Seizures can be a scary event for everyone involved and often are a symptom of something much more serious. Owners may often feel a sense of helplessness when their beloved pet starts to seize. From helping your pet through a seizure and next steps at your vets office, here's what you need to know.
What causes Seizures in dogs?
Seizures can be a symptom of a plethora of other problems. The most common cause is epilepsy. Chemicals within their environment can also cause seizures if ingested. These range from, but aren't limited to house cleaners, lawn chemical agents, poisonous flowers / mushrooms, and toxic foods for dogs.
Other causes of seizures are:
- Liver disease
- Low or high blood sugar
- Kidney disease
- Electrolyte problems
- Anemia
- Head injury
- Encephalitis
- Strokes
- Brain cancer
What are the symptoms of Seizures?
Before a seizure, dogs may look confused, dazed, unsteady, or stare off into the distance. They may also try to hide or act strange. Afterwards they maybe disoriented, wobbly, or temporary blind.
Symptoms of a seizure include:
- Sudden collapsing
- Jerking
- Stiffening
- Muscle twitching
- Loss of consciousness
- Drooling
- Chomping
- Tongue chewing
What are the different types of seizures?
Listen to People, Pets, and Vets explain the different types of siezures.
- Grand mal seizers are the most common type of seizure. During a grand mal seizure abnormal electrical activity happens in the brain, hence causing the abnormal behavior prior to the seizure and the seizure its self. Grand mal seizures tend to last a few seconds to a few minutes.
- Focal seizures are localized seizures that effect only certain limbs or one side of the dog. Some focal seizures can turn into more generalized seizures.
- Psychomotor seizures are unlike a typical seizure as they will cause strange behavior instead of muscle spasms. Behavior may include attacking an imaginary target. These types of seizures are hard to distinguish from quirks the dog may have, but with a psychomotor seizure the behavior will always be the same.
- Idiopathic epilepsy is the general term for all other seizers not associated with grand mal, focal, or psychomotor seizures and come from unknown causes. These type of seizures can happen in dogs between 6 months and 6 years and while any dog can have a seizure, they are more common in Border Collies, Australian Shepherds, Labrador Retrievers, Beagles, and German Shepherds.
What to do if your dog has a seizure?
- Stay calm. Gently slide your dog away from anything that could hurt them, like furniture or stairs.
- Stay away from their mouth, they may accidently bite you. Don't try and put anything in their mouths either. Contrary to popular belief, dogs cannot choke on their tongues.
- Time it. If you are able to time it, do so. This will help not only help your veterinarian to figure out what might have caused the seizure, but if the seizure lasts over a few minutes, your dog can overheat. If this happens, place a fan near them and use cold wash cloths on their paws to cool them down.
If your dogs seizure lasts for more than 5 minutes or if they have several in a row while unconscious bring them in immediately. Long seizures can mean a rise in body temperature in your dog which can lead to overheating, problems breathing, and risks of brain damaged if the brain isn't getting enough oxygen.
How can a seizure be treated?
While one seizure is nothing to brush off, one seizures is not life threatening. If your dog has never had a seizure and is not currently under the care of a veterinarian for a seizure disorder, we recommend seeking immediate medical attention.
Your veterinarian will run blood tests and do a full physical exam to determine the cause of the seizures.
Depending on the cause of the seizures, Anticonvulsants may be prescribed to help manage the seizures. Once this medication is started, the dog will have to remain on it for the rest of their lives.