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Seizures I have a 17 month old yorkie that i have had for 6 months now and on 2 occasions i saw what looked to me like him shaking a little that lasted for about 10 to 15 seconds, but didn't pay much attention to it as it didn't seem to be anything to worry about. Late last night though he started shaking violently and fell over on his side as if he didn't have balance or use of all his legs, this episode lasted for about 3 minutes and scared me to death, but afterward he acted normal and happy. to me it looked similar to epileptic seizures i've seen people have. could this condition exist in a dog? my vet was closed and is closed today, and there is no emergency number in my area to call. Any suggestions or info would be greatly appreciated. |
Yes dogs have seizures just like humans. He needs to be seen by a vet and evaluated. |
My dog has them to and he has been diagnosed with a liver shunt.I really hope its not the case with your baby |
My blk Lab had them most of his life. Medication can usually control it quite well. I'd just keep a good eye on him so that he doesn't get hurt during a seizure and then get him into your vet as soon as you can. Please keep "calm" as this will help your pup calm down sooner. Best Wishes! :thumbup: |
Here is a good article on seizures that may help. There are a number of things that can cause seizures. It would be best to have your dog evaluated by a vet. Do you know the people that owned your dog previously? If you could contact them maybe they would let you know if he has had these before (if they are honest). Please keep us updated as to what you find out. He will be in our prayers. http://www.thepetcenter.com/gen/epilepsy.html |
My Lady is an epileptic. She was diagnosed at four years old. You need to take him to your vet and get a complete physical, including bloodwork. He should also get a bile acids test to test his liver function and a thyroid panel. Both liver shunts and a thyroid imbalance can cause seizures. It isn't an emergency situation unless he he starts having several seizures in a day so it can wait until Monday. Yorkies are 36 times more likely to have a liver shunt than all other breeds combined so it is essential that he have a bile acids test done. Seizures are one of the symptoms. Here is wonderful resource about canine epilepsy: http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/ |
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Whenever a Yorkie has a seizure, liver shunt should be looked at first. |
Yes, I agree...First try to rule out liver shunt.. |
since he is still young i too would ask for a bile acid test and full blood panel done. liver shunt might be the problem, but i hope not for yours and his sake. if its just epilepsy it can be managed with medication if the seizures become frequent. |
Maya had siezures before she was diagnosed with a liver shunt. I hope to God this is not what your baby has. Please get to the vet as soon as possible.....and don't give anything with tons of protein. |
Thanks so much everybody for the info and opinions. I am calling vet on monday and having him checked. Thanks again |
2 wks. ago, at 4:30 in the morning, Scooter woke us up with a seizure. Before I could get to him, he fell off the bed, was lying on his side, kicking and panting. Afterwards he seemed ok so I didn't take him to the vet. It happened again this morning at 5:30, so it's a visit to the doc today. He's 11 and as far as I know that's never happened to him before. He has liver damage but what is a liver shunt? Thanks, |
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It is an abnormal vein in the liver that cannot properly process things. MVD is several of these (very small) throughout the liver. It is a vascular abnormality. How did your dog get liver damage? What is the dagnosis and what are the symptoms? |
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Has he has a complete geriatric blood profile recently? How about a thyroid panel? Thyroid imbalance can also cause seizures. |
I don't know how he got liver damage. he's a rescue yorkie, was 4 when we got him and we think he was abused. the dr. told me that any number of things can cause liver damage. my daughter's poodle had seizures and our dr. told her that there was nothing that could be done about. 2 seizures within 2 weeks sounds like a bit much to me. he had a blood profile in dec. 07. |
Definitly get him to a vet ASAP! I know people are saying it could be liver shunt (I pray it's not) but maybe it could be low blood sugar too? Do you keep nutrical on hand for him? I hope it's nothing serious and it's treatable. Sending prayers for him to get better! |
Lady had idiopathic epilepsy when I adopted her as a rescue at age four. She takes two kinds of seizure medications and they are under control. Did they do a thyroid panel when he had bloodwork? That's not part of the routine CBC and should be done on older dogs. Have you been giving him anything for liver support? One of Lady's seizure medications can cause liver damage so she gets Marin (milk thistle). Here's some information about it: http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-...lk_thistle.htm |
Thanks so much for all your replies. I feel better now and have an appt. tomorrow at 9 am. I'm so afraid he'll fall off the bed again and really get hurt. I have never heard of milk thistle but will pick up some. He has a very good appetite, sometimes too good. LOL! My BH is forever giving him snacks. |
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I recommend Marin. It also contains Vitamin E which should be given along with milk thistle: http://www.entirelypets.com/marindog...utmk=195557229 |
After doing labs today the Dr. put Scooter on Phenobarbital twice a day. Have to take him back in three weeks for more labs to see how his body is reacting to the drug. I hope and pray all goes well. |
Sending warm wishes your way. Please post when you get home from the vet. |
Phenobarbital is very hard on the liver. Vets normally use potassium bromide for dogs with liver disease or a combination of the two in order to keep the pheno dose as low as possible. Please make sure you get him on Marin or Denosyl asap. |
seizures I've been reading your post and I have to tell you, have an acid bile test done. My little guy was diagnosed with MVD a little over a month ago. We suspected he had a prior seizure - it was the middle of the night also in bed and it came and went quickly I honestly couldn't tell what was going on. When it happened again, it was obvious and he was having clusters of seizures. I rushed him to an emergency vet. (Of course it was late on a weekend and my vet was closed.) They put him on the pheno without any tests and they said it was epilepsy. I took him straight to a hospital and it was confirmed MVD (microvascular disorder) after 2 days in ICU and the acid bile test results. He is now on hills l/d, pot. bromide and two other drugs. I supplement his diet with other veggies and NO additional protein. Thank god he is doing well so far! Also thanks to Yorkieluv for her advise after my frantic posts. Good luck, I hope everything works out. Seizures are so scary. |
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I do have a question though. How did they diagnose him with MVD by bile acid testing alone? It really is impossible without a liver biopsy or at least a Protein C test (which still can't diagnose it really). |
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Actually, that's not correct according to Dr. Center. The proper protocol would be a bile acids test, repeated if the results are abnormal, then a Protein C test to diagnose asymptomatic MVD. Invasive tests like biopsies are not conclusive. Improved differentiation of PSVA from MVD can be achieved inexpensively and noninvasively by measurement of Protein C; low values are found in dogs with "severe" shunting (MVD dogs usually have normal values). http://www.vin.com/proceedings/Proce...2675&O=Generic If the Protein C test is abnormal, a scintigraphy is done to look for shunting. Ultrasounds are not recommended as the results are too unreliable, at best only 80% accurate. |
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I'm sure Ellie's protein C would be normal but I didn't have it done and the biopsy was normal for the most part. So she has high bile acids but hasn't been diagnosed with shunt or MVD. I just think it is strange that a vet wold even consider diagnosing a dog with MVD without a biopsy OR a Protein C test.:confused: Make sense? |
And a question I have for Dr. Center while we're on the subject. How can a dog be diagnosed with MVD if they have normal Protein C and high bile acids? Bile acids aren't always high from just shunt or MVD. If the Protein C is normal, I'm guessing it could be plenty of things making the BA go up, Yes? No? Sorry for all the questions, Ladymom, but you know me...I NEED to understand this.;) |
mvd Fernando (my little guy from Brazil) did have an ultrasound. Since this was so new to me I was never told that it was only 80% accurate and did not know to ask. I really don't know if they did the protein C test you mentioned. The neurologist we dealt with ruled out shunt which I was told was the better diagnose of the two. Now that I have this knowledge I will discuss it further with my vet - thank you so much. If you have any other words of advise, I would welcome them as this is still a new experience for me and the hardest part (besides the adjustment to his diet) is not knowing the long term prognosis. Thanks again! |
I forgot to ask my vet about Marin yesterday. Can I pick this up a local health food store? If not, then I can order it from the web siite you gave me. Thanks to all for the info. |
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I think most vets are unaware of the current protocol for diagnosing MVD and shunts. They still rely on the outdated tests like ultrasounds and biopsies. One of the main reasons Dr. Center stresses having a BAT done before a puppy goes to her new home is to avoid costly and invasive tests down the line. ALT levels may not be elevated in MVD dogs. Anyway, here is more information on the Protein C test and how it works: http://www.diaglab.vet.cornell.edu/c...t/proteinC.asp |
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