~Anne~

A friend has an ancient BC that was like this. The Vet now has him on a range of medications and he is like a spring chook again, although he is beginning to wind back down again. I am not sure what meds he is on but he has been on them for about a year now.

I've used it several times over a week and gave Sentinel at the same time. Capstar is a relatively harmless product.... as harmless as any chemical can be at any rate.

Groups of seizures are referred to as a cluster. My Pug, Monte, has cluster seizures. He will have 5 - 6 within an hour on a bad day, and only 1 or 2 withing the same time frame on an exceptionally good day. The concern with clusters is that the dog will go into status (status epilepticus) which is continual seizure activity. Obviously, this places enormous pressure on the heart and brain and can be fatal. In 5 years, we have not yet had Monte go into status thankfully but we have been warned that with each cluster, the pathways in the brain of the seizure become easier and he is more susceptible. It is pleasing to note though that the numbers of seizures he is having is decreasing in the last 6 - 8 months. Monte's cycles of seizures regularly change. He is currently experiencing seizure activity every 3 weeks and he has remained at or around this for some time now. To be honest, I can't imagine why the Vet hasn't done anything but has taken the attitude of 'waiting to see what the pattern is'?? How bizarre. If the dog has idiopathic epilepsy (being the most common type) then it is not called idiopathic for no reason. There is no pattern. The age of the dog might also suggest idiopathic epilepsy, but other causes should be ruled out first. Seizures are caused by many things, including toxins, disease and injury. Normally, bloodwork and imaging tests are udnertaken to rule out these causes and if no cause can be found, a diagnoses of epilepsy is confirmed. I would assume the Vet has given them diazepam?? If the dog is diagnosed with epilepsy they would normally put them on phenobarbital (Pb) as the first drug of choice. If the seizures are not controlled effectively with this (after adjustments) then another drug called potassium bromide (Kbr) is added. Sometimes, a 3rd drug known as keppra is also added although in Australia, this is not common. The side effects of the drugs are similar in most cases. Ataxia (hind limb weakness), increase in thirst, increase in urine output, increase in hunger, restlessness and general lethargy are common. The body will adjust to most of these side affects within time and so they must be patient and wait for the drugs to settle in the dog's system. This can take up to 3 months with Pb in particular. Kbr builds up gradually and so the side effects are slower to show.

But isn't wobblers extremely painful or am I thinking of something else??

I agree with sandgrubber on many points they have posted. Incidently, I give my epileptic boy Capstar all the time and have never had an issue. Monte has no triggers though. It is true idiopathic epilepsy and its best (or worst).

Yes, I have also found similar interesting things in dogs fed commercial diets. Every dog is different. The *you must feed barf or raw and nothing else!!* push drives me spare to be honest. Someone on DOL once had as their signature "The best food for your dog is the food your dog does best on" and that is so true.

Sounds like it could possibly be a hot spot developing. Does the fur come away also with the scabby bits?

On the subject of proteins, there is a thought that you are better not introducing a wide variety of proteins until the dog is at least 2 years old. This apparently lessens the probability that the dog will become allergic to the proteins it has been fed over the first few years of it's life. The most common time apparently for allergies to develop is between 6 months - 2 years. After this the incidence of developing reactions reduces considerably. It may be best to keep food bland and simple and without variety. Perhaps the propensity for allergies to proteins in dogs is because of the raw/barf feeding and our desire to fed a wide variety of ood types to prevent 'boredom' (which dogs don't suffer from when it comes to food anyway to my knowledge). It is just a thought and something to mull over.

How long would you leave a bone with a dog for.I mean,do i leave the bone on the ground for hours just incase he wants to come back to it,or do i throw it out because the flies have been on,or can i pick it up and put it back in the fridge for next time? That would be your choice. As I have several Pugs here at anyone time, and some are food aggressive, I have them separated while they chew on their bones. When they lose interest in chewing anymore I collect the bones and throw them out and then remove the barriers that separate them all.

I buy them from the butcher and ask him to cut them. I think some people call them dinosaur bones. It is up to you if you have them cut or you give him one full length one...but they are pretty long. I think they might be the large leg bone from a cow???? Not sure, I am not a big meat person.

I buy large shanks and have them cut. On the weekend, I purchased one and had the butcher cut it into three pieces. This gives me three bones the size of cauliflower head (roughly). I don't feed wings or necks to my dogs or any bone smaller than the above. I only feed bones that they have no hope of getting into their mouths due to ahistory of choking episodes, mainly with one dog.

I feed my dogs my own raw mix. Their diet is varied depending on when I shop, what is in season and how much time I have. My raw mix is made up of a combination of any or all of the following; Minced chicken carcasses Minced beef Minced chicken Minced turkey Minced lamb Chopped offal (hearts, liver, kidneys and whatever is available) -although I only feed this once a month on average Veges including carrots, cabbage, zucchini, peas, corn, pumpkin, beans and others Pasta and rice Orange juice (freshly squeezed and combined with the mince and vege mix when I am not using carcasses) Crushed egg shell powder (when I am not using carcasses) I also feed tinned sardines once a week. I was feeding a mix of (any or all) yoghurt, eggs and or pet milk each morning but have recently cut this down to only a couple of times a month now. I also feed a sprinkle of kibble each evening. When I have no fresh food available I feed Nature's Gift. I make the raw mix up in large batches and freeze it in smaller portions. I might buy a few kilos ov various minces and offal, and a heap of veges and process all the veges and then mix it through a combination of the mince. I then package it into 500g bags and freeze for when I need it. To help with their teeth, I give them really large meaty bones to chew on weekly. They spend literally hours and hours gnawing on them and then I throw the bones away.

Yes, that is my understanding of it also. To my knowledge, you can not test for diet allergens without conducting an elimination diet. Many people do not understand what an elimination diet is either, many also think the dog needs to stay on the novel protien for life, which is also wrong.

Sorry, I didn't go into all the detail, I was generalising, but yes, I did follow an elimination diet and know what it is having done several years at uni doing animal science. My fault for bad communication. My dog was tested for doens of allergens, including all foods, and no foods produced a reaction at all. The plant based reactions were severe and she had to have an anti-allergy injection just for the drive home. I can only go on my own experiences, which luckily have turned out wonderfully for us. It is unfortunate that elimination diets take such a long time to prove one way or another, and then often you have to start all over again, meanwhile the dog is suffering. A very quick and true diagnosis can be made via testing. THen at least you know for sure and can get on with treatment. Even if it is a food, at least you know and don't have to try weeks or months of trial and error. I have only dealt with a couple of cases, one severe, but even then I didn't consider it a lengthy time period. Within 3-4 weeks of the novel protein being introduced and all other food soruces withheld, the dog began to improve in a major way. The reintroduction of each food item didn't take very long. With most food items, she reacted within an 1-24 hrs and the food was immediately ceased causing the reaction to dissappear just as quickly so we were back to a clean slate within a day or two and ready to introduce the next item. I guess we were lucky with her though that her reactions were so clear and definite. I wasn't aware they could test for food allergens apart from eliminating food types? Can you give me some more of your experience. Did they do this via blood tests or something else? I thought it was only atopic reactions they coudl test for? I really find the whole subject of food and environment allergens interesting. SO many dogs seems to suffer them now and so many are just dumped on cortisone still without seeking the cause. I also agree with erny in that anyone, dog or human, needs a good and balanced diet to help their system overall. Can you give more info on this?? What are they analysing? What allergens do they test for in this way?

I did as you said and looked up the condition. It's very interesting thanks. However, I found this article which directly contradicts your statement that the yeast infection is caused by grains and carbs. Although it is not scientific article, I find it gives foood for thought on the subject and the writer makes some interesting points.

Monah, it doesn;t sound liek you followed an elimination diet correctly to be honest. An elimination diet requires removing all current and previous food sources and giving the dog a completely new type of protein that they have never had beofre and therefore, would never have developed an allergic reaction to. You then re-intorduce different proteins one at a time once the allergy clears to determine what protein the dog was allergic too. It is always a protein source. Contrary to popular belief, grains are not a common allergen and neither is food in general. Most allergies are atopic. When it ios dietary related, kibble is often blamed but it is usually chicken and beef that are the culprits. Kibble is often blamed because they usually have traces of beef or chicken in them.

A specialist would be the way to go. You need to determine the allergen(s). Skin tests and food trials will hopefully uncover what it is and then you can either eliminate or control the source of the problem.

I have to say I agree with this. Dogs are unpredictable at best. They are animals, not little humans. They do not think or act like humans and many seem to fail to understand that. If the owner of the dog understood this and the parent of the child understood this, the attack may never have happened. Many seem to be forgetting that dogs are canines. Animals. Not fluffy stuffed toys to dress up, sleep in our beds and eat with our families. A dog is a dog.

I know nothing about grooming but for $60 I would have expected to see a dog that looked groomed and did not have hair still visibly dropping from the coat. I know with my Pugs, none of whom will sit still while I brush them, that I have to make a concerted effort to remove all of the hair during big moults such as this time of the year. I have to spend double the time getting rid of the hair than normal and I use several methods, a metal rake type comb that removes a lot of hair, a softer brush that removes a lot of loose stuff and then I use a rubber grooming glove to finish off. Normally I would just use the one brush at other times of the year. I can clearly tell after I have spent this time that I have groomed my dogs and I am not a groomer. I realise that there is a huge difference in size of breeds but I still feel you have been lead up the garden path by the groomer.

I'd agree somewhat with the Vet to a degree. If the dog is desexed before sexual maturity and does not associate a lot with other male dogs that mark, they may never do it. Marking territory is a natural insitinct in a dog. Inappropriate marking (inside on furnishings etc) is more to do with dominance, training and if they are entire or not. A desexed male will mark less than an undesexed male.

Some squat all their lives. Most will begin to cock their legs between 6mos - 2 years. If they spend time with another dog that cocks and marks repeatedly they learn a lot quicker I have found. I wouldn't worry about him not peeing much either on walks. He is still just a baby and so the idea of marking territory has not developed in him. In fact, in some ways, you are better off if it never fully develops as you will have less prolems with him marking in inappropriate places.

The correct term for the different types of seziures are grand mal (tonic clonic), petite mal and focal. There is no such thing as 'normal seizures'. It does sound like it was a possibly a seizure. A dog's heart will race during a seizure too. Seizures are caused by many things and it is not always epilepsy. Disease, injury and toxins can cause seizures also. I would take her to the Vet for a check-up. If possible, keep a mobile or cam corder handy so that if is ever occurs again you can film it.

And due to the nature of flea eggs, you are best bombing again after the following Winter even if you haven't seen evidence yet of fleas. Some of the eggs laid this season will not hatch until the weather begins to warm up next season. I would wash the bedding in a flea wash as well. Vacuum kennels and carpets before bombing and throw the vacuum bag away or wash it with the flea rinse as well.

Dogs, even Pugs, have an acute sense of smell and can detect the source. In fact, it is not even really neccessary to reapply the scent as often as most do because the dogs are still able to smell it even though we can't. Think urine smells and marking....

I have previously used Vanilla to indicate water bowls, citronella for danger areas, eucalyptus for stairs. If you raid the supermarket, you'll find lemon essence, strawberry and rasberry too as well as lavendar. You just need to be consistent with using the same scents for the same things.