Acupressure
★★★★★
We started doing Acupressure once every two weeks and now once a month. The seizures are occurring only once a month, with it being just one at a time AND we have lowered his meds three times. Acupressure works! This is pure fact as dogs can't have any kind of placebo effect. We are hoping one day to get him off most of the meds and get his quality of life back!
(Springdale, Arkansas, Usa)
09/25/2011
Hi I think acupressure is great. I do quantam touch which is great too.
(Orchard Park, Ny)
12/04/2011
Make sure to give your dog milk thistle to protect the liver whenever phenobarital is used!!!
(Indianapolis, In)
01/18/2018
I have a question about Milk Thistle, my dog has been on Pheno and potassium bromide for many years. He went 3 years without a seizure on this combo meds, but he gained a lot of weight and just didn't want to run and play anymore. He is 6 year old Maltese, any way we tried winging him off the Pheno and switching to Keppra; however he started having cluster seizures then so we went back to the Pheno and Potassium bromide and he is now seizure free again since middle of November. He takes 48.6 mg pheno twice a day and 300 mg once a day potassium bromide.
He doesn't have any issues YET with his liver should I still consider giving him Milk Thistle?
(Colorado)
02/13/2018
I hope your vet is checking liver function testing at least every few months. If your dog's liver enzymes are elevated (as my dog's were on phenobarbital and zonisamide), then start him/her on Denamarin. It's available OTC but is pricey. Or you could buy the ingredients separately for a bit less - SAMe and Milk Thistle. Just look up the dosage on the Denamarin website and translate from there. Putting my dog on Denamarin for 1 month only brought his liver back to almost normal from very poor health. I would not wait, milk thistle is cheap, SAMe is a bit more but worth it.
Avoid Distilled Water
★★★★★
After about four days of distilled water and the phenobarbital, the seizures kept getting worse. We stopped the distilled water and went back to putting regular tap water in his water dish. The seizures stopped and we stopped the phenobarbital too. We never had a problem with seizures after that.
I learned to have a lot of respect for distilled water and to be very careful how it is used after that.
(Berwyn, Il)
05/23/2017
Interesting. I had the exact opposite experience. My dog began having seizures several weeks after moving into a new home. We tried changing things one at a time - food first with no change, then water - from filtered tap to distilled. He had 8 seizures in 4 weeks but after the change to distilled water he had one more and then they stopped. Since then it's been over a month without a seizure.
(Ellenville, NY)
12/31/2020
My dog gets seizures and I think distilled water might just work.
Avoid Food With Rosemary
★★★★★
I read your posts and CONCUR. I have had dogs all my life. Grew up with dogs that made it to 17 yrs. Had a Sheltie that got to 14, I put her down after a stroke. Now have a Sheltie that is coming up on 17 yrs. Let me relay my experience with dog seizures. The pet store ran out of my usual brand of dog food last year, and I picked up a small bag of another well known premium dog food. Within 1 hr my Sheltie had a seizure. She has ALWAYS been hypersensitive and allergic, but usually it meant vomitting up whatever didn't agree, but seizures are the WORST. I am a researcher and I immediately went online and found a great article about Rosemary and how it was NOT good for many dogs. BINGO this temp food had Rosemary...but then my regular dog food started adding it and BINGO another seizure. It is popping up in all kinds of stuff that DIDN'T have it before. Ok, my adorable little girl is aging. she suffers from stiff joints and arthritis. By the way, have had GREAT success using green lipped mussel and boswellia, if we miss a dosage, she doesn't get around well. Found that remedy on a UK post, works for her. But seizures have become the concern, and more frequent. But I can ALWAYS trace it to something she ingested. Canadian bacon from a McD's egg mcmuffin, seizure withing an hour, awful one-nitrates? not sure but won't let that happen again. Trail mix she got into....seizure within 3 hrs, had rosemary extract. The last 6 mths I have been cooking for her as kibble didn't interest her at all. I had tried every type I could find w/o rosemary nothing seemed to interest her. My dog is an eater, but is kinda picky. I figure if you get to be 16 yrs old, and your breed usually expires around 12 to 14 yrs, then she deserves whatever makes her happy, ha. I do find that she will have seizures that are WORSE during a full moon. I do find that the ice pack remedy cuts them down faster and the daze afterward is averted. I would NEVER use prescription meds on a dog, EVER, research the whole drug industry- it isn't acting in anyone's best interest. I believe in herbs, and even essential oils. My dog is healthy, bright eyed and her coat is so glossy, she is just having issues with seizures lately, and like others I am trying to make sure she still enjoys a quality life. I don't know if it is just old age causing them now, or if she is deficient. She gets filtered water, organic food. I am going to try the magnesium and coconut oil suggestions. I use dulse flakes as a flavoring and she LOVES those. Pets add so much to our lives you just want to make sure they are well cared for. My mom thought dog food was TRASH, she cooked for our dogs and they never had any health issues and had longevity. I think she KNEW something, ha. But my family lived into their nineties, sickness wasn't in our family, they all expired of old age not disease, most died in their sleep peacefully, they didn't believe in Drs unless you broke a bone. They didn't believe in anyone "practicing" medicine on ya. Most of the top notched vets in my area seem clueless, and expensive, so NO thank ya. When my current sheltie was a puppy she chewed a rock and broke a tooth, a baby tooth, and one of those FINE educated vets told me I had to pay for a tooth extraction. Last time I took her to that vet, because she LOST that tooth naturally, I wasn't about to put her under and have him extract something that was coming out soon anyway. I told him he was a quack and a thief. He later was brought up on pet abuse charges, this was supposedly an exceptional vet-BUNK! GREED motivates more unnecessary procedures-I know, I volunteer in hospitals and hear and see awful stuff.
So please be an advocate for your pet, and choose wisely.
(Uk)
06/09/2016
Don't overlook the obvious, all those things you list are high in salt, dogs and salt is not a good marriage.
(Nevada)
04/24/2021
Fantastic post. Someone in a fedbook group has an Aussie that started having seizures. EarthClinic is my go-to reference. I'm sure he'll be encouraged by your post. You are totally on the money (so to speak) about what bunk so-called modern medicine is. A total scam based on a scam false premise. Thanks for taking the time to share your experience with seizures.
Avoid Food With Rosemary
★★★★★
My dog had his first seizure at age 7 and had another one about one year later. Both were unexpected and the vet could not figure it out. After the dog food poisonings I wanted to find an all natural dog food. That dog food caused a seizure in my dog but at the time I did not connect the two. My vet did not either. It wasn't until my Dad stopped by and took some of the food home to try on his dog. Within 3-hours his dog had a seizure. Then I knew to look at food consumption as the cause. I searched the internet all day and finally found something alarming.
The internet stated that there has been an upward swing in dogs and cats both getting seizures. If you look at pet products today, there has been an over whelming amount of ALL NATURAL products and many of them contain ROSEMARY.
I checked the label on that expensive dog food and there it was... ROSEMARY. I then racked my brain to figure out why my dog had a seizure the year before. I then remembered that I was on this kick of eating Triscuits with the Olive Oil and Rosemary flavor. I remember giving my dog a few crackers.
When looking back on both seizures that my dog had, there was the same 3-hour window from when the dog consumed food to having the seizure.
I read every single label including people food before I give anything to my dogs. Neither my dog nor my Dad's dog has had a seizure since we both started reading labels. It's been over a year now. And for the record, the two black labs are not related to each other so it wasn't genetics.
(Lakeland, Fl)
09/11/2009
I wanted to add to my previous comment about seizures. I am happy to say that both my dog and my father's dog are still free of their seizures and have been for well over a year. I still believe it was the rosemary because the seizures were "isolated" and only occurred when they both ingested rosemary.
I was researching today about canine seizures because my girlfriend's 13-year old dog just experienced her first seizure. It was one day after ingesting a heartworm pill. So now their dog will never receive that drug again.
I have stopped all vaccinations except rabies because it's the law. But I'm seriously thinking about stopping that too. I read an article from an Veterinarian Immunologist who stated that the initial immunization lasts for life. Repeating every year weakens the immune system. It's no different than our childhood immunizations. We received our shots once and that was it.
Even heartworm pills are scarying me. I was researching to see if there was a mercury preservative in heartworm. I've read that a mercury preservative in vaccines was the cause of autism in children. While doing the search I stumbled upon this site...
http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/Plant-induced_seizures.htm
It is so informative and talks about a case study whereby plants do cause seizures in people and in canines. Rosemary was listed, as was a bunch of others.
As for heartworm preventative, I'm now searching for an alternative. I cringe knowing that I have been feeding my dogs poision. Heartworm is from mosquitos and it's not every mosquito that carries the disease. So for now if they are outdoors in the evening, I use a safe mosquito repellant.
Avoid Heartworm Meds and Seizures
 (1) |
100% |
Thanks, and God Bless!
Deb
(Los Angeles, CA)
07/21/2009
My 2 1/2 yr old pointer just had a terrifying first seizure. he is on Interceptor which I will stop immediately. But what is this VCO you mention? (" A small amount of VCO in their diet will provide essential fatty acids, and is a natural cure for parasitic host"). Thank you.
EC: VCO = virgin coconut oil
(Montgomery, Texas, Usa)
04/11/2010
Heartworms are not caused by mosquito larvae. The microfilariae are transmitted to the dog from the bite of an adult mosquito. So all it takes is one infected mosquito to bite your pet and its got heartworms. Especially if you live in the South where we have an abundance of mosquitos. Heartgard kills the microfilariae, it doesn't kill adult worms. I recommend this product. If you live in the south and don't have your pet on a heartworm preventive then it is only a matter of time until your pet gets heartworms even if it is an "inside" pet.
(Hickory, Nc)
04/17/2011
A quick comment to the heartworms. It is a vicious circle. A mosquito gets the "heartworm" from a dog with heartworms and transfers it to another. That means, if you live in an area where there are many heartworm carrying dogs, chances are high the next dog will get them. But it means also, that if only your dogs live around and most times in your house and none has heartworms, they should be safe because mosquitos don't travel far. Reduce mosquito sources by eliminating their breeding grounds and don't let your dogs roam freely if you choose not to give heartworm prevention meds. Also, unless you are not living in a highly infested area, it is safe to use them every other month.
My German Shepherd mix had three grand mal seizures in one month, and I am still on the look out for a good cure. If he follows his pattern the next will be due this week. I used Bachs RR right after the seizure and fed him some kibbles to shorten the post-ictal phase with great success. I have changed his diet to Nature's Choice and am looking into alternatives.
Yesterday, I was under the impression he was getting a seizure, and in lieu of something better, I gave him a treat with four drops of Bachs RR. He slept through the night without troubles. We shall see, I guess.
EC: RR= Bach's Rescue Remedy
Avoid Hot Dogs
★★★★★
Avoid Red Dyes in Food
Coconut Oil
| 5 star (1) | 50% | |
| (1) |
50% |
Can anyone make any suggestions how I stop MaMa from tremors/shaking/swaying.
All assistance would be greatly appreciated
You should discontinue the oil is correct. The oil buffers the electrical shortage, but it doesn't exactly solve the cause of the electrical shortage in its brains. It may be metal toxicity or excitotoxins as the other cause of seizures. But the fact he cannot stand may be viral, all oils tend to lower the immune system with exception of coconut oil. I would try a lysine and threonine, 1/4 teaspoon hourly 4 hours and in evening 1/4 teaspoon hourly 3 hours for 3 days.
Ted
(Apple Valley, Ca, Usa)
10/23/2011
Ted, I really need your help.. I have a six yr. old white maltese that started shaking vigorously two days ago. I thought he was afraid of new dogs and puppies that we have in the house but it has continued and he seems to have weak limbs to jump on the sofa. He only wants to seat and is not eating very much unless I bring the food up to him. He's always been a very active dog, very happy, he is not like that anymore. I looked it up in the internet and came across a syndrome on maltese and white dogs called White Shaker Syndrome, which describe exactly what is happening to my dog Coco. I was planning on taking him to the vet this Monday but I have read also that the meds given to dogs for that are not good for them "PREDNISONE". They sometimes called this syndrome seizures... Will coconut oil be good for treating him? Please tell me what you recommend for treating him naturally.. I am a Reiki healer and have also been doing reiki on him... He has improved from two days ago, but I want him to be back to normal and want to treat him naturally.... PLEASE HELP.. Thank you... Rocio
(Pennsylvania)
09/30/2021
Do not feed your dog kibble. Heartworm medications, flea and tick medications or any shots are the primary cause of seizures. Feed raw meat, organ meat, raw fish, salmon, raw eggs with shells. Find a pet food store that sells raw meat products and doesn't pad the food with fat or cheap vegetables. A raw diet doesn't mean raw vegetables. If feeding your dog properly doesn't help then try to find an honest, knowledgeable vet, (good luck) for a diagnosis. Heartworm and flea and tick are not preventives they are cures and contain poisons that cause seizures. If your vet disagrees find another vet.
(NY)
10/01/2021
Easy recipe for dogs.
instant pot
1 1/2 cup brown rice
6 frozen whiting fish (get at supermarket)
or one chicken breast cut up
1 tablespoon quality oil. Coconut, olive, salmon
1/2 cup - 1 cup veggies green beans, carrots, peas
Cook high pressure 18 minutes, natural release
Stir up to shred protein. Bag and freeze.
Add some chicken liver freeze dried additional.
My dogs eat half kibble half homemade.
Coconut Oil
★★★★★
(West Valley City, Utah)
06/06/2009
Thank you for your post!! Lari, our Australian/Border Collie has been experiencing seizures since Aug of 08. He was only just over a year old.
It is so very scary, and we hurried to our vet for help. It seems like the typical treatment is put them on meds until they no longer work and then kiss them good-bye. This is obviously not an acceptable treatment. Lari is on 2 phen/morning and night. and still experiencing seizures, on the moon cycles. He has been enjoying his coconut oil 1 tsp/per 10 lbs, and our fingers are crossed that it will help.
Please, let me know if you have had results with this treatment, or any other remedy would be much appreciated!!!!!!!
We love Lari!!! Thank you :)
(Saint Louis, MS)
07/04/2009
My dog has been experiencing seizures and I am very interested in trying the coconut oil. I was wondering, though, if anyone could tell me how long it takes before it stops the seizures and does it affect dogs as it affects humans(i.e. loose stools, weight loss)? Also, she is about 45lbs, any recommendations on how much to give her? I would really appreciate it if someone got back to me. I desperately want this seizures to stop and really hope this works!
(West Valley City, UT)
07/09/2009
Hi Liz, Lari has had great results with Virgin Coconut Oil. It must be virgin however, the other just isn't the same. Virgin is more expensive, but the other is just for cooking etc.
This is the first full moon that Lari hasn't had a seizure. He has been taking virgin coconut oil since the first of June. I found the dosage on a website that sells it, and they recommended 1 tsp per 10 lbs. I have been giving Lari 3 to 4 tsp. since it does speed up the metabolism and he is on Phenobarbital. It's so hard to know what to do!
He is also on a chicken, veggie, fruit, raw bone diet. I have also added tomato paste, mixed with an egg, oatmeal spinach or whatever i have available. He was always swiping potatoes and tomatoes so i googled and found they are both a good sources of magnesium, which a previous poster had recommended. Heck, i'll try anything and everything!
He's had no problem with loose stools, weight loss or anything else noticeable.
(Houston, Tx)
01/02/2010
(Manila, Philippines)
01/27/2010
should i discontinue giving my dog phenobarb if i will give her virgin coconut oil and magnesium? Pls. help me as well as my 6 yrs old golden retriever, she's taking phenobarb for almost a year now and yet she's still suffering from seisure, i need your help very urgent coz she's having seisure twice a day for two consecutive day, im so worried...pls reply asap
(West Valley City, Utah)
02/03/2010
I'm very sorry. Is your dog doing any better? My dog usually has his seizures during the full moon, it is very strange. He was on phenobarbital along with the coconut oil and magnesium, last month I had to put him on potassium bromide as well. So the coconut oil and magnesium alone did not stop the seizures. It is very hard to know what to do.. I wish I could be more helpful.
(Fridley, Mn)
07/13/2010
I have a dog who suffers from seizures and I just wanted to give a warning to people. PLEASE consult your vet before giving ANY type of supplements, natural or not. Different things can react poorly or affect the absorption of the medication which could cause more problems. Usually a phone call to the vet is all it takes and it's always better to be safe than sorry.
(Forest Park, Ohio)
10/16/2010
THIS WORKS FOR HUMANS TOO... Haven't had a seizure... Knock on wood... In three years by using 4 T. of coconut oil each day!!!
(E. Wenatchee, WA, Usa)
01/14/2011
Besides pheno., I give my epileptic dog formula 303, (people also take this as a calmer), and lots of fresh vegs. These seem to help, vet select seizure med. (it is on internet), and thistle (as pheno. Is bad on their liver). I am just starting him on coconut oil.
I am adding to my list as he use to have one every 3 months, but the last 2 months he has had three to six in a row where he had to go to vet, so I am still working on it trying to help him.
You might check into these. I know the vet select seizure has helped for several years, expensive yes, but he's my kid.
(Pleasanton, Ca)
03/18/2011
Hi, I am new here, but am in desperate need of help/advice. I have a 7 yr old pug who was diagnosed with epilepsy when he was a little over 3 yrs old. He has been on pheno ever since. The dosage has slowly increased over the last 4 yrs. This past Sept he had a grand mal that seemed more severe than his usual seizures (he averages about 2 a year) and didn't seem to recover as quickly as before. He eventually seemed to get better (although has never seemed 100% since).
He had another grand mal this last Feb. This is where the nightmare really began. He seemed really different after his seizure (I inject him with valium during his seizures to keep him from going status), 4 days after his last seizure when I got home form work he seemed "off", then began panting for no reason, and only wanted to be literally on me (seemed afraid of touching the floor, couch, etc... ). I brought him to emergency and they put him on an IV of valium. He seemed better and then 2 days after that all of the weird symptoms started again. It has been going on like this ever since. I have been having to inject him (per vet's direction) almost weekly due to the constant walking, panting, staring up, etc... The vet believes these weird behaviors are pre-seizural. I don't know what to believe or think. I worry in my heart that it may be a brain tumor and not epilepsy but the vets (consulted 2 different ones) feel that is unlikely. They also say that we would be treating the symptoms of a brain tumor with the same drugs that we are treating him with now (they have added potassium bromide to the increased pheno). Neither seems to feel that radiation or chemo is really a good option if he did have a tumor. I feel like I may be watching my sweet little boy slowly start to die from whatever has been causing these horrific seizures.
I work full time and live alone which terrifies me and limits what I can do. And I don't even know if what I am doing is the best thing I can be doing for him. I'm afraid to take him off the meds (not home enough to monitor the effects) and I'm afraid the meds could possibly be doing him harm or nothing at all. I stopped his heartworm meds last month.
If someone could tell me where to get a good coconut oil I would happy to try that. Also, can I use the oil with the meds he's on? Any advice would be very appreciated and if anyone else's dog has had similar experiences I would love to hear how you handled them. I worry that I may be reading into behaviors that aren't actually abnormal (the panting for no reason, constant walking/not laying or sitting down for more than a minute, etc...).
Sorry for the long post and thank you.
(West Virginia)
03/11/2014
Our dog Sydney was just diagnosed as being epileptic and was prescribed phenobarbital. After reading about Organic Virgin Coconut Oil on this site, I'm interested in giving this to Sydney, but I was wondering if there are any interactions between the 2? I would feel absolutely horrible if I found out too late that they should not be used together.
(Mpls., Mn)
03/12/2014
Hey Jona!
I reviewed the comments and it appears many have used both the pheno and the EVCO at the same time. Some simply stopped the pheno as it seemed to not be working. I urge you to work with your veterinarian to determine the cause of the seizures if at all possible. Some folks report keeping the seizures successfully at bay by feeding a home made diet.
Please report back and let us know how your boy does on the EVCO!
Compost Warning
I know people may already know this can happen, but I did not, neither did any of my friends in similar situations. For twenty years my dogs have been in the compost bin from time to time, and a couple times I recall a wake up call in the night to go outside from them eating it.
We could have lost her to this. It required IV fluids and flushing the toxins from her system. I can do a lot at home, but I am not skilled enough to administer IV fluids. Without this she may have died.
The reason for this post is to give people info about this. Fence off your compost, or if you live near forest where your dogs maybe eating deer or other poop in the woods- they could get this, or it could be why they keep having seizures. I am not implying this is every seizure situation by any means. Most people don't watch their dogs to see what they are doing outside every minute. It will cost us nearly $2000 for this, but more importantly we almost lost our newest family member to something that could have been avoided. Years ago I knew someone that adopted a dog who was on all sorts of these seizure meds, and would have these prolonged episodes (like Lily) and now it makes me wonder if she had this. While finding info online about it last night it did say continued seizures can be misdiagnosed when it is actually these mycotoxins which are causing the issue.
I give her grain free puppy kibble, fresh raw and cooked meats & veggies, bones, coconut oil, probiotics and pumpkin puree daily. She spends a lot of time outside and is also walked daily. She is going to pull through, but it was a real scare. I hope people will share this and read more about Mycotoxin poisoning because I am sure I am not the only one on Earth Clinic composting in my yard.
(Mpls., Mn)
02/10/2017
Hello Heather,
I can only add that you might want to dose activated charcoal and betonite clay to help with the detox. Also raw, organic garlic - crush a clove and let it sit for 15 minutes before feeding - can help with detoxing the bowel as well.
(Reading, Pa)
02/10/2017
Hi Theresa!
Added the charcoal already but will add garlic tonight. I grow my own so fortunately I have a bunch. Thank you for the info it is greatly appreciated. She is home and doing very well. Laying outside watching over her feathered friends. Definitely a bit more tired but she was pretty drugged up when we got her home last night. It also crossed my mind that she had her shots Sunday so the compost compiled with a weakened immune system probably put her over the edge.
Dietary Changes
★☆☆☆☆
I switched her to natures variety limited ingredient still didn't work so I began to feed her Tuckers frozen raw pork/bison with pumpkin patties with her new food still had a seizure 1x a month she was also being fed biscuits RAW BOOST from Natures' Variety. I read up Rosemary triggers seizures! It was true in her case. So stopped feeding her treats and dog food. She is being fed Tuckers frozen raw patties she is still not seizure free. She had a seizure yesterday morning 6:30am right after she was fed her patty and drank her Primal raw goats milk that has cinnamon in it.
Not sure what is causing her seizures. My husband and I think it's her anxiety or maybe she is missing something in her diet. We don't want to just start feeding her dry dog food again. She looks great her coat is shiny she is playful. Any help be so appreciated thanks
(Atlanta, GA)
10/13/2015
Hi Christine,
So sorry to hear about your dog. Perhaps you can try giving your dog only filtered spring water, not tap water or even filtered tap water. This helped our dog when he had a seizure a few years ago. Right after he had the seizure, I researched remedies on Earth Clinic and found a few posts about tap water contaminants as a possible cause of seizures. Since he hadn't been vaccinated recently and I hadn't changed his food, it seemed possible that tap water was the culprit. I immediately went out and bought him bottled water and he's never had another seizure. He only drinks spring water. Please let us know!
(New Jersey)
10/25/2015
Hi Deirdre I didn't get a notification that someone responded to my question. Just so happens I just went on and looked. I do give her filtered water.
I think my dog has severe anxiety since my other dog passed away. She is lost without her playmate. I bought this product called crystal star relax caps known to to help dogs with seizures she has been on them a week. I am probably going to take her to a holistic vet. Thanks
(Schaumburg, Illinois)
11/05/2015
My precious Maltese, TuffPuppy, died this last July 30,2015 from severe screaming grand mals that started as a result of a know it all vet that insisted on giving her an antibiotic that I kept telling her my dog can't tolerate drugs like that (traditional vets always prescribe and insist they know more than you about your own baby). First, get a full chem panel done and check if anything is out of normal range. This allows you to determine possible cause and consider treatment options. You do not want this seizure issue to go on long as if they get to the point that they are head pressing, there is irreversible brain damage and well, TuffPuppy isn't here anymore. The miniscule amounts of rosemary shouldn't be an issue but CAN be. Big difference between shouldn't and can. I'd cut it off completely. I'm not a fan of ANY dog food at all. None. I say ask your butcher to put aside cuts for your dog that otherwise would be cut into stew portions (those cuts aren't done on purpose for stews...they are just not large enough for steak or roast or what is eye pleasing to a human....your dog is MUCH larger than a 4 pound Maltese to feed so it's important to set up a relationship with your butcher). Make sure you are adding plenty of green and orange veggies with the food too (if your dog starts craving starches, that's an indication that there's something other than food or environment causing seizures). Take notes of environment when seizures occur. Light can cause them, sounds, antibiotics in food. Many things but distinct in pattern. After a seizure, blinds closed, lights out or down, little if any noise and take temperature rectally to ensure it doesn't exceed 101.5°. If rises put cold packs on lower back. Learn CPR for your dog. I don't want to get into all the things I did to try to save my TuffPuppy over that 8 month period and scare you but its something you will need to know if it continues. There ARE holistic products available but I never got the chance to try them. Phenobarbital and other drugs will cause you nightmares that I assure you you don't want to see.
So, to recap: Full Chen panel and read it yourself. Get wholesome, not dog , food and green and orange veggies. Darken room and shut off sound after and monitor temperature. Keep very careful logs of incindenys. If your dog sleeps a very long time after you've been apart, consider that a seizure occurred and log it as such. This is by no means all encompassing but a not too overwhelming start to get things under control. I wish the lt of luck, love and outco for you. My little girl is gone but I've a new one now and I'm raising her with proper nutrition and supplements. I don't want to get into advertising for for brands but there are one or two (well, one, that I recommend but that's not for this stage.
Dietary Changes
★★★★★
What seemed to work was to put him on Organic Pet Food and cutting him off of all human food.
Then we accidently discovered that Gluten might be the culprit when he was given a tiny piece of pizza crust. 4 hours later, he had a seizure. A first one in about 2 months. So I started to search for "Gluten causes seizures" on the web and found a ton of articles that verified this suspicion. Gluten intolerance sets your brain on fire.
This makes so much sense to me and remembering that he didn't have any seizures (when he used to have 5-10 seizures per month prior) for a few months since I stopped giving him human food.
Hope this helps someone out there. The worst thing you can do is taking your pet to the vet and getting drugs, IMO. Try a gluen free diet for your dog, even yourself, if you have seizures.
(Uk)
06/09/2016
Dietary Changes
★★★★★
(Denver Co)
02/08/2016
Dietary Changes
Today I'm posting about my 4 pound chihuahua, Louise. Years ago she had 2 seizures, a year apart and that was it. This past December, shortly after applying Frontline, she went into cluster seizures - major foaming at the mouth (could have filled a bathtub with all the foam), the shaking, etc. I had her at the vets for 3 days in a row. Everytime the valium started to wear off, she'd go back into the seizures. Finally she came home and all was quiet for a bit, and then it was a seizure here and a seizure there. Not the foaming at the mouth kind anymore, but what my vet called "petite" grand mal seizures. Her tests for Addison's Disease came back negative, even though her potassium levels were off the chart and more recently I've become convinced it's epilepsy.
Recently her seizures have become much more frequent, usually in the middle of the night. My other chihuahua wakes me up when Louise starts a seizure and thanks to the great folks on this website, with the use of Honey and a cold compress on her back, she usually comes out of it pretty quickly. However, I can't be here everytime she goes into a seizure and as everyone here knows, it's just heart-breaking to witness. I tried some BSM and virgin cocnut oil and she had a seizure that night. I know it's not long enough to tell if it helps or not, but with her tiny size I just don't want to put her through a million experiments. I definitely didn't want to put her on the seizure meds from the vets - again, with her tiny size, the damage they could do could far outweigh any benefits. So, anyway, after much research (and that's an understatement), I decided I wanted to keep it simple, clean and easy. I wanted organic food, NO rosemary, I wanted taurine and magnesium, etc. Raw would probably be a better way to go, but I have 4 dogs and not a ton of time/money. Not that Louise isn't worth it, she is, but like any diet (people or pets) I wanted something that I knew I could and would stick with.
So today, I picked up a bag of Potato and Venison New Balance dog food. It has everything I wanted for her and NO rosemary extract (that was tough to find). After reading a ton of positive reviews, I also ordered Dr. Ackerman's epilepsy/seizure control supplements. ! 0.00 on Amazon. I bought a small bag of New Balance dog treats too, again without the rosemary extract. I feel good about having made these changes. The Ackerman supplements won't arrive until next week sometime, but I really feel that the New Balance combined with Ackerman's supplements, we're going to finally see a decrease in her seizures. I'm also trying to give her bottled spring water but it's tough when the other 3 dogs drink it too.
One added note: Louise is 7 years old and because of her small size, I never had her spayed. I regret that now and may still do it as my intuition tells me that these seizures may even be hormonal triggered. She was in heat last Decemeber and she's in heat now - both times when the seizures really kicked in. I'll let you know in a few weeks if we had any success!
(Moorestown, Nj)
07/04/2012
★★★★★
Just a quick update, going on day 5 or 6 here since starting Louise on her new diet - NO SEIZURES! She was having one everyday. I have her on New Balance Ltd. , and Dr. Ackerman's Seizure/Epilepsy Control Supplements. She also has New Balance treats. It appears that removing the rosemary extract and adding the taurine and magnesium (all in the New Balance food) might be the answer. I know it's too soon to really tell, but we're off to a great start. I'll continue to post updates.
(Canton, Ga.)
02/17/2017
Do you have any further update on your furbaby?
I have a 6lb. 3 year old Shih Tzu Molly she is a tiny girl. Molly seizures 1-3 times a day, they started after her rabies shot and Trifexis. I wanted to hear if your changes that you made helped long term. We have been through all the prescription meds with no results, just looking for a little hope.
Dietary Changes
★★★★★
December 2011 I switched my dogs cold turkey to the prey model raw diet. Penny is now 5 months seizure free and counting! Additionally, both my dogs have more energy, no doggie gas, and their teeth are unbelievable! Moving them to this diet was the best thing I could have done.
(Nj)
10/25/2015
I have been feeding my dog Tuckers frozen raw patties pork/lamb with pumpkin and pork/bison/pumpkin since July she is having more seizures instead of 1x a month now its every 10days. So raw is not working I refuse to put her on meds. Her seizures started after my other dog passed away.Is your dog still seizure free?
