BoxerRoman
Boxer Pal
Hey all,
I have a 3 year old Boxer named Roman that has been experiencing seizures recently.
His first seizure was Columbus weekend, and was a short "Grand Mal." I brought him to the vet who did a checkup and basically explained not to jump into medications and just watch him.
Two weeks later, Roman had another seizure without warning. Again, it was a "Grand Mal" but no clusters, or any epilepticus. The vet explained he is at a prime age for epilepsy and it could very well be idiopathic epilepsy.
This past Saturday Roman had another seizure. They seem to be getting worse. He lost bladder control, and afterwards went into mini-seizures where he would salivate and stare, which eventually let to a second full-on seizure.
This time I took him to a 24-hour hospital closer to my house which features more specialty services such as cardiology and oncology. I have been worried about a brain tumor, despite no symptoms. We saw someone in neuro first which suggested keeping him overnight for observation, running bloodwork, and starting an anti-convulsant.
The bloodwork has not come back yet, and Roman was sent home with a prescription for Zonisamide (100mg) 3x in the morning and 3x in the evening. Within 2 hours of having Roman home he had another seizure. A few hours later he was asleep on my lap on the sofa, and had another seizure. Although the first seizure was particularly frightful, this will likely stay with me. He woke up and looked at me just kind of staring. His head began to shake but he just sat there looking at me for about 20 seconds as I spoke softly and tried consoling him. During that time he lost consciousness and began violently seizing in his own urine all over the sofa and I was absolutely helpless. Worse yet, he seems to have lost all his personality upon coming home and I am concerned that this new medication will just make him a walking zombie. His appetite has been unaffected yet he shows little interest in anything and I have yet to see his little nub wagging.
I let Roman sleep in bed with me (I occasionally do) to keep a close eye on him. Sure enough at about 5AM he woke up for about 15 seconds before seizing in the bed.
At this point I am incredibly frustrated. I have read up on the forums that these episodes are relatively painless but the heartbreaking confusion and hurt you see them go through afterwards is just as hard. I have put thought into picking his food, making sure that he has a good diet, and gets regular exercise and yet I feel that there has to be some explanation. The vet says that idiopathic epilepsy is relatively common amongst dogs- and this is about the age that they start to show symptoms.
I guess I am using this forum just to vent at this point, but I do have some questions for anyone with experience.
-Does anyone think it's possible to try to switch up the diet and see if it helps?
-Does anyone have any experience with Zonisamide?
-Are the symptoms of drowsiness-depression relatively temporary while he gets used to the meds?
Thanks for reading!
-Chris
I have a 3 year old Boxer named Roman that has been experiencing seizures recently.
His first seizure was Columbus weekend, and was a short "Grand Mal." I brought him to the vet who did a checkup and basically explained not to jump into medications and just watch him.
Two weeks later, Roman had another seizure without warning. Again, it was a "Grand Mal" but no clusters, or any epilepticus. The vet explained he is at a prime age for epilepsy and it could very well be idiopathic epilepsy.
This past Saturday Roman had another seizure. They seem to be getting worse. He lost bladder control, and afterwards went into mini-seizures where he would salivate and stare, which eventually let to a second full-on seizure.
This time I took him to a 24-hour hospital closer to my house which features more specialty services such as cardiology and oncology. I have been worried about a brain tumor, despite no symptoms. We saw someone in neuro first which suggested keeping him overnight for observation, running bloodwork, and starting an anti-convulsant.
The bloodwork has not come back yet, and Roman was sent home with a prescription for Zonisamide (100mg) 3x in the morning and 3x in the evening. Within 2 hours of having Roman home he had another seizure. A few hours later he was asleep on my lap on the sofa, and had another seizure. Although the first seizure was particularly frightful, this will likely stay with me. He woke up and looked at me just kind of staring. His head began to shake but he just sat there looking at me for about 20 seconds as I spoke softly and tried consoling him. During that time he lost consciousness and began violently seizing in his own urine all over the sofa and I was absolutely helpless. Worse yet, he seems to have lost all his personality upon coming home and I am concerned that this new medication will just make him a walking zombie. His appetite has been unaffected yet he shows little interest in anything and I have yet to see his little nub wagging.
I let Roman sleep in bed with me (I occasionally do) to keep a close eye on him. Sure enough at about 5AM he woke up for about 15 seconds before seizing in the bed.
At this point I am incredibly frustrated. I have read up on the forums that these episodes are relatively painless but the heartbreaking confusion and hurt you see them go through afterwards is just as hard. I have put thought into picking his food, making sure that he has a good diet, and gets regular exercise and yet I feel that there has to be some explanation. The vet says that idiopathic epilepsy is relatively common amongst dogs- and this is about the age that they start to show symptoms.
I guess I am using this forum just to vent at this point, but I do have some questions for anyone with experience.
-Does anyone think it's possible to try to switch up the diet and see if it helps?
-Does anyone have any experience with Zonisamide?
-Are the symptoms of drowsiness-depression relatively temporary while he gets used to the meds?
Thanks for reading!
-Chris
