Can anyone help with seizures?

[Max783]

We have a 2 1/2 male Yorkie. He is larger than normal at about 14 lbs. For the past two years he has had problems with seizures, He has periods of time when he will go for days without a seizure. At other times, he will have 4-8 seizures per day. When this occurs, he drops to his stomach, shakes his head and screeches / yelps. If we do not get to him right away, this lasts for about a minute and stops. When we get to him during a seizure, we pick him up and his seizures stops. When his seizures end, he licks his front paws for 30 - 60 seconds. He has never lost consciousness during a seizure that we have seen.

When this started the vet put him on phenobarbital. We went through the loading stage and then over a period of months increased the dosage with the vet's advice. On phenobarbital there was some minimal improvement, but the pattern was the same. He would go for days with no problems at all and then had days where he had several seizures per day.

The vet then changed the medication to potassium bromide. Same routine with the loading that then gradually increasing the dosages. We also got the same results. He would be seizure free for several days and then have bad days.

With about a year on the two meds and no noticeable significant change in his condition, he has been without meds for the past year. And the symptoms are basically the same.

I am sure that some has dealt with this before and would appreciate any guidance you can give. Surgery for a potential liver shunt is not really an option for us. I am hoping that there is something else we can do to help our Max.

Thanks for reading and for any help you can give.

[lillymae]

Has he had blood work done to check his Bile acids ? or an MRI to check for Chiari ? or an X-ray to check for AAI ? these are all very serious issues that yorkies are prone to & if your pup has any of these things without the proper treatment he will most likely die and have a very painful life till he does. I would do whatever you can to get some diagnostics done so he can be properly treated & if you can't afford to do this , then you need to find a reputable Yorkie Rescue to turn him over to so that he can get the help & treatment that he needs. I will be praying for your baby. The shaking of his head & screaming are not normal seizure activity & it sounds like it may be AAI or Chiari.

[Max783]

Thank you for your response.

I should have mentioned this earlier. He has had all the blood work done, but no MRI or ultrasound.

I am hoping that there is a dietary change or something like that to try.

[manolos mom]

Diet: Because many of the toxins produced in the intestines come from protein, it is important to reduce the amount of protein in the diet. Dog food for adults and puppies usually contains 25% and 29% protein, respectively, and may have meat byproducts. Dogs with shunts need high quality proteins made from milk or vegetable, and are restricted to a protein content of 18% or less (on a dry matter basis). The diets should be easily digestible, rich in antioxidants and vitamins, and low in copper and iron.Lactulose: Much of the toxins absorbed from the intestines are produced by normal intestinal bacterial. Lactulose changes the pH in the large intestines, which decreases absorption of ammonia and other toxins and makes the environment unfavorable for the toxin-producing bacteria. It also encourages the intestinal contents to leave the area more quickly, so that toxins have less time to be absorbed. Lactulose is basically a sugar solution; its primary side effect is diarrhea. Because of this, veterinarians will instruct owners to adjust the dose so that the dog's feces is soft but formed.

White Fish is another good protein. Keep your baby on a low protein diet and please make sure you check with your vet before you change the diet. This could be anything and none of us are qualified to give medical advise. Good Luck to you and please keep us posted...Lissette

[Ellie May]

Does this pup have high bile acids then? If not, he needs to go to a nuerologist. If yes, he needs to go to an internal medicine specialist. If none of that is an option and he does have high bile acids, then he should be put on lactulose at a bare minimum (should have been as soon as the bile acids came back high). There are diets designed for this. However, if it is a surgically correctable shunt, then surgery is the best option. 4-8 seizures a day at times - they could easily cluster together and you would likely lose him. Have you applied for Care Credit?

[Max783]

monolos mom - thank you for your response. I will raise this with the vet.

Another thing has come to mind. Is there any chance that the seizures are related to anxiety? I just find it odd that the seizures stop whenever we pick him up. Maybe this is normal - I just don't know.

If this is a possibility, I thought that have him wear some kind of dog coat could put him at ease.

Just trying to think this through.

[manolos mom]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

Does this pup have high bile acids then? If not, he needs to go to a nuerologist. If yes, he needs to go to an internal medicine specialist. If none of that is an option and he does have high bile acids, then he should be put on lactulose at a bare minimum (should have been as soon as the bile acids came back high). There are diets designed for this. However, if it is a surgically correctable shunt, then surgery is the best option. 4-8 seizures a day at times - they could easily cluster together and you would likely lose him. Have you applied for Care Credit?

I agree with Ellie May.

[shodanusmc]

Visiting a Neurologist is a good idea. Best of luck to both of you.

[Max783]

Ellie May - All of the tests came back normal. I know that this included all of the blood tests. Now that your mentioned it, I am pretty sure he had the bile acid test as well, which was also normal.

When the phenobarbital a potassium bromide did not have any significant results, the vet said the only thing left to do was the MRI, which I declined, because surgery is not an option. This is why I am hoping dietary changes or supplements will help.

monolos mom - I have been looking online for a low protein / high anti-oxidant dog food, either store bought or homemade. Are you aware of any recommended brands or recipes?

Thanks again to all of you.

[lillymae]

You seem to be under the misconception that an MRI with a neg result will automatically mean surgery & this is not true. If your pup has Chiari which can kill him , can be treated with very inexpensive drugs. You say he stops the seizure when he's picked up & this is making me think it could be pressure in the neck or head causing the problem. If his bile acids came back ok then he DEFF needs the MRI.

[Ellie May]

A low protein would be used if his liver is not functioning correctly and toxins are building up because of that. If the bile acids are normal, then there is not the case. So a low protein diet would not necessarily be the answer.

Even if you can't do the MRI right now, it would be best if he were under the care of a neurologist. At the very least, they can help manage him symptomatically (they are much more aware of the drug choices available to manage things like this).

[lillymae]

How is your baby doing now ?

[Rhetts_mama]

Originally Posted by Max783

monolos mom - thank you for your response. I will raise this with the vet.

Another thing has come to mind. Is there any chance that the seizures are related to anxiety? I just find it odd that the seizures stop whenever we pick him up. Maybe this is normal - I just don't know.

If this is a possibility, I thought that have him wear some kind of dog coat could put him at ease.

Just trying to think this through.

True seizures do not stop when you pick up or reposition an animal or person having them. From this description, it makes me suspicious of whether the pup was truly having seizures. I have to agree with others here who have recommended a neurologist. Something I would add is to videotape these episodes, including any interventions you make (picking him up, etc) so that the docs can get a more complete picture of what is happening.

[concretegurl]

Canine Epilepsy Network

Canine epilepsy and diseases that cause seizures in dogs

Check your home for potential seizure inducing items & your dog;s food & shampoo your the dogs etc rosemary is a BIG one...a RAW diet can work wonders!

also go here

Nuroplex (Seizure) Homeopathic From AllergicPet.com

What does your vet say about valium & diazepam in conjunction?

Pheno is an old school treatment that many still use but it has been known to be very problematic in small dogs.

Why would you not do the ultrasound or MRI? Go get an insurance plan for $15 a month then take you dog in and cough up the $300 copay the rest will be covered I wish I'd gotten one.
To this day I have paid almost $10,000 out of pocket or paid off on my credit cards...it sucks, It's only going to get more expensive for me.

Bile needs to be done continually also are you using Karo as a buffer for the testing with your vet?

[Max783]

Originally Posted by lillymae

How is your baby doing now ?

He seems to be doing a bit better now, but he has still had several seizures.

Changed to a low protein, high anti-oxidant dry dog food. I feed him smaller amounts and more frequently. He gets vegetables for snacks. Also, I completely cut out bread, which he used to love to snack on.

Here is another thing I notice yesterday. He was starting to have a seizure so I picked his up. He stopped with the seizure and started to lick his front paws aggressively for about a minute or so. The paw licking happens everything he is done with a seizure.