what causes seizures in a dog?

Question

border collie mix

Answer 1

There are a number of classification
schemes for seizures based on why they occur or what they look like when
they do occur. A short explanation of one of those schemes might help to
understand what the possibilities are.

Seizures can occur for no apparent reason --- and no reason can be found
despite careful examination. This type of seizure activity is referred to
by some vets as primary epilepsy, or idiopathic epilepsy. Most of the time
the onset of seizures in dogs with primary epilepsy is between one and five
years of age and there usually is a fairly long interval between the
first seizure and subsequent seizures when they occur. While primary epilepsy
is common
Seizures can occur as a reaction to medication, allergies, toxins, other
diseases, fevers and anything else that disturbs brain function. These
seizures are sometimes referred to as reactive seizures or secondary
seizures. It is often possible to figure out the cause of this type of
seizure based on the history of another illness known to lead to seizure
activity, the clinical signs at the time of seizuring or a known history
of using a medication that may lead to seizure activity. Allergies are a lot
harder to rule out as a cause of seizures, especially food allergies. It
may be worth following an limited antigen diet. This is a diet with one meat
source, preferably a meat source that the dog hasn't eaten before, and
limited carbohydrate sources, such as just rice or just potatoes. I think
that seizures due to allergies probably occur, based on several clinical
case reports in the literature, but I think that they are pretty rare.
Still, when seizures won't respond to medication it seems reasonable to
rule out this possibility. Reactive seizures can occur at any age. distemper, toxins such as lead, chronically administered medications and
other illnesses can be helpful, sometimes, in discerning the cause of
seizures.

Another cause of seizures is anatomical or structural disease in the
brain. This can be from a brain tumor, hydrocephalus (inadequate drainage of
fluid in the skull), bleeding in the brain, circulatory problems in the brain
and other structural or anatomical problems. Unfortunately, in older dogs
(over five years of age) with seizures that occur without a prior history of
seizure activity and that recur quickly, the most likely diagnosis is a
brain tumor. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomagraphy (CT) scans are
very helpful in diagnosing brain tumors. Due to the cost of these procedures
it may be a good idea to think about the next step for a brain tumor, which
would be radiation therapy or surgery, before spending the money for the
scans. If you know that these options are not available or not suitable
in Eddie's case, then it may not be worth making a definite diagnosis. A
really careful neurologic exam might reveal clues about the possibility of a
seizure but most of the time there aren't discernible neurologic signs in
dogs with brain tumors, at least early on.

The last cause of "seizures" are things that look a lot like seizures,
but aren't. The most common problems that are sometimes mistaken for seizures
are fainting due to heart disease and low blood sugar (hypoglycemia),
which is most commonly associated with overproduction of insulin due to
insulinomas (a tumor of the pancreas).
Potassium bromide does make a good addition to phenobarbital for seizures
that are hard to control. In addition it does seem like some dogs need to
be at the high end of the serum levels ( 30 to 40 ug/dl at trough times ) in
order to have seizure control.

Answer 2

If your vet cannot determine a cause, do some research on vaccinations. They can and do cause seizures.
I have a 9 yr old who started with one seizure a yr at the age of one. By the time she was 5 yrs old, she was having 4 seizures a yr. I stopped all vaccinations at that time. Now at the age of 9, her seizures are about 8 months apart.
See the Wisconsin University weblink
http://svmweb.vetmed.wisc.edu/articles/68/5/39

Answer 3

Unless your dog bumped his head really hard, or ate some sort of poisoning, they will have seizures. Take your doggy to the vet, they will prescribe, phenobarbitol, the same in humans, but a lesser dosage. I have a dog that has the same problems. Keeping her away from certain things when the siezures are over with, so she doesn't hurt herself.

Answer 4

we found out our dog had been chewing on the electrical cords to our lamps behind the couch, we had to cover them in tubing to stop her...check around your home...behind couch, under bed..anywhere the cords are accessible...you never know

Answer 5

epilepsy, poisons, neurological problems, bad breeding,.