OT: MGoDogs

Submitted by Snow Sucks on

This is extremely off topic, I know, but I need some advice from fellow dog owners.

My dog had two semi-bad seizures in the past year and just had a mild one about fifteen minutes prior to my writing this post. He is extremely hyper sometimes and is very attached to the wife, so he sometimes freaks out when she isn't around; he knows when she is here and when not.

Well, he constantly barks at her until she gives him a toy and she always gives in to stop the barking. I keep telling her that is part of the problem, as dogs are not stupid and learn how to get things. Sometimes when he gets the toys, he wants to play fetch and when she doesn't do it, he goes into his barking frenzy again, which adds to his excitement and contributes to the seizure. I was very firm with her this time and demanded that she not give him any toys anymore. I want him to forget they even exist because it just isn't worth it anymore (health-wise). 

Anyone else had a dog that went through seizures?

Snow Sucks

April 16th, 2014 at 9:45 PM ^

Yeah, literal seizures. The one he had tonight was very mild. His front legs were stiff, but he could still see what was going on. Like, I would move something in front of his eyes and he would follow it. That didn't happen the last two seizures that occurred last summer and then sometime in January I think. We did take him to a vet (a clinic with nothing but OSU doctors, but I know OSU has a good vet school) and one doctor said seizures are fairly common with dogs and occur more often than a person might think. She did say if he has another major seizure, then to bring him in for some kind of blood work, which I don't know what would do.

evenyoubrutus

April 16th, 2014 at 11:46 PM ^

Okay I didn't want to be unprofessional but regardless of what us news ranks them (check the link to their methodology) OSU's vet school has a reputation throughout the veterinary community. And it isn't a good one.

milhouse

April 17th, 2014 at 12:56 PM ^

If you're in the AA area I would suggest Washtenaw Veterinary Hospital on Packard. Your dogs needs to go over on seizure medication. Seizures are fairly common in dogs and can generally be easily treated with medication and proper supervision. Then take your dog out to a park to run. A tired dog is a happy dog.

Perkis-Size Me

April 16th, 2014 at 10:22 PM ^

If your dog is having seizures, and especially multiple seizures, do not sit on this. Go to a vet. One seizure could be minor, but if they're having multiple seizures, like my girlfriend's dog had recently, it could be indicative of much bigger problems, i.e. a tumor.



I don't want to scare you, and I'm not saying your dog has a tumor, but if your dog is having seizures, take him to the vet as soon as you possibly can.

JediLow

April 16th, 2014 at 10:53 PM ^

From Dr MGoWife (she's a veterinarian downriver)

"If your dog has another seizure, you should bring him to the vet right away. The bloodwork is to check and see if there are any abnormalities with the liver, kidneys and other things like his glucose value. There are many different causes of seizures in dogs and you'll need to bring him to a vet to figure out what may be causing them.

If your dog has more than 1 seizure a month or if an episode lasts 5 minutes or more, he needs to be put on medications."

 

And off the record she doesn't seem to agree with your vet - she thinks he needs to go in and get seen right away.

BlueMan80

April 16th, 2014 at 11:13 PM ^

They started a few years ago when she was around 9 years old. She would have two seizures a day which is bad news. We went to the vet who referred us to a dog neurologist. She is on medications that control the seizures. It took about a year to sort out the best treatment. The seizures are pretty scary when they happen. So, as others have said, get the dog to the vet. You may need to get referred to a specialist...just like with people. Best of luck to you.

trueblueintexas

April 16th, 2014 at 11:23 PM ^

I had a chocolate lab that would have periodic seizures. There was no rhyme or reason I was ever able to figure out. I brought her to the vet to be checked out after each of the first two (in @ a 10 month span). After checking her (and the blood work) they determined it was not major. Some dogs are prone to seizures without it bein a big deal as long as the frequency is not too great. If the frequency increases too much, then they will recommend medicine because you don't want it to happen when you are not around. The few more times she did have them, I just held her and comforted her until it passed (usually a minute or two). It is important to get checked out. Don't wait.

Young John Beilein

April 17th, 2014 at 9:27 AM ^

Working your dog up with toys is not the cause of seizures in your dog.  However, when he has a seizure episode, it is important to calm him down and reduce stimuli such as light and noise.  That said, it sounds like your dog is having seizures too often to treat with benign neglect.  Bloodwork is a good baseline diagnostic for most patients and is fairly cheap.  Your vet may want to check bloodwork so that they can start him on anti-seizure medication (phenobarbitol) which can be damaging to the liver.  His liver enzymes would have to be normal before starting this trial.  Treating with medicine (daily) is fairly cheap and also helps reduce occurrence in most dogs.  Obviously if a brain tumor is causing this condition (more likely in older dogs and some breeds) advanced imaging can give you your diagnosis.  But it will be cheaper to do bloodwork and begin a medicine trial.  It's all up to you, but as many others have stated, it sounds like this is happening too frequently (you want to see <2 episodes per year) so you should seek treatment.  Seizures can increase in severity and can result in permanent brain damage.  Best of luck with your pup.  I am 3/4 veterinarian; so take this for what it's worth.