Lily's Second Seizure

Good that you have a vet appointment...this escalation needs to be treated.

Is the crate a wire one or a molded one? If it is a wire crate the one danger is if Lily does have a seizure where she is lying down and legs thrashing...the legs can get caught in between the wires and get broken. Since her seizures do seem to be escalating, if you do have a wire crate I would either make some kind of protection that goes part way up all the sides that won't let her legs get caught between the bars...or else get her a large molded crate which, although will have a wire door, usually the distance between the wire is too small for a leg to go through unless Lily is really tiny.

I am not aware of any hard core evidence that topicals trigger seizures, but I have always tried to use as few chemicals on or around my dogs as possible. Unless you have a big flea/tick issue in your area I would be temped to not treat Lily for these unless absolutely needed. I check my dogs every night at bedtime for ticks and fleas during the warmer months. We do have a serious tick issue in the early spring and again in the fall...but usually I can get away with only using Frontline Plus 2x a year to cover the 2 high problem times.

A gentle hug to your Lily.

Trini
 
We're just back from our appointment. The doctor did blood-work and noticed that some of the numbers were unusual, including quite a bit of fat in her blood. We're going back tomorrow morning for a fasting blood draw.

The doctor sent her home with a prescription of Zonisamide but called and told me to wait to give her the medication until the second blood-draw.
 
A friend with a poodle cross with epilepsy was told to avoid several brands of flea/tick treatment by her vet and Frontline she could use (I know because she keeps borrowing some from me and never replacing it!). Can't tell you exactly why she has to avoid the other treatments though.

Interesting about the fat in her blood - assuming high triglycerides? That can contribute to seizures. Can also mean heading to diabetes, pancreatitis and a whole range of things. Of course it just could be because she had a recent meal. Wishing you luck.
 
Lisadale said:
On a side-note, has anyone noticed an increase in seizures after using Frontline? The doctor did tell me Lily couldn't take one of the oral flea medications, but I wonder if the topical ones have equal problems?
Click to expand...

Early in this thread I described the problems my Pixie had with petit mal seizures starting as a young puppy and continuing until she was about 4 years old, when they stopped entirely.

YES, her seizures were most definitely triggered by the use of Frontline, which my then-vet said was safe for her. Her early seizures always occurred after I used it on her, and then after the seizure pattern was established, they could be triggered by exercise. Once I completely stopped using any chemicals on her it helped tremendously.

I also stopped feeding her food with chicken or turkey, although now that she's 9 she can eat them again. I put her exclusively on a duck food. Some research has indicated that the tryptophan in chicken/turkey can trigger seizures.

I would recommend eliminating anything from your dog's life that might contribute to her seizures -- chemicals, foods etc. We were lucky and did not have to use chemical medications, but were able to cure Pixie with diet, lifestyle management and prescription holistic medications. At age 9, she is fine now although I'm still careful with her and never use chemicals on her. She gets Sentinel heartworm med and that's it.
 
Very good that your vet did the blood workup. I hope today's fasting results will help narrow down what is going on with your Lily. Please keep us posted.

Trini
 
Lily's second blood work came back with more typical numbers.

Despite the results, I'm planning to have two additional tests run in mid-April. For my own peace of mind, I want to make sure her thyroid is all right. The doctor also recommended we test for Cushings, just in case.
 
That is good news that today's blood work came back better. If you do decide to retest for thyroid I would strongly recommend that you ask for her blood be sent to Michigan State University where they do a full thyroid panel, rather than the local lab or your vet's lab which don't do as comprehensive a test.

Sending best wishes to Lily and to you...she is lucky to have such a caring owner.

Trini
 
Perplexed

I thought my feelings were resolved about Lily's seizures, but I can't get something off my mind. Lily's vet didn't run any thyroid tests in the blood work she completed this weekend. She didn't even do a preliminary thyroid screening, which really surprised me.

Shouldn't we rule out everything prior to starting meds (even meds with fewer side effects like Zonisamide)?

I'm turning into one of those obsessive people who must drive veterinarians crazy, but I think testing thyroid levels is a "no-brainer" (as my students might say).
 
Lisadale said:
I thought my feelings were resolved about Lily's seizures, but I can't get something off my mind. Lily's vet didn't run any thyroid tests in the blood work she completed this weekend. She didn't even do a preliminary thyroid screening, which really surprised me.

Shouldn't we rule out everything prior to starting meds (even meds with fewer side effects like Zonisamide)?

I'm turning into one of those obsessive people who must drive veterinarians crazy, but I think testing thyroid levels is a "no-brainer" (as my students might say).
Click to expand...

I would definitely want the thyroid testing done...any complete work up should have included thyroid...esp. in a breed like shelties who are known to be prone to low thyroid issues. However, getting Lily on an anti-seizure med immediately to hopefully stop any further escalation would be my first priority if she were mine. However, you need to do what you feel most comfortable doing.

Between your vet's initial lack of response to Lily's first two seizures and her less than complete testing on the blood work...have you considered looking for another vet who might treat Lily's needs better?

Trini
 
BTW You may already be doing this, but I would recommend that you ask for copies of all test results for Lily so you have your own copies for home records.

Trini
 
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