Dog had a seizure? What to do, and what to write down

Let me guess. Your dog was sound asleep on the couch, or just lying around after dinner, and suddenly he was on his side, stiff, legs paddling, drooling, maybe peeing on the rug, and not seeing you at all. It probably lasted a minute or two and felt like an hour. Now he's up, wobbly and confused, looking around the living room like someone rearranged the furniture. And you're on the floor next to him, still shaking, typing "my dog had a seizure, what do I do" into your phone.

Take a breath. Let's walk through it the way I would if you were sitting across from me.

First, the good news

A single seizure is rarely dangerous to a dog. It looks violent, but it isn't painful. He may feel confused, even a little panicky, coming out of it, but he wasn't hurting while it happened.

And there was nothing you could have done to stop it. Holding him, calling his name, rubbing his belly: none of that changes a seizure once it starts. So let go of that one.

One more thing. One seizure doesn't mean your dog has epilepsy. Epilepsy means at least two seizures, at least a day apart, that weren't set off by something like a poison or low blood sugar. Right now we're in "let's figure out what happened" mode, not "he has a lifelong disease" mode.

What a seizure looks like

The classic one is what you probably just saw. He goes down on his side, stiffens, then paddles or jerks his legs. He usually isn't aware of you. Drooling, chomping, peeing and pooping are all common. A seizure like that usually lasts a minute or two. Many happen while the dog is resting, asleep or just waking up, so don't be surprised if he was snoozing when it started.

Some seizures are smaller: a twitch on one side of the face, one leg jerking, a dazed stare, lip licking. He may or may not seem to know you're there.

Some dogs act odd beforehand, for a few seconds or a few hours. They hide, get clingy, whine, shake or drool.

And not every collapse is a seizure. Fainting can look similar, but it's usually a quick flop and a fast recovery. That's one reason a video helps so much.

What to do during a seizure: hands off the mouth, eyes on the clock

If it happens again, your job is shorter than you'd think.

1. Keep your hands away from his mouth. Dogs don't swallow their tongues. That's a myth. But a seizing dog's jaws can clamp down hard, and the sweetest dog in the world can bite you badly without knowing it. Don't put anything in his mouth, either.
2. Make the space safe. Your job is to keep him from hurting himself: falling off something, banging into something or going down the stairs. Pull chairs and anything he could knock over out of the way, keep other pets and kids back, and if he could fall, gently hold him in place.
3. Time it. Look at the clock or start your phone's stopwatch as soon as it starts. The clock doesn't panic, and the length decides what you do next. If it's still going at 3 minutes, or a second one starts before he's come back, that's an emergency. Head for your vet or the nearest emergency clinic (more on that just below).
4. Film it, if you safely can. A short video is one of the most useful things you can bring your vet. Keep it on your phone and bring it to the visit. Don't email it unless your vet asks for that. (Here's what else to bring to the vet.)
5. Stay close and talk softly. Gently is the word: you're keeping him safe, not pinning him down. You don't need to do more than that.

When it can't wait

Go to your vet or the nearest emergency clinic now if:

• A seizure lasts more than 3 minutes. Most seizures stop within a minute or two. A long one may not stop on its own, and his body temperature climbs. Call on the way.
• A second seizure starts before he's fully come back from the first. That counts as the same emergency.
• He won't wake up or come around, or he's getting worse instead of better.
• His breathing looks wrong, his gums are blue or pale, or he feels very hot.
• He's diabetic and on insulin. A seizure can mean his blood sugar has dropped too low.
• He hit his head, or he might have gotten into something. Snail and slug bait, bug and garden poisons, antifreeze, or someone's medicine. Bring the package or the bottle with you.

Your dog had a seizure and he's coming around. Now what?

The recovery can look almost as strange as the seizure. Your dog may be wobbly, confused, pacing or restless. He may drool, bump into things because he's temporarily blind, or not quite recognize you. Some dogs come out of it starving and look at you like dinner is three hours late.

It can last a few minutes or a lot longer, and a big seizure doesn't always mean a long recovery.

What helps:

• Keep him somewhere quiet and safe, away from stairs, other pets and small kids. A dazed dog can snap without meaning to.
• Let him get steady on his feet before you offer food or water.
• Stay with him until he's himself again.
• Write it down while it's fresh. More on that below.
• Call your vet today, even if he's back to normal. A first seizure always deserves a call, and your vet will help you decide whether he needs to be seen today. While you have them, ask when they'd want a call if there's another one.

Between the times, the lengths, the videos and the vet visits, there's a lot to keep straight. Honestly, that's why I built WagNote (full disclosure: it's my app). I kept seeing owners struggle to keep track of everything with seizures like this, so I put it all in one place.

A first seizure in a puppy or a senior dog is a different conversation

Epilepsy in dogs usually starts between about 6 months and 6 years of age. So when a puppy, or a dog over 6, has a first seizure, I think harder about other causes: low blood sugar, a liver problem, a toxin, an infection, or something going on in the brain itself.

I know "something in the brain" sounds terrifying. It covers a lot of ground, including inflammation, infection, an old head injury and, yes, sometimes a tumor. It isn't automatically the worst case, but it's a good reason to talk with your vet about getting him seen soon.

What your vet will check

Every vet's a little different, but here's what a first-seizure visit usually covers:

• The story, and your video. The first job is working out whether it really was a seizure, or something like fainting.
• A full physical and neurological exam.
• Bloodwork and a urine test, usually the first step, to look for causes outside the brain: blood sugar, liver, kidneys and the body's salts.
• Sometimes more. If he's a puppy, or something shows up on the bloodwork, a liver function test called bile acids. A heart tracing (ECG) if fainting is on the list. An MRI of the brain is possible too, but most families never need to go that far.

Then comes the medicine question. After one seizure, if the exam and bloodwork look normal, daily seizure medicine usually waits. Your vet will want to see a pattern first. The common reasons to start are a second seizure within about six months, any long seizure or cluster, a recovery that's really rough or drags on past a day, or seizures that keep coming closer together, lasting longer or getting worse. Your notes are a big part of that decision.

The seizure diary

Starting today, every seizure gets written down. Here's what your vet will want:

• The date and time.
• How long it lasted, by the clock, not by feel.
• What it looked like. Whole body or one part? Did he seem aware of you? Did he pee or poop?
• What he was doing right before. Asleep, excited, just ate? Anything odd in the hours before?
• How long until he was himself again, and what the recovery looked like.
• Anything new. A new food or treat, a new medicine, a flea product or dewormer, something he might have gotten into, or a late dose if he's already on medicine.

Tape a sheet to the fridge, or just log it in WagNote and the count is ready for your vet. "Three seizures since June, all at night, all under two minutes" beats "he's had a few" every single time.

If you do one thing this week: write today's seizure down while it's fresh, with the date, the time and how long it lasted, and keep that video on your phone. Or log it in WagNote. Your vet will love you for it. Your dog, meanwhile, will just want to know why everyone keeps staring at him.