I have never been so scared..
The scariest thing happened while I was writing my last entry. I didn't even finish my entry. Anyhow. Obi and Aurra had been wrestling behind me just playing around. Then Obi went into the other room and Aurra laid down by the door looking out the screen. Obi walked back into the room and suddenly fell over. He was completely stiff but shaking. I kept saying, "Obi are you okay?" He's a dog so of course he didn't answer. But he was just stiff and shaking. I was sure he was having a seizure. I picked him up and put him on my bed. He just laid there. His eyes were really wide and he wasn't blinking at all. I could feel his heart beating but had to put my head by his snout to see if he was breathing. He was. I was so paniced that I started crying. I called Ed to let him know what was happening and that I was taking Obi to the vet. Ed thought it might be his back or hips, like a pinched nerve or something. Obi was still stiff and shaking when I put him by the door. He tried to stand up but his back legs were all bowed out. I had to put Aurra in the kitchen and use the restroom real quick before we left. All of a sudden the bathroom door opened. It was Obi. He was fine. Tail wagging. Running around. The whole episode took about 5 minutes, but he may have already been coming out of it when I put him by the door because he was moving (trying to stand) but seemed confused and disoriented. So really maybe only more like 2 1/2 minutes but still that's a looooooong time. Even though he seemed fine i took him to the vet anyway.
The vet checked his back and hips. They weren't tender. His spine was fine. His temperature was normal. He said he believed (from my description) that Obi had had a seizure. He said that dogs can have Idiopathic Epilepsy. He said that Obi may never have another seizure, he may have one in 6 months or may have one as soon as we got home. They can't tell. He said there were 2 things we could do,
1) Nothing, wait and see if he has another seizure and then do blood work on him
2) Do the blood work now, which may not show anything.
We decided to wait and see. As far as medication goes there are drugs to control the seizures but if they are infrequent then he shouldn't be put on them, because once he's on them he has to stay on them. If he misses doses or goes off the drug the seizures can become more frequent and more severe. The doctor also said that dogs rarely die from epilepsy.
He said that if he has another seizure to pick him up and hold him but keep back from him mouth because they can (unintentionally) clamp down and their jaw can lock during the seizure. Or I can lay him on his side away from anything he can bump. I should pet him and talk to him to soothe him, which is what I did. He said they can foam and lose their control of bodily functions. (maybe I won't be holing him).
If you are interested, here is another woman's experience with her dog Snowball. You may want to turn the sound off as the song is a little annoying.
In all my life and all that I have gone through this past year nothing scared me more than watching what happened to Obi. Obi and Aurra are our "children". I couldn't imagine watching this happen to a real child.
The vet checked his back and hips. They weren't tender. His spine was fine. His temperature was normal. He said he believed (from my description) that Obi had had a seizure. He said that dogs can have Idiopathic Epilepsy. He said that Obi may never have another seizure, he may have one in 6 months or may have one as soon as we got home. They can't tell. He said there were 2 things we could do,
1) Nothing, wait and see if he has another seizure and then do blood work on him
2) Do the blood work now, which may not show anything.
We decided to wait and see. As far as medication goes there are drugs to control the seizures but if they are infrequent then he shouldn't be put on them, because once he's on them he has to stay on them. If he misses doses or goes off the drug the seizures can become more frequent and more severe. The doctor also said that dogs rarely die from epilepsy.
He said that if he has another seizure to pick him up and hold him but keep back from him mouth because they can (unintentionally) clamp down and their jaw can lock during the seizure. Or I can lay him on his side away from anything he can bump. I should pet him and talk to him to soothe him, which is what I did. He said they can foam and lose their control of bodily functions. (maybe I won't be holing him).
If you are interested, here is another woman's experience with her dog Snowball. You may want to turn the sound off as the song is a little annoying.
In all my life and all that I have gone through this past year nothing scared me more than watching what happened to Obi. Obi and Aurra are our "children". I couldn't imagine watching this happen to a real child.