Yeah, yeah, I'm not a regular husky, so don't be expecting regular posts, I'm too busy having fun and creating bruise artwork on Bleeder, or using her as a pillow:
I've said it before, but I'll say it again, so pay attention:
I have epilepsy.
Heartworm pills set off my seizures
Yes, ALL of the heartworm pills.
3-10 days after taking a heartworm pill, I'll have a seizure.
Heartworm pills are nothing but a neurotoxin in doses that kill the stupid little bugs that grow into large bugs that are injected by infected mosquitos. In me, it sets off my seizure trigger.
My choices are:
- Don't take any heartworm pills and risk dying of heartworm disease
- Take them while also taking anti-seizure medications and hope that staves off the seizure.
So, I take monthly heartworm pills while also taking anti-seizure medications (generic Keppra). I get my 2 Keppra pills three times a day, 8 hours apart with whipped cream cheese. Once a month I get the lowest dosage of heartworm pills for my weight.
Once a month, for 3-10 days, my humans are nervous wrecks. I am oblivious and go about my days like normal.
On Thursday (day 7) I had a recheck with my neurologist. He has three assistants and they sat on the floor, so I made sure to give them the full husky attention. My owners proudly talked about how I've been doing fantastic, no seizures for over 3 months, everything going well, optimistic, wonderful, very pleased. Keep doing what we're doing he said. Hope for the best he said. Seizures are stupid and nobody knows what the heckin to expect so do what works for each pupper (I'm paraphrasing that).
On Friday (day 8) I puked, fell over (that's how all of them start) then woke up in a puddle of drool and pee.
I don't feel them, I have no clue what the fluff even happens, so I'm confused when I wake up, and frankly this time I bit my tongue a little and that was annoying.
I'm clingy and restless for about an hour, and need to poop immediately, so I'm ushered outside where EVERYTHING SMELLS AMAZING. Then I poop. Then I pace, pace, pace while one of them tries to towel the drool and gunk off of me (I prefer to wipe my mouth on their clothes), and steam clean up my drool and pee.
The humans are always freaked out, according to them, it's horrible to watch, but they say they stay with me to make sure I'm safe and don't bonk my head or other things into hard objects and tell me I'm a good girl (because I am). They move away from me when I come out of it because they know I'll be confused and may be afraid and try to attack them if I feel vulnerable and threatened.
They are watchful because with seizures, you never know if that was the first and only... or if more are coming. During seizures they video me, and time them... anything over 5 minutes is very bad. According to them, even 1-2 minutes seems like an eternity.
I have an amazing amount of energy after a seizure. I want to play, play, play and they do play play play with me once I have my balance back... I'm a bit wobbly in the beginning, but I'm actually not that coordinated under normal circumstances.
When I do finally rest, I rest pretty hard.
It takes a day or two to recover fully, muscles a bit sore, stomach a bit upset, etc. But then it's back to normal... except for the humans, who watch me like a hawk and log my every movement, burp, hiccup, bowl movement, food intake, and pilling.
Seizures suck. I have epilepsy. Would I have them if I didn't take the heartworm pill? Don't know, but until my humans can find some state that doesn't have stupid mosquitos... we just do what we need to do to keep them at a minimum and hope for the best.
We thank all of our social media fans for their care and concern. Feel free to let us know if you live some place in the United States where your pup is not on heartworm because the risk is low to non-existent. It also has to be a place with good access to vet care (neurology included) and Emergency vet services.
Big shout out to Chewy.com for affordable and reliable Pharmacy services that keep my generic Keppra flowing without drama.
This will probably be the last post about my epilepsy, as I don't want my fun blog to become a downer. I am a normal pup 99% of the time, it's just those bad days that ruin the mood.
-Casey-
Heck buddy, that is no good. Here in Wyoming I get HW treatments April-September. Take good care, we send encouraging woo-woooos,
ReplyDeleteTimber & family
I got to have an epi dog for 6 months in 2020. It's terrifying to watch. So here's a few pieces of info:
ReplyDeleteAfter a seizure, their blood sugar usually drops. As soon as my guy could stand, I'd have him lick some vanilla hagen dazs from the carton (few ingredients): that way, he got it slowly instead of gulping scoops. I would follow that with some soft food so he couldn't choke on anything, which he would eat ravenously (although he was on phenobarbital, which makes them incredibly hungry). He always had his seizures in the middle of the night; after he ate a bit and could walk, I'd take him out for a bit. Then he wanted to pace, and I wanted to sleep; so I leashed him to the bed and he quickly settled down; and was close enough that I would wake if he had another seizure or needed something.
Check the prices of meds with Good Rx; chewy may be less, but no harm checking.
I give my dogs drops of bovine injectable ivermectin that I buy at the local feed store. It may have fewer ingredients than the heartguard pills. I put 3 drops on a piece of lightly toasted bread then cover it with peanut butter and watch to make sure each one eats all of their piece. I'm using the same bottle 10 years later...it goes a long way. I can send you more detailed info if you want; email me or DM me on facebook.
Check out these maps of heartworm incidence; there are states where it is rarely found:
https://www.google.com/search?q=heartworm+distribution+map+usa&oq=heartworm+map+usa&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqCAgBEAAYFhgeMgkIABBFGDkYgAQyCAgBEAAYFhgeMg0IAhAAGIYDGIAEGIoFMg0IAxAAGIYDGIAEGIoFMg0IBBAAGIYDGIAEGIoF0gEJMTI5NDNqMGo3qAIAsAIA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
You are in the worst area for heartworms :-(
My guy had clusters; hopefully Casey never will...but it is a good idea to have "cluster buster" meds on hand in case she does. We used a nasal spray of midazolam (also Good Rx) when necessary. If she does ever cluster and you can't stop them, it is not good.
And finally, I highly recommend this facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/28498589557/
for epi dogs. People are extremely supportive and knowledgeable.
And may she never have another!
The above comment is from me, Jane Eagle!
ReplyDelete