Ozziemydoggy Posted January 12, 2010 Posted January 12, 2010 Argo has been taking 60 mg of pheno and has been doing pretty well on it. He is experiencing very little ataxia, but really only one thing kind of worries me. His back legs will give out on him at random times, an example being if we're petting him and he's standing he'll start to tilt to the side and his back legs will fall. He'll catch himself but it still seems weird. Is this part of the ataxia or something more serious? Quote Argo and bridge babies Artemis, Icarus and Iris.
TheFullHouse Posted January 12, 2010 Posted January 12, 2010 Absolutely. Saint will sink lower and lower to the ground when he's going pee. He has learned to lean against the house or fence so that he doesn't fall from standing so long (he can pee between 4 & 5 minutes). Saint also loses control of his legs if he walks around sharp corners and such, he usually can catch himself so he doesn't fall though. It's just one of the side effects of the medication. I'd rather deal with this than seizures though. The only time he doesn't show any weakness is when he's running and I think that's adrenalin kicking in and it gives him more strength in his legs. Quote Judy, mom to Darth Vader, Bandita, And Angel Forever in our hearts, DeeYoGee, Dani, Emmy, Andy, Heart, Saint, Valentino, Arrow, Gee, Bebe, Jilly Bean, Bullitt, Pistol, Junior, Sammie, Joey, Gizmo, Do Bee
Ozziemydoggy Posted January 12, 2010 Author Posted January 12, 2010 Oh thank goodness! I was worried that he had a stroke or something. I completely agree, I would much rather him have this side effect than seizures. Argo would agree too! What causes the back legs to go out like that? Quote Argo and bridge babies Artemis, Icarus and Iris.
greysmom Posted January 12, 2010 Posted January 12, 2010 How long has he been at this dosage? If his seizures are well controlled, I would probably not think about decreasing the dosage if this is the main side effect he's experiencing. It's a pretty normal response. Quote Chris - Mom to: Felicity (DeLand), and Andi (Braska Pandora) siggy by Chris Harper, on Flickr Angels: Libby (Everlast), Dorie (Dog Gone Holly), Dude (TNJ VooDoo), Copper (Kid's Copper), Cash (GSI Payncash), Toni (LPH Cry Baby), Whiskey (KT's Phys Ed), Atom, Lilly
TheFullHouse Posted January 12, 2010 Posted January 12, 2010 It's just a side effect of the phenobarbital, which is a narcotic. If he hasn't had a level drawn in a while, you might consider have one drawn just to make sure he's not getting too much phenobarbital, that will make the ataxia much worse. I have Saint's drawn every six months and he was pretty level there for about 4 years and this last time he was on the high end for his potassium bromide so we lowered his dosage. I've noticed he's not quite as bad as he was before but he's not graceful by any stretch of the imagination. Quote Judy, mom to Darth Vader, Bandita, And Angel Forever in our hearts, DeeYoGee, Dani, Emmy, Andy, Heart, Saint, Valentino, Arrow, Gee, Bebe, Jilly Bean, Bullitt, Pistol, Junior, Sammie, Joey, Gizmo, Do Bee
Ozziemydoggy Posted January 12, 2010 Author Posted January 12, 2010 He just started at the beginning of January. We first started seeing him fall on Saturday. We go back to have another blood panel done probably on January 25th to see how he's handling it. I'm not so worried about it since it's a normal side effect. I was scared that he had a stroke. Quote Argo and bridge babies Artemis, Icarus and Iris.
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