Distilled Water and Seizures in Dogs Elaina Jensen (Oregon) on 04/23/2017
After about four days of distilled water and the phenobarbital, the seizures kept getting worse. We stopped the distilled water and went back to putting regular tap water in his water dish. The seizures stopped and we stopped the phenobarbital too. We never had a problem with seizures after that.
I learned to have a lot of respect for distilled water and to be very careful how it is used after that.
Heather (Reading, Pa) on 02/09/2017
I know people may already know this can happen, but I did not, neither did any of my friends in similar situations. For twenty years my dogs have been in the compost bin from time to time, and a couple times I recall a wake up call in the night to go outside from them eating it.
We could have lost her to this. It required IV fluids and flushing the toxins from her system. I can do a lot at home, but I am not skilled enough to administer IV fluids. Without this she may have died.
The reason for this post is to give people info about this. Fence off your compost, or if you live near forest where your dogs maybe eating deer or other poop in the woods- they could get this, or it could be why they keep having seizures. I am not implying this is every seizure situation by any means. Most people don't watch their dogs to see what they are doing outside every minute. It will cost us nearly $2000 for this, but more importantly we almost lost our newest family member to something that could have been avoided. Years ago I knew someone that adopted a dog who was on all sorts of these seizure meds, and would have these prolonged episodes (like Lily) and now it makes me wonder if she had this. While finding info online about it last night it did say continued seizures can be misdiagnosed when it is actually these mycotoxins which are causing the issue.
I give her grain free puppy kibble, fresh raw and cooked meats & veggies, bones, coconut oil, probiotics and pumpkin puree daily. She spends a lot of time outside and is also walked daily. She is going to pull through, but it was a real scare. I hope people will share this and read more about Mycotoxin poisoning because I am sure I am not the only one on Earth Clinic composting in my yard.
Dee (Sc) on 08/06/2016
Cammie (California) on 03/14/2016
Here is my story:
My pug named Rain had been on an r/d diet for many years. After they changed to a new package, she had consumed over one bag of the new packaged food and she always show a lot of hesitation to eat. I felt bad because I did not listen to her signal. She just had a seizure out of nowhere on Friday, March 11, 2016 and she is 11 years old. But she did not just have one seizure, she had a seizure every 5 hours on average starting that Friday. I was so desperate to look for remedies and info and couldn't figure out what's wrong with her because with all the researches I had done in this short time frame, she did not seem to have liver, kidney or any other problems. But I remember ever since she started the new package of the r/d food, she acted very weird, like always frozed in the middle of the road and couldn't hear me calling her unless I screamed loud enough.
I was able to find a lot of info online and on the earthclinic.com site. I have tried taurine supplement with minimal help and then the next day fish oil. I looked through all the info about dog food and fish oil and the benefits of it and I felt confident enough to give her a try.
So when the store opened on Sunday 11am, I bought the fish oil, fed her the oil with chicken, and her supposed Sunday 3:00pm seizure did not come. And I waited till now and her 8pm seizure did not come either. I feel like the fish oil is really helping her. But within the past couple of days which was Friday nite and Saturday till Sunday morning, she had already gone through 8 seizures in total. I had already stopped feeding her this diet the next day after the first seizure incident after I read a lot of ppl's stories here. I really think something's wrong with it.
I also remember after she started the new bag, she started having her first ear infection and skin problem which she never had for her whole life. I want to thank everyone here again for their time to tell their stories because all these info really help ppl like me And others who need help.
It's almost Monday 1am, she seems very comfortable sleeping still.
Christine (New Jersey) on 10/13/2015
I switched her to natures variety limited ingredient still didn't work so I began to feed her Tuckers frozen raw pork/bison with pumpkin patties with her new food still had a seizure 1x a month she was also being fed biscuits RAW BOOST from Natures' Variety. I read up Rosemary triggers seizures! It was true in her case. So stopped feeding her treats and dog food. She is being fed Tuckers frozen raw patties she is still not seizure free. She had a seizure yesterday morning 6:30am right after she was fed her patty and drank her Primal raw goats milk that has cinnamon in it.
Not sure what is causing her seizures. My husband and I think it's her anxiety or maybe she is missing something in her diet. We don't want to just start feeding her dry dog food again. She looks great her coat is shiny she is playful. Any help be so appreciated thanks
Phyllis (Tuscumbia, Alabama) on 12/28/2014
Warning
I have two Boston Terriers, George and his daughter Tina. It seems their seizures center around the new moon. Not every month by any means, but if it's going to happen they will both have a seizure on the new moon.
A few months ago Tina had at least one seizure three weeks straight. While I waited for a day off to take her to the vet I came on site here and was encouraged to find good suggestions on alternatives to phenobarbitol. I know it causes liver damage and I wasn't willing to go that route. As an herbalist the last thing I want to do to my dogs is give them drugs that don't always work and cause damage. So I talked to the vet and he assured me that Potassium Bromide is a safe alternative. I had already been using Bach's rescue Remedy with pretty good effect, but dosing is kind of tricky, too little isn't effective and too much becomes more stimulate than sedative.
Well, we put them both on Potassium Bromide and at first everything seemed fine. Then Tina started developing symptoms of Ataxia, at first I thought it was just too strong a dose so I started giving her a smaller dose. Every day it got worse, she was becoming more and more crippled in her back legs. it scared me enough to put her back on the RR. Sure enough she started improving right away. In about two weeks she was walking normally and being able to jump on the furniture again. The next new moon she had two seizures in two days and that scared me into going back to the PB. Eight days later she was blind in her left eye and quickly losing sight in her right eye. She's been back on the RR for about a month now and her vision has almost completely recovered.
I won't say absolutely do not use Potassium Bromide. My George hasn't had any problems. Except that, and I can't be completely sure missing a dose will cause them to be able to seize. Christmas Eve Tina seized before breakfast, and I was still upset when I fed them and forgot to give George his meds and he seized that afternoon.
So if you do plan to use PB watch your pet closely. Keep a constant check on hearing and eyesight and if you notice they have become clumsy when they usually aren't watch closely to make sure it doesn't continue to worsen. I wouldn't want anyone to have the tragedy I came so close to with my little girl.
Dharmony (Ny, Usa) on 05/16/2014
Soooo...In my never-ending search to help my little guy, I found a hemp supplement that isn't an extract or oil but is 100% hemp. It is called Canna-Pet and is actually developed by veterinarians for dogs and cats. http://www.canna-pet.com
There have been major improvements in Diesel. Not only way less seizure events, but he is more alert, has a better appetite and sleeps better.
So I started reading and learning about phytocannabinoids, terpenoids and flavonoids, the important parts of cannabis. I learned that the process to make the oils and extracts (heat, alcohol, chemicals) could destroy some of the natural things in the hemp, which are beneficial. The new product doesn’t use any of these methods.
For anyone who would like to learn more about the important parts of cannabis and hemp and why they are important, here are some of the links I came across while educating myself. Keep in mind that some of the links are about medical marijuana, but the same important things are in hemp such as CBD.
Here is an article about the Canna-Pet product and the vets who developed it. http://www.prweb.com/releases/2013/10/prweb11276477.htm
Here is a link to the "white paper" from Canna-Pet - If you scroll down you can learn about phytocannabinoids, pharmacological actions of non-psychotropic cannabinoids, terpenoids, flavonoids, cannabinoid profile of medical marijuana and cannabinoid profile of Hemp #112 and their "golden Ratio" and references at the bottom. Tons of information. http://www.canna-pet.com/technical.html
Importance of Terpenes http://www.hightimes.com/read/talking-terpenes
Difference between Industrial Hemp and Cannabis (I never knew...) http://hempethics.weebly.com/industrial-hemp-vs-cannabis.html
Interesting and fun facts you didn't know about Hemp (I didn't know any of this) http://hempethics.weebly.com/i-bet-you-didnt-know.html
VIDEOS
An excellent video about CBD... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31SrjjgPbhU#t=22
For those that did not see...I know it is about marijuana but the CBD is the important part... WEED - CNN Special Dr. Sanjay Gupta 2013 Documentary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4GUkzTnFG0
And...
WEED 2 - Dr. Sanjay Gupta 2014 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAFu-Ihwyzg
Diesel is still on phenobarbital, Kbr and Zonisamide along with the hemp. These medications have never given control to him. If the hemp continues to control/eliminate seizures, these medications will be reduced with the guidance of my vet.
Tesslynn (Colorado) on 01/17/2014
I read your posts and CONCUR. I have had dogs all my life. Grew up with dogs that made it to 17 yrs. Had a Sheltie that got to 14, I put her down after a stroke. Now have a Sheltie that is coming up on 17 yrs. Let me relay my experience with dog seizures. The pet store ran out of my usual brand of dog food last year, and I picked up a small bag of another well known premium dog food. Within 1 hr my Sheltie had a seizure. She has ALWAYS been hypersensitive and allergic, but usually it meant vomitting up whatever didn't agree, but seizures are the WORST. I am a researcher and I immediately went online and found a great article about Rosemary and how it was NOT good for many dogs. BINGO this temp food had Rosemary...but then my regular dog food started adding it and BINGO another seizure. It is popping up in all kinds of stuff that DIDN'T have it before. Ok, my adorable little girl is aging. she suffers from stiff joints and arthritis. By the way, have had GREAT success using green lipped mussel and boswellia, if we miss a dosage, she doesn't get around well. Found that remedy on a UK post, works for her. But seizures have become the concern, and more frequent. But I can ALWAYS trace it to something she ingested. Canadian bacon from a McD's egg mcmuffin, seizure withing an hour, awful one-nitrates? not sure but won't let that happen again. Trail mix she got into....seizure within 3 hrs, had rosemary extract. The last 6 mths I have been cooking for her as kibble didn't interest her at all. I had tried every type I could find w/o rosemary nothing seemed to interest her. My dog is an eater, but is kinda picky. I figure if you get to be 16 yrs old, and your breed usually expires around 12 to 14 yrs, then she deserves whatever makes her happy, ha. I do find that she will have seizures that are WORSE during a full moon. I do find that the ice pack remedy cuts them down faster and the daze afterward is averted. I would NEVER use prescription meds on a dog, EVER, research the whole drug industry- it isn't acting in anyone's best interest. I believe in herbs, and even essential oils. My dog is healthy, bright eyed and her coat is so glossy, she is just having issues with seizures lately, and like others I am trying to make sure she still enjoys a quality life. I don't know if it is just old age causing them now, or if she is deficient. She gets filtered water, organic food. I am going to try the magnesium and coconut oil suggestions. I use dulse flakes as a flavoring and she LOVES those. Pets add so much to our lives you just want to make sure they are well cared for. My mom thought dog food was TRASH, she cooked for our dogs and they never had any health issues and had longevity. I think she KNEW something, ha. But my family lived into their nineties, sickness wasn't in our family, they all expired of old age not disease, most died in their sleep peacefully, they didn't believe in Drs unless you broke a bone. They didn't believe in anyone "practicing" medicine on ya. Most of the top notched vets in my area seem clueless, and expensive, so NO thank ya. When my current sheltie was a puppy she chewed a rock and broke a tooth, a baby tooth, and one of those FINE educated vets told me I had to pay for a tooth extraction. Last time I took her to that vet, because she LOST that tooth naturally, I wasn't about to put her under and have him extract something that was coming out soon anyway. I told him he was a quack and a thief. He later was brought up on pet abuse charges, this was supposedly an exceptional vet-BUNK! GREED motivates more unnecessary procedures-I know, I volunteer in hospitals and hear and see awful stuff.
So please be an advocate for your pet, and choose wisely.
Suseeq (Sydney, Australia) on 01/05/2014
I gave her a zinc tablet once a day and went from having four a week to about two a year and they were very mild.
Corgi Mum (Colo Spgs) on 10/13/2013
Lia Vang (Milwaukee, WI) on 06/04/2013
Petguitar (New York) on 02/27/2013
What seemed to work was to put him on Organic Pet Food and cutting him off of all human food.
Then we accidently discovered that Gluten might be the culprit when he was given a tiny piece of pizza crust. 4 hours later, he had a seizure. A first one in about 2 months. So I started to search for "Gluten causes seizures" on the web and found a ton of articles that verified this suspicion. Gluten intolerance sets your brain on fire.
This makes so much sense to me and remembering that he didn't have any seizures (when he used to have 5-10 seizures per month prior) for a few months since I stopped giving him human food.
Hope this helps someone out there. The worst thing you can do is taking your pet to the vet and getting drugs, IMO. Try a gluen free diet for your dog, even yourself, if you have seizures.
Pennysmommy (South Jersey, Nj) on 10/25/2012
Jenny (Jacksonville, Fl) on 07/26/2012
Iheartmybabies (Moorestown, Nj, 08057) on 06/29/2012
Today I'm posting about my 4 pound chihuahua, Louise. Years ago she had 2 seizures, a year apart and that was it. This past December, shortly after applying Frontline, she went into cluster seizures - major foaming at the mouth (could have filled a bathtub with all the foam), the shaking, etc. I had her at the vets for 3 days in a row. Everytime the valium started to wear off, she'd go back into the seizures. Finally she came home and all was quiet for a bit, and then it was a seizure here and a seizure there. Not the foaming at the mouth kind anymore, but what my vet called "petite" grand mal seizures. Her tests for Addison's Disease came back negative, even though her potassium levels were off the chart and more recently I've become convinced it's epilepsy.
Recently her seizures have become much more frequent, usually in the middle of the night. My other chihuahua wakes me up when Louise starts a seizure and thanks to the great folks on this website, with the use of Honey and a cold compress on her back, she usually comes out of it pretty quickly. However, I can't be here everytime she goes into a seizure and as everyone here knows, it's just heart-breaking to witness. I tried some BSM and virgin cocnut oil and she had a seizure that night. I know it's not long enough to tell if it helps or not, but with her tiny size I just don't want to put her through a million experiments. I definitely didn't want to put her on the seizure meds from the vets - again, with her tiny size, the damage they could do could far outweigh any benefits. So, anyway, after much research (and that's an understatement), I decided I wanted to keep it simple, clean and easy. I wanted organic food, NO rosemary, I wanted taurine and magnesium, etc. Raw would probably be a better way to go, but I have 4 dogs and not a ton of time/money. Not that Louise isn't worth it, she is, but like any diet (people or pets) I wanted something that I knew I could and would stick with.
So today, I picked up a bag of Potato and Venison New Balance dog food. It has everything I wanted for her and NO rosemary extract (that was tough to find). After reading a ton of positive reviews, I also ordered Dr. Ackerman's epilepsy/seizure control supplements. ! 0.00 on Amazon. I bought a small bag of New Balance dog treats too, again without the rosemary extract. I feel good about having made these changes. The Ackerman supplements won't arrive until next week sometime, but I really feel that the New Balance combined with Ackerman's supplements, we're going to finally see a decrease in her seizures. I'm also trying to give her bottled spring water but it's tough when the other 3 dogs drink it too.
One added note: Louise is 7 years old and because of her small size, I never had her spayed. I regret that now and may still do it as my intuition tells me that these seizures may even be hormonal triggered. She was in heat last Decemeber and she's in heat now - both times when the seizures really kicked in. I'll let you know in a few weeks if we had any success!
Sam (Hereford, England) on 06/28/2012
We have a beautiful Yorky cross Jack Russell who started having fits. We are fairly sure that it can coincide with when he goes through certain fields where crops are grown and the farmers have put fertilisers on the soil. The vet said it may be an allergy type reaction. But on asking other pet owners in the area they have also said their dogs have had fits using the same fields. I am going to try a natural remedy as the vets don't seem to have any answers.
I just wondered whether anyone else had experienced this with their dog and if there were any proven links with fertilisers and epilepsy? We are going to keep our little dog out of the fields for the summer now. Thanks, Sam
Taylor (Baltimore, Md) on 04/28/2012
December 2011 I switched my dogs cold turkey to the prey model raw diet. Penny is now 5 months seizure free and counting! Additionally, both my dogs have more energy, no doggie gas, and their teeth are unbelievable! Moving them to this diet was the best thing I could have done.
Jamesm (Riverdale, Md) on 04/17/2012
Marsala (Webster, NY) on 03/19/2012
Redright (Venlo, Netherlands) on 03/12/2012
The seizured continued, usually once or twice a week, on bad days 3-4 times in a couple of hours. I would bathe him all the time because after each episode he would look absolutley pathetic. It was horrible. With each seizure, he would go partially blind for hours. Felt really, really helpless.
Then I came across a cute little blog (http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/taurine.htm) which reasoned that it was the lack of muscle meat in dog (and cat) food as pet food industry kept evolving to maximize profit; resulting in today's mostly corn/junk/chemical filled pet food.
As for my dog, his seizure would come when we started to get ready to leave the house. My dog would sense that we are about to leave, get nervous and would start to pant rapidly, then seizure usually followed.
According to the blog, the lack of muscle meat in today's pet food meant TAURINE deficiency, a vital amino acid which controls seizures. Well, I ran out (by now I was desperately trying anything) and bought a bottle of Taurine and immeditately started giving him one (1) 500mg capsule a day, divided to 2 doses.
It's been 2 solid weeks without even a hint of an onset of seizure!!!!!!! I couldn't be happier. My dog is much calmer now, rarely gets nervous and much less anxious. It's like magic.
Taurine is all natural with no known side effects. And since it has many benefits, I give them daily to my dog, cat and my family.
Hope my experience with Taurine helps someone and somepet out there!
