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Seizure -9 month old pup

dasJERMAN

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Hi everyone,
Has anyone had any experience or wisdom to share about their frenchie having a seizure? Ours had her first seizure today and about scared my wife to death. Any help would be appreciated.


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I don't know anything about them, but just wanted to say I'm so sorry it happened! Y'all must have been terrified. I hope your baby is okay :(.


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That would have scared me to death too. Did you take your baby to a Veterinarian?
 
We are at the vet for a second time today. She had a second seizure after the first visit to the vet. Hoping to get some answers.


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Poor sweetie pie.
Hoping you get some answers too! [emoji173]️
 
Poor baby :( and poor you. So terrifying.
Seizures can be triggered by a lot of different things. Certain food, essential oils, environmental toxins,vaccines etc etc.
 
I'm so sorry to hear this. Watching your pup go through that has to be one of the worst things ever. It's not like watching them cut their leg on a branch and you know the root cause and what actions to take next. You are so afraid and out of control with their seizures. My weimaraner had her first grand mal seizure at 5 months old. Unfortunately, at that time I had two vets recommend putting her to sleep because the seizures will progress and at some point she will go in to the seizure and not come out of it. Well, my lil Miss Gracen Roo and her mommy were fighters. After 2 years, we were finally able to control her idiopathic (no known cause) seizures with phenobarbitol, potassium bromide and valium. Unfortunately, those two years were brutal. She would seize atleast once a week and on that day she would have 1-5 seizures lasting 30-60 seconds. She would collapse to the ground, salivate profusely, extend her legs and paddle them while her head would continuously hit the ground. It was devastating. Luckily my mom was able to watch her while I was at work, so she always had someone able to watch her 24/7. We would hold her head to avoid injury and cracked or broken teeth (overtime she had several) and gently stroke her head and body while talking calmly to her. Once she came out of the seizure, she was disoriented for 30-60 mins. I would give her vanilla ice cream to cool her down and watch her like a hawk. So many people questioned why I wouldn't get rid of her and the only thing I could think of, was would any other person take care of her the way I did or would they kick her to the curb or even hurt her if she ever ruined a rug or bedspread while seizing. Once her blood levels were maintained she would only seize once every 2-3 weeks instead of weekly. Unfortunately, her time came shortly after she turned 5 years old. I spent over $20k on her medical bills, monthly bloodwork and treatment and I would spend another $100k if I had her with me for another 5 years.

My long story is not to scare you, but more of what my experience was like. I hope they can find the cause of the seizures so you can provide her the love and care she deserves and she can give it in return. There are plenty of pups that live long lives while medicated and they are happy as can be and no suffering. Unfortunately, watching your precious baby go through something like this is tramatic for you and your family as well as waiting to find the root problem or how to hopefully reduce it.

You, your family and your fur baby and in my thoughts and prayers.

XoXo from Quella La Roux and her mommy too!
 
At 11 weeks old, I woke up to a very sick puppy, vomit, diarrhea, foaming at the mouth, trembling and seizures. The vet thought Stella had ingested something as curious puppies do, so they scoped her. Found 6-8 tiny pieces of black plastic/rubber substances in her stomach, but couldn't get them out, she was so small, only 4.5 lbs. at the time. Still to this day I don't know where that came from. So he did a gastrostomy to remove the particles. Ouch! The next day at the vet's office she had another seizure. They put her on phenobarbital. We went to visit her and I honestly thought about returning her to the breeder and getting another puppy, but my daughter started crying and tore at my heartstrings right in the vet's office. It was recommended that we take her to a neurologist because my vet suspected she had hydrocephalus (water on the brain). So two weeks later we did the MRI and she was diagnosed with mild to moderate hydrocephalus. I debated with many vets about the seizures being caused by what she ingested and they all said that was not likely and that it was due to the hydrocephalus. My breeder agreed to give us another puppy, through her tears and apologies, but I suspected she would have put Stella down as she would not be able to breed her. So we decided to keep her and do the best we could for her. I went with my gut and weaned her off of the phenobarbital a couple of months later because I always believed it was what she ingested. So far so good, she has been seizure free for about a year now.
I hope you are able to determine the cause of the seizures. As a side note, my mom had a dachsund that would have seizures about once per month. The cause was never determined and she recently just passed away at age 14! Good luck and please keep us posted on her progress.
 
I tagged a member that may be able to help/give advice.

I have no experience, but with you the best
 
I'm so sorry for you and your pup!! I have no experience to share but I wanted to wish you good luck!
 
Hi everyone,
Has anyone had any experience or wisdom to share about their frenchie having a seizure? Ours had her first seizure today and about scared my wife to death. Any help would be appreciated.


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Hi there. This is a very scary time for you I'm sure. My EB was diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy when he was 10 months old. He will be 8 in August. He has a grandmal seizure almost once a month. His last one was two nights ago. Vegas is on 3 seizure meds to control his seizures. Phenobarbital, Potassium Bromide and Zonisamide. It's a struggle for sure, but owning a special needs bulldog is totally worth every heart wrenching moment. Good luck and contact me if you ever have a question. Here is an article I wrote a few years ago that tells our story. Special Needs Bulldogs Forum - Bulldog spotlight: TheVegasShow

I'm so sorry to hear this. Watching your pup go through that has to be one of the worst things ever. It's not like watching them cut their leg on a branch and you know the root cause and what actions to take next. You are so afraid and out of control with their seizures. My weimaraner had her first grand mal seizure at 5 months old. Unfortunately, at that time I had two vets recommend putting her to sleep because the seizures will progress and at some point she will go in to the seizure and not come out of it. Well, my lil Miss Gracen Roo and her mommy were fighters. After 2 years, we were finally able to control her idiopathic (no known cause) seizures with phenobarbitol, potassium bromide and valium. Unfortunately, those two years were brutal. She would seize atleast once a week and on that day she would have 1-5 seizures lasting 30-60 seconds. She would collapse to the ground, salivate profusely, extend her legs and paddle them while her head would continuously hit the ground. It was devastating. Luckily my mom was able to watch her while I was at work, so she always had someone able to watch her 24/7. We would hold her head to avoid injury and cracked or broken teeth (overtime she had several) and gently stroke her head and body while talking calmly to her. Once she came out of the seizure, she was disoriented for 30-60 mins. I would give her vanilla ice cream to cool her down and watch her like a hawk. So many people questioned why I wouldn't get rid of her and the only thing I could think of, was would any other person take care of her the way I did or would they kick her to the curb or even hurt her if she ever ruined a rug or bedspread while seizing. Once her blood levels were maintained she would only seize once every 2-3 weeks instead of weekly. Unfortunately, her time came shortly after she turned 5 years old. I spent over $20k on her medical bills, monthly bloodwork and treatment and I would spend another $100k if I had her with me for another 5 years.

My long story is not to scare you, but more of what my experience was like. I hope they can find the cause of the seizures so you can provide her the love and care she deserves and she can give it in return. There are plenty of pups that live long lives while medicated and they are happy as can be and no suffering. Unfortunately, watching your precious baby go through something like this is tramatic for you and your family as well as waiting to find the root problem or how to hopefully reduce it.

You, your family and your fur baby and in my thoughts and prayers.

XoXo from Quella La Roux and her mommy too!

I remember the first time someone told me that I wasn't a good pet owner if I let him suffer. If I was any kind of parent I would put him down. My thought was..."what kind of parent are YOU to suggest ending the life of an innocent being simply because he has a neurological issue". No one would care for him the way I do or love him the way that I do. Yes....he is my Ten Thousand dollar dog and the number keeps on going up. But every penny is worth it when I know he's a happy baby. I wouldn't have it any other way.


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I hope the vet is able to identify the cause of your baby's seizures and control them.
 
@TheOeionShow has given you some good info and she can help you along the way, so ask her an question you may have.
 
Thank you all for the input. It's just a scary thing not knowing the cause and not being able to "solve" it. She has been put on phenobarbital as of now and has not had any seizures since the first two episodes two days ago. I don't believe it could have been something she ate it got into because I already watch her like a hawk. The problem is my wife and I cannot really swing all the MRI and other testing costs at the moment and even if we were who knows if that would even be definitive.
[MENTION=51]TheOrionShow[/MENTION] if you were not able to have someone watch your dog throughout the length of the day what steps would you take besides making sure the pups pen is rid of any dangers? My wife works close to home but only comes back during lunch then has to leave so there are two spans of about 3-4 hours Boo is alone. I just hate the idea of her going through a seizure and neither of us being there to comfort her. I suppose it will take some adjusting. I'm sure I'll have many more questions but I'm still in a bit of disbelief that our little one may have to go through this for the span of her life. Thanks again everyone.


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I'm so sorry to hear about your baby girl, will be sending prayers that the pheno works well for her.


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Thank you all for the input. It's just a scary thing not knowing the cause and not being able to "solve" it. She has been put on phenobarbital as of now and has not had any seizures since the first two episodes two days ago. I don't believe it could have been something she ate it got into because I already watch her like a hawk. The problem is my wife and I cannot really swing all the MRI and other testing costs at the moment and even if we were who knows if that would even be definitive.
[MENTION=51]TheOrionShow[/MENTION] if you were not able to have someone watch your dog throughout the length of the day what steps would you take besides making sure the pups pen is rid of any dangers? My wife works close to home but only comes back during lunch then has to leave so there are two spans of about 3-4 hours Boo is alone. I just hate the idea of her going through a seizure and neither of us being there to comfort her. I suppose it will take some adjusting. I'm sure I'll have many more questions but I'm still in a bit of disbelief that our little one may have to go through this for the span of her life. Thanks again everyone.


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I don't have any experience with this, but I do have a puppy camera from simplicam that I use to watch Radar. It can be set up to alert you any time there is activity, so your wife can possibly come home if Boo has another episode. The camera was relatively inexpensive and the plan I bought is $5 per month, which I felt was pretty reasonable. I am so sorry you are going through this and I am hoping for the best for you guys.


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Thank you all for the input. It's just a scary thing not knowing the cause and not being able to "solve" it. She has been put on phenobarbital as of now and has not had any seizures since the first two episodes two days ago. I don't believe it could have been something she ate it got into because I already watch her like a hawk. The problem is my wife and I cannot really swing all the MRI and other testing costs at the moment and even if we were who knows if that would even be definitive.
@<u><a href="http://frenchbulldognews.com/members/theorionshow/" target="_blank">TheOrionShow</a></u> if you were not able to have someone watch your dog throughout the length of the day what steps would you take besides making sure the pups pen is rid of any dangers? My wife works close to home but only comes back during lunch then has to leave so there are two spans of about 3-4 hours Boo is alone. I just hate the idea of her going through a seizure and neither of us being there to comfort her. I suppose it will take some adjusting. I'm sure I'll have many more questions but I'm still in a bit of disbelief that our little one may have to go through this for the span of her life. Thanks again everyone.


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We both work during the day so we have him on camera. There are a variety of options to choose from. We started with the Mole camera (Costco) and that was great. We had a sensitivity level set to record any movement longer than 5 seconds. It was recorded on an SD card that was in the back of the camera. In order to view the footage, we had to remove the SD card and put it into the computer to watch. We could also view him on the camera via phone. We got rid of that one and got the dropcam instead. For a fee....they will record 7 days straight and send your phone a notification with every movement. There is no sensitivity level on it....so it records every muscle twitch. This is stored in "cloud storage" so there is no SD card to mess with. To give you an idea of what the drop cam looks like....this is a video I caught of Vegas coming down the stairs after hearing his breakfast being put in his bowl. Mind you, I spent 10 minutes trying to persuade him down the stairs with no luck. He was not hurt...but keep your eyes on the bottom of the stairs.




There are several recording/viewing options available. I'm also able to hear what is going on and I can talk to him from my phone. Both cameras had night vision also.
 
We ended up purchasing the simplicam. Hopefully that will bring a little peace of mind while we are away at work. And it will let me keep track whether she has any more seizures that we otherwise would not be aware of.

She seems to be doing well. Her balance has been a bit off these past few days since she was put on the phenobarbital and her lows and highs of energy bouts are even more extreme but hopefully as she becomes more adjusted to the meds she will return to her once normal state. Thank you all for your input. I appreciate it very much.


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Hi dasJerman, when Ginger, our 10 year old dobie mix was about 2 or 3 years old, we were on the bed and she started acting weird. She wound up getting down and having a seizure. I was frantic and thought she was having a stroke or something. We took her to the emergency vet and they said that she might have seizures every now and then or it could just be an isolated incident. Luckily for us it was the only one she ever had. I hope that that is true in your case. I did learn that when/if they do seize, you can put your hand over their eyes and apply slight, gentle pressure to get them out of it. I'm glad we never had to try it. Good luck; I know how scary this can be.
 
I had a pug that had seizures, and it all depends on what type they have, for how long, and how often. She eventually needed to be put on phenobarb, and did just fine until she had other issues (not seizure related).

Usually a vet will try to put your dog on the lowest dosage possible to see how effective it is, and will adjust from there. Usually the meds are given 2x/day, and with some dogs it has to be given *exactly* 12 hrs apart, whereas with others you can be a little more flexible with the time. And again, you won't know until you give it a try.

My pet sitter is a vet tech assistant, and she said many, many dogs live long, healthy lives on seizure medication, so hang in there! Every dog is different, and what happens to one may not happen with yours.

It's incredibly stressful, I know. And seeing your dog seize is just heart breaking. Now that I think about it, I've had 2 dogs that have had seizures. Gladys' were more severe, whereas Percy's were quite mild and rare that he didn't require meds. Sounds like your pup does, though.

*Big hugs* Take it one day at a time. That's all you can do!
 
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