respond to medication. I would get a high protein, low carb, no corn, soy or wheat dog food and see if that helped.

 

[thebritt]

Quote:
This last cluster did coincide with a drop in the barometric pressure. I'm starting to think there's a correlation, but how to verify on a limited income (DH got laid off yesterday - 1st time in his life that he's been unemployed)?