older dog having sezures

[Norah]

This is dog related , but someone out there must have gone through this ...I hope you can help. Izzy is a 14 year old chihuahua . She has had some sezures in the last year . Her sezures are the "still" kind , she becomes stiff as a bord , cries a horrible break your heart cry , and you think , this is it she is dieing right in front of you . Then she wakes up , pants , takes a nap , and is "Ok"again . My vet speaks German , so i dont understand everything , but he says this " meds would only make her sleep all day , thats not a good quality of life" we can try her on herbs ..... we agreed to keep a medical journal , and evaluate her quality of living at the end of 4 months should she live that long . She can walk , she is hungry , pees and poops , is loving , and seems happy . Has anyone been through this ? Can anyone tell me how long their dog had before they had to euthanize him-her ? .... I think its her kidneys , she drinks a lot of water , and pees all through the night . Thats a sign of her kidney failing ....I thought I was ready for her to pass, but this morning , seeing her like this and being face to face with death , was horrific for me , and I sobbed uncontrolably .....I kept saying No not yet , but its really not up to me , its all about little Izzy now . does anyone have some suggestions , to help us get through this last stage of life ?

 

[shorthorsemom]

We thought my dog was having seizures, symptoms were very similar to what you described. Turned out he has problems with his heart valves. They put him on medication for his heart and the "seizures" went away. He has lived quite a few years on this medication. I also had a collie that my vet thought had seizures due to a brain tumor. I thought it sounded more like an inner ear infection from her symptoms and I didn't like how sleepy she was on the anti-seizure meds. She would just flop over without warning. I put her on yucca and talked my vet into giving me a sulfa drug which is good for inner ear infections and she got better quickly and the symptoms have been gone for a few months. My other dog has liver issues (had bloodwork done).. she takes denamarin every day and her drinking excessively has stopped and she is very bright.. She too has just been diagnosed with heart valve issues and she is doing great on her new medication. Her symptoms were also similar to a seizure in description. All but one of my guys is senior and my vet is great at finding inexpensive options that make quality of life improvements for my old guys. I would get a second opinion, if you can find a vet that combines traditional treatment with holostic options, even better. My stories are just to let you know that there are quite a few things that can make a dog appear to seizure. I took my dog in expecting to put her down, and now a couple of weeks later, she is bouncing off the walls, happy and looks 5 years younger. All for some heart valve medication. She was examined by a cardiologist, it was well worth the visit. Best wishes, I hope you can find some help for your baby.. she is very cute. Yes there are many options out there. I have used yucca on more than one occasion as a last resort. I break open the capsule and sprinkle on the food. It has improved the quality of life on more than one of my guys. Take care! Keep us posted. Adair

 

[chandab]

Look into diabetes, too, it can cause excessive thirst.

My dog went through seizures for a few years, I can't remember all the details any more, as I lost her a couple years ago, she was 13.5 years old (and had been seizure free for 5-6 years). We watched and kept track of how frequent and serious they were, if they had become more frequent or serious we would have put her on medication.

 

[Riverrose28]

so sorry to hear this, I too have a fourteen year old dog and feel your pain. The last dog we had that had seizures was controlled through medication, but you need to find the cause. Sending good thoughts your way.

 

[Sonya]

Have you found anything out? My elder dog drinks alot of water at times and I've had extensive tests done on him with all the results coming back fine....my vet told me that sometimes its just a nervous/obsessive behavior....not sure I buy that but all the tests came back good so maybe??

 

[Norah]

yes ... we found out that she is dieing .... we are just keeping a medical journal on her now , and we are keeping an eye on her , she sleeps on my pillow next to my head . When the seizures are more frequent then 3 per year ( every month or so we will talk to the vet about euthanizing . At the moment she is happy , and enjoying life ..... but sleeping like a little old lady. I will make the decision as soon as I notice a change in her spirit ...... enjoying every minute i have with her

 

[Norah]

BTW ... thatnk you all for the suggestions , empathy , and kind words , it really made me feel a lot better ... sometimes you just need to feel like your NOT alone