Not Again!

This morning I thought it was odd that Koa didn't jump out of bed the second he heard his kibble hit the bowl, but I chalked it up to the cold weather. But, as the morning went on he still hadn't eaten and was acting very lethargic.

He went outside to puke, which he actually does on a semi-regular basis, and came back inside and laid back down...but then he went back out the doggy door, and I watched him through the window. I knew something wasn't right and he started wobbling like he was drunk, then ended up laying down because he couldn't stand up. Eric ran outside to grab him and I immediately called the vet...in tears. We set up an appointment in 3 hours and I was praying he would be fine til then.

About 10 minutes later I took him out of Eric's arms and when I sat down with him his front legs stiffened and raised above his head and his eyes were fixated on the ceiling. I immediately handed him over to Eric and told him to get him in the car as I called the vet. I told them I had just called and we were headed there now because he was having a tonic seizure. These are different than what most people see on TV, there was no jerking but all his muscles stiffened and he seemed to look at us with a helpless stare...it was horrible.

When we pulled up to the vet, which thankfully is only about 4 blocks from my house, 2 techs were waiting outside and grabbed Koa from Eric. All I could do was cry and try to push back the thoughts of Tyler's seizure 18 months ago that ended in his passing the following day.

Koa came out of the seizure on his own, and was back to walking around normal within 10 minutes after we arrived. Of course his blood work came back normal, and the vet said that he is in the prime age group for idiopathic seizures (2-5yrs old) and phenobarbital is the best choice for treatment.

So, my Koa will be getting phenobarb twice a day for the rest of his life, and we go back in 30 days to check his therapeutic drug levels (for those that don't know what that is...every drug has a therapeutic range, where it is effective, which is detected in a blood draw. It is common with seizure & anti-depressant meds to take a few months to get the dosage within that therapeutic level).

We were also sent home with some Valium in pre-dosed syringes in case he has another seizure. I also asked the vet about his weight because we have been working on it diligently for the past 6 months, and he says he is at a good weight and he is fine to be back on regular food again.

What a day!! Other than my nerves being shot, everyone is doing fine. Eric and I were discussing the possibility that he has probably had seizures before, when we weren't home, since we've seen him act lethargic & have not touched his food. So, now we wait and hope that we'll be able to get his medication dosage to be effective, and no more seizures!