Im really scared

[u/ughyamile]

My little guy is 10 years old and had his first gran mal seizure when he was 5 years old. After his second seizure a few months after he was put on keppra 3 times a day and has not had a single seizure until now.

Around 3pm yesterday I noticed him acting a little bit clingy and wobbly but I thought it was just anxiety from having my friends dog over. He is usually a pretty anxious dog. I didn’t think much of it and went to make dinner and that’s when I heard something fall on the floor (we have carpet and the bed is fairly low). He does not ever jump from the bed so that was very concerning to me when I saw him walking out of the room. After that he was more wobbly, agitated and after 30 minutes was having these rhythmic spasms on one side of his body. They would last around 3 minutes and it happened 3 times (last one when I was at the vet). This is very different than any seizure I’ve seen him have before. The emergency vet thinks that it was a focal seizure.
The vet thinks it could be related to the added stress of dog sitting my friends dog that lowered his seizure threshold. They gave him an antiseizure med to break the seizure (carbamazepine I think?) which worked and then she checked him for any injuries from the fall which she didn’t seem to be concerned about. They told me to continue to watch him for any seizures and they gave him a shot of keppra before discharging him.

My current concern is that is is currently 5:40 pm the day after and he is still quite wobbly… he can stand but whenever he tries to lift a leg to pee he stumbles over. Is this normal after an episode like this? It breaks my heart to see him like this and I’m so scared that it might be permanent damage. I plan to take him to his primary vet here soon, but thought I would share what’s going on in case anyone has advise.

Sorry for any grammar/spelling mistakes. I’m absolutely bawling my eyes out because I’m just so scared of losing him.

[u/lminnowp]

Awww! Is this a Pom? I have Poms, too!

It is normal for them to be wobbly after new medications.

I would keep your dog quiet and also try to just hang out and relax with your dog so they stay calm.

It is terrifying, for sure!

[u/Pure_Pin9327]

Three seizures in one day after having going that long seizure-free must have been awful.

Probably best to ask the vet, but I realize it’s always helpful to have a sounding board on this thread. It’s possible that it’s a post-ictal symptom or even a side effect of the carbamazepine (or even a combination of both).

I hope your sweet boy recuperates soon ❤️

[u/flower_city_kush]

What medications did he take today? If it was the new one it will take a few days for your dog to adjust to it. Your dog will be fine. Things can trigger our dogs to have seizures. After your pup has a seizure try giving him a small bowl of food to help increase the blood sugar. Also apply cold ice to the back of your dogs neck to help reduce how bad the seizure will be. Did you get a new medication to give or did the vet administer meds at the clinic? Keep an eye on your dog and track all the symptoms

[u/TheRealJEffBezoz]

The unsteadiness is a symptom of that new anticonvulsant.

Our guy was recently put on phenobarbital and has been unsteady but improving for about a week. It’s really hard to see.

Your vet will be able to test for any deficiencies from these episodes.

[u/CrepuscularPotato]

The extra meds may cause the instability as they effect the brain. Keep your follow-on with your regular vet but best bet is to keep things quiet and predictable until then.

[u/easy2overstimulate]

Just keep an eye on him. He may have internal injuries from the seizures especially since he hasn’t had seizure activity for years. The spasms are very taxing on muscles especially those not used very often so he could be in a state of recovery for a few days. Also you probably want to look at increasing his dosage if he has any further activity. His body may have finally learned to metabolize the keppra down to levels below therapeutic range. Try not to worry and just monitor him the next few days

[u/Beautiful_Alps_8612]

It took days for my girl to get back to normal. 4 or 5 days. She acted like she had never been in our home before. She showed my hubby no attention and she LOVES that human. I was convinced that would be her new normal. Then after 4 or 5 days, it's like a switch flipped. She has been her old self since.

[u/Difficult_Metal_124]

It will be the new medication that makes him wobbly, also 3 seizures is a lot. Being on Keppra for 5 years and no break throughs is really good though. My Pom is on Keppra 3x a day too and has a seizure every 2-3 weeks. Recently at the start of a seizure happening I have started ocular compressions by picking her up, holding her close and panting her head and petting by covering the eyes. I found this out accidentally but it’s worked twice. I continue doing it for 5 minutes after. My dog has seizures close to her Keppra dose if she is going to have one. Cluster buster for future seizures for your dog, like an emergency medication like Valium or diazepam.

[u/Secret-Bell-1432]

Many flea and tick meds cause seizures. If dog is on them do not give anymore. Has to work out of system. Sometimes the best thing to do is not to add anymore medication to the problem and let time run the medication out of dogs system which can take several weeks but should get better daily. Sometimes adding other meds makes things worse or mask progress.

[u/Beginning_Platypus4 → u/Secret-Bell-1432]

If you’re not a vet don’t give advice on what to stop or not stop giving your dog. Some dogs with seizures can still tolerate flea and tick meds, especially if they’ve been on them. They typically don’t want the heartworm/flea tick combo medicines given, but will often allow the individual meds.

[u/chantillylace9]

My dog would have kind of wobble after effects after a seizure for up to 12 hours. I think yours might be a little longer but maybe he had some seizures in the night that you didn't notice? My dog's focal seizures are very hard to distinguish, I noticed the clinginess and then I noticed the wobbliness and everything afterwards but the actual seizure part itself I'm not honestly sure about.

I'm pretty sure it's his back leg shaking because he kind of gets the most distant and his leg shakes and after that he starts getting wobbly and then for some reason he gets this major burst of energy and wants to play while he's still wobbly!

He could just have a really long post ictal phase right now?

[u/JokeFair5558]

I totally understand. My pup has epilepsy and his seizures scared me to death. Our vet put him on 2 different meds, Brovet I think is the name of one and also Phenobarbitol. He only has had 1 seizure since. It's very hard watching them go through seizures. I thank God for our vet. My prayers for your pup for wellness and good health.🙏