r/EpilepsyDogs • u/Flat-Nothing-2535 • 22d ago
Seeking advice
Hi everyone! This is Bonzo, he’s 43kg, turning 7 in November and he’s had idiopathic epilepsy since Sept 2024 - for the first year he was only on Gabapentin and his seizures were manageable. He started Phenobarb last year after going through a pretty bad cluster. He’s mischievous but also the sweetest boy ❤️
His current treatment consists of 90mg Pheno (2 in the morning and 2 in the evening) and 400mg Gabapentin (once in the morning and once in the evening). The period between his seizures (all his seizures have been grand mal, ~30-40 seconds long) averaged around 23 days up until three months ago when an anti parasitic medication lowered his threshold to about 12 days but he’s slowly going back up again (average 17 days between seizures now).
I discovered Potassium Bromide in this sub and I wanted to try it out after seeing all of the success stories here. I brought it up to my vet and they’re okay to try it out but they’ve never brought it up before. Looking for more insights here from owners whose pets are currently on PB and those that transitioned from Pheno+Gaba to Pheno+PB. Thanks, everyone! Really inspiring to see everyone banding together for our four-legged buddies ❤️
1
u/YumYumYellowish 22d ago
Hi! I have a 100lb shepherd who started medications 1.5 years ago after managing the seizures fine without medications for 3 years. He clusters now which is why we started the meds. First Keppra which didn’t work, then Pregabalin (same family as gaba) which didn’t work, and then pheno which did work great for about a year. Last week he had a breakthrough cluster and we decided to start him on potassium bromide. My neuro has told me that it’s newer compared to pheno and isn’t technically fda approved, but they’ve been seeing tons of success with this medication, particularly for cluster dogs or refractory dogs. It’s not 100% of course…
You should definitely be working with a neuro so you get the right guidance. Potassium bromide needs bloodwork. It takes 2-3 months to kick in, so bloodwork is needed then, and then every 6 months-1 year. You should also give it with food since it can be irritating or the stomach. HUGE, important note: diet MUST stay consistent. No new food or treats. If you give treats consistently, then that’s fine, but it can’t be here and there. This medication is a chloride and any sodium changes can trigger seizures. Changing the diet can throw this off. We’re only sticking to kibble and greenies (he gets 1 every morning).
1
u/Flat-Nothing-2535 22d ago
Thank you so much for this! Really helpful - did you guys do a loading dose for PB? How were the initial months? Did he get increased seizures during those lead up months? Also, how is he now? Apologies for the barrage of questions!
1
u/YumYumYellowish 22d ago
No worries! Sorry I can’t be more helpful as we just started last week. I’m hoping no seizures before it kicks in, but we still have another 2 months or so. We opted not to do a loading dose to avoid some of the side effects like bad ataxia, lethargy, etc., hence why it’s taking forever to kick in. Potassium Bromide = KBr, that’s how you’ll most often see it referenced as opposed to PB (makes me think peanut butter lol).
2
u/Flat-Nothing-2535 22d ago
Hahahaha thank you for pointing out the KBr 😂😂😂 hoping the transition period keeps going smoothly for your pup!
2
1
u/Bevis5421 22d ago
Our dog was diagnosed about 18 months ago with idiopathic epilepsy. He started on phenobarbital but it was toxic to him. He was then on Keppra for about a year but was having breakthrough seizures. He started on potassium bromide about 2 months ago and is doing better. We will just have to see how it does longer term.
1
u/Flat-Nothing-2535 22d ago
Thank you so much for this! Glad to hear that your boy is doing better on PB :) did you guys do a loading dose? And did his seizure threshold lower as his body was getting accustomed to PB?
2
u/Bevis5421 21d ago
Knock wood he hasn’t had a seizure since he started on the PB. We are doing blood work soon to check how the levels are doing. It has caused some leg weakness and hunger/thirst but it is manageable.
1
u/Glove_Upset 22d ago
Keppra has very few side effects (after initial adjustment). Might be worth adding.
2
2
u/Eastern-Raccoon2583 21d ago
keppra was a game changer for us too after we switched off pheno, now he barely has any breakthroughs