My 1-year-old dog collapsed and was unresponsive. Was it a stroke?

Hello. I am so sorry for your worries with your pet. There are any number of medical reasons that might explain this, but the most likely would be a seizure (not all are classic grand mal), or a heart issue. The best way to determine the cause is to let your veterinarian do a full exam & blood work to rule out any metabolic or otherwise obvious reasons for the episode. Then, if any treatments or medications are indicated, your veterinarian can discuss all options with you. Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Baby Girl is beautiful, I am sorry she is feeling sick. Dogs can have episodes where they suddenly become very dizzy, (head tilt, circling, 'horizontal nystagmus' which is the eyes flicking back and forth). This can be caused by many different things, including strokes, brain tumors, inner ear infections, etc. There is also a condition called "Idiopathic Geriatric Vestibular Disease" which means "we don't know why but old animals get dizzy". One cause of this condition is a stroke. This condition can resolve on it's own with time, and you usually see a drastic improvement over the first 24-48 hours. In the mean-time, we usually provide a drug called "prochlorperazine" which makes them not as nauseous. You can get this, or a version of this drug, from your vet. There is no treatment aside from making them not feel nauseous from the dizziness. Time is the only healer. If the cause is this vestibular disease, your little girl could get better and have a good life otherwise. This condition can re-occur at any time. If she doesn't get significantly better over the next couple days, then the problem is likely more serious and won't resolve. At that point you have to assess if her quality of life is affected. This will be determined if she has other disease processes going on. You will also need to provide nursing care in the mean-time, making sure she doesn't pee and poop on herself, bringing food and water to her. I hope she feels better soon. Best of luck with Baby Girl.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. With these symptoms, this could be due to a primary neurological disease or heart condition. I would recommend having Scooter examined by a veterinarian so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I would recommend having his blood tested and chest x-rays taken. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Bailey definitely may have had a seizure. Other signs of seizures would be strange behavior before the seizure, the seizure itself can include shaking or tending of all the muscles, Bailey may urinate or defecate during as well. I recommend keeping a close eye on her and trying to film this if it happens again to show your vet. They can determine the cause of the seizure with blood work and more advanced imaging such as a CT scan. If seizure activity is confirmed, Bailey will likely be placed on anti-seizure medication. I hope all is well!

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Bailey will likely be lethargic and incoordinated after this seizure and it will take a while for them to resolve. If Bailey has not been seen for these seizures by a veterinarian then I would highly recommend having Bailey examined by a vet so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. For now, let him rest and provide plenty of water for him. The sooner he is seen the better. Place him in a quiet area so that there are no triggers (light, noise, etc) that may set off another seizure. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Hello. While possible, it is unlikely. I'd be more concerned that Brucie got into something, such as garbage, something toxic, or found some medication of drugs that had been dropped. We also see something called vestibular syndrome which causes an imbalance in the inner ear. If you can have Brucie examined tonight, that would be best just in case this turns into a more serious situation. I hope he is doing better soon. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Wow! How scary for you! You stated that he is a mix breed but can you specify what breeds? Some breeds are genetically predisposed to have over long soft palates, which can cause an upper airway obstruction. We may never know what caused this episode. An ischemic event is possible or a brief vestibular event or even seizure (focal) since he seemed mentally inappropriate. Watch him closely and god forbid if he has another episode try to catch it on video to show to your Vet. I wish you the best!