One of the most heartbreaking experiences for any dog lover is watching their best friend suffer a seizure. That seizure, successfully treated, might never be repeated, but the worry remains despite veterinary reassurance. When another seizure happens, and another, and still more, that’s when dog owners become seriously worried about their pet. They might be confused about what to do while their dog is having a seizure.
I’m not talking medicines or veterinary examinations here, I’m talking about the physical act of protecting a dog during a fit and in the immediate aftermath. Contacting your vet is the very first thing to do once that first fit passes. Once medication is prescribed you vet will keep in constant contact and often the fits can be solved or reduced in frequency and ferocity. For some dogs, however, the problem is permanent, but not always life-threatening, and you will learn to cope and help your dog during and after the fit.
I’m not a veterinary surgeon or a medical expert, but I am an expert of sorts on canine fits, if only because I’ve been through the experience twice, first with a ten year old Boxer called Barnaby; then Gregory, also a Boxer, and just 18 months old when his first fit occurred. Despite long and exhaustive checks, no cause was found for either dog’s condition.
Barnaby was old and growing frail and fits were another part of the ageing process. Daily medicines kept his fits under control and usually several months apart. Once Barnaby died, of old age, I expected never to encounter dog seizures again. I was very wrong.
Gregory’s problem began less than six months after Barnaby died but these later fits were very different; they were regular, and violent, and extremely debilitating.
Three things I learned helped me stay calm while my dog is fitting, making me better able to care for him.
1) From talking to humans who take seizures I understand the sufferer feels no pain during a fit, only confusion and helplessness. That’s comforting and helps reduce worry and panic for dog owners.
2) Except where some life-threatening condition exists, there’ no need for seizures to spoil quality of life or shorten life expectancy and I have spoken to people whose dogs have lived long and happy lives despite regular fitting.
3) I worried my dog would swallow his tongue and choke during a fit though in reality it rarely happens. But dogs can and do bite their tongues when fitting which is painful and makes eating difficult. Our first sufferer, Barnaby, bit his tongue during one of his final fits and was unable to eat properly for days. Barnaby loved his food and given that most dogs become ravenously hungry after a seizure, it was heartbreaking to watch him try to eat but fail.
Our solution to this problem was to take a long strip of fluff free cloth, preferably a new meshed dish cloth, which we rolled into a strip about one inch in diameter. We kept this close by until a seizure looked imminent, whereupon we’d dampen the cloth and place it loosely across the Barnaby’s tongue with strips falling out either side of the mouth which we held together under the jaw until the fitting stopped. Then we’d remove the cloth, wash it, roll it up and dampen it to use again. The water helped his mouth stay cool and the cloth helped mop up some of the froth from fitting, but mainly it prevented the teeth closing in on his tongue. You must be careful not to get bitten yourself and you should never put the cloth in place when your dog is champing (the process of jaws fast opening and closing and usually with froth coming from the mouth). Be sure to insert the strip by holding the ends well away from the side of the mouth while you slip it over the tongue.
In another article I’ll give more information about coping with a dog before, during and after a fit.
By: Avril Harper About the Author:
Avril has created a special web site containing information and advice based on her own experience of two dogs suffering regular seizures. You’ll find it at
http://www.dog-seizures.com
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