Seizures are probably one of the most frightening things for a dog and dog owner to experience especially the first one. Many times they come without warning. The convulsion may last a few seconds or a few minutes and in some very, very rare cases, for over an hour. You may observe jerking of the body and limbs, anxiety, defecation, urination, salivation and unconsciousness.
A seizure may occur only once in a dogs life or at various times ranging anywhere from a few minutes to several months apart. Individual seizures are generally not life-threatening, however seizure episodes which repeat rapidly without periods of consciousness are life-threatening and do require emergency veterinary care. This type of seizure is referred to as status epilepticus.
While seizures are the result of some sort of brain dysfunction, they may be caused by diseases outside the nervous system hypoglycemia, distemper, lead poisoning for example.
Idiopathic epilepsy is a term given to genetic seizure conditions without a known cause, and several breeds are predisposed to this problem. These breeds include Belgian Tervuren, Cocker Spaniel, German Shepherd Dog, Golden Retriever, Irish Setter, Keeshond, Labrador Retriever, Poodle and Saint Bernards.
Of course the first thing you should do if your dog has a seizure is contact your veterinarian. Tests should be run to determine if there is a brain tumor, or if one of the above mentioned health problems exist. The customary treatment for seizures requires the use of an anticonvulsant medication such as Phenobarbital. These drugs must be given under the close supervision of a veterinarian and should never be altered or stopped without consulting your vet.
The question now arises as to whether or not we are inadvertently contributing to the cause of idiopathic epilepsy in our canines. How much of the seizure activity we are seeing is caused by diet or environmental factors?
Our last German Shepherd, Sheba, had idiopathic epilepsy and suffered with seizures until she was 10 years old. At that time we got Mozart, our Golden Boy and things started changing around our house.
Mozart has severe allergy problems and because of this I started reading all sorts of books trying to find an answer to why this poor guy was tearing himself to shreds on a daily basis. We went to vet specialist after vet specialist, he was allergy tested and I gave him shots twice a week for a year...all to no avail.
One of the books I read, Pet Allergies: Remedies for an Epidemic, by Alfred J. Plechner, DVM, indicated that diet and autoimmune problems should be suspected. Okay I thought...I've tried everything else, lets try putting him on as hypo-allergenic a diet as possible!
Since I free-fed my dogs (not generally recommended but it works for me) I had to change my 3 dogs food to the new diet Mozart was receiving. Several months after starting the new diet it dawned on me that Sheba was no longer having seizures! From that point on, until she went to Rainbow Bridge some 5-1/2 years later, she never had another seizure!
Nothing else changed to stop these seizures. She was not on medication as her seizures were considered very mild. Therefore the only contributing factor had to be the new diet.
I've since discovered that others in the scientific community feel there is a direct link between chemical additives in pet foods and seizures.
Dr. Richard Pitcairn, in his book Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats, concludes that ...epilepsy may actually be caused by a mixed bag of things.
His approach is to use a natural diet to promote nutrition for the brain tissues, to detoxify or eliminate possible toxins in the environment and to use homeopathic remedies to control the seizures.
How about flea sprays, powders, collars, dips, pills and the like? How much are all these chemicals contributing to the toxin build up in our dogs system? Are they contributing to the seizures we are seeing? My guess is probably yes. The system can only process so much poison and these days were pumping poison either into or onto our dogs on a regular basis. How long can we continue to pop pills into them regularly for fleas and heartworm without creating time bombs? How long can we spray, powder, dip and collar them without those chemicals creating havoc?
I'm a firm believer in monthly heartworm prevention, but must admit I tried the flea pills and after seeing what it did to Mozart after one pill, quickly discontinued its use.
Let's be more aware of all the toxic substances we are putting on or in our dogs. We are their protectors and have to do the research for them.
