Ten year history of intermittent dog seizures solved!

[Len]

Short take on this.

My 11 y/o lab, a neutered male, has had petit and grand mal seizures on and off for about 8 years. Maybe two a year.

Never found a cause. Vet told me [and he's absolutely correct] that some dogs just have them, with a possibility of increased episodes as they get older. I'd gotten used to it, since most of the time he's fine.

But, it is the reason he's retired from duck hunting...you don't want the dog to have a seizure in the water!

Today, while [manfully] doing some laundry, I noticed Ole' Jess under the utility sink, licking the floor. On closer inspection I noticed that he was licking up a very fine salt dust that had accumulated near the water softener.

Within the hour, he was at it again, full-blown seizure activity. When he came out of it after about 5 minutes, he desperately needed to go outside, and had a 5 minute bout of pooping all over the yard.

Not being the dullest knife in the drawer, and understanding what high sodium levels do to the brain and body in the realm of human medicine, I finally, after all these years put it together.

The seizures would just about coincide with the refills of the softener.

Called the vet, and he concurs, this could well be the problem.

The floor has already been washed and mopped clean, and I'll bet we've seen the end of this, finally.

Len

 

[-db-]

Hope you solved the problem, Len. I, too, had a dog who experienced occassional seizures and upon researching them found out the same thing you did, which is to say very little- vets just don't seem to know what causes them. Here's to hoping your dog has many more years of seizure-free life.

 

[Pete99004]

Hope this is your answer and your dog can have a normal life from this day foreword.

This is a problem with a number of breeds and can be a huge issue sometimes causing people to put the dog down. Most Vet's automatically diagnose a seizure in a dog as Epilepsy. Sometimes that is not the case and often it's caused from an outside source. A number of studies are ongoing with specific breeds to determine if it is genetic, but they have found that low thyroid issues will cause seizures, along with MSG. So if you have a dog that seizes, you might look into those two areas for a remedy. Most people will get a "doggie bag" when eating out, or feed their dog part of the burger they pick up at a fast food restaurant not realizing that most places use MSG (some use a lot of MSG) to enhance the flavor of the meals. Dogs love Cheetos and potato chips as much as their masters and get to have them for treats when the owner is munching. Those both can cause problems as Cheetos are very high in MSG and chips of all kinds are high in salt along with flavor enhancers. Keep your dogs healthier by feeding them dog food and treats that are prepared specifically for them or food left overs that you cooked and you know whats in them.

Best to you and your best friend.

Pete

 

[TACC1]

That's good news! Hope you've got to the bottom of the problem.
I'd always just heard it was epilepsy, too. Good luck! TACC1

 

[quneur]

Often dairy products will also have MSG and will be listed as 'artificial flavors'.

One other thing to consider, flea medication. Advantix is known to cause seizures in dog. Biospot uses the same active ingredient as Advantix.

 

[Gasman1972]

I hope you are right and if so this is excellent. As a dog lover myself, I know the pain of watching helplessly as your best friend has problems. Even if the seizure causes no lasting problems it's so hard to watch them go through it.

 

[A10]

We have recently gotten another addition to the family, a 14 year old chihuahua who has had a tough life. Long story short, she had been having seizures as well. We cut all the salt out of her diet and she seems to be doing better. Best of luck with your lab!