Saturday, February 9, 2008

If Your Dog Has Epilepsy...

Here are some ingredients to do some research on before adding them to your dog's food.

~Rosemary and sage
~Dairy products
~Joint Supplements (the preservatives are the problem)
~Grains
~Garlic
~RAW FISH! Raw fish often has thiaminase. Raw fish gave Henry a grand mal, just not worth it! Fish oil and cooked fish is ok.
~Metronidazole http://www.rxlist.com/cgi/generic/metronidaz_ad.htm
~Zeniquin (sp?)

(I will add to the list as I come across other possible seizure triggers for dogs who have epilepsy, feel free to mention other ingredients I should put on list by leaving a comment)

These are not necessarily all seizure triggers in every dog. If your dog is having more frequent seizures, a list like this is something I would look at and check into. What may trigger seizures in one dog, may not trigger seizures at all in another dog.

Dogs on the combo of both Phenobarbital and Potassium Bromide have a higher risk of pancreatitis, so keeping a lower fat diet can help prevent pancreatitis. Henry is on Potassium Bromide only. I will be trimming off as much fat and skin as possible to be safe, and I will be adding fish oil and vitamin E in hopes it prevents pancreatitis.

2 comments:

Colleen said...

Thanks for posting this. I just changed my dog food to the Merrick brand, and fed her the cans with Rosemary ingrediants, and she had a seizure. I asked my vet about this and they said that Rosemary was toxic and could cause the seizure. I'm hoping this is the cause. I have switched her back to her normal food instead of the gourmet variety. Hopefully this was the cause.

Emily said...

Colleen, I am glad this blog entry helped you. I know what it is like to watch your dog go through a grand mal. Not fun and my heart goes out to anyone who knows what that is like.

Emily