Brain & nerves
Epilepsy
From a first seizure through diagnosis, medication and living well with epilepsy.
6 stages · 37 guides from PetsLikeMine
Who can help near you
- Your vet1 kind
- Specialists2 kinds
- Emergency care1 kind
Listed by distance from you. Nobody pays to be listed.
When a seizure happens
Stage 1 · 6 guides from PetsLikeMine
What a Seizure Actually Looks LikeSomething happened to your dog or cat. It lasted seconds, or a couple of minutes, and it frightened the life out of you. Maybe they collapsed and went rigid. Maybe they…10 min read · on PetsLikeMine Seizure First Aid: What to Do and What Not to DoPhone in one hand, dog or cat seizing on the floor in front of you: start here and read the rest later. Stay calm. Don't touch their mouth. Move hard objects out of the…9 min read · on PetsLikeMine Is This an Emergency? Status Epilepticus and Cluster SeizuresYou need an answer now, not a lecture, so here it is.10 min read · on PetsLikeMine
What's causing the seizures?
Stage 2 · 6 guides from PetsLikeMine
Why Epilepsy Is a "Diagnosis of Exclusion"Your dog has had a seizure, maybe more than one. You've been to the vet, perhaps had blood taken, perhaps been quoted for an MRI. Then the verdict comes back: "the tests…11 min read · on PetsLikeMine Reactive, Structural and Idiopathic Seizures ExplainedA seizure sends most owners home with one word ringing in their head: why. Why my pet, why now, and is this something that can be fixed or something we have to live with?11 min read · on PetsLikeMine The Diagnostic Workup: Bloods, MRI, CSF and What It CostsA seizure, or a handful of them, tends to be followed by a list of tests. Bloods, maybe blood pressure, possibly an MRI under anaesthetic with a price tag that makes…11 min read · on PetsLikeMine
The big decision: should we medicate?
Stage 3 · 6 guides from PetsLikeMine
When Should Treatment Start?Your dog has had a seizure, maybe two. The bloods and the examination point towards epilepsy, and now the question on the table is whether to put a young, otherwise…11 min read · on PetsLikeMine The Anti-Seizure Drugs ComparedFour drug names do most of the work in canine and feline epilepsy: phenobarbital, Pexion, bromide and Keppra. Once you and your vet agree it's time to treat, the…14 min read · on PetsLikeMine Phenobarbital: What to Expect (and the Liver Question)Type "phenobarbital" into a search bar the night your dog starts it, and within a few clicks you'll hit a forum thread insisting, in capital letters, that the drug…10 min read · on PetsLikeMine
Getting seizures under control
Stage 4 · 5 guides from PetsLikeMine
How Dose Titration WorksA medication has been started, and now your vet keeps talking about "adjusting the dose." You go back for a blood test, the dose changes, you go back again. Meanwhile…11 min read · on PetsLikeMine Therapeutic Drug Monitoring: Why Your Vet Checks Blood LevelsA dog who has just started phenobarbital or potassium bromide usually goes home with a little timetable of blood tests attached. The dog seems perfectly fine, so the…10 min read · on PetsLikeMine Managing Anti-Seizure Medication Side EffectsThe seizures are settling, and yet the dog seems different. Sleepier. Wobblier. Suddenly ravenous, and draining the water bowl. A few weeks into treatment this is when a…11 min read · on PetsLikeMine
Living with epilepsy
Stage 5 · 8 guides from PetsLikeMine
Keeping a Seizure Diary (and Why It Changes Your Vet Visits)Your vet will almost never see your dog have a seizure. By the time you reach the surgery the event is over, and what is left to go on is your account of it. So the…10 min read · on PetsLikeMine Identifying and Managing Seizure TriggersIn the days after a seizure, most owners arrive at the same question, and they usually ask it quietly, half-afraid the answer points back at them. Was it the walk? The…10 min read · on PetsLikeMine Diet and Epilepsy: The Evidence for MCT and Ketogenic DietsSpend ten minutes online after a diagnosis and the diet claims find you: switch to grain-free and the seizures stop, a ketogenic diet cured someone's spaniel, some oil…12 min read · on PetsLikeMine
When seizures are hard to control
Stage 6 · 6 guides from PetsLikeMine
Drug-Resistant (Refractory) Epilepsy ExplainedYou give the tablets on time. You've sat through the blood tests, watched the dose creep up, and still, every few weeks, your dog goes down again. Then a vet uses a word…11 min read · on PetsLikeMine Managing Cluster Seizures at Home: Rescue MedicationCluster seizures have a cruelty of their own. The seizure in front of you is only half of it; the other half is knowing another may follow within hours, and waiting for…10 min read · on PetsLikeMine Advanced and Add-On Treatment OptionsBy the time an owner reaches this point, the harder parts are usually behind them. Your dog has been on treatment for a while, the first add-on has been tried, and the…11 min read · on PetsLikeMine
Find care near you
Your epilepsy care team
These are the practitioners this condition can call for, from your everyday vet to specialists and therapists. Enter your postcode to see who's near you at each step.
- Your vet (primary care)
Veterinary neurologist ·Referral hospital
Emergency / out-of-hours vet
Understand the condition
Clinical background on vetcanon, the ConciergeVet reference library. Vetcanon is published by Concierge Vet LTD, which also operates PetCare Atlas.
With PetsLikeMine
Read the whole journey on PetsLikeMine
Every epilepsy guide, in order, sits in its own space on PetsLikeMine, written by owners and vets who have been through it. We show the first few here and link to the rest.
Read every epilepsy guide