From:
http://www.naturalcanine.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=TNC&Category_Code=E1
Epilepsy is not a single disease. It is intermittent, repeated seizures with an unknown cause. The seizures are also called convulsions or fits and are caused by any process that alters normal brain function. When electrical impulses in the brain go haywire, they short-circuit normal brain processes, resulting in a seizure.
Seizures can occur in dogs of all ages. There are two major groups of problems: brain and non brain problems.
Brain problems that cause seizures may include true epilepsy, brain infections, degenerative conditions of brain tissue, brain tumors, stroke like conditions, blood clots and injury to the head.
Non brain problems that may cause seizures include ingested poisons, kidney disease, liver disease, heart disease, low blood sugar, nerve and muscle problems and infections.
Epilepsy is either idiopathic or aquired.
Idiopathic (without a known cause) epilepsy is genetic or hereditary.
Acquired epilepsy is usually caused by an outside source; toxins, infective organism, and trauma. Treating Epilepsy Holistically - The goal of alternative treatments is to train the animal’s body to fix itself. “Control with drugs suppresses the brain function.” states Dr. Pitcairn. Many pet owners don’t realize that techniques such as diet threapy, homeopathy, herbology, aromatherapy, and acutuncture can improve the health and wellbeing of their epileptic dog.
There are two types of seizures - petite mal and grand mal.
Infrequent petit mal seizures are brief fits, usually invole nodding, chewing, licking, or minor twitching. Dogs often collapse into a sitting or lying position but don’t fall over on their sides. They tend to have a partial loss of conciousness with a faraway look in their eyes. Grand mal seizures have three stages: The aura stage - signals the beginning of the seiaure. The animal may pace, whine, tremble, wander, hide, be affectionate or flee. The aura may last a few sseconds or many hours and it can alert owners that a seizure is imminent. Not all dogs experience the aura. The ictus - is the seizure, characterized by sudden stiffening and shaking of all the muscle groups, followed by running movements. It ususally lasts one to three minutes. The Postictus - follows the seizure. The dog may be confused, restless, unresponsive, excited, panting or may want to go outside. Other types of seizures exist - Partial seizures - movements are restricted to one area of the body, such as muscle jerking, movement of one limb, or facial twitching. Complex partial seizures - these are bizarre behaviors such as fly biting, hysterical running, cowering, or hiding. Vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal distress, salivation, and temporary blindness. Cluster seizures - Multiple seizures occur within a short time span with only brief periods of conciousness. Status epilepticus - one continuous seizure lasting 30 minutes or more or a series of multiple seizures with no periods of normal conciousness, It can end in death if not controlled.
One of my dogs (13 yrs) has petite seizures - she has head tremors for roughly 15 seconds, she is sorta froze and seems slightly "out of it" but comes right out of it like nothing happened. She has MANY, MANY, MANY every day. She's been on Phenobarb for a couple of years now. It helped lessen the severity of the seizures, but they have never gone away completely. At this stage in her life, I don't want to up the Phenobarb doseage, as the seizures really don't seem to affect her quality of life.
