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#1
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Is my dog having seizures?
Hello,
On May 16th and again early this morning I heard banging on the hardwood floors and when I followed the noise I found my 8 year old golden retriever lying on her side with all four legs paddling the air with her mouth kind of chomping and drooling and eyes glazed. Back in May I just thought she was having a hard time getting up from a loose rug she was lying on as she couldn't get her footing. I thought the drool and glazed eyes was panic on her part. With this morning's episode in another room of the house and the same symptoms I now know that it wasn't a loose rug. I sent all night doing research on the internet and it sounds like she is having seizures. I will definitely be contacting her vet as soon as he gets in this morning. Meanwhile, have any of you had any experience with this sort of problem? What should I ask the vet? I read it can become quite common and goldens are a breed susceptible to seizures. Thanks so much. I'm very worried. Bob. |
#2
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"Bob P" wrote in message ... On May 16th and again early this morning I heard banging on the hardwood floors and when I followed the noise I found my 8 year old golden retriever lying on her side with all four legs paddling the air with her mouth kind of chomping and drooling and eyes glazed .......yes, sounds like seizures. Meanwhile, have any of you had any experience with this sort of problem? What should I ask the vet? I read it can become quite common and goldens are a breed susceptible to seizures. .........while it's important to rule out physical causes, many times there's no apparent cause for seizures. Do a search of the archives here through Google. Matt (posting as Rocky) has lots of good info on seizures. buglady take out the dog before replying |
#3
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Bob P said in rec.pets.dogs.health:
Your dog definitely had a seizure. Meanwhile, have any of you had any experience with this sort of problem? What should I ask the vet? I read it can become quite common and goldens are a breed susceptible to seizures. I know a few GRs with epilepsy. It's common in both pure and mixed breeds. At 8 years old, it's probable that her seizures are related to a physical condition (trauma or an underlying medical issue, like thyroid or kidney problems). Go to my web page, specifically the links page, and scroll down to the dog health links: http://www.rocky-dog.com/Links/LinksMenu.html I've listed the links in order of their relative importance to me. The first link explains epilepsy types, symptoms, and treatments in a very readable way. One of the top canine epilepsy researchers (Dr William Thomas) is a contributor. You might consider subscribing to one of the two epilepsy email lists I've linked to. In case you prefer to contact me privately, my personal email in this post works, though I prefer to keep discussions public to help others. Thanks so much. I'm very worried. I know. Rocky's first seizure certainly scared me. Keep in mind that epilepsy can be controlled, in the majority of cases, by a balancing act of drugs and diet. -- --Matt. Rocky's a Dog. |
#4
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Hi Bob:
What you describe is a grand mal seizure. Seizures at an older age are generally indicative of something other than epilepsy - whereas if a dog starts seizing before 5 years of age, it is generally true epilepsy. My old boy started having seizures in his 8th year (last year). We drew blood to check thyroid function, as thyroid issues can trigger seizures. His thyroid was low and we put him on meds. but this did not stop the seizure activity. We then started him on phenobarb and still he had seizures. Then went to potassium bromide (Kbr), which helps the uptake of pheno. Still he had seizures. We then also included diazepam (valium). This poor dog was on such a cocktail of drugs that he was a total zombie. He'd go maybe 15 days at a stretch without a seizure, but his quality of life was totally gone. He just wasn't the same. We euthanized him this past Feb (shortly after his 9th birthday). Post mortem reveal a brain tumor, which my vet suspected because he simply wasn't responding to treatment. There are many websites on epilepsy in canines. Just use google to search for them. Furry Bob P wrote: Hello, On May 16th and again early this morning I heard banging on the hardwood floors and when I followed the noise I found my 8 year old golden retriever lying on her side with all four legs paddling the air with her mouth kind of chomping and drooling and eyes glazed. Back in May I just thought she was having a hard time getting up from a loose rug she was lying on as she couldn't get her footing. I thought the drool and glazed eyes was panic on her part. With this morning's episode in another room of the house and the same symptoms I now know that it wasn't a loose rug. I sent all night doing research on the internet and it sounds like she is having seizures. I will definitely be contacting her vet as soon as he gets in this morning. Meanwhile, have any of you had any experience with this sort of problem? What should I ask the vet? I read it can become quite common and goldens are a breed susceptible to seizures. Thanks so much. I'm very worried. Bob. |
#5
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Hi folks,
As an update, the vet and his technician came over to my house this afternoon and gave my golden a thorough physical. She passed that. They drew blood and ran it through their labs this afternoon and called me with the results. The vet said that the results were all normal (organ function, CBC, electrolytes, thyroid, etc. etc). He is starting her this evening on phenobarbitol (sp) and on a low dosage to start. It will be two pills a day, one in the morning and one at night. He said if she still has seizures he will keep adjusting the dosage and see if that works. He also said that it's possible that she may have another seizure (or two) before the medication takes effect and that she may be a bit drowsy for the first day or two after beginning the medication. He did mention to me that high dosages of phenobarb can create other problems and that he would advise me on these as we proceed. However this is the course of action right now. So I will be giving her her first pill this evening. I'm hoping this works and Furry, I can understand what you went through with your dog as I have had to have 3 dogs "put down" all living lived long and happy lives. And, Rocky, thanks for the link. I will certainly be checking out the sites. Thanks also, buglady! Bob. |
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