In article ,
sighthounds & siberians wrote:
I really wasn't trying to be obtuse. Usually lack of punctuation
doesn't completely paralyze my reading comprehension, but it did this
time.

I think the lack of punctuation wouldn't have been a problem
if the sentence had been grammatical, which it wasn't. I
read a lot of technical standards and specifications, so I
can plow my way through nearly anything. Just keep dropping
parentheses (for grouping) in there until it makes sense.
--
Melinda Shore - Software longa, hardware brevis -

Prouder than ever to be a member of the reality-based community

On 4 Aug 2007 08:34:39 -0400, (Melinda Shore) wrote:

In article ,
sighthounds & siberians wrote:
I really wasn't trying to be obtuse. Usually lack of punctuation
doesn't completely paralyze my reading comprehension, but it did this
time.

I think the lack of punctuation wouldn't have been a problem
if the sentence had been grammatical, which it wasn't. I
read a lot of technical standards and specifications, so I
can plow my way through nearly anything. Just keep dropping
parentheses (for grouping) in there until it makes sense.

I'll have to keep that tip in mind. My brother had some learning
disabilities which, coupled with an experimental phonetic program when
he was in grade school, made him an abysmal speller. I'm used to
deciphering his creative, unorthodox and inconsistent ways to spell
even the simplest words, but even he uses punctuation and halfway
decent grammar and sentence construction.

Mustang Sally

"A. Brain" said in
rec.pets.dogs.health:

My little dog "Simon" had precisely
this kind of problem--what are called
"idopathic" seizures.

Idiopathic - I'm correcting your typo because it may help the
OP in web searches.

Anyway, I suggest reading through my links:
http://www.rocky-dog.com/Links/LinksMenu.html#health

If the seizures are self-limiting
and do not involve such serious
consequences as urination
or defecation, I doubt that your
vet will prescribe anything.

Why?

If they become more frequent,

How frequent?

or for obvious reasons

Which are?

the dog starts losing control

Of what?

of things, some medication
might help.

Such as?

--
--Matt. Rocky's a Dog.

"Rocky" wrote in message
...
"A. Brain" said in
rec.pets.dogs.health:

My little dog "Simon" had precisely
this kind of problem--what are called
"idopathic" seizures.

Idiopathic - I'm correcting your typo because it may help the
OP in web searches.

Thanks. I guess there's no spellcheck here
or I have been neglecting it.
It was a typo. "Idiopathic" is a medical term
that refers to unknown cause of virtually
anything. The same term was used in describing
Chief Justice Roberts' seizure last week.



Anyway, I suggest reading through my links:
http://www.rocky-dog.com/Links/LinksMenu.html#health

If the seizures are self-limiting
and do not involve such serious
consequences as urination
or defecation, I doubt that your
vet will prescribe anything.

Why?

In part based on my experience with
Simon; in part because adjusting the
medication--typically Phenobarbitol
or other anti-seizure drugs--can be
tricky. In the course of Simon's
fatal bout with Fibrosarcoma, he had
a couple of seizures now and then,
especially when he was being radiated,
which was a huge waste of time and
money (a fibrosarcoma is a low-grade
tumor that acts like a high-grade one,
unresponsive to chemo or radiation,
but nevertheless aggressive and fast-
growing).

There was never anything in his
day-to-day life, such as frequent
seizures, that made medication
necessary or indicated.




If they become more frequent,

How frequent?

Well, Simon's were as often as
twice a month, but there may have
been unwitnessed seizures. So if
the frequency had been say twice
a week of witnessed seizures or
more, I think the prudent thing might
be to consider medication. As I
said, the danger is not from the seizures
themselves, but from collateral damage
if the dog suffers trauma from the effects
of his or her being out of control.

But if the seizures are more severe,
as in causing loss of control of functions,
that suggests the possible need of medication.




or for obvious reasons

Which are?

If the dog's seizures are so frequent or
serious enough that the dog loses control
and urinates or defecates while seizing.
That suggests a neurological severity
that medication could alleviate as well
as convenience issues for the dog's
family.


the dog starts losing control

Of what?


See above.

of things, some medication
might help.

Such as?

I still have Simon's prescription for
Phenobarbitol. But because of his
cancer, he was on a lot of other stuff
as well. His epilepsy was the least
of his problems in the final months.
It was never a concern for me except
when he had a seizure and like I said,
they were much more frightening to me
than they were dangerous to him.

I have written about him before here.
Had he not suffered the cancer, and
suffered from a seizure during a
radiation treatment (that was useless),
I never would have had a recommendation
for an anti-seizure drug for him. There
simply was no need, as I was told by
the first vet and several others I consulted.

Take a look at this wonderful little
dog here. He was the most agile
ballplayer I have ever seen. We could
play "soccer" and you could not get the
ball past him. And if you threw it in the
air, he would catch it from way across
the room. He was the best centerfielder
since Willie Mays.

That vet in Chicago--Dr. Reece--just
a general practitioner--gave me the
best advice about Simon, including that
my dog would tell me when he was
ready to give up. He did.

And yes, like my current dog "Stuart",
Simon came from the SPCA.

http://simondog.home.att.net/



--
A. Brain

Remove NOSPAM for email.

"sighthounds & siberians" wrote in message:

I really wasn't trying to be obtuse. Usually lack of punctuation
doesn't completely paralyze my reading comprehension, but it did this
time.

I have a lot of practice at this sort of thing. In addition to teaching
college kids how to write (and read for comprehension), I've also done tons
of proofreading and resume reading. On top of all that, I have a father who
knows how to write just fine, but can't type worth squat, and ends up
sending emails that essentially comprise of one big sentence when it really
should be 10 (No capitalization, no punctuations, no periods...everyone
ought to try it some time).

Suja

"Suja" wrote in message
...
On top of all that, I have a father who
knows how to write just fine, but can't type worth squat, and ends up
sending emails that essentially comprise of one big sentence when it
really
should be 10 (No capitalization, no punctuations, no periods...everyone
ought to try it some time).

How nice! He sends you puzzles!!

Judy

"A. Brain" said in rec.pets.dogs.health:

[]

Thank you for your more thorough answer. With something so dog-
specific and situation-specific and with so many different ways
in which epilepsy exhibits itself, I think that non-specific
terms such as "self limiting" are far from helpful to one first
dealing with the issue.

The only comment of yours that I took issue with was "...I doubt
your vet will prescribe anything." That treads awfully close to
diagnosis in that it could affect how the OP may deal with her
dog's situation. I can understand why epilepsy drugs weren't
beneficial in your situation, but your first post dangerously
generalised. For example, if I didn't use AEDs with Rocky,
there's a pretty good chance that he'd have been dead 6 years
ago.

[Anniversary yesterday! Rocky is 5 years seizure-free!]

--
--Matt. Rocky's a Dog.

"Rocky" wrote in message
...
"A. Brain" said in rec.pets.dogs.health:

[]

Thank you for your more thorough answer. With something so dog-
specific and situation-specific and with so many different ways
in which epilepsy exhibits itself, I think that non-specific
terms such as "self limiting" are far from helpful to one first
dealing with the issue.

The only comment of yours that I took issue with was "...I doubt
your vet will prescribe anything." That treads awfully close to
diagnosis in that it could affect how the OP may deal with her
dog's situation. I can understand why epilepsy drugs weren't
beneficial in your situation, but your first post dangerously
generalised. For example, if I didn't use AEDs with Rocky,
there's a pretty good chance that he'd have been dead 6 years
ago.

[Anniversary yesterday! Rocky is 5 years seizure-free!]


Congratulations!


And why not post a photo?
--
A. Brain

Remove NOSPAM for email.

"A. Brain" said in rec.pets.dogs.health:

[Anniversary yesterday! Rocky is 5 years seizure-free!]

Congratulations!

Thank you.

And why not post a photo?

Lots of photos on my website, http://rocky-dog.com

--
--Matt. Rocky's a Dog.

"Rocky" wrote in message
...
"A. Brain" said in rec.pets.dogs.health:

[Anniversary yesterday! Rocky is 5 years seizure-free!]

Congratulations!

Thank you.

And why not post a photo?

Lots of photos on my website, http://rocky-dog.com


Cool site. Cool dog.

My mom's neighbor is a retired photographer.
He takes photos at the local SPCA. A few years
ago, he and his wife lost their two dogs to old age
and they swore they wouldn't get another.

Then, believe it or not, a really fine Border Collie
showed up at the shelter. It's in a college town
in the midwest and sometimes the students just
can't take their pets to their new jobs in the big
cities.

So the end of the school year is a good time to adopt.

"Rocky" is an Australian Cattle Dog? He looks very
"Border Collie" to me but then I guess the breeds are
similar. I bet he can play ball too!

--
A. Brain

Remove NOSPAM for email.