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11-23-2008, 06:16 AM | #1 |
Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: jersey shore
Posts: 181
| grand mal seizures in 2yr old yorkie?? My 2 yr old, 2.5lb, otherwise healthy Sasha had a grand mal seizure last weekend. We took her to the ER vet hospital ( a very reputable one in our area). Everything in her bloodwork was fine.....no signs of hypoglycemia (it happened just after eating) no signs of infection and the vet said liver shunt should have presented itself in her 1st year of life. We feed our babies Eukanuba yorkie formula and they have done well with this diet. We are puzzeled and concerned. While we wait for our followup visit with our regular (new) vet, we're researching other possible causes. Can anyone shed some light on the topic? Thank you!
__________________ SashaCeCeMaureen CoCoChanel |
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11-23-2008, 07:39 AM | #2 |
Slave to My Rug-Rats Donating Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Long Island
Posts: 7,247
| So very sorry this happened. However I disagree with your Vet about the liver shunt. She SHOULD have her Bile Acids Tested as this will show liver function. She COULD have an LS or MVD and it could show at this point. Given the fact it happened after eating and that she is very, very, very tiny. I would be very surprised if it wasn't related to liver function. The kind of food is very important. Euk would not be good for an LS or MVD dog. The BAT is a blood test, costs about $80, you get results the next day. Please have this done ...My Roxy was 3 when she was diagnosed with MVD (tiny little shunts in her liver). She has to eat special food and take supplements, but she is doing ok. You might want to join this group too: DogLiverDisease : Dog Liver Disease This is a group of wonderful people that are not only terrific for advice and support, but there guidance with experience and a tremendous amount of research is incredible. |
11-23-2008, 08:10 AM | #3 |
Donating YT 3000 Club Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: USA
Posts: 7,178
| I agree with TLC...Liver shunt *can* show up at 2 yrs of age...A bile acid test would be the next step, in my opinion. Actually, we have a couple of members on here whose yorkies were not diagnosed until 2yrs or older. Is your baby a picky eater? only eats once a day? any history of UTI or dark urine? bladder stones/crystals? occassional lethargy? lethargy after vaccinations? drooling? vomiting? etc?
__________________ Miko 's his Mommy |
11-23-2008, 08:19 AM | #4 | |
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11-23-2008, 10:32 AM | #5 | |
Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: jersey shore
Posts: 181
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I had planned to ask my vet to do a bile test, anyway. She has always been on the quiet side (her sister --not a littermate-- who had a fatal reaction to anesthesia, was very spunky and her new sissy --6months old-- is a dynamo! I know all pups are different ...some more active than others. I never thought of her as lethargic, though. Thanks for your advice. I am compiling a list of questions for her followup visit.
__________________ SashaCeCeMaureen CoCoChanel | |
11-23-2008, 10:36 AM | #6 | |
Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: jersey shore
Posts: 181
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__________________ SashaCeCeMaureen CoCoChanel | |
11-23-2008, 11:36 AM | #7 | |
Slave to My Rug-Rats Donating Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Long Island
Posts: 7,247
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Roxy's symptoms are mild, mostly she is more subdued, kinda 'blah' for the Yorkie breed. Her Ortho Specialist felt that b/c she was very docile for the Yorkie breed and being LS is so common in Yorkies that we should test her. At the same time I found out that 2 other Yorkies from Roxy's parents (2 different liters) had some sort of liver issues, so off we went for the BAT. Her first BAT was a pre of 43 and post of 100.9 ~ Off to a Specialist for further testing.... | |
11-25-2008, 01:16 PM | #8 |
Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: jersey shore
Posts: 181
| Sasha has her followup appointment (her 1st with our new vet) on Friday. We so hope that it's not a liver shunt....but now I know exactly what tests to ask the vet for. Thanks an awful lot for the advice and links to liver desease. My husband and I are learning alot. Everyone is so wonderful on YT!!
__________________ SashaCeCeMaureen CoCoChanel |
11-29-2008, 05:00 AM | #9 |
Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: jersey shore
Posts: 181
| Sasha's visit w/ new vet Sasha had her followup visit with our new vet yesterday. She is scheduled for her BAT test on Monday and the vet would like to followup with a sonogram (regardless of the BAT test results) as she explained that sometimes milder cases of liver shunt don't always show in the BAT. She will also be doing a urinalysis....bloodwork was already done at ER visit and is normal. Thanks again to everyone for your responses and advice. I'll keep you posted.
__________________ SashaCeCeMaureen CoCoChanel |
11-29-2008, 05:07 AM | #10 |
BANNED! Join Date: May 2007 Location: USA
Posts: 11,073
| I personally do not think you need a sonogram as if it is liver shunt it will show on the bats and usually if the post is over 100 then it is more likely to be liver shunt. The test that needs to be done if it is high is a liver scan but if mine had high bats i would go to uoft with dr tobias to do continued testing as she and dr centers are the best with liver shunt. My dee dee has mvd and her pre were always 3 and post were 73, 54, and last 26 on low protein diet. She is very mild but we keep her on low protein diet and no supplements and she is ok. Keep in mind sometimes test can be high if gall bladder contracts while they are drawing blood so it may have to be re-done if test shows high and i would do that as dd was high first time and lower second. Good luck and i hope it is not liver shunt -- have you joined the two liver shunt groups dogliverdisease and Liver_Shunt_And_MVD_Support--- both are at yahoogroups.com -- definitely join them as you will learn what is important and not as I hate putting mine through a bunch of unnecessary tests and the bill will keep racking up. I joined when they wanted dd to have a liver scan with no symptoms of liver shunt so i refuse test as with no symptoms i did not feel it necessary but with yours having seizures that is a huge sign but i would immediately get on low protein food as that will help |
11-29-2008, 05:24 AM | #11 |
Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: jersey shore
Posts: 181
| Yes, I did join Liver_Shunt_MVD_ Support group......everyone there is very helpful and I'm learning alot about the desease. Of course, we are praying that she does not have a liver problem.....but all the tests are necessary to discover the cause of the seizures (she's had 2 over the last 2 wks). We will also make the dietary changes depending on the test results Monday. Thank you for your recommendation of Dr. Tobias......I see her name alot on the liver support site.
__________________ SashaCeCeMaureen CoCoChanel |
11-29-2008, 05:46 AM | #12 |
BANNED! Join Date: May 2007 Location: USA
Posts: 11,073
| we work with dr jean dodds for both dd hypothyroid and her mvd and her diet is suppose to be great for liver shunt and mvd dogs also make sure no rosemary is in any food treats and do not use petzlife gel as it has rosemary in it as rosemary can trigger seizures in dogs prone to them and if epilepsy you need to be on a grain free diet |
11-29-2008, 05:49 AM | #13 |
Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: jersey shore
Posts: 181
| No rosemary in food....... How old is DD and how much does she weigh?
__________________ SashaCeCeMaureen CoCoChanel Last edited by cocoangel; 11-29-2008 at 05:50 AM. |
11-29-2008, 05:52 AM | #14 |
BANNED! Join Date: May 2007 Location: USA
Posts: 11,073
| she is 4 1/2 and weighs 6.7lbs rosemary if you google it can cause seizures in dogs prone to it - my perfectly healthy dog demi had a seizure from rosemary chicken i got from grocery store is how i know for sure as it happened 12 hrs after i gave her the rosemary chicken and only thing she had different from normal diet and she now vomits on petzlife gel and it has rosemary in it i found out |
11-29-2008, 07:05 AM | #15 |
Slave to My Rug-Rats Donating Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Long Island
Posts: 7,247
| The Ultrasound is up to you. Me, I'd do the BAT and bloodwork and urinalysis first. The U/S I believe is only 60% accurate, and the person reading it also has to be very, very skilled and experienced with U/S. I did one on Roxy it cost about $300 and what it told us was her liver was of normal shape and normal size. No shunt was seen...BUT...they could not tell me 100% there was no shunt and a U/S will NOT show mild cases or major cases of MVD. So, just be prepared for that and more further testing. Being that you are in NJ you may want to connect with the ppl on the liver disease site: DogLiverDisease : Dog Liver Disease |
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