just found out.....

[502procharger]

One of my dogs has epilepsy. It is really strange he is a 7yr old rotty and looks like he is 2. Great shape, always good health. About a month ago he started to act a bit strange at night, he would be sitting watching TV with me and he would act like he saw something like a fly or something fly past him, he would bite the air and look around. A few min would pass and he was fine. It has started to get worse so i took him to the vet. Before i even finished telling the vet what he is doing she stopped me and told me what it was and described to me what he was doing down to a tee. I was just wondering if anyone else has dealt with anything like this? For all you out there who are not dog owners you probably canÂ’t understand why i am making a big deal out of this, but my dogs are my absolute best friends, they are always there for me, protect me, and just plain make me feel better. It is a little scary thinking i may loose one of them soon.

[Rexone]

My last dog whom I had to put to sleep a couple years ago developed a liver problem and had grand mall type seizures throughout the last 5 years or so of his life which he lived to be 16. It wasn't epilepsy but was quite scary at first. I had to treat him with liver medications for quite a number of years to keep it under control. I feel for ya 502. My dogs are a big part of my life as well. Did the doc give you a prognosis of what to expect? frown

[Tom Brown]

I'm sorry, 502.

[Kwicherbichen]

Bro, I've had a dog with it. He used to just lock up start foaming at the mouth and sort of colapse to the ground. It would last a few minutes and that was it. He lived a full dog life into his teens. The doc pretty much said there isn't too much you can do.
On the other hand my boss' dog has some type of siezure periodically. Their DVM perscribed "phenobarbitol" and it seems to help. Now rather than having siezures a few times a week, he get them about once a month maybe.
Good luck and try not to worry yourself about it too much.

[502procharger]

thanks everyone, the vet did more blood work today, and wrote a scrip to help. we will see what happens.

[hot_diggity_dog]

That sucks 502 yuk yuk yuk
HDD :cool:

[Kurtis500]

I had a dog with it years ago. Kept getting worse and had to put her to sleep. Doesnt sound like your is that bad..which is good of course.

[CJ]

Great luck! It always sucks having to deal with sick pets.
I have an older Rott named Magua (sounds like Mawgwa). He has been the nicest, most even tempered dog I have ever owned. He has been at my mothers for years as I lived in a condo until a few months ago.
I will get two more real soon!

[Party Cat]

Rexone:
My last dog whom I had to put to sleep a couple years ago developed a liver problem and had grand mall type seizures throughout the last 5 years or so of his life which he lived to be 16. It wasn't epilepsy but was quite scary at first. I had to treat him with liver medications for quite a number of years to keep it under control. I feel for ya 502. My dogs are a big part of my life as well. Did the doc give you a prognosis of what to expect? :( Same here with my 1st Sheltie 6 yrs ago...she had her first seizure while I was at the river, needless to say that trip was cut short. The vet perscribed medications that controlled the seizures, but eventually caused other internal problems. The up side was that we were able to control her condition for another 1 year and a half. She was almost 15 when we had her put down.
My thoughts are with ya
PC

[HCS]

:( That can be bad. I had a dog where it got so bad I had to put her out.

[ROZ]

My parents had a dog they had to recently put to sleep. He was a Queensland who lived with Grand Mall seisures for many years. The Phenobarb(enough to put a human to sleep) and Potassium kept it under conrtol for the most part, but after many years the disease took it's toll. The DMV's at the Helen Woodward center ran tests that concluded that the drugs that kept the dog from seizing caused liver damage and needed to be reduced to keep the dog out of renal failure. A week into the drug reduction Kiernen had a Grand Mall seizure that lasted 2o min followed by little seisures that happened for hours. The Valium they gave to relax him finally began to work and at that point my mom decided to end whatever pain Kiernen experienced for years. My mother loved that dog and was crushed, but in the end she knew she made the right decision.
The DVM's said Kiernen's condition was WAY on the extreme end on the scale. Hopefully you don't have to endure what our family has.....That I'll pray for you.
If there's any advice I can give you is to work closely with your vet to determine the minimun amount of medication administered to control the seizures, and for them to give you a home kit of emergency Valium(injected) incase he happens to have a grand mall that is either voilent or prolonger. Also, get him and the rest of your dogs on a very good diet.
I hope everything works out for the best.
If you feel the need to speak with somone in your shoes, I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind talking about it.
Good Luck,
Chris

[bohica]

Most likely they will precribe the phenobarbitol - remeber it's for the dog. :D

[gnarley]

It sucks. I'm sorry, hopefully he can live out the remainder of his life in comfort :( I had to put my 12 year old Rott mix down 2 weeks before last Christmas. I had him before I got married & he was the best companion & BAD ASS when he was young. He died in my arms at the vet & I still miss him when I open my garage door & he doesn't come out running looking for me, he was part of our family. His last few months were surely prized, as we knew he was going, we miss him now. It kind of weird how you get attached to animals, they fill a void when you don't have kids.

[Wet Dream]

A good friend of mine had a springer spaniel that had the same thing. The vet prescribed meds and the dog was good to go for many years after that. Don't think the worst, it might not be as bad as you think. I wish you the best.
Gnarly, when I had to put down my 15 year old Golden Retriever, I had the vet come out to the house to do the job. He died as I laid next to him crying my eyes out. cry I was a wreck. Tonight, as I'm heading home, a song comes on the radio that I haven't heard in years. Got me tearing up again. "Feed Jake".

[boatnam2]

i had a chocolate lab that would have siezures about every 4 months.it would get all glass eyed and start shaking and get stiff as a board,it would last about an hour.vet told me just to keep an eye on it while it was happening not much you can do.

[Skullinator]

502 had a black lab that did exactly what K Bitchen said. some dogs you can give meds to and there fine others just don't do well on meds and start acting really funky. hopefully they gave you med's. i can tell you from experiance if you have a pool keep your dog away at all times.i had to pull that dog from the water at least 30 times during his ordeal and had to put here to sleep after about two years of it on vets orders.

[RiverToysJas]

Very Sorry to hear of your Rottie's illness! Our Rottie had diabetes and passed away last August. He would have been 5y/o last November. Very tough to deal with and we miss him a lot. I hope and pray everything works out for you and your pup!!!
RTJas

[MJ19]

One of my pooches "peaches" had a seizure (or several I should say) and the vet ended up putting her to sleep, ONLY because she had a broken back from a car accident years prior and with each seizure she was causing more damage and more sever pain to her back...so her time came only due to the back problems...but our vet said MANY dogs live with seizures and are 100% fine...One main thing is to make sure they are located in a safe envoirnment (nothing they can puncture themselves on or sharp edges, corners, etc...)
If they have a fit, and come out seeming fine, they most likely didn't realize it happened. (according to the vet) but it is important to keep them in a safe place when you are not with them to protect them.
Best of Luck!!! You and your doggies will be in my prayers!!!

[bigq]

Had a female Akita with bad seizures. The first time it happen I thought someone poisoned her, ran her to the vet while the seizur was happening and he told me what it was. He had me put her on a med.I forget the med name. She lived another 6 years with not much problem, well except she always acted like she was stoned. :D

[Wet Pair-A-Dice]

I'm sorry about your pet's illness :( I have a friend that has a K-9 with epilepsy. He discovered it about 6 years ago. He has been on meds sense and is living a leisurly life. I hope you have the same success that my friend has had. I too have a K-9 ( 6 yr. old Czech. German shepard) that was recently diagnosed as having a form of lupus (spl?) a blood disease. He also has developed some back problems. I know what it is like to see your pet suffer :( . This is a recent photo of my K-9 "Max"
http://www.hotboatpics.com/pics/data/500/599Max2-med.jpg
" A worthy goal in life is to strive to be the kind of person that your dog thinks you are". :)

[502procharger]

Ok as of todayÂ’s blood test results, liver is good and all other blood tests were negative. I have hesitated to put him on the meds for epilepsy yet due to the fact that i am out of town and my family took him to there local vet for me so i did not have to wait until i got back to know something. My personal vet has been monitoring the situation close and has been happy with the results thus far. My vet said that during these mini seizures where he sees things and bites at flies in the air that are not there, that you would not be able to get his attention. The thing is when he does do it, if you call his name or snap your fingers he stops and looks right at you. This is what has stopped me from putting him on the epilepsy meds, they can hurt his liver and make him sedated. Nether myself nor my personal vet feel we should put him on a med that he may not need or may be treating the wrong thing. So i am left at a loss, the next step is to bring him in to Cornell University for a cat scan and make sure everything in his noggin looks good. I will keep everyone posted. All of the storied you guys have shared with me have really helped me deal with this. Thanks everyone for all the responses, it makes me feel like i am not dealing with it alone.

[502procharger]

Anyone have experience with the epilepsy meds and what side effects they might have? Thanks