[Jakesmama]

I have had Jake since he was 5 months old (he's now 3) and came into the vet I worked at as a rescue. He looks to be mostly lab and greyhound but you can also tell he has some golden retriever and shepherd in him. He is very timid and is scared of everything. Since I've had him he's had 3 seizures where he tenses up and flops around and drools all over the place. His last one happened at about 5:15 this morning. We thought he was trying to go after the cat (playfully) but when I tried to get his attention and he didn't respond I knew what was going on. So I sat down on the floor and talked to him to try to get him to calm down. You could tell in his face that he was really scared. After it started slowing down and finally stopped he tried to walk to his bed and stumbled a little, then laid down, acting exhausted. Like I said, he's had 3, and they're months spread apart. I don't think it's environmental because the first one happened when I lived with my mom, then my dad, and now I live on my own. He's not exposed to any chemicals. He eats Pedigree (has since he was a puppy) and I give him vitamins every night (has been happening since before vitamins, so I don't think its that). He does stress a lot and is very timid (can't raise your voice at him to discipline, when in trouble I can't ignore him for very long, etc.) and I'm wondering if it has something to do with us moving. Does anyone have any suggestions?

 

[Jakesmama]

Also, he sheds a lot when you can tell he's nervous.

 

[Dog Problemz]

There are a few things it could be. Epilepsy is a common seizure disorder in dogs. It could also be an intestinal blockage, dehydration, or a severe allergic reaction to his food. Any dog that is having seizures is not in good health, and if a dog is having seizures it almost never turns out that nothing is wrong with the dog. He needs to go to the vet immediately. As far as his fearful behavior goes, this may be due to previous abuse or lack of socialization. A dog that is not even comfortable in his home is a severely timid dog, and this may lead to aggressive behavior if it is not treated. Dogs that are fearful will never become super-confident dogs, but you can increase their confidence levels using positive reinforcement to gradually expose them to new situations and people. A clicker and treats are great training tools to cause your dog to relate the triggers of their fearful behavior with good things, which will start taking away some of his fear, or "desensitize" him. It might be helpful to note that professional dog training will always have better results than training at home, unless you have that kind of experience. However, the medical condition that is causing his seizures is getting in the way of recovery. A dog may not have successful results with behavior modification if they have a condition that is making them feeling under the weather. After you get a diagnosis from the vet and begin treatment, you should start looking into professional dog behaviorists who can help you with his problems. I should also note here that comforting and soothing a dog when they are fearful, nervous, sick, or aggressive will not make them feel any better. From a dog's perspective, you are showing weak emotional energy, which tells the dog that you are not a strong leader and do not have control of the situation. In effect, the dog goes into more of a panic, assuming that all hope is lost and that he is on his own to fend for himself.

 

[Pawzk9]

Two to three is a common time for idiopathic epilepsy to show up. You may want to have bloodwork done at the vets, and you can go so far as a CT scan and other expensive diagnostics. If it is idiopathic epilepsy, that diagnosis is reached by ruling out other causes. If he's only having a seizure every few months, it's possible the vet will not want to put him on meds. But be aware that he may be having other seizures when you aren't around. My epileptic dog was always confused for a day or so pre- or post seizure. He had frequent and serious seizures, so was on potassium bromide. But what worked best for him was gold bead implants by my holistic vet. A really good resource is http://www.canine-epilepsy.com/ and the list which goes with it is a good source as well.