# My dog has siezures. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 29, 2003, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503 "2003-12-29T01:43:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![WomanofScorn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b5a626/32.png) [@WomanofScorn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WomanofScorn)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/1 "2003-12-29T01:43:19Z")
pretty bad. It makes me feel so bad when he does. His eyes tear up, and his legs just flop up and down. God it is so sad. Breaks my heart my poor baby. Anyway I asked our vet about it and he said it could be a puppy disease. This was nine months ago. We estimate him to be about a year and five months now. He still has them and they are pretty regular. atleast 3 a month, sometimes more. afterwards he acts like nothing is wrong. he plays normally. Anyway he had one today and like i said, it just makes me sad. I don’t have the money go get tests done to see what is wrong. I just hope it’s not killing him. So this is what he looks like. [http://www.villagephotos.com/pubbrowse.asp?selected=697428](http://www.villagephotos.com/pubbrowse.asp?selected=697428) his name is Twix. I guess there’s just no point to this post, it’s just weighing on me. ---
**Author:** ![Chimpy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@Chimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimpy)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/2 "2003-12-29T01:47:32Z")
My thoughts go out to you and your dog, he looks very cute. enjoy your play time with him. ---
**Author:** ![12hazel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/919ad9/32.png) [@12hazel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/12hazel)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/3 "2003-12-29T02:24:15Z")
Please call your vet right away and ask where you can get some basic diagnostics at a rate you can afford. There are seizure meds that are not expensive and can help some seizure disorders. Yes, seizures can kill. They can get worse if not controlled. There must be an animal hospital in your area that offers low-cost services to people without much money. Your dog can’t ask them for help, though - so you have to do it. ---
**Author:** ![radar\_ralf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b2d939/32.png) [@radar\_ralf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/radar_ralf)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/4 "2003-12-29T03:45:27Z")
What kind of dog is he? It is difficult for me to tell his breed in the photo. Our family has had several dogs of mixed breed and they seem to be especially susceptible to seizures. As has been mentioned by **12hazel** , meds are available. ---
**Author:** ![Hugh\_Jass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/4da419/32.png) [@Hugh\_Jass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hugh_Jass)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/5 "2003-12-29T03:47:40Z")
WomanofScorn, I had a dog when I was a kid that had seizures. Turns out he had epilepsy. We were able to give him medication (daily) that pretty much controlled them. Eventually the medicine stopped working and we had to put him down. This was in 1980-81. I’ll bet the medicines have improved a lot since then. I’m willing to bet most vets would be willing to work out a payment plan. You might even be able to volunteer to work off the debt. Vets are animal lovers and they understand. ---
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/6 "2003-12-29T04:26:44Z")
**WomanofScorn** , my golden retriever had seizures for all of his 14 years. He’d fly across the floor like the girl in the Exorcist and then paddle his legs, drool, sometimes throw up or lose control of his bowels. It was frightening, even when I knew exactly what was happening. Each episode would last about a minute or two, but it would seem like forever. He’d get them about once or twice a month. He was put on Dilantin and then something else (it’s been a few years – I can’t recall what it was), but he had a great life nonetheless and died of old age. We all just learned how to deal with the seizures. We’d sit and talk to him and make sure he couldn’t fall off of anything or injure himself. He was sometimes tired after one, but always recovered quickly from even the worst of them. Good luck to you and Twix. ---
**Author:** ![Wicked\_Blue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/2acd7d/32.png) [@Wicked\_Blue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wicked_Blue)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/7 "2003-12-29T04:43:47Z")
My little black poodle has occasional seizures. We talked about it with his vet and the doctor said that medication wasn’t even necessary unless the seizures started coming more frequently. From what I’ve read, epilepsy is not all that uncommon (especially in toy poodles) and easily controlled with medication. Try not to worry about your pup too much. It is scary to witness, but he’ll probably be fine. He is a cute little guy. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![WomanofScorn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b5a626/32.png) [@WomanofScorn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WomanofScorn)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/8 "2003-12-29T04:56:11Z")
Tghanks everyone for your words. I can’t help but feel for him as he is my baby heh. I have two other animals but he is our sick “child” I’m going to look into it soon. I have never lost a pet (i’ve never had any growing up) and i don’t want to lose him so soon. radar ralf: i’m not sure what he is. He was found on the side of the road. The vet says he looks like he has german shepard in him and/or rotwiller. thanks again guys for the support. Nice to see so many animal lovers 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Calliope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Calliope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Calliope)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/9 "2003-12-29T04:58:46Z")
One of the first things I would have your vet check is your pup’s thyroid function. Thyroid problems are one of the most common causes of seizures and fairly easy to treat. Before I would put a dog on anti-seizure meds, I would rule out any other cause for the seizures, starting with the thyroid. ---
**Author:** ![radar\_ralf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b2d939/32.png) [@radar\_ralf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/radar_ralf)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/10 "2003-12-29T05:22:56Z")
**WomanofScorn** - I was going to guess Dachshund and Doberman mix, but your vet is much more knowledgeable than I am. Our current throng consists of a cockapoo who is the mother of our other three. The father of the three youngsters is a shitzu. They are cute little things and my wife and daughter think they are adorable and innocent. They have a much more realistic relationship with me; but they have been slowly training me to be the human they want me to be. ---
**Author:** ![radar\_ralf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b2d939/32.png) [@radar\_ralf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/radar_ralf)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/11 "2003-12-29T05:24:44Z")
We call the young ones “shitz-a-poos,” BTW… ---
**Author:** ![WomanofScorn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b5a626/32.png) [@WomanofScorn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WomanofScorn)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/12 "2003-12-29T05:44:03Z")
i lean more towards german shepard myself because he just looks so much like one. Well if his ears were pointed up. He’s pretty tall and about 50lbs. Well tall to me. I’m 5’4" and he’s about crotch high lol. He’s the sweetest dog I’ve ever come across. He is a pain though in some areas. We are having a problem house breaking him. The vet says the seizures can be the reason. He can’t stand for us to even be in another room. Hubby and I can go in another room, and whe we come out he has done his buisness on the floor. It’s aggrivating, but what is a girl to do. ---
**Author:** ![radar\_ralf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b2d939/32.png) [@radar\_ralf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/radar_ralf)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/13 "2003-12-29T07:35:16Z")
Y’know, maybe he has an infection of some kind. One of our dogs had the same symptoms, and it turned out to be treatable. Sounds like the poor guy is having trouble that he can’t handle by himself. _I’m willing to bet most vets would be willing to work out a payment plan. You might even be able to volunteer to work off the debt. Vets are animal lovers and they understand._ This is dang great advice. Thanks for the tip, **Hugh Jart**. ---
**Author:** ![Tir\_Tinuviel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@Tir\_Tinuviel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tir_Tinuviel)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/14 "2003-12-29T13:29:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by radar ralf \* > \*\*I was going to guess Dachshund and Doberman mix, \*\* Damn, I would have loved to see that conception! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Horrifying\_Howler\_Monkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/df788c/32.png) [@Horrifying\_Howler\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horrifying_Howler_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/15 "2003-12-29T16:56:13Z")
**Tir Tinuviel** a few weeks ago we had a chihuahua x german shepherd in rescue. I can’t even imagine how that happened. ---
**Author:** ![fireman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@fireman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fireman)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2003, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/16 "2003-12-30T00:38:47Z")
I have a little bulldog, border collie mix that has seizures. The vet couldn’t diagnose anything because he was never able to see her while she was having one. He suggested giving her some sugar. It works, the seizure ends within 2 minutes, and she recovers within 5 minutes. I just put a little on my finger and rub it on her tongue. Maybe she is hypoglycemic? ---
**Author:** ![Tir\_Tinuviel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@Tir\_Tinuviel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tir_Tinuviel)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/17 "2003-12-31T11:10:32Z")
**Magayuk** meh, some guys get all the fun! ---
**Author:** ![Archergal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Archergal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Archergal)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-has-siezures/221503/18 "2003-12-31T16:01:51Z")
**WomanofScorn** , we’ve had two dogs with seizures. Both got phenobarbital (prescribed by the vet). For one dog (Ivan), the phenobarbital worked very well. Sasha, who started having seizures when she was 7, had a little more trouble. Her seizures were much more violent and more frequent than Ivan’s were. We had to add potassium bromide to her meds. That helped A LOT. When she died in September (of cancer, not epilepsy), it had been almost a years since her last seizure. Like **Calliope** says, have his thyroid function checked. That can cause seizures, and the thyroid meds are not too expensive (my Bouncer dog takes thyroid meds.) The Canine Epilepsy [page](http://www.canine-epilepsy.com) has a LOT of good info. They were a god-send to me when my Sasha started having seizures. Good luck!