5 hr round trip to bring home a new friend

[Fred Arnold]

Update: Friday, just after my lunch,

Two days later I hear a commotion out in the shop and proceed to investigate.

My new best friend is having a seizure.

I'm not completely taken aback but neither am I prepared. I've never experienced this before. Well not with a dog anyway. Common sense prevailed plus a whole hell of a lot of luck. I coaxed him outside about 30 ft away and tried to calm him. 

He looked at me like he was trying to say " i"m sorry, didn't mean for you to see me like this.

I took him to the vet and so far everything looks good. I'll keep a close eye and change his diet to home made.

If you have any suggestions, I could use your help.

[JW_Halverson]

I had an epileptic dog when I was a kid.  We gave him daily doses of the same drug used in humans to control seizures.  From the sounds of yours, they are grand mal seizures like my Charlie had.  It will wipe him out for a good 12 hours afterwards and they always seem to feel "ashamed" of what has happened. 

The medication may work well for him.  Sometimes you will have to increase the dosage incrementally  as the dog ages and the dog builds resistance.  With your guy being older, he may pass long before the drug loses effect.  Let's hope. 

The seizures, to you, seem to last forever.  But if you are there when he comes out and are holding him, it may help him adjust.  Good luck. 

[stickbender]

     When was the last shot he had?  The @%$#!! pharmaceutical companies are putting aluminum in the medicine that is injected!  It is as bad or worse as mercury, which I believe they are still using.  You can get shots, that don't have that crap in it.  Ask your vet.  Also ask if dogs can take Coconut oil.  If you can, start giving him the organic coconut oil, that is cold pressed, not boiled.  They are finding out, more, and more benefits of coconut oil.  One is the aid in healing brain tissue, and nerve problems.  It is also good for Alzheimer patients, as it slows the progress of the disease, and in some patients, can actually reverse the effects.  It is worth a try.  He is a fine looking fellow, I think he is worth the effort.  I also see that he answered your question, of inside, or outside.  With the seizure incident, I would definitely say inside.  Good for you, adopting an older animal.

                             Wayne

[le0n]

Are there toads in your area this time of year? We had one of our dogs drop into a few seizures when he caught and carried a toad in his mouth for a few seconds.

[Ranasp]

Hope your vet helps you find a solution to manage the seizures.  Be careful after any major ones, some dogs become addled for a short while after and can bite out of reflex. 

[le0n]

Good points, Wayne.

Is he taking or was he given any medicine at all prior to you bringing him back?

[chamookman]

A Friend had Two English Pointers, both had problems with seizures, both were prescribed Phenebarbatal (SP). Tough to deal with for sure - plus the drugs are VERY expensive. It got so bad on one of them, it was at least one a Day, sometimes more - this one finally passed. A good Friend of Mine is a Vet, He believes that a lot of the seizure problems stem from intense breeding practices. Bob

[Fred Arnold]

I have no prior history on him. Hopefully it was and easily could have been a toad as there are a lot of them out here between the creek beds.

If it was a toad hopefully he learned a lesson. No further signs of trouble since that episode. I'll be keeping a close watch on him however.

[neuse]

My dog had a seizure last year at the deer camp.

Turns out she gets so busy playing and hunting she forgets to eat and her blood sugar got out of balance.
Very scary for both of us.

[Fred Arnold]

He had another last night. It lasted just over 5 minutes start to finish. I could almost tell that it was coming on as he came up to me acting nervous and disoriented but still had motor skills. I led him out to the fresh air on the open patio and just tried to make him comfortable. Glanced at the clock as I was heading out. Took him about 3 more minutes to get to his feet after the episode was over.

This episode lasted about half the time of the first one. He may have had others at night that don't register with me.

I'm going to introduce  home cooked food with supplements and get away from dry food. Actually started that yesterday. He likes the home cooked and raw food better.

[stickbender]

     Yeah, you are on the right track with home cooked meals.  If you knew what actually went into pet food, you would never buy it again, if you cared for your pet.
The crude protein, is ground chicken feathers!  And the other stuff is just nasty.

                                    Wayne