LBass

Eileen, I'm going to point you to a couple of really great websites for canine seizures. I think you will find information there that will help you decide how to approach this. I certainly can understand holding off on starting anti-epileptic drugs. I don't see any real sense in holding off doing a good general physical, which should give your vet a pretty good idea if there is anything going on with your dog that might be triggering seizures--other than plain old fashioned epilepsy. Epilepsy is actually not that uncommon in dogs. Causes & Treatments--an overview www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com www.canine-epilepsy.com www.canine-epilepsy.net Best wishes, Lucy and epi Piper (2 weeks seizure free)

Don't be so hard on yourself. We all have moments when our autopilot goes on the fritz. I don't think the probiotic or special food will do Sagan any harm at all. You can use this accident to get some good hard experiential confirmation about whether Merlin is allergic to chicken or not. You certainly wouldn't have intentionally fed it to him, but this is a great opportunity to prove or disprove the hypothesis that he is mildly allergic to chicken. If he is, eating a bit of it won't do him any lasting harm, and you and your vet will have solid confirmation of his allergy. If it doesn't give him any problems, well that is important information to have as well. I do understand the desire to give ones self a good swift kick. I cannot believe I did this. One is a 75 pound greyhound and one is a 20 pound spaniel but I actually gave Piper's ball of food with his epilepsy meds to Winston and handed Piper Winston's "empty" ball of food! A frantic call to the e-vet reassured me that Winston would be drowsy but fine. Be as kind to yourself as you'd be to someone else. --Lucy

Piper began having seizures at about 2 years of age. He had a huge and terrifying grand mal about 9 weeks after coming to me. That weekend he had 11 more seizures. His initial pattern was to have 3-4 seizures within about 2 hours once a week. With Phenobarbital and Potassium Bromide we've managed to get him to the point of having single seizures (usually) every 6+ weeks. Should you need them, here are the web sites that I found very helpful in getting a handle on helping Piper: http://www.canine-epilepsy.com http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com http://www.canine-epilepsy.net --Lucy and Piper (9 days seizure free)

I am blessed with a vet who calls in prescriptions quite willingly--I've never had to ask for a fax. I'm glad you've got things settled for the moment but it is a shame your vet added to your stress at a time that is already difficult for you and your sweet hound girl. It's been anti-epileptic drugs that I've dealt with but I think that the info holds true for all meds. I've found a staggering difference in pricing between various pharmacies. Apparently each pharmacy/chain decide how much markup to take on each drug. I found Gabapentin for $125 at Eckerd and the same med was $35 at Costco. The moral of the story is to call around local pharmacies and to chack out the discount places like Costco. Costco has an on-line presence and you do not have to have a membership to fill prescriptions by mail. Best wishes for you and your girl. --Lucy

FWIW, Piper's creatinine is always about that high. His health and blood levels are watched and checked fairly often because of his epilepsy and the vet and I have decided, after 5 years, that that level just seems to be normal for Piper. Perhaps there is no need to be too worried. --Lucy

I'm so sorry that your darling is having to say goodbye now. You and Morgan will be in my thoughts and prayers. --Lucy

Sending good healing thoughts to your Harmony. Upstate Veterinary has done a good job each of the "too many" times I've needed to use them so she should be in good hands. --Lucy

I'm so sorry. I remember when she arrived in your life. You shared pictures of her here on GT--she was the most adorable little creature. I've never had or even handled rats, but Edna won me over completely. Aren't you glad you two found each other! --Lucy

Your vet sounds like a great person to have in your corner. Having that Flagyl on hand for any future flair ups has to give you some peace of mind, as does his/her support of your decision to get Flagyl in him yesterday. Sending healing thoughts to your and Soul. --Lucy and Piper

Peace of mind vet visits are worth every moment and every penny they take. May the news about Casey be nothing but good. --Lucy

Poor thing. Spider bites in humans can be the very devil to deal with and I'm so sorry poor Valentino is suffering. May healing progress be his ASAP! --Lucy

:confetti :confetti Hurray!!!

I am so very sorry. --Lucy

Thinking of you and Samm E. May all your news be good. --Lucy and Piper from WFUBCC

I think that if you have confidence on you regular vet, it is fine to start seizure management w/o a neurology consult. Finding the right combination of meds and the right dosing for a particular dog is as much an art as it is a science. It can take time and some trial and error. A vet who is willing to research, to work with you, and to let you bring info and suggestions into the mix is priceless. You may find that you need become a bit of a researcher and advocate/expert for your dog. Keep a good detailed log of seizure dates, times, and circumstances. You will be amazed at how helpful that will be. I would suggest spending some time reading on the following sites: Caninie Epilepsy Guardian Angels Canine Epilepsy.com Canine Epilepsy.net Perhaps even join the email list available through the second web site. You can always get a neuro consult later in the porcess if it seems necessary. At this point, my wonderful vet contacts a neurologist who is willing to talk Piper's situation over with him and offer advice if he feels the need. Best wishes to you and to Phaelin. Lucy and Piper (13 days seizure free)

Oh bless you, what a difficult situation. Piper is taking both Phenobarbital and Potassium Bromide. The Potassium Bromide is essentially the same med as Sodium Bromide--the Bromide is the anti-epileptic drug in both. Piper has been on both drugs for over 5 years now. Bromide tends to build up to a therapeutic level very slowly. Generally it will not reach it's stable level in the blood for 3-4 months, though you may well see improvement before that. At the moment, Piper's seizures are coming more frequently than usual. The vet and I both suspect that his level of bromide is low and that he needs a dose adjustment. I've sent blood to Hemopet to get levels on both his meds and the vet and I will talk again when the results are in. Hang in there and I hope that the Sodium Bromide will do the trick for Phaelin. --Lucy

Kristen, I'm so sorry very that Abbey is gone. She is indeed a striking, elegant beauty. --Lucy

Oh no...no, no, no. Not Chrissy's darling Speck. I'm so, so sorry. --Lucy

Drat! Poor Jake and poor you. Sending good wihes and healing prayers. --Lucy

Sending prayers for the adorable Miss Bug.

There are no specific tests for epilepsy. It is generally diagnosed by ruling out everything else. When Piper's seizures started the vet did full blood work, 6 panel thyroid, tested for liver shunt, liver function, Cushing's and Addison's. All Piper's labs looked great, perfectly normal. The next possibility was to look for a brain tumor via MRI. My vet at that time had an epileptic Dane of her own and I knew that she had a special perspective about caring for a dog with seizures. She had chosen not to get an MRI for her dog. After much thought and discussion, I felt comfortable that if there was serious brain disease at work, I would soon be seeing even more dramatic neurological symptoms and we would be able to recognize brain cancer w/o the MRI. I did eventually take Piper to a neurologist but he concurred with what we had done in terms of testing and diagnosis and his contribution was mostly to refine Piper's medications. Best of luck to you in dealing with your hound's seizures. Here are my 2 favorite resources for canine seizures of all kinds: Guardian Angels and Canine Epilepsy A third site is also very helpful: Link #3 --Lucy and Piper (currently 3 weeks and 3 days seizure free)

I'm so very sorry. --Lucy

www.allivet.com I just ordered 6 bags from these folks @ $17.99 a bag for the 30 count extra-large chews. I tend to order 6 bags at a time in an effort to save some on shipping charges. This place has free shipping on orders over $99 and 6 bags of these things gets me right up there in $$ for the free shipping. Piper expects one every night when I sit down to my own supper. The pitiful glances and disappointed paw stamping is more than I can bear, so I try not to run out. --Lucy

Canine epilepsy drugs other then Pb and Kbr Another site The above sites give a good overview of the other meds that are being used to treat canine epilepsy. Most of these are given as add-ons to Pb and KBr. In terms of expense, get pricing from many pharmacies. Drug price varies significantly. I was able to get the generic form of Gabapentin for ~$40 per month at Costco (via mail w/o a membership) vs. ~$120 at a local pharmacy. It did not have an impact on Piper's seizures, but does work for some dogs. --Lucy

She looks like a real sweetheart. Sending healing thoughts her way. --Lucy