My dog had seizures, stopped breathing, and has a heart murmur. Is it an emergency?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Yes, that would be considered an emergency. The main reason is that dogs with heart murmurs and heart disease can develop congestive heart failure which is a medical emergency that would warrant evaluation as soon as possible for Maya. The veterinarian would be able to check for this possibility and treat accordingly. Usually if congestive heart failure is confirmed, she may need oxygen therapy, diuretic medications and medications to make her heart work better. Good luck! Wishing Maya the best!

I’m so sorry this is happening with Bandit. It could have been a true seizure, but it is also possible that it was what we call a syncopal event due to the heart not being able to supply the brain with enough oxygen. It can look almost identical to a seizure. I would really recommend he proceed to an emergency veterinarian tonight. If this is not possible, then please have him seen by his regular veterinarian tomorrow morning. They can evaluate if he needs to increase his cardiac medications or if they think it was a true seizure they will discuss testing and treatment recommendations for seizures. Good luck to you and to Bandit. I hope he improves quickly.

Please take her to your nearest emergency clinic - cluster seizures can progress to a life threatening status epilepticus if not treated in time and can be very difficult to manage. Have a quick look to see if she may have ingested anything toxic - slug pellets, mouldy food, chocolate etc

Hello. I'm sorry to hear that Sierra is not feeling well. Yes, the kidney enzymes are run with the regular blood work routinely. If the vet didn't mention them then they were likely within the normal range. My best advise is that if you are worried or scared you should take her into the vet tonight. Maybe they could start her on some medication to calm her down until her appointment with the neurologist on Tuesday. You know your dog best and if that would give you some piece of mind then you should do that. All the activity you are describing is abnormal and I am worried she may go into a cluster of seizures where she is going to have multiple seizures one after another. I hope this helps. Best wishes to you and Sierra. Dr. Amber

An 11 year old dog suddenly having seizures activity is very concerning. Especially if they are clustering like you describe. There are several possible causes such as low blood glucose from xylitol ingestion, a tumor on the pancreas releasing too much insulin, or something even more concerning such as a brain tumor. I would highly encourage you have her evaluated by a veterinarian as soon as possible. It was unclear to if you were previously at the emergency clinic due to this issue or something else. However, if it was due to this then I would call the veterinarian and ask if you can have some diazepam to give this evening to see if you can keep her seizure free until tomorrow. Best of luck and I hope she improves soon. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I would need to ask a bunch more questions and would be happy to do a consultation if you’d like but let me give you a few ideas. 1) be sure it’s not heart- Fainting spells can look a lot like seizures. Consider a cardiology consult to make sure it’s not that. They’ll do an EKG and ultrasound of the heart to make sure nothing is amiss. 2) weird fungal diseases- I’m from Arizona, land of valley fever - a fungal disease that can - and often does- cause seizures. Other fungi like Blastomycosis and Histoplasmosis can do similar things. If Bella has traveled out of Texas- even for just a day or two- these are considerations. 3) Bella is simply an atypical epileptic and needs more/different medication. Just like in people, it can sometimes take some time to find the right combination of drugs to get the seizures controlled. 4) weird drug interactions- double check especially about any anti-anxiety or behavior modification medications and pain medications. 5) hypothyroidism, tick fever, other weird stuff. If you’ve done an MRI, you may have already consulted with a neurologist. If not? That would be the next step along with the cardiologist visit. Best of luck to you and Bella!

Gizmo needs to see a vet right away, as it is a medical emergency that he's having bad seizures and a hard time breathing. He needs medical attention now for the seizures, which can be caused by tumors, low blood sugar, liver failure, kidney disease, or Cushing's disease among other causes. There is nothing you can do at home to treat him for his seizures, please take him into a vet immediately. If Gizmo seizures again before you can seek vet care: - Don't put your hands near his mouth - Keep some rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle to spray on the pads of the feet for cooling - Monitor him at all times during the seizure to ensure that he cannot hurt himself by crashing into furniture, etc - If the seizure continues for more than 5 minutes, seek emergency care immediately