My dog had his first seizure. Is it linked to his heart murmur?

Hello. Kovu probably is going to need a more extensive workup than just the blood work he received at the ER. I am concerned about the heart murmur because a cardiac abnormality can cause a condition caused syncope, which might be mistaken for a seizure. If you were my client, I would highly recommend a cardiac consultation prior to placing Kovu on anti-seizure medication. Only after I was sure the episodes are not heart related would I think about starting a daily anti-seizure medication. Good luck & thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

There are two conditions here that come to mind. 1) your dog could be suffering from idiopathic epilepsy, ie real seizures and it is not known what causes them. They can stay all his life or even disappear at some stage of his life. One way to likely reduce the incidence of seizures is castration as it lowers the excitement level that may cause the seizures. 2) The heart murmur may be a sign of a heart problem that causes not enough oxygenated blood to be pumped to the brain. The lack of oxygen causes a seizure like syncope. I suggest you see a cardiologist with Mickey to rule out a serious heart problem.

If the lethargy continues, if Bandit seems confused, disoriented, or wobbly, or is not eating or drinking normally, I recommend having him seen by a vet. See the link below for more information on seizures, including when they should be considered an emergency: https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4951440

Seizures can be due to a few different causes. It can be due to certain diseases, organ failure, or imbalances in the blood. It can also be due to diseases, or tumors that primarily affect the brain. Without knowing the details of his condition, it's difficult to tell how severe this is. If Buddy is otherwise acting normal now, then this indicates that he is not experiencing a severe disease at this time. There are other conditions that may look similar to seizures, so it's possible that something else is causing the episodes that you are noticing. The most helpful thing to do is take a video of him when he is doing it and take that to the vet. In order to find the cause of this problem and get the most appropriate treatment, Buddy will need to see a vet. Unfortunately, there is nothing that can be done at home to prevent another episode. Preventing future seizures/problems is dependent upon getting an accurate diagnosis and treatment by a veterinarian. I hope that helps and all is well with Buddy.

Poor Buffy! This sounds like it was really serious! I worry that her heart disease may have progressed and that she isn't receiving enough oxygen during these episodes. I think you did the right thing in this moment, but I think she may need to be rechecked by your vet. Your vet may want to check her chest x-rays to see if the heart disease has progressed. They may also decide to add in additional heart medicine or start anti-seizure medicine to help her out. I hope this helps!

It looks like there are a few different problems with bandit, but they could all be related to an underlying condition. The first thing I noticed is that Bandit has some very unhealthy looking skin. This is ultimately the reason he is losing hair. That flakey white stuff near the bald areas is not normal and indicates that the skin is inflamed, dry and/or infected. There are a few different diseases that could cause the skin to look like this, or it could be caused by fleas or mites. The watery eyes could be due to an infection also. You can confirm this by looking at the inside of the eyelid, which should normally be light pink. If it is red, or the white part of the eye is red, then you're likely dealing with an infection. The fits where he loses control of his bladder is most concerning. Your description of the fit makes me most suspicious of a partial seizure. This would mean that something is effecting the electrical signals in the brain. It could be something like an infection or tumor in the brain; or there may be imbalances in the blood chemistry due to some other cause. Generally, Bandit is really sick and needs to see a vet soon. All of these conditions may be related to a single disease process that has slowly started to present in different ways. A veterinarian would be able to help identify the cause and advise on treatment options. The sooner a vet sees Bandit, the better, because it's possible that they can correct this condition, or at least keep it from getting worse. I hope this helps and Bandit gets better soon.

I'm very sorry to hear about the loss of your dog. It's possible that he may have had a stroke or blood clot secondary to his heart disease that traveled to his brain. Or, if he was regularly having collapsing episodes due to his heart (syncope), what you saw may have been one of these that was especially severe, as this is a common cause of sudden death in dogs with severe heart problems. If you want to try to get a more definite answer on what the cause of death may have been, you would need to have an autopsy done, called a necropsy in animals. Your veterinarian should be able to let you know where you can have this done, if it's something you want to pursue. Again, I'm very sorry for your loss.