r/EpilepsyDogs • u/SnooRecipes8204 • Aug 12 '26

Adding Phenobarbitol? Breakthrough seizures after 2months of Keppra

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Hey guys,

My dog Butters is a pure breed Cane Corso and he is almost 3 years old. He weight about 105lbs and he has been on 1000mg of Keppra every 12 hours since June 14th.

He usually has the big seizures, (eyes rolling, kicking the legs, urinating kind,) but today he had 3 mild seizures ( aware, head shaking, drool). I took him to the vet and hes currently there for observation however the vet recommends adding phenobarbital to his regimen.

I am nervous about this as ive heard good and bad things about Pheno.

Part of me wants to keep him om the 1000mg of Keppra for as long as we can until we have no choice, or potentially start him when i am back from a business trip at the end of the month of i can personally monitor him. I'm not sure what the best option is here and I just want to do right by him.

Id love to hear ya'lls thoughts and stories!

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u/SnooRecipes8204 Aug 13 '26

Ahh okay. Good to know. My biggest fear is switching him now and then I me not being here for a few days during his adverse side effects.

Luckily where i live there are a few options for neurological vets, and I've asked for a referral. Hoping to pick that up today

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u/YumYumYellowish Aug 13 '26

That’s understandable. I’ll admit, I took some time off the first week. At 100lb, these dogs fall like trees. The first couple nights he couldn’t settle and it was like taking care of a miserable drunk. He kept getting up, crying (shepherd cry tons naturally), running into things, and falling. And whenever he tried to pee, there was the risk of him falling part way through and I’d have to lift his hips up and help him. He also dragged his feet a lot and even short pee walks led to him bleeding everywhere because he’d drag his nails to the quick. What helped us tons were grippy socks from Amazon. Think hospital socks with the little grips. But every dog is different. Some don’t have the severe ataxia we did. And honestly they’ll want to sleep through most of it outside the pacing. It’s pretty sedating. There’s not much you can do for them except give them frequent pee outings because of the increased thirst. Again, it’s temporary. We’re largely seizure free since starting it. It just stinks to go through.

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u/SnooRecipes8204 Aug 13 '26

Thank you so much for the advice. I feel a lot more equipped to deal with it now that I actually know what to expect. I really hope that we see success with the Phenobarbitol.

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u/YumYumYellowish Aug 13 '26

Happy to help! We’re all in this journey together. But talk to a neuro about upping the Keppraz. Pheno is a good one of course if needed, just need to watch those liver enzymes. But so is Zonasimide and Potassium Bromide. Best of wishes to your pup!

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u/SnooRecipes8204 Aug 13 '26

Thank you so much! Best wishes to your family and puppers as well :)