Sorry to hear about Lexi, can't offer much advice, as Ralph had epilepsy but had notmedication because luckily he didn't have many. I know in the uk, Dorwest Herbs sell Skullcal & Valerian tablets which may help with epilepsy, but i am fairly sure that they say to check with your vet first. I don't know if a product like that is available where you live - but i may be worth looking at their website. Hope that helps and Good Luck to you and Lexi.

 

First off, I would like to welcome you to Golden Retriever Forum, glad to have you here.

I'm sorry that Lexi is having a problem. Have you every heard of using Melatonin for seizures? Here is a site that you can check out about canine seizures: http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/site_map.htm . There are other members of this forum that have more knowledge with seizures and they will probably answer your questions better.

 

just wanted to say welcome to the forum, but i wish you had found us not under such circumstances!! i dont have any experience with seizures but a few here have and can hopefully offer you some advice.

 

I know of one member off hand who deals with seizures on a regular basis with her baby. I'm sure you will get lots of great advice and information here.Welcome

 

I do not have experience with seizures, but from reading about them and talking to people who have dogs with them, especially since your girl has them on a regular basis, the best treatment is the phenobarb. It does stop the seizures, or make them less frequent for most dogs.

Has your vet run all the test to determine if it there is a physiological cause?

 

Our First Golden had siezures most of her Life and she lived 13 years with them.. I guess I learned to accept it and it really never seemed to affect her health any so we just put up with it.. not the greatest help but just offering this as maybe some comfort.. good luck~

 

Yeah, my black lab will be 13 in March and he has seizures. He is on a big dog bed at night that has a waterproof protector. For whatever reason, he seems to usually have his seisures at night. And he almost always pees during them. We've never medicated him, but then again, he only has one maybe montly or less.

 

I'm so sorry that your sweet Golden is having seizures. Poor thing! I understand your hesitation at putting her on meds. Good for you for doing your research and not just buying into what you are told to do. No matter what decision you make, at least you explored your options.

I have also heard that many believe that the flea meds can cause seizures.

Do you have any holistic vets near you? You may want to look into checking with one.

Good luck on your search for what is best for your girl. And welcome to the forums. I hope you decide to stick around and share what you learn for others who may come along behind you with the same situation.

 

I am new to this forum, so let me say hello. I saw this forum as I searched the internet for all the information I could gather regarding my Golden having seizures. Our Golden's name is Lexi. She is 3 1/2 years old. She is a very sweet and loving dog. She started having seizures in October. Long story short, she has progressed to having seizures every 10 days. The vet prescribed phenobarbital. Our family has not made the decision to medicate, as we were hoping for a better solution. At Lexi's last visit to the vet, he understood my hesitation to just "medicate" Lexi for the rest of her life...so he suggested we try changing her diet first. We changed her diet to a hypoallergenic diet...and at first, it seemed to be a miracle because she actually went 19 days without having a seizure. Unfortunately, she had a seizure this weekend. All of this seizure stuff seemed to start when we changed Lexi's flea and tick medicine from Advantix to Frontline. The vet says that is not the cause. I did not give Lexi the Frontline this month (since it is cold) but did administer the Heartguard. Is it possible that these medications could cause my dog to have seizures? I have seen some information implying just that online. Any and all opinions would be appreciated or if anyone has dealt with this same problem first hand, I would appreciate your help. Thanks.

Hello and Welcome,
I am so sorry you had to find us due to her having seizures. I have a golden that suffers from seizures and I had to put him on the phenobarbital. Due to him having heart problems also we didnt want the seizures causing a heart attack. Which it could have. He has to take 3 1/2 pills twice a day and they really help. The website that you were given is a lifesaver and I refer to it alot. His are due to a possible brain tumor but we dont know for sure. I too noticed he would always have a seizure with 48 hrs after having his heartguard and my vet said to switch to the interceptor and he went one month without a seizure. Then this month he had one when he had his interceptor. My vet said no matter what kind of heartworm med he takes it could set off one but this was less chance with the interceptor. This one was less and different than the previous ones. He said also the meds set off something in the brain causing the seizure.
I hope you can find the information that you need, but I havent had any problems because of the phenobarbital. He is still a happy guy and his same old self.
Their are things out there that are natural to put in the yard and them to help with the fleas and I know someone will be able to give you the name, I cant remember it.
Good luck and I am here all the time if you have anymore questions. Good luck in finding the best solution for your Lexi.

 

My 9 year old started seizing at age 4. She never had them frequent enough to warrant meds. Interestingly, the last few years she hasn't had any. The only thing we can attribute it to is a change to a holistic dog food (Ultra Large Breed). Some say that may be a contributing factor.
Best of luck, I know how scary they are for you and Lexi. Do go to the Guardian angel web site so you can learn from their wealth of knowledge.
Saca, Cahill, Chase, and Sage at The Bridge

 

I'm sorry to hear that Lexi is having seizures. I can only imagine how troubling that is to you. I've read alot on flea/tick meds and heartworm meds (and their side effects) and have chosen to only give Wrigley alternative supplements. So far, so good. I don't think I've ever seen a flea/tick on him and he's heartworm free--and we live in the south.

During these cooler/cold months, you might take her off of the heartworm meds and flea/tick meds completely and see if it makes a difference. That's what I would do--especially since there's no real threat of her getting fleas/tick/heartworms during this time.

Here are a couple of links of the products I use in place of meds:

Flea/Tick Preventative --
http://www.springtimeinc.com/product/35/2

Heartworm Info--
http://www.nativeremedies.com/petal.../petalive/parasite-dr-internal-parasites-pet.html?img=321&kbid=1226#ingredients

Hope this helps and good luck with Lexie!

 

Here are a couple of links of the products I use in place of meds:

Flea/Tick Preventative --
http://www.springtimeinc.com/product/35/2

Heartworm Info--
http://www.nativeremedies.com/petal.../petalive/parasite-dr-internal-parasites-pet.html?img=321&kbid=1226#ingredients

How many of the garlic capsules do you give daily?
I couldn't reach the heartworm site for some reason.

 

Thanks to everyone who helped regarding Lexi's seizures. All of the information and well wishes were very helpful! I will keep you posted. Thanks again!

 

Many many dogs came down with seizures after getting proheart6. Many are still on drugs 4-5 years later. some went into seizure and didnt' come out--Bandit, the border collie that died in Wis the same day my hunter died here in Texas never came out of his seizrue that came on 10 hours after his 4th PH6 injection,.

I most certainly do believe that any drug can bring on an reaction of some kind, some more tend to than others. I do know there have been reactions and deaths caused by every single heartowmr preventative out. The thing is some are safer than others. proheart6 killed more dogs in the 3 years it was on the market than all othes combined, and some of then had been on the market for 12 yers. i do think the same appliest o flea and tick stuff as well.

Speaking as one who lost a dog to heatworm preventative, proheart6, I still firmly believe that the meds are the only way to prevent heartworms. i do not believe herbs, etc will do the job. The first time i ever h eard of heartworms was almost 40 years ago when my dad lost his elderly English Setter--to the arsnic treament rather than the worms. Then Honey had heartworms when we adopted her. So i am familair with heartworms, the treatments, the preventatives and death by HW treatment and death by the preventative. And i only trust the prescription stuff to prevent them. I cringe when i gie my girls their Interceptor--but the thought of heartworms makes me cringe even more.