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Need some help w/ seizure Please.

mjk1

Member
Our Best Friend ( MiLo ) had his 1st seizure last night... it was upsetting to say the least. He is 1.5 yr old Male CC ( of Course ) and I was wondering if anyone else had this happen with their dog. My wife & I quickly became educated after the incident but we did not know anything about seizure's at the time of his incident. I did call our Vets's Emergency # only to have the Vet on Call end up being .... MIA... during our Most Urgent Need.... That leaves me a little shaken about their capabilities... My Wife is On Call frequently.... she does anesthesia and we don't understand or appreciate an emergency Vet number provided by our animal hospital that does not really mean " On Call ????? I do have an appointment here in 1 hour and did also confide with MI State's Vet School this morning ... MI State's advise was " He need to be seen ".... and I concur..... as apposed to our Vet's comment ...." you can bring him in on Monday " ???? Are you kidding me.....? Sorry for the rant... not intended specifically... if only to get it off my chest. If anyone can share any info or insight on the subject ... we would be very grateful ! Thank You ahead of time for any welcome input. mjk1
 

BAMCB

Well-Known Member
I am sorry you had this experience. Watching a seizure is very traumatic, especially if you have never witnessed one. Your vets response was disappointing to say the least. I do not have a cane corso but did have a dog that had seizures for years. I was extremely shocked at my vets reaction also! I called(during hours) when the first one happened and their response was unimpressive. They did not even need to see her as long as she was up and getting back to normal. What??!! After her second they mentioned if she had one more they would want to see her and begin meds. After the third we started phenobarbital. Watching the seizures were never easy but they became a normal event and everyone learned to see them coming and prepare her surroundings. Our situation was a bit different as she was 7 yrs old and it was more than likely due to a tumor. If he is 1.5 yrs I would lean towards epilepsy myself. Madelynn lived for 8 wonderful years after her diagnosis and meds. It never slowed her down more than 5-10 min at a time. Please do keep us updated.
 

mjk1

Member
BAM, Thanks for your reply, we did get his blood work done and our Vet came through... along with several apologies. They called us back and everything elementary is normal. I guess that is a dbl edge sword however... we will take it.... and hope the frequency is minimal . Just talked with my brother & wife whom also own a CC... their dog had some kind of seizure once about 1.5 years ago so that was interesting. Not the same breeder for what it's worth... but we have certainly learned a lot about seizures and dogs in the last 16 hrs... I guess I came to some form of "acceptance" no matter how this turns out, I can't really use the word " peace " .... since we were actually very disturbed by the incident. Holding my 120# dog while he shakes violently , 1st thinking he was choking, then trying to get my fingers in his mouth to protect his tongue ( mistake ) , and then having him lose bodily function control .... was a very humbling event. I wish all pet owners could be spared from that ! Thank You. Mike
 

mjk1

Member
Spoke too fast, no sooner did I post the last reply and walk in the house and my better 1/2 was calling me, seems MiLo had another seizure almost 16 hrs apart, less severe, talked to Vet again and we are going after diet before " meds " . This seizure wasn't as bad or as long, going after specifically less protein & less sodium ... if they continue the Vet will get him on meds... so I can't really poo-poo my Vet too much... as much as I would like to run him up to MI State Vet Hospital... for constant monitoring it may not warrant that at this time. We are proceeding slowly , we have the most senior Vet at our local hospital's ear and he is reassuring. I guess I have to take his advice and wisdom along with decades of practice and take small steps. To follow through... I wanted to update this thread just in case it may be helpful for another member . When I did a search ... I didn't come up with anything ... with that said I seem to be " search function " challenged at times.
 

al capone

Well-Known Member
Sorry to know about Milo, I had a GSD 40 years ago when I was 12 and the dog had epilepsy and in my country there was no med for dogs at that time. Every attack we throw water over him and the attack stop,but months later one splash of water wasn't enough. With out knowing me,the vet putted to sleep.
Now with all science they can control epilepsy very well. I'm glad it's not your case with Milo. Good luck any way.
 

angelbears

Well-Known Member
Looks like you have educated yourself very quickly. I want bore you with what you have already learned. I will say that living with a dog that has seizures gets easier as time goes by. You do learn triggers and you learn signs that one is coming. Sometimes you will have a few minutes, others may just be seconds. With the big dogs I found that getting them into a hall is very helpful. Nothing to break or fall on them. Most will caution against this and you may not be able to, only you know your dog. I try to get very close to my dog. I would sing and use a very soft soothing voice. Just be aware that when they are having a seizure and a few minutes afterwards that are not aware of their surroundings. Some are also temporally blind. Some will snap at you. Good luck and please keep us posted.
 

DennasMom

Well-Known Member
I do hope this is a temporary issue and resolves itself. Seizures are no fun.
The only experience I can add was with a bulldog/boxer we had for 3 years (from age 1-4, before re-homing him due to some dog aggression issues we couldn't resolve).
He would occasionally get some uncontrollable head shakes (not sure if he had early head trauma before he came to live with us). We found out that if we held a stinky treat in front of his nose, the tremors would stop immediately.

Your seizures sound MUCH more involved, but it might be worth looking into some Bach Flower remedies, or some other 'smelling salts' to have on hand, just in case they can help trigger the brain in a new direction - maybe if you can catch one coming on early enough?

I am a firm believer in the power of nutrition in balancing body chemistry... so I certainly hope a change in diet can do the trick!
 

BlackShadowCaneCorso

Super Moderator
Staff member
I am sorry you are going through this. Seizures are no fun to deal with and especially with a beloved pet. As was said becareful when he is initially coming out of his seizure as they often times don't know where they are or who you are. I am sad to say we do have at least one polluted line of CC although there are always rumors of more than one line but so far they haven't amounted to much more than a rumor here and there of one dog or another. I hope you are able to manage it easily enough with diet.
 

PaulLopez03

New Member
I suggested a vet go to OP for the reason that we can't know the step of the MIA; a demanding/excellent/adjusted (and additionally supplemented) abstains from meat gives the most obvious opportunity to have his MIA. managed.