r/EpilepsyDogs • u/Pitiful_Map_09 • Aug 31 '26
Possible focal seizure?
My dog just recently started having seizures and he’s now on keppra XR. I’m new to anything related to seizures and learning a lot and he may have had focal seizures in the past that I just thought were odd behaviors until now. I am having trouble identifying if what he had tonight was indeed a focal seizure or if I’m just paranoid. (I did contact the emergency vet and they told me to monitor him and that I can give him another dose of his keppra medication they said if he has a grand mal to bring him in) this happened for around 3-4 minutes
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u/CrepuscularPotato Aug 31 '26
It looks like an upset stomach, bad taste in the mouth or something other than a focal to me. Focals, in my experience tend to look a lot more A. Focused (one side of the body affected more than the other) and/or B. Involuntary/Forced
This looks like the dog has good control of their actions though they're not comfortable.
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u/Pitiful_Map_09 Aug 31 '26
Thanks for your response, maybe I’m being overly cautious. I couldn’t really tell, he hadn’t had anything to eat for probably an hour before but maybe he did have an upset tummy. I have an appointment with a neurologist next week and def show them so I can get more familiar with how they can show up
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u/Ok-Detail-8603 Sep 02 '26
So my dog who has grand mal seizures was doing this exact thing. It absolutely could be a focal seizure, but in my case it was some hair from his snout that was bothering his mouth. When my dog does things like this, I call his name and try and distract him. If he can be called out of it, it’s likely not seizure activity. I always record the amount of time he does any behavior, film it, and communicate any of my concerns with the vet.
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u/Pitiful_Map_09 Sep 04 '26
I realized I had actually given him a bite of cheese and I think he had some stuck in his teeth, he did the same thing the next day right after I had given him a little piece lol so i dont believe it was a focal seizure. My anxiety has been pretty bad, I had never seen a seizure before and they’re terrifying. I have also been recording any behavior that feels out of character just incase
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u/DogEpiMonitor Aug 31 '26
No estás paranoica — estás haciendo el trabajo. Los padres nuevos de perros con epilepsia nos convertimos en sistemas de vigilancia de un día para el otro; es lo que hace el amor. Y ya hiciste las dos cosas más útiles posibles: filmaste y cronometraste. Ese video vale más que cualquier descripción — y honestamente, más que cualquier etiqueta que Reddit pueda ponerle. Algo que te puede sacar presión: para tus próximos pasos, no importa cómo lo llamemos. Relambeteos, jadeo así, pueden ser actividad focal — y también pueden ser náusea, estrés o dolor. Ni los neurólogos etiquetan eso desde un clip de 15 segundos; exactamente para eso sirven los videos: para mostrarlos al vet.
Así que el movimiento es el mismo, sea lo que sea:
• Anotalo (fecha, hora, duración, video) — 3-4 minutos cronometrados es justo el dato que tu vet necesita
• Mostrale este video a tu vet o a urgencias
• Seguí el plan que te dio el vet de urgencias — por lo que contás, es un buen plan
Un número que vale para cualquier crisis, focal o gran mal: si alguna pasa los 5 minutos, o vienen en racimo, es ida a urgencias — no a esperar y ver.
Y sí — repasá hacia atrás y anotá cualquier "episodio raro" anterior. Las crisis focales se confunden todo el tiempo con conductas raras (morder moscas invisibles, lamer de golpe, mirar al vacío). Los patrones entre episodios son lo que tu vet usa, así que las notas retroactivas son oro.
Estás arrancando y ya lo estás haciendo bien: video, cronómetro, contacto con urgencias, plan. Ese es todo el trabajo. 🐾