Siezures

[Rev]

My basenji is 13 and started having seizures once a month.
The vet said all the blood and urine test seem ok.
This last seizure caused a lot of peeing afterwards, every half hour.
Has anyone had this problem at 13, and is it kidney or thyroid?
He eats fine, not a lot but ok. Enova
Thank you

[tanza]

@Rev:

My basenji is 13 and started having seizures once a month.
The vet said all the blood and urine test seem ok.
This last seizure caused a lot of peeing afterwards, every half hour.
Has anyone had this problem at 13, and is it kidney or thyroid?
He eats fine, not a lot but ok. Enova
Thank you

Could be many things… have you check the urine for spilling sugar... which would indicate Fanconi? or another problem?... And not surprising that he might have had a problem with peeing after/during a seizure... at least, not in my opinion. Have you done a full thyroid panel? I would check that... but in the end... 13 is starting to get pretty elderly... and can start to show signs of problems...

[BasenjiDiva]

I'm sorry that your B is having seizures. The fact that he started having them at such a late point in his life seems to indicate that something is going on. If it is some sort of neurological lesion, I would question whether or not I'd want to put my dog or my checkbook through the stress of a neuro workup. Especially since at his age he probably wouldn't be a good candidate for major surgery. If he is otherwise pretty healthy and doesn't seem to be in pain, I think I'd consider a full panel of bloodwork for thyroid and kidney disease. Maybe also liver. If nothing is found….consider learning to work around it. My parents had a schnauzer that had seizures most of its long life. The dog would look for my mother when he felt a seizure coming on and my mother could hear the change in the sound of his toenails as they clicked on the tile floor. Since the sound was different, she knew his legs were starting to stiffen up. He just wanted her with him during the seizure.

Good luck...
Pat

[dcmclcm4]

Sorry to hear about your B having seizures. I have had two older Bs with seizures. Taffi was around 13/14 and had a liver tumor and Zippy who had Fanconi and was almost 11 had a facial/nasal tumor. Both had normal blood tests. Taffi developed seizures more frequently over time and the vet was finally able to feel the tumor on her liver. Zippy developed sneezing problems which I originally thought was due to allergies as we were in RI at the National when it got worse. She developed breathing problems a week or so after the seizures, which the vet and I thought was perhaps heart problems. Both were still eating well and my Fanconi girl took her pills up to the very end.

Jennifer

[sharronhurlbut]

Oh, I am sorry. I have not helpful info, but good luck.
Its tough when they are "golden" dogs and things start to go wrong.
HUGS

[MacPack]

We have had older dogs that developed monthly seizures, but they were over 16. We just worked with it, kept them comfortable and took them for long walks s=afterward, while they were still "out of it". I kept a diary and the vet said there was no need to use medications unless they got very frequent. It is very stressful for everyone, just keep them safe and don't get bitten! I would stroke gently and talk to them during the seizure and afterward. I agree with bloodwork to check for kidney or thyroid issues, but skip the MRI, etc unless you are prepared to be heroic with your treatments.

Anne in Tampa

[basenji3]

our 15 year old basenji had seizures because of age and renal/liver issues. They started out at once a month and over a 1 year became more frequent. He passed away at 15 1/2 so I guess he started at about 14 1/2. We did the infusion therapy 3 times a week for a month till they didn't help his blood values any longer. He ate special food for renal disease which he hated and we stood on our heads to get him to eat. He could feeling them coming on because he would run away from them. We got to know the signs but sometimes they would just happen. We would hold him tight and talk and sing to him. I would rock him after the seizure stopped during that post ictal time. Our vet recommended a small amount of valium after the seizure to calm everything down. He unfortunately had a seizure that would not stop and we lost him. I also had a elkhound that had seizures it was due to a pituitary tumor. My 13 yr old elkie is now in mid stages of renal/liver failure and I so worry about going down the seizure road again. They are so very scary for everyone my heart goes out to you. We were so lucky that we could work out a schedule so that our basenji was never alone to go thru his seizures by himself. Hopefully you will find the cause for them it doesn't make them any easier but at least you know why