Name this puppy

#76
#76
chatt-townVOL said:
We settled on Sutton. Thanks for the input everyone.

She said we can't name him after a UT player (even though I wanted to). Then she was looking up dog names. And she enthusiastically said "what about Sutton! It means "from the south land". So I agreed and we settled on Sutton.

Not named after a player at all :whistling:
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awesome, named him after a moonshiner
 
#82
#82
Our poor puppy (Sutton) has been having seizures. Once, sometimes twice a day. He had them when he was about a week old. He's pushing 4 months now and started having them again. Since my wife is a vet tech, we were able to draw blood on him to see what was going on. The results have been inconclusive so far.

Anyone have any experience with this that may be able to lend some advice as to what may be going on?
 
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#83
#83
chatt-townVOL said:
Our poor puppy (Sutton) has been having seizures. Once, sometimes twice a day. He had them when he was about a week old. He's pushing 4 months now and started having them again. Since my wife is a vet tech, we were able to draw blood on him to see what was going on. The results have been inconclusive so far.

Anyone have any experience with this that may be able to lend some advice as to what may be going on?
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Seek out behr. He's tough to find these days, but maybe he is lurking or someone can find him for you.
 
#87
#87
chatt-townVOL said:
Our poor puppy (Sutton) has been having seizures. Once, sometimes twice a day. He had them when he was about a week old. He's pushing 4 months now and started having them again. Since my wife is a vet tech, we were able to draw blood on him to see what was going on. The results have been inconclusive so far.

Anyone have any experience with this that may be able to lend some advice as to what may be going on?
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Sorry to hear about the seizures man. It's horrible to see and in my experience, it never gets any easier.

Behr, my 8 year old Golden started having them in July.

Your post is about 4 days old, I just got an email from Slice about this. Still looking for advice or have some questions? I'll be more than happy to give any advice or answer any questions based on my experience.
 
#88
#88
Behr said:
Sorry to hear about the seizures man. It's horrible to see and in my experience, it never gets any easier.

Behr, my 8 year old Golden started having them in July.

Your post is about 4 days old, I just got an email from Slice about this. Still looking for advice or have some questions? I'll be more than happy to give any advice or answer any questions based on my experience.
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Absolutely. We took him to the UT Vet School today and they did an evaluation. They said it was inconclusive. Taking him for the MRI tomorrow. He had head trauma as a one week old puppy so we feel pretty sure that's related. We just don't know if it's an infection or epilepsy or what. Any advice/opinion would be very welcome.
 
#89
#89
chatt-townVOL said:
Absolutely. We took him to the UT Vet School today and they did an evaluation. They said it was inconclusive. Taking him for the MRI tomorrow. He had head trauma as a one week old puppy so we feel pretty sure that's related. We just don't know if it's an infection or epilepsy or what. Any advice/opinion would be very welcome.
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Unfortunately, you are probably gonna have to deal with this the rest of the dogs life. I know I am.

They call what Behr is going through "idiopathic" seizures because they don't know what is causing them. He had an MRI and they found nothing. The list of possible causes is infinite and impossible to single out.

Really the only advice I have without any more info is, if they suggest putting him on phenobarbital, which they probably will whether the MRI finds anything or not, be prepared for the side-effects. They were/are as bad as the seizures imo, but once they get the correct level in his system, it hopefully will reduce the seizure activity to 1-4 per year. He averages 1 every 14 days right now and 16 days ago (his last one) he had a cluster (7) 2-3 minute seizures in 8 hours). I now have a prescription of intravenous Valium for him as well as Compound Valium suppositories in case the "clusters" happen again or if he has one that last over 5 minutes.

I put a pillow under his head when a seizure starts to keep him from beating it on the floor and just rub his head and talk to him telling him it's okay. They should only last 2-3 minutes at most, I bought a stop watch and keep it handy so I can get an accurate time (2 minutes during a seizure seems like 45 to me)

Ask your vet for the compound Valium suppositories in case he has a cluster or one that last longer than 5 minutes. They say if it last more than 5 minutes it can cause permanent brain damage or worse.

Sorry this is so long, I kinda don't know how much or little you already know or want to know. I'll help any way I can tho.
 
#90
#90
Behr said:
Unfortunately, you are probably gonna have to deal with this the rest of the dogs life. I know I am.

They call what Behr is going through "idiopathic" seizures because they don't know what is causing them. He had an MRI and they found nothing. The list of possible causes is infinite and impossible to single out.

Really the only advice I have without any more info is, if they suggest putting him on phenobarbital, which they probably will whether the MRI finds anything or not, be prepared for the side-effects. They were/are as bad as the seizures imo, but once they get the correct level in his system, it hopefully will reduce the seizure activity to 1-4 per year. He averages 1 every 14 days right now and 16 days ago (his last one) he had a cluster (7) 2-3 minute seizures in 8 hours). I now have a prescription of intravenous Valium for him as well as Compound Valium suppositories in case the "clusters" happen again or if he has one that last over 5 minutes.

I put a pillow under his head when a seizure starts to keep him from beating it on the floor and just rub his head and talk to him telling him it's okay. They should only last 2-3 minutes at most, I bought a stop watch and keep it handy so I can get an accurate time (2 minutes during a seizure seems like 45 to me)

Ask your vet for the compound Valium suppositories in case he has a cluster or one that last longer than 5 minutes. They say if it last more than 5 minutes it can cause permanent brain damage or worse.

Sorry this is so long, I kinda don't know how much or little you already know or want to know. I'll help any way I can tho.
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You were spot on. The MRI came back with a brain abnormality. I don't know the specifics but basically his brain on one side is misshapen and deformed. They said he will have to live with seizures for the rest of his life but it can be controlled. He's been on phenobarbital for a few days now and it has done wonders but they told us he will eventually get immune to it and we will have to switch up medications.

The scary part is they basically said a bad enough seizure can kill him. Now they said that's very uncommon, and highly unlikely if he's on medication, but if it were to happen it would be totally at random (as in it could be tomorrow or 13 years from now).

We do the same thing as you. Just hold him and talk to him and let it pass. He tends to bounce right back. How old is yours? Do they get harder to control as he gets older?

The rescue center asked us if we wanted to reconsider adopting him. Our answer was absolutely not. We're signing the adoption papers first thing in the morning. Even if he has to go through a rough medical condition he'll have a good life and home here with us. He's the victim of a ******* backyard breeder who discarded him because he's blind in one eye. The rescue center found him in a ditch. I really just don't understand some people.
 
#91
#91
chatt-townVOL said:
You were spot on. The MRI came back with a brain abnormality. I don't know the specifics but basically his brain on one side is misshapen and deformed. They said he will have to live with seizures for the rest of his life but it can be controlled. He's been on phenobarbital for a few days now and it has done wonders but they told us he will eventually get immune to it and we will have to switch up medications.

The scary part is they basically said a bad enough seizure can kill him. Now they said that's very uncommon, and highly unlikely if he's on medication, but if it were to happen it would be totally at random (as in it could be tomorrow or 13 years from now).

We do the same thing as you. Just hold him and talk to him and let it pass. He tends to bounce right back. How old is yours? Do they get harder to control as he gets older?

The rescue center asked us if we wanted to reconsider adopting him. Our answer was absolutely not. We're signing the adoption papers first thing in the morning. Even if he has to go through a rough medical condition he'll have a good life and home here with us. He's the victim of a ******* backyard breeder who discarded him because he's blind in one eye. The rescue center found him in a ditch. I really just don't understand some people.
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Props to you and best of luck. Some people are just worthless human beings. Thanks for rescuing him. I rescued my pup a day before she was about to be put down. Several people and families came in and acted as though they were going to adopt her and then would never come back to get her. I knew the moment I saw her that I would take her home that day. She is a great dog and I can't fathom why no one wanted to give her a home. As I signed the papers they made an announcement on the P.A. system that Cora was adopted. All of the workers at the shelter came out and were in tears that she finally found a home and would not be put down.
 
#92
#92
You bastards! You are going to make me tear up now.

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Hiking the Ozarks

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Playing a little fetch
 
#93
#93
chatt-townVOL said:
You were spot on. The MRI came back with a brain abnormality. I don't know the specifics but basically his brain on one side is misshapen and deformed. They said he will have to live with seizures for the rest of his life but it can be controlled. He's been on phenobarbital for a few days now and it has done wonders but they told us he will eventually get immune to it and we will have to switch up medications.

The scary part is they basically said a bad enough seizure can kill him. Now they said that's very uncommon, and highly unlikely if he's on medication, but if it were to happen it would be totally at random (as in it could be tomorrow or 13 years from now).

We do the same thing as you. Just hold him and talk to him and let it pass. He tends to bounce right back. How old is yours? Do they get harder to control as he gets older? The rescue center asked us if we wanted to reconsider adopting him. Our answer was absolutely not. We're signing the adoption papers first thing in the morning. Even if he has to go through a rough medical condition he'll have a good life and home here with us. He's the victim of a ******* backyard breeder who discarded him because he's blind in one eye. The rescue center found him in a ditch. I really just don't understand some people.
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I assume you have to give it to him in two doses per day, how many mg per dose? I'm not sure what you mean by "it has done wonders". Was he having seizures everyday and now hasn't had any? Behr hadn't had one in about a week when I started him on the meds and didn't have one for another 12 days afterwards. The only difference was the side effects, and like I said in my previous post, they are pitiful to see.

I wasn't told he would get immune to the meds. I was told that we would try the phenobarb first because it's the most common and not as hard on the kidney's as the other options, but if we couldn't find a satisfactory level in his system, we would have to go another route. He is on 90 mg twice a day for a total of 180 mg a day (theres your math lesson for the day) :)

Behr will be 9 years old next month. As far as "do they get harder to control as he gets older".....I don't know. I still don't have them under control at all yet. I know they don't get any easier to watch and I stress to the max everytime hoping it doesn't last more than 5 minutes. I take him back in two weeks to get blood work done to see what the Phenobarb level is. Accourding to his age, weight and size, his vet wants the level between 22-24 units, last time it was 18 so we upped the dosage from 120 to 180.

After a seizure Behr pants like he just ran a marathon and will raise his head up to see if I'm there, and licks my face as if he were thinking "thank God you're here........ W- IN -T - F was that?", then he gets up and wanders the house for 20-30 minutes running in to walls, doors and furniture, and drinks about a gallon of water.

I wish you the best and bless you for taking on the responsibility. The hardest part of it with me, besides seeing it, is wondering how he is when I'm not home....having that 1 that last for more than 5 minutes when I'm not there. I'm not home right now.......
 
#94
#94
Behr said:
I assume you have to give it to him in two doses per day, how many mg per dose? I'm not sure what you mean by "it has done wonders". Was he having seizures everyday and now hasn't had any? Behr hadn't had one in about a week when I started him on the meds and didn't have one for another 12 days afterwards. The only difference was the side effects, and like I said in my previous post, they are pitiful to see.

I wasn't told he would get immune to the meds. I was told that we would try the phenobarb first because it's the most common and not as hard on the kidney's as the other options, but if we couldn't find a satisfactory level in his system, we would have to go another route. He is on 90 mg twice a day for a total of 180 mg a day (theres your math lesson for the day) :)

Behr will be 9 years old next month. As far as "do they get harder to control as he gets older".....I don't know. I still don't have them under control at all yet. I know they don't get any easier to watch and I stress to the max everytime hoping it doesn't last more than 5 minutes. I take him back in two weeks to get blood work done to see what the Phenobarb level is. Accourding to his age, weight and size, his vet wants the level between 22-24 units, last time it was 18 so we upped the dosage from 120 to 180.

After a seizure Behr pants like he just ran a marathon and will raise his head up to see if I'm there, and licks my face as if he were thinking "thank God you're here........ W- IN -T - F was that?", then he gets up and wanders the house for 20-30 minutes running in to walls, doors and furniture, and drinks about a gallon of water.

I wish you the best and bless you for taking on the responsibility. The hardest part of it with me, besides seeing it, is wondering how he is when I'm not home....having that 1 that last for more than 5 minutes when I'm not there. I'm not home right now.......
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2 doses a day. Not sure of the dosage. When I say it has done wonders I mean he has gone from having 1-2 a day and them being pretty brutal (intense movements/convulsions, lasting 45 seconds to a minute, screaming, etc) to 1 every 3-4 days an it lasting 10 seconds max with much more mild symptoms.

I'm like you. I hate being away from him or leaving him home alone. We try our best to make sure he's at least under some supervision. Sutton does the exact same things after his are over. Props to you as well for dealing with it. Deep down he's the sweetest snd happiest boy in the world and he's been a blessing.
 
#95
#95
Behr, Sutton is back to 3-4 seizures a day again. Can you elaborate a bit on this "phenobarb level" thing? Is the idea just to find the right dosage that is the most effective for him? We thought the phenobarb was controlling the seizures pretty effectively but in the last couple of days he's pretty much been showing the same signs he was before we started him on it (more frequent seizures, seizures last longer and seem more intense, etc.)
 
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#96
#96
chatt-townVOL said:
Behr, Sutton is back to 3-4 seizures a day again. Can you elaborate a bit on this "phenobarb level" thing? Is the idea just to find the right dosage that is the most effective for him? We thought the phenobarb was controlling the seizures pretty effectively but in the last couple of days he's pretty much been showing the same signs he was before we started him on it (more frequent seizures, seizures last longer and seem more intense, etc.)
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Damn man, sorry to hear that. That's why I asked you before how many milligrams per day you were giving him.

Remember, I'm no vet, I'm only giving you information that I have learned from what my personal experiences are and have been....and I'm still learning.

Behr started out taking 180 mgs (3-30 mg tablets per day (every 12 hours). He was having less seizures but the side effects were so bad I asked the vet if we could lower the dosage. He didn't want me to until he had been on it 4 weeks, to make sure the amount in his system had leveled out. I insisted, and he agreed. I started giving him 2 tablets instead (total of 120 per day). The side effects were almost void, but the seizures started back. We only had a week to go for his first "level test" so we left it at 120. It has to be in his system 4 weeks before they can take an accurate test.

After his first test, his level was 17. Doc said it should be 22-24, so we raised it back to the original 180 mg. We go back next week to get a second test to see where the level is.

Here's my problem.

He still has a seizure an average of every 14-16 days and the side effects are not as bad as they were, but I don't want them any worse. If the level of Phenobarb is still under 22-24............and if it's just right or over........

My suggestion for you right now is, find out what level of the PB your vet wants Sutton to be at, and after 4 weeks get the test. The test at my vet is $132.00.

The PB will make him drink more water than you can imagine and obviously, pee way more than usual. It's really hard on their kidneys, and that will be another issue later. Keep fresh water available, always! and take him out way more than normal. Being hot/thirsty and/or needing to pee and not being able to will stress him and could "trigger" a seizure. (Info from my vet and I'm pretty sure I've seen it happen with Behr).

Again, any info I can share with you just ask.

Good luck and....seriously, keep me posted. I now check this thread first after log in.
 
#97
#97
Behr said:
Damn man, sorry to hear that. That's why I asked you before how many milligrams per day you were giving him.

Remember, I'm no vet, I'm only giving you information that I have learned from what my personal experiences are and have been....and I'm still learning.

Behr started out taking 180 mgs (3-30 mg tablets per day (every 12 hours). He was having less seizures but the side effects were so bad I asked the vet if we could lower the dosage. He didn't want me to until he had been on it 4 weeks, to make sure the amount in his system had leveled out. I insisted, and he agreed. I started giving him 2 tablets instead (total of 120 per day). The side effects were almost void, but the seizures started back. We only had a week to go for his first "level test" so we left it at 120. It has to be in his system 4 weeks before they can take an accurate test.

After his first test, his level was 17. Doc said it should be 22-24, so we raised it back to the original 180 mg. We go back next week to get a second test to see where the level is.

Here's my problem.

He still has a seizure an average of every 14-16 days and the side effects are not as bad as they were, but I don't want them any worse. If the level of Phenobarb is still under 22-24............and if it's just right or over........

My suggestion for you right now is, find out what level of the PB your vet wants Sutton to be at, and after 4 weeks get the test. The test at my vet is $132.00.

The PB will make him drink more water than you can imagine and obviously, pee way more than usual. It's really hard on their kidneys, and that will be another issue later. Keep fresh water available, always! and take him out way more than normal. Being hot/thirsty and/or needing to pee and not being able to will stress him and could "trigger" a seizure. (Info from my vet and I'm pretty sure I've seen it happen with Behr).

Again, any info I can share with you just ask.

Good luck and....seriously, keep me posted. I now check this thread first after log in.
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Ok so he's on 30mg 3 times a day just like yours was. We just bumped him up to 3. He was on 30mg twice a day. Upping his dosage seemed to help a lot, after his test his PB level was 8. We were told it needs to be around 20 also.

You're absolutely right about the peeing and drinking water, it's very inconvenient to try to potty train him during all this, but he is doing better.

If we could get to where he is having one every 14-16 days that would be amazing. The other day he had 2 in the span of an hour. They seemed to have spaced out a good bit since we upped his dosage, but I say a good bit relatively speaking. He still has had 1-2 a day, but we just upped his dosage on Monday so I'm sure we just have to give it time.

Do Behr's seem to vary in intensity? Sutton had one yesterday where he was screaming and spazzing out and it took a major toll on him. But he had one today where he just shook a little for about 10 seconds and then bounced right back.

Also, does Behr ever give you any telltale signs that one is coming?
 
#98
#98
chatt-townVOL said:
Ok so he's on 30mg 3 times a day just like yours was. We just bumped him up to 3. He was on 30mg twice a day. Upping his dosage seemed to help a lot, after his test his PB level was 8. We were told it needs to be around 20 also.

It's my understanding that it's a medication that "can", but won't necessarily be immediately effective. After 5-7 days there should be a consistent amount in the system and after 30 days, they can take an accurate reading of what that amount is.


You're absolutely right about the peeing and drinking water, it's very inconvenient to try to potty train him during all this, but he is doing better.

That's a tough one! Good luck. Sometimes Behr will go out to pee 3-4 times in an hour.....and I'm talking 28-46 second pee's! (yes, I time him sometimes, I keep records on Everything)

If we could get to where he is having one every 14-16 days that would be amazing. The other day he had 2 in the span of an hour. They seemed to have spaced out a good bit since we upped his dosage, but I say a good bit relatively speaking. He still has had 1-2 a day, but we just upped his dosage on Monday so I'm sure we just have to give it time.

The realistic goal "we" have with Behr, is to get to 2-3 a year...at the most. Zero is possible, but not probable.

Definitely give it more time, like at least a total of two weeks before you start feeling discouraged.


Do Behr's seem to vary in intensity? Sutton had one yesterday where he was screaming and spazzing out and it took a major toll on him. But he had one today where he just shook a little for about 10 seconds and then bounced right back.

Behr's are pretty much the same, in intensity. He never has made any noises, other than breathing hard and scratching the floor with his paws. Behr's are classified as "grand mal" seizures but thankfully he has never defecated or urinated during one. (knock on wood) Doc told me he doesn't feel any pain during the episodes but will be really sore and exhausted afterwards. Except for last weeks "cluster", his have always been at night between 9pm and 1am and last between 2:16 -3:07 minutes.

Also, does Behr ever give you any telltale signs that one is coming?

No, not at all.
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.
 
#100
#100
I had 3 female Irish Setters, different times, all named Molly. I love setters and retrievers. Yours is special, like they said, big paws, hope you find a good name. Better you pick a name yourselves, always be special.
 
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