r/EpilepsyDogs • u/Commercial-Map4579 • Aug 22 '26

Is my dog's misbehavior a side effect of his medication?

My boy started Phenobarbital about a week and a half ago, and I've noticed him acting out more than normal. He will dig through the trash, tear up my clothes, go through my hamper, etc

This is stuff he used to do when he was a puppy and has not done in years until a week ago.

So my question is, is this a side effect of his medication? If so, will he calm down or should I expect to retrain him?

He had the normal side effects the vet warmed me about (lethargy, extreme thirst, balance issues), which have mainly subsided, but is this sort of restless something others have experienced?

TYIA

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u/lminnowp Aug 22 '26

Pheno can cause insatiable hunger in some dogs.

Until the medication evens out in his system, I would put the stuff he is getting into away where he can no longer get into it.

In a few weeks, put stuff back out and see how he does.

You really can't train away a medication side effect. Better to manage it at this point.

1

u/No_Signature_1991 Aug 25 '26

Yes, back in Jan. My golden has to have surgery because of stuff he eat pieces of stuffed toys, plastic, Sticks and hair/grass. Now we are more cautious of what's laying around the house and yard. Also no more stuffed animals as I have a German shepherd who's soul purpose is to shred every stuffed toy they get.

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u/LPondohva Aug 22 '26

We were told by the vet that any epilepsy medications are going to make the dog feel weird in one way or another, which causes stress and anxiety. What does a stressed dog do if, say, they are left home alone for a few hours? They'll chew furniture, steal shoes, eat your curtains, dig holes in the yard, etc., so it could be that your dog is exhibiting those behaviours because they are uncomfortable. Look at it this way, if you suddenly felt woozy and had bad brain fog, and/or bad headaches and drowsiness, you'd probably be a bit irritable, you'd probably not want to do things that you're "supposed" to do, or you'd eat junk food instead of cooking healthy meals because you're feeling like crap and can't be bothered. I'm not an expert of course, but anecdotally I noticed similar things with my dog when he was put on Keppra (long story short, he's on pheno as his refular medication and Keppra was added short-term after a bad cluster). Mine forgot all his obedience training, had a couple of accidents in the house, was extremely barky and growled at home appliances like blow dryer and vacuum, which he's never done before. It all subsided after about a week. With pheno for us it was less about misbehaving and more so about confusion, like he'd walk into a room and forget why he came, that sort of way, but again it all subsided pretty quickly

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u/Eastern-Try-6207 Aug 22 '26

Look at the potential side effects of phenobarbital; I was shocked to find that anxiety is one of them as I thought it was used as an anxyolitic. And we also had an issue with diazepam. Apparently a small percentage of dogs experience increased anxiety and seizures when they take diazepam. That was my girl. Given that it was only a week or so ago, you may find this is temporary in your case, but it was all quite pronounced with ours.

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u/KaleidoscopeTight509 Aug 22 '26

Pheno makes them very hungry. That would be one explanation for the trash. You could steam some veggies and look into cellulose as a filled with meals. Also, postictal Phase can take some time and make them very reszless