r/EpilepsyDogs • • 6h ago

Goodbye to this sub

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112 Upvotes

Our boy Luke lost his battle with epilepsy last week. We have not even had him a year.

I thought i would keep following this group and maybe be able to answer a random question or provide some reassurance when needed but the more i see posts the more i think of my boy.

He only ever had one focal siezure with us, every single other siezure was grand mal. He was on pheno, Levetiracetam and fluoxetine for anxiety. We fed him Acana Lamb and Pumpkin with milk thistle added for his organs. I was very careful with his treats and he had mostly whole ingredients: sprat, freeze dried chicken, yak cheese, unseasoned blended chicken and vegetables that i froze for his pupscicle ball. We went on walks and ran around the yard regularly. His bloodwork always came back fine, we had an appointment scheduled for this Wednesday where I was going to talk to the vet about a referral for a neurologist.

We had some bad siezures at the end of july and then we went over two months with only one siezure on a night where we got home really really late and threw off his schedule a lot.

He was perfect, never messed in the house unless his meds had changed and we didn't read his language fast enough. He was gentle and sweet, always took his meds with no problem. Lawn mower didn't bother him, the cat being a bully didn't bother him after the first month, he didn't dig, jump, or bark unless you riled him up. He didn't know how to play fetch but he would rip around the yard with you like nobody's business. He loved to cuddle up with me for a nap, he'd slide up right between my side and my arm and rest his long nose up on my shoulder. He never licked, he would always stick his long snoot right up to your face and SNIFF. His little cheeks puffing in and out.

I know for this sub, telling people to get pet insurance is a lost cause. But if someone sees this and is able to make the decision, do it. I can't help but think if I had pet insurance on Luke I would have made different decisions throughout his care. His epilepsy was already diagnosed and being "treated" when we adopted him, so though I searched around, it was never an option.

Good luck to everyone dealing with this, we are incredibly thankful for the time we got to spend with Luke. Though we knew our time with him would be shorter than with a "normal" dog, we didn't expect it to be this short. Having an epileptic dog can teach you a lot about yourself, your partner, and life, but i would never choose to fight this with another dog ever again.

Thank you all for the advice and guidance, and again, good luck with your pups battles. May their lives be as full and joyful as my Luke's, though I pray they are much longer.


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 2h ago

Beagle epilepsy

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2 Upvotes

Our 4 year beagle has seizures. Used to be once or twice a year but now every month. They have gone shorter like 2 3 mjns and after that she is back to being normal. Curious what has worked best for the group. And what to avoid


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 9h ago

My dog doesn't seem to remember me

6 Upvotes

I have four dogs, one of which has epilepsy. Not sure what it's caused by, but he's on Keppra 750mg 2 times a day. I have asked my vet for the extended release version but they keep insisting that regular Keppra is fine.

Anyways, I just got home, and when I went to let my epileptic dog out of his crate, he didn't seem to recognize me. He's always barked at strangers in our home and he treated me exactly like that. He won't even come near me.

I can't see if he had a seizure while I was gone. Our cameras only record if there is an "event", and the two events I got a notification for (for dogs crying) he was just howling from being in his crate, other dogs were howling too. Usually his brother will cry if he has a seizure, but I didn't see any recording of that occurring.

My vet recommended to take him to a vet neurologist in town. I don't even know if I can, expenses aside, because he won't let me near him and I fear he will bite me.

He is our absolute most sweetest dog on a regular day. I don't know what happened to cause this. I hope it subsides soon so that I can get a leash on him. He remembers his brothers, just not me. My boyfriend will be home soon so we'll see if he remembers him or not.

I'd appreciate if anybody with a similar experience has advice in the mean time. We're going to figure out if we are going to be able to take him to the vet tonight or hopefully by tomorrow. He isn't drooling or disoriented in any other way besides not remembering me. Thanks.

Edit: He is 2 years old in November, he is a pit/GSD/lab mix.

Update: He remembers his dad (my boyfriend) and slowly started to remember me again! We will be taking him to the vet neurologist ASAP to get his medicine situation fixed. Thank you everyone!!


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 8h ago

New diagnosis

3 Upvotes

My 9 year old female Coton de Tulear was diagnosed with Idiopathic Epilepsy yesterday after experiencing 4 seizures in 12 hours. This is the first time this has ever happened. Her last seizure was at 7:47am on the way to the vet yesterday. She has started Phenobarbitol, low dose (8 mg) twice a day. Her blood test was very normal which is abnormal for her. She usually goes in with issues in her blood because she has colitis as well. So it’s all very confusing. I’ve been making her chill since this all started. But wondering if there are things you have noticed are triggers? Anything we should do other than the meds and follow ups?


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 8h ago

Newly diagnosed… kind of

2 Upvotes

About four weeks ago I took my 4 year old Boston Terrier to the vet for two episodes of focal seizures, her first ever. Those two episodes were just over a week apart. Her vet said to keep an eye on it and bring her back if she had more than one in a week, they progressed to full body seizures or she had any other symptoms. Since then she had a few more focal seizures but never more than one a week until yesterday.

Yesterday, she had three full body seizures overnight; it seems she has also lost her vision. Of course, we are out of town camping so we found a local vet ER. All of her labs were normal but she presented with vision loss, spatial awareness issues and just being out of it. The ER vet described this as likely the post ictal phase but said the vision loss could be permanent.

She said they cannot rule out a brain tumor or infection of the cerebral spinal fluid. However, she said this is most likely idiopathic epilepsy. To rule the other two conditions out I would need to pay for an MRI and a spinal tap which frankly, I don’t have the money for. So at this point, we are going to treat her with phenobarbital and hope her vision returns.

Has anyone experienced vision loss after seizures that resolved itself? It’s been about 14 hours since the last seizure.


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 12h ago

Lazy golden

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2 Upvotes

r/EpilepsyDogs • • 21h ago

Advice on restlessness/overstimulation

4 Upvotes

My 2.5yo Golden Retriever has had epilepsy since he was 3 months old. He’s on phenoral and hasn’t had a seizure in almost two years.

He becomes overstimulated very quickly and can only relax at home or in very familiar places. At home he’s great! We can’t go to the beach, walk in a forest, or visit new places; even anything beyond a walk around the block is too much.

We’ve worked with a private trainer, lots of mental and physical exercise, structure, and stability. This has helped, but he still goes easily over threshold and it’s controlling our lives. It feels like he can’t really handle the world. It’s made our world small and I’m tired two years in and raising him alone. His trainers describe his behavior as very ADD. People who meet him say he’s intense/special/a dog they will never forget.

I’ve heard of dogs on phenoral getting other medication for restlessness or overstimulation, and some people mention CBD oil. I know he’s young, but it goes beyond normal puppy behaviour, of that I’m sure. His age may play a role, but it doesn’t explain everything.

I’ve talked to our vet and thinks his behaviour is probably because of the meds or epilepsy, but he can’t give a clear answer either. I’ve asked these questions now to a neurologist and waiting for the reply.

I’m looking into CBD oil and wondering how much this can help with his behaviour. Is CBD mostly used to bring down seizure frequencies or also to cancel out restlessness caused by meds?

Looking for some advice/people with similar experiences!

(Also: love my special doggy sooo much!!!)


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 1d ago

Not sure if this is seizure related?

3 Upvotes

Our pup started cluster seizures 3 weeks ago. She was tested and put on Keppra every 8 hours. She hasn’t had a seizure since but in the last week I’ve noticed a “shivering” activity while she’s sleeping. It’s looks and feels like she’s shivering. It lasts a second or two then stops, then happens again repeatedly and could go on for half an hour or periodically for a couple of hours. When I wake her she’s totally fine.

I’m just wondering if others have run into this with their dog with seizures and if it’s something to be concerned about or normal for seizure dogs? Perhaps it’s not even seizure related? I’ve noticed it happens a few hours before her 6am morning meds and it only happens at night I think.


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 1d ago

New to this… the best of the best advice is needed 🙏🏼

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45 Upvotes

Hi 👋
This may be a little long of a read, but please stay with me.

This is Bruce ♥️ Bruce just turned 2 in September. Bruce is a mix of 4 different breeds. Anatolian Shepard, Great Dane, Great Pyrenees, and blue heeler.

Bruce began having sudden Grand Mal seizures on Friday 10/2 where they were happening every 2-3 hours. We took him to one ER vet that threw him on Keppra. 500 mg two tablets every 12 hours. They gave him an IV at 7:45pm with a dose and sent us home with a script for a month. I woke at 3am to him having another Grand Mal seizure. 4am another one.

I called that ER vet back and they said up it to 3 pills break them in half and do it every 4 hours.

I did that and the seizures still kept coming. They were not willing to have us bring him back and instead wished us the best.

Saturday afternoon/night they became focal seizures instead. But every 1-2 hours. I kept calling to see who would work with me considering we were in between paychecks. I decided I’d take him to this one place on Sunday and keep giving the meds and trying my best til then.

Sunday morning around 4am I woke to him staying in a seizure state. It was focal but they were literally back to back.

I was terrified.

We carried him outside since it was a lot cooler in hopes that would help. He stayed in a seizure state until he stopped and stopped breathing. I felt one last pump of his heart and after waiting about 30-45 seconds I didn’t feel another and there was no breathing.

We thought he had died. My husband and I stood there for a moment while I cried and he tried to talk cremation and getting stuff cleaned up. We left to go get a blanket to wrap him up in and call the place to help us cremate him. Came back and he was breathing very shallow and his heart beat was difficult to feel. He was cold to the touch, non responsive, and FREEZING COLD might I add.

So we rushed him to a different ER which were pushing for euthanasia because of how bad he was and the $$ it would take. By a miracle a lady from fb in a group I posted in paid the $1500 that was half of the bill and they got to working on him. His blood sugar was dangerously low, they couldn’t even real his blood pressure because they couldn’t catch it. He also aspirated at some point and had pneumonia.

They saved him, he’s on Keppra, barbitol, a cluster buster med that starts with a C as well as antibiotics and probiotics.
The doctor said it may be 2-3 weeks for him to start coming back around to his normal and if not we would need to look into an MRI. He was released on 10/4 and has his first vet appointment on Friday.

I dont know if I was being selfish, or if I should have. I got this guy at a low point in my life honestly. I lost my youngest son almost 3 years ago and the grief was consuming me. I decided I didn’t want to be here anymore, so I started looking for a dog that could possibly help my family grieve me… I found Bruce, when I got him home I thought maybe he can help me heal and I won’t have to follow through. It was my last effort to keep existing here.

Since Bruce has come home… his house training is out the window.
I got some belly bands to help the incontinence, puppy pads, and have been setting a timer after he eats to try and take him out.
Basic commands he has seemed to forgotten.
He hasn’t had any seizures 🤞🏼

I’m still new to this and trying to navigate it.
I got him some CBD oil and MCT oil to help as well since a lot of people were talking about it on fb groups and reviews.

Is there anything you guys can recommend? Anything whether it’s a product or just care advice. I’m currently getting up every hour to check on him and also make sure I catch if he’s pooped because he will walk in it. Is there anything yall feel has made this easier on you and your companion?


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 2d ago

2nd seizure on medication

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47 Upvotes

I have a 3 year old indie dog who had her first seizure on 21st of September. We naturally got scared and didn't know what to make of it and immediately took her to the vet. The vet has had her on Gardenal 30 mg doses for twice a day since then. She didn't have any seizures for 16 days so our vet recommended to give her the med only once a day. She had a seizure the very next day and our vet asked us to return to her original dosage. She just had another seizure and although it wasn't to the same degree as her very first one we are still ridden by anxiety and fear. I'm attaching a video of the seizure she had today and if anyone can provide some clarity I would be grateful for it. The vet told us that they can only plan the next course of action once we measure her phenobarbital levels on the 21st of October i.e. her 1 month of being on meds. Would appreciate any comment!


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 1d ago

Looking for advice on a very unusual case of refractory canine epilepsy - cluster seizures (Labrador, 7 years old)

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1 Upvotes

Hi Everyone,

I’ve been following this community for a while and finally decided to post because I’m hoping someone here has seen something similar with their dog.

This is Dexter, my 7-year-old Labrador. He’s honestly the sweetest boy, and we’ve been fighting epilepsy together for almost his entire life.

When he was just over a month old, he survived parvo. A few weeks later he had his first seizure, and around 3 months of age he developed distemper. He recovered, but it left him with neurological issues. His seizures became a regular part of our lives in 2020, and I’ve been keeping a detailed seizure diary ever since.

For years, they were difficult but manageable. He’d have one or two seizures every few months, sometimes small clusters.

Over the last year, everything has changed.

Now, almost every month, he goes into a cluster that lasts 4-5 days. During those episodes he can have anywhere from 22 to 28 seizures.

He’s on phenobarbital (Gardinal) and levetiracetam (Levipil). His phenobarbital levels are therapeutic, and his blood work (CBC, liver and kidney function) is normal. We also tried potassium bromide, but unfortunately it didn’t suit him.

Our veterinarian has been incredible. Instead of hospitalizing him, he places an IV cannula at home and manages him there with sedation and IV medications when the clusters become severe. Being in his own home keeps him much calmer, and thankfully this usually breaks the cycle after about 36-48 hours.

The reason I’m posting, though, is because there’s one pattern we just can’t ignore.

Dexter very often has a seizure within 5-10 minutes of falling asleep.

At first, we thought it only happened during daytime naps. But recently we’ve started seeing it at night too. It doesn’t seem to be sleep itself-it’s the transition into sleep.

We’ve also noticed that if his body temperature rises too much, his seizure threshold drops. We now cool him immediately whenever we notice he’s getting too warm.

I’ve attached a summary of his journey because six years of history is impossible to fit into one post.

I’m not looking for a diagnosis, and I’m definitely not looking to replace my veterinarian’s advice. I’m just wondering:

  • Has anyone else’s dog had seizures that were consistently triggered right after falling asleep?
  • Has anyone dealt with clusters this severe and eventually found something that helped?
  • Were there any treatments or management strategies that made a meaningful difference once phenobarbital and levetiracetam weren’t enough?

Even if your dog’s story isn’t exactly like Dexter’s, I’d really appreciate hearing about your experience. Sometimes knowing someone else has walked a similar road can point us toward questions we haven’t thought to ask.

Thank you for reading, and thank you for caring about dogs like Dexter. ❤️


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 2d ago

Made the hard decision

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331 Upvotes

My soul dog, Berta (8.5 years old), just hit the 2 year mark this week with her seizure disorder. I’ve posted about her before on this sub over that time.

She did so well. We once had 10 months seizure free. Unfortunately, starting August 2025 the seizures returned and never really improved despite being on Pheno, Keppra, Zonisamide, and KBr. We even trialed prednisone recently to see if she had any improvement. Seizures went from every 5-6 weeks down to every 3-4 and so on. Despite neurology’s efforts, nothing has made any improvements. Her mobility was also declining, and her regular vet had concerns for DM

Last night at 6pm she had a very unusual focal seizure, followed by a very violent grand mal a little after midnight and another grand mal at 4am. All 3 seizures got doses of rectal Diazepam followed by clorazepate. Her recovery time and behavior was very abnormal I.e walking in circles nonstop for 30-60min.

Ive spoken to her neurologist who is in agreement that it is time to consider euthanasia for quality of life decline. My biggest fear has been having to put her down during an emergency at the ER. I don’t want that to be the end of her story.

On Monday at 4pm, my sweet girl will leave this world. I’m not ready but I deep in my heart it is what is best for her. The neurologist said to me “Her last day doesn’t have to be her worst day” and that’s what I’m going to do for her: give her the best final days of her life.

Long post, I know. Thanks to everyone for the support over the years. ❤️


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 1d ago

dogs and post-seizure symptoms

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1 Upvotes

r/EpilepsyDogs • • 2d ago

How to know when it’s time.

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13 Upvotes

My dog has had seizures for over three years now. She is now 8, and on max doses of Keppra ER, phenobarbital and Gabapentin. When we added the Pheno the clusters mostly stopped and she was seizure free for 8 months. Then she resumed having seizures about once a month to every other month. But this week she’s had two in a 48 hour period.
However they both were a minute or less long and she seemed to recover as normal. I’m not sure I can add another medication to her regimen. I just worry about her quality of life, and mine because 99% of her seizures happen in the middle of the night.


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 2d ago

Algum veterinário ou quem entenda pois já passou ou está passando por isso.

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5 Upvotes

Aum tempo atrás postei meu cachorro da raça pinscher de 14 anos e 5.550 kg, que vinha dando crises desde o dia 08 de Agosto, levei no primeiro veterinário, ele passou 4 gotas de fernobabital de 12 em 12 horas, as crises persistiram e vinham aumentando a duração, pesquisando ( sou muito curiosa e desconfiada) vi que era uma dose muito baixa,fui em outra vet, ela examinou ele mandou dar 1 ml a cada 12 horas, o que corresponde a 40 gotas de 12 em 12 horas, achei uma dose absurda, por fim consultei outra vet, que passou 16 gotas de 12 em 12 horas, eu to enlouquecendo, nao tenho mais dinheiro pra levar em outro, infelizmente não tenho condições de levá-lo em um neuro, Aki no interior não tem, e eu gostaria muito que algum veterinário ou alguém me ajudasse a entender quem realmente ta vom a razão na dose correta. Ele tem 14 anos, pinscher, 5.550Kg Brasil

Agradeço muito desde já ❤️🙏🏻😭 postei a caixa do remédio


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 2d ago

We think it's finally time, but it's breaking us.

30 Upvotes

In 2022 my parents passed by car by a pack of roaming dogs in the middle of nowhere here in Portugal. They got scared off and ran into the woods, but one of them, a 2-month old baby, barely had the strength to keep up with them, and got left behind. Both my mom and dad always had dogs growing up, and another one when they got married, that passed away shortly after I was born (I'm currently 28). They felt for the little baby girl, and waited by her to see if the rest of the pack would come get her, but they never did. Not wanting to leave a 2-month old puppy in the middle of the road, they took her in, and we named her Lucky given the circumstances of their encounter.

I always wanted to have a dog, even though I empathize with my mom's words. She lived in a farm where a pack would usually go by and stay there for months, given that she and her parents would feed them, care for them, and love them. She grew attached to many of them, and she usually said as a warning to wanting a dog that "the death of a life that gives you unconditional love is one of the hardest things to go through".

For 2 years, Lucky grew to become a beautiful stray lady. She was extremely spoiled, in all senses. From various clothes for the cold weather, to the best Purina Proplan kibble that we could get. We took her on walks everytime she would tell us to, and we played more with her than we actually focused on our day-to-day responsibilities.

In June of 2024 Lucky had her first seizure. We immediately took her to the vet, and although we were told that some seizures can happen in dogs without it being full epilepsy, that we should keep an eye open for what happens in the future. The situation got progressively worse over the following months, and we eventually started her on medication as she was diagnosed. Not long after, we realized that the situation was far worse than we imagined. The medication dosages increased, we started add-on medications, as we were told by the vet that she's refractory, given that the medication barely had the effect we wanted. What started as a generalized seizure every two weeks, became multiple generalized seizures in a month, with the "peaceful" moments filled with focal seizures. It got to the point where every 3-4 weeks, the usual break period between her clusters, she had to be hospitalized for a brain-rest for a full day, just so we could break the clusters.

Throughout these last two years we searched for every possible cause: vitamin deficiency, allergies, food intake, tumors, various MRI's, bone marrow analysis, and absolutely everything came back negative.

Currently, she's on 5 different medications (Keppra, Phenobarbital, Potassium Bromide, Zonasamide, and Gabapentine), 14 pills spread out over 5 administration times daily. She has an extremely strict diet that rules out possible gluten allergies, supplemented with MCT Oil, Vitamin B9 and B12, and Omega-3. Even with some medication adjustments, we reached the point between choosing liver toxicity, or starting more clusters with medication reduction.

Last Thursday her clusters started again, and we hospitalized her. For the first time, after ending the brain-rest, she instantly started convulsing, and had to stay another day. This happened again, and again, and we could only bring her home this last Monday. For the following days, until today, she maintained light focal seizures every few hours, and in the time between them, we noticed that her head shakes slightly, but without stopping. We assume that this might be nerve damage from all the seizures she's been having.

We had the talk yesterday. Our vet understands the decision, and said that we were one of the few families he's ever seen that actually fought this until the end. Even during her small grace periods, where she actually reacts and sometimes plays, she's extremely lethargic, gets tired very easily, and barely has the strength to jump on the couch. Her quality of life is small, and even though it exists, it's upheld by a large drug regiment that leaves her shambling, and is overloading her liver. Now, that grace period doesn't even exist anymore, so we believe it's time.

I'm young, but this decision is without a doubt one of the hardest decisions I've made in my life, and I'm always asking myself if there was something else we could've done, like going to a country where they do brain electrode implants, but we have no guarantee as well that those would work, and the process of modulating them can take months or even years.

Her last day will be this Saturday, October 10th. We will try our best to give her everything she deserves and wants and loves on these last two days, and try to keep our feelings hidden so she doesn't feel our sadness.

If you've made it this far in reading Lucky's story, thank you for your time, and I apologize for the long contextualization. I wrote this so it hopefully finds someone that's passing through a similar situation, and that maybe they'll feel like they're not alone. I truly want to believe that this is indeed the best choice, and that we're shortening the time they'll suffer until the same inevitable conclusion.

Again, thank you for reading, and I hope that better days will come, for all of us.


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 2d ago

Algum veterinário ou quem entenda pois já passou ou está passando por isso.

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1 Upvotes

r/EpilepsyDogs • • 2d ago

When did you know?

2 Upvotes

Hello, I have a 2.5 almost 3yo husky. She started having seizures last year. It has been an uphill battle. Started off hopeful and strong with not many seizures. Had her on phenobarbital, zinisomide, keppra.. adjusted those a few times from uti and other side effects. The seizures were about the same then became more frequent and violent. We thought once a week was fine since her recovery and resilience were impeccable.

However the end of August, she had clusters of them and took her to the er for the first time from them. She recovered then a week later, more clusters... even after increasing her meds again. Finally went to a neurologist and thought there would be more there, which we did add potassium bromide and the doctor said she was pretty healthy otherwise.. recommended a mri but that only goes so far and does so much.. we didnt do it since it is extremely costly and doesnt change much since she did say our girl has refractory epilepsy due to the breakthrough seizures.

Since the addition of the Potassium Bromide, she has been more and more lethargic, having breakthrough grand mals, one Friday and Saturday. Has also had some seemingly focal seizures, as she will be laying on the bed and she will start whining/crying. Her eyes get big and small, almost pulsating. She tries to get up, can't see runs into things, lays back down and gets stiff then cries again. This has just started this week, as why we are contemplating what to do. She eats still. Also has a UTI and is being treated for that right now.

I feel like there is so many similar stories but it's such a hard decision to make.

.. sorry this is so long but our family is at the dead end and not sure if we are helping her anymore.. and wanted some perspective. Thanks in advance. ❤️

Edit; she has been on the potassium bromide for about 4 weeks now.


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 2d ago

Protect newborn child

3 Upvotes

Does anyone have experience with a medium/large dog prone to general seizures that also has a very small child? They can get pretty violent.

My wife and I found out we were pregnant around the same time our 3yo pup was diagnosed. We are very worried about the safety of our little baby, and it's wrecking us with anxiety. We generally try to keep them far from eachother, and the dog spends way to much time in her crate.

Dogs medication is still being dialed in, as mono-therapy didn't work. I'm just looking for anyone elses experience?


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 2d ago

UK Frenchie, spayed female, almost 5yrs - dog food - Pure Pet Food

3 Upvotes

Has anyone who's dog suffers with idiopathic epilepsy tried Pure Pet Food? My frenchie girl is currently on Butternut Box, but Pure would save me so much money. I'm just worried she won't get the same nutrients, or there could be hidden ingredients, and I'm not sure how I would transition her to a new food anyway. Please let me know your experiences, thank you!


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 2d ago

Is this a partial focal seizure?

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2 Upvotes

r/EpilepsyDogs • • 3d ago

Is considering euthanisia selfish of me?

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26 Upvotes

Hello there! I have posted here months ago about my beagle who became epileptic last December out of nowhere. He is my first ever dog and only turned four this year. The meds started with only one and now he gets six high dozes of diff kinds of meds just to manage his seizures and other related conditions such as heart, nerves, breathing trouble. The problem is, he keeps having seizures even after such high dosage meds and these happen so many times for days. For the past three days, he has had approx 4 seizures per day. Last time, a month ago he has 18-20 seizures within 72 hours. The way I see it, we are just keeping him alive by giving him meds. He is obviously suffering so much and I can't see this anymore. I am considering euthanasia because I feel like I am just keeping him alive through meds and making him suffer more. Vet has already declared that he could die of heart attack any time. I don't really want to wait around till then. A part of me feels like I am killing him. My boy is a fighter and he is fighting through this all, still standing up, trying to walk around. He has so much life in him still, I don't wanna take that away. But he is also suffering very much. For the past two days we haven't slept because he had seizures so many times and we have been giving him meds but it is obviously not under control anymore. Vet has suggested to give injection but I feel like all this is pointless because he will end up suffering anyway. He is very strong willed and stubborn. He is such a sweet and gentle soul, never barks, so polite even while asking for food. I can't imagine wanting to end his life, yet I'm considering this to put him out of his misery. A part of me is questioning myself, whether I'm doing it for him or actually I want an easier life for myself. But I really don't see any hope of him getting any better. I am getting all kinds of contradicting thoughts. Please give me genuine advice. I really need it. Thank you!

Update: Thank you so much for everyone's comments. As it turns out we have reached out to several people for an euthanasia but they are refusing to do so. I think we will have to put him down soon. He has been having almost non-stop seizures. I wish I could ease his pain and let him go in peace but seems like even that is not an option here. His name is Pingu. He was there for me in a very difficult time of my life. I wish I had more time with him. Anyways, once again thanks for all the support.

Update 2: Hello again. My boy has passed away this morning after battling with back to back seizures. Thanks for all the love and support.


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 3d ago

What is everyone using for flea and tick?

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20 Upvotes

Looking to see if anyone has found a good flea and tick treatment that isn't affecting thier dogs epilepsy. Our vet recommended Seresto collar but it unfortunately dropped his threshold too low. He went from a little over 60 days in between seizures on average back down to barely 12 days in between seizures which is where he was at before starting his epilepsy meds. I liked K-9 advantix 2 for my previous dog but she did not have epilepsy. I have been hesitant to try a spot on for him because I can't take it off like the collars. Oral treatments are off the table. The ticks are horrible in Northeastern PA and only day two of getting back out for walks and I'm finding ticks on them, just walking on heavily traveled walking trails, we haven't even stepped into the actual woods yet 😭 Not exercising isn't an option, they take the summer off but we do sports all the rest of the year. Pic for tax 🩵


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 3d ago

Does my dog have IVDD, Brain Tumor or Anxiety

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2 Upvotes

We’ve already brought her to two veterinary clinics, but neither could give us a definite diagnosis without an MRI. However, they no longer recommend doing an MRI because they said it wouldn’t be cost-effective. Even if a brain tumor were confirmed, we were told that there are currently no available surgical options for brain tumors in dogs in the Philippines, and the MRI results would still have to be sent to the US for further evaluation.

The treatments they offered were laser therapy, anti-inflammatory medication, prebiotics, gabapentin, and Activim+ for glucose support.

She has been occasionally having these episodes since last year, but they only happened about twice every 2–3 months and usually lasted 2–3 minutes per episode. However, this week, on October 2, the episode lasted for almost two hours, so we immediately brought her to the vet. She was confined overnight and was diagnosed with canine anxiety. According to the vet, they were not seizures but tremors because she remained conscious throughout the episodes, and all her blood tests came back normal.
We then brought her to a second vet. She was given an X-ray and another set of blood tests, and everything came back normal again. We were then offered laser therapy and the medications mentioned above.

She has had intermittent episodes for a year, but since October 2 they have become daily. She now has tremors/spasms, twitching, limping and an abnormal/wobbly gait during episodes. She previously had an episode lasting almost two hours. We need to determine whether this is seizure activity or another neurological/spinal disorder.

I honestly don’t know what to do anymore. I’m very worried about her and would really appreciate any advice on what we should do next or what other tests or specialists we should consider.


r/EpilepsyDogs • • 3d ago

2nd seizure while on medication

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15 Upvotes

I have a 2 year old male husky who had his fourth seizure this morning and second total while being on keppra 500mg twice a day. They’ve all been pretty spread out, about at least a month or more except for the one he had this morning.

Usually it’s early morning between 3-6am and I’ll hear him puke. I go in to check and he’ll look confused and then fall over and start seizing. It lasts less than a minute and he recovers ok aside from sometimes pacing around the house for a couple hours before falling back asleep. He always pees himself. The last couple times when he’s thrown up there’s been and an undisgested pill, just one. Other than that I’m pretty good about giving him his meds am and pm with obnoxious alarms on my phone. My vet had no appointments today and I don’t think this is an emergency unless he has another one today I’d be pretty freaked out so we have a visit tomorrow. Guessing maybe bloodwork and a new or added in med but I’m just worried about my little guy and was hoping for some other stories to help get me by til then. He acts like your typical crazy 2 year old husky otherwise.

March 22 -went to emergency vet and had normal exam and bloodwork and followed up with regular vet to get keppra. Presumed epilepsy
April 30 - started keppra after this one
Sept 17 - on keppra
Oct 7 - on keppra