Loki took a fit today - I got a shock myself, never having seen a dog take one before. I made the mistake of holding her and I thought I would check her tongue. She came out of the fit within minutes but was frightened and disorientated. I put her in the kitchenette and closed the door. I called the Vet and was told to keep her quiet, no TV and a darkened room. I got an appointment for 4.20 pm. I went back to the kitchenette and she had stopped howling and came to me wagging her tail! She followed me into the living room and she went into her cage. After a wee bit, Loki decided she was hungry (made a change) and she went and ate some of her food. At 4.20 pm we were in the Vet's surgery. He explained all about fits/seisures and the treatment of it. He said he was giving me tablets and I have to give her them twice daily, once in the morning and once in the evening - 12 hours apart. He told me the side effect was that they would make her sleepy but after about 14 days she would get used to them. The tablets are "Epiphen" 30 mg. I gave her one at 8 pm tonight and she took it and did fall asleep for about 5 minutes - then wanted to play with one of her toys - her favourite squeeky ball The Vet told me to keep a record of any further ones she may take and I take her back to the Vet in 4 weeks time. I am hoping though she does not take any more. I found it extremely upsetting and so helpless. She has finished all her dinner when we got back from the Vet and a bone too
there not nice, follow the vets advice theres nothing you can do for them when they are actively fitting. i hope it doesnt happen again, but keep records it may give you clues.
Yes, I have started to keep a log and, as you say, I hope she does not have any more. It was so scarey. Many thanks, Leo, for your kind response.
If she is going to take epiphen long term (brand name phenobarbitone) please also give her milk thistle tablets available from the health food shop .... pheno damages the liver over time, but the milk thistle will support the liver and help it regenerate. I lost my epileptic girl almost 3 years ago due to liver damage
I experienced seeing a friends dog have a fit over christmas & it was so distressing for them all. There is little you can do while they are in the fit, they dont even realise that its happening, my friends dog came out of it totally oblivious to what had happened and to why we were all sitting around him. Remaining calm & keeping the dog safe is the only thing you can do. I hope it was a one off, it may never happen again.
Sorry to hear about Loki - I have a 12 year old Irish who has epilepsy which we have under control and - touches wood - been fit free for nearly 2 years now. Hers tends to be bought on by stress and now she is down to 1/2 tablet a week of epiphen. She had some horrendous fits before we got it under control and we had to just let them do there course, nothing we could do, she used to wet and sometimes soil herself poor girl. Loki's fit sounds like it was very short and hopefully with the epiphen will soon be under control - speak to your vet of reducing the amount over time Just to also say you may find she gets incontinent with them - our girl was very bad and constantly wet (although she did suffer from this before and think this just made it worse). We found that for a few days after a fit she was a bit out of it and the medication also seemed to make her a bit away with the fairies, if that makes sense. I don't want to scare you and Loki may of course not get any of these side effects but just to give you a heads up I guess. As i said we have been able to reduce her medication right down now and she is doing really well for her age Still like a puppy sometimes just less energetic!
Oh many thanks for your really helpful repsponses - I will get her those Milk Thistle Tablets, Muddiwarx, thank you for that advice. I did not realise what the Vet's tablets were - I don't like the pheno's but if they help her I will have to continue. Unfortunately, Loki took another at 3.30 am, it did not last long and then she drank gallons of water and ate the kibble she detests! I put mince and rice in it, by doing that she eats it. She took another one at 11.30 am - she was in her cage at the time because I had an electrician in working, to save her getting too excited, I had put her in it. This fit only lasted about 40 seconds, she howled a wee tiny bit. Then she looked around herself - I think she wondered where she was! The parrots got a fright when she was in the fit because of the rattling noise from the cage. She had a wee "accident" yesterday but not during the night, nor the one at 11.30 am. The Vet told me he may have to increase the tablets - I hope not. I wonder if there are any alternative medicines on the market for fits/seizures. I am still quite shaken - I just feel so helpless. Again, All, many many thanks for all your kind words and help too. I (and Loki) appreciate them very much.
have they got any idea whats causing them? there must be something that can help. fingers crossed no more..........they are horrible to see i never want to see another.
I am so sorry to hear this, you must of been incredibly frightened. I am sorry to hear she has had another, how old is Loki? Does the vet know why she has suddenly started having fits? I ope she gets better, poor little love. My thoughts and best wishes are with you.
The Vet did not know but said when I take Loki back in 4 weeks time, he may run blood tests! I changed her food last week to Burns' Hollistic because she hates "kibble" and although Burns' is the same idea - it seemed to have something in it that Loki liked. Mind you, I do put chicken and rice in it, if it is the Turkey kibble, or if it is Venison, I give her mince with a little rice through it. She was fine with that when I mixed it through James Wellbeloved kibble - but she always removed the kibble. If I did not put anything through it - she refused to eat! Burns' food is "Hollistic" - I think! However, I don't know what the difference is. I am going to try her with the James Wellbeloved food again but I think that is too late. Many thanks, Leo, for you kind words, I will perhaps take her back to the vet. I really do feel so useless. Many thanks, Kykektulu, for your kind words also. Once the Vet does tests, I will put up a post at his findings! Loki is sleeping - I just hope she isn't in for another!
Hi Branddkins -the epiphen will take a few days to kick in so don't panic - sleeping is normal after fits don't again don't panic. Burns has Evening Primrose Oil which I seem to recall should be avoided in epileptic dogs - check with JWB too if they have Evening Primrose Oil in the ingredients. I feed raw now so not an issue with my old girl. I'm sorry to hear she has had more fits though and no how frightening they are - just keep her quiet and calm. I hope you and Loki start to feel better. Once you have a log you can talk with the vet and he may / may not decide to progress with tests. I'm sure everything will be back to normal soon Brandykins. Hugs to you and Loki
Sorry to hear about Loki fingers and paws crossed it does'nt happen again, their not a nice thing to witness hugs to you.
Oh you poor thing having to go through this with your little Loki. I can't help at all coz I've never seen them, but you must be soooo worried for her. Is she an old dog and has suddenly started this then? There are a couple of people on here who have dogs with this terrible condition and they might be along to put your mind at rest. I know Lucky Star had a terrible time with her Loki to start with, but once the vet got the medication right he's been ok. Let's keep everything crossed this will happen with your Loki too. Fingers crossed she won't have anymore, I can imagine how upsetting it must be. Take care.
Hey! Tawneywolf mentioned you've had problems and I've found your post. THIS DOESN'T HAVE TO BE A DEATH SENTENCE!!!!! Firstly - here is a brilliant website devoted to canine epilepsy - do search it thoroughly as it has lots of brilliant adice - and in case I leave anything out in this post please do search Dogsey for posts by me under epilepsy or seizure or fits etc. and Snorri has done a Dogsey article on the subject too. http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/site_map.htm My Loki (Utonagan) began to have fits at 18 months. It was awful - he would fall sideways, foam at the mouth, scream, urinate, legs paddling, teeth gnashing ... we thought we would lose him when he had 13 fits in an hour. That was Easter-time 2006. We had tried herbal stuff and supplements to no avail and he was fitting every 10 days at least. They were of the grand mal type and the post-ictal phase was awful - pacing, crying, hyper-activity, loss of muscle control ... this would last up to 5 days. That's one thing you should do - keep a diary so that you can try to pinpoint anything that might suggest a fit is imminent or causing it. The vets did a batch of blood tests - they didn't include the Jean Dodds blood panel which I would advise you get done as the vets don't do such an extensive test. http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/Thyroid.htm We also had an MRI scan and spinal tap to see if there was anything like a brain tumour. Our result was negative. We were lucky to be insured with M&S who covered the costs. They came to the conclusion that he had ideopathic epilepsy (which means they don't really know the cause). Loki was put on epiphen but I had read about this drug on the Guardian Angels website - in particular I was concerned that a number of members had said that if they could reverse time they wouldn't have gone ahead with this drug (also known as phenobarbital) but would have tried KBr - or potassium bromide - alone and the side effects (liver damage) sounded awful to me. Now, many, many dogs do okay on this drug, including Snorri's, but Loki didn't. He had an instant reaction to it that made him hyper, restless and miserable so I refused to continue with it and insisted that we try KBr, despite the consultant's advice. Now the side effects of epiphen are a bit scary, including liver damage (hence the advice to give the dog milk thistle as this herb is known to help with liver protection and regeneration), plus the drug's effects diminish with time as the dog's system becomes used to it so it may need ever-higher doses, thus increasing the risk to the liver. There are other, minor, effects such as increased appetite, ataxia (weakness of the back legs) and increased thirst. Some of these may diminish in the first two weeks - sedation is a short-term side effect which should go after two weeks. Loki was not sedated though. He experienced an adverse reaction to Phenobarb and was climbing the walls. Phenobarb needs to be given at very regular intervals or you might find your dog fitting but it kicks into action very quickly - usually within two weeks. This drug is apparently well-tolerated and well-researched though and is the first port of call for most vets. http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/phenobarbital.htm With KBr the liver is not involved so is undamaged. Loki had NO REACTION AT ALL to Kbr but this drug does take about 3 - 4 months to build up to therapeutic levels and become properly effective. In that time the dog will probably still have fits. Historically it has been used as an adjunct with phenobarb or if the dog has refractory epilepsy. http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/potassium_bromide.htm http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/KBr_success_stories.htm We have had a fantastic experience with this drug. Initially Loki had fits but the time between them has slowly increased. We began in February 2006 with 10 days between fits and now we have gone 19 weeks fit free!!!!! Every day is a bonus but I am over the moon! We also have rectal diazepam, which we administer rectally if he has a cluster (more than one fit in 24 hours, which Loki did/does and is an emergency) http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/emergencycare.html Now, drugs aside - what else can you do? I would get some tests done on your Loki but you could try and explore other avenues. We give Loki a spoonful of organic ice-cream before bed to keep his blood sugar levels up because low blood sugar can sometimes lead to fits. It is therefore important to feed the dog more than one meal a day. Also after a seizure because their blood sugar levels can be really low afterwards. Also something like porridge is good post-seizure. http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/ice_cream.htm An ice-pack on the back may help during a seizure: http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/icepack.htm During a seizure you should keep calm, ensure the head isn't at risk of banging against something hard, keep clear of teeth and claws, keep loud noise to a minimum. Afterwards you will experience the pacing so ensure furniture etc. isn't in the way. I'm trying to think of anything else but failing miserably. All I can say at this point is that IF it is epilepsy there is light at the end of the tunnel and it isn't necessarily a death sentence. My Loki is king of everything round here - today we did an hour and a half walk which included playing fetch, running, jumping, swimming, cutting loose, strutting, glaring at other dogs , playing tug ... etc. I swear to you, we honestly thought we would lose Loki - I remember carrying him from the bedroom when I was 7 months pregnant because he was fitting but to date we have seen 19 weeks absolutely fit-free!!!! Be strong, have hope and do your research. Please feel free to contact me if I can help in any way! Have you looked into your Loki's lineage to see if it could be hereditary? xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx PS another website: http://www.canine-epilepsy.net/basics/basics_index.html http://www.canineepilepsy.co.uk/default.htm
Forgot to mention - I don't know what your Loki is on dietary wise but be sure to avoid anything with preservatives in such as BHT, ethoxyquin and BHA as these can trigger fits. I feed Loki a natural-type diet with raw meat, bones, veg, some cooked grains, some spuds etc.
Many thanks, RS, for your response. I changed back yesterday to JW and Loki slept all night and, so far, fingers, toes, paws and claws (my parrots), she hasn't had one today. In fact, she is full of life. At the moment she is sleeping. I gave her the tablet at 8 pm, the next is 8 am. The Vet told me it would take 14 days to kick in. She is eating more than she ever did and drinking too. Many thanks from Loki too. I would really like to change her food. I have never tried raw food. Perhaps I should try it too on her. Take care
Many thanks Inkiveeva - I do appreciate your response. Loki does too. She had a good night and today, she was back to her usual playful self - wanting to play with her toys. I played a little but wanted her to stay quiet. Again, thank you. Rose and Loki
Hello Helena Loki is 2 weeks short of being a year old! She will celebrate her first birthday on 29 January! Lucky Star has given me a lot of excellent links, which I intend to read. I still feel quite shaken but with all of your advice and wishes, has made me feel so much better and I do thank you. Again, many thanks. Rose and Loki
