Friday, October 2, 2009

Overnight...

It happened that fast.

I went to bed on Monday night just like any other night. I settled in to watch a bit of TV, with both of my dogs in their beds just a few feet away. I might have had on The Daily Show or perhaps Chelsea Lately; I don’t remember. Soon after, when my eyes started to close, I found the remote under a pillow and hit the off button.

I awoke at 3:45 a.m. to what I thought were the sounds of Calvin’s tags clinking against each other on his collar and some serious scratching. I shushed him and told him to go to sleep before realizing what was really happening. I switched on the lamp beside my bed to find him in the midst of a grand mal seizure. Unprepared, alone and scared; I didn’t know what to do. I comforted him until he seemed okay and then I headed straight for Google. I was reassured that the way he was acting afterward was to be expected. I got him back in his bed and whispered sweet nothings in his ear until he fell asleep. I went back to bed myself, but it wasn’t for long.

He had another seizure at about 5:00 a.m. This time he foamed at the mouth and once it was over he was extremely disoriented. So much so that I had to put him outside because I wasn’t sure what he was going to do.

I brought him to the animal hospital, where he spent the next day and a half. During that time he had another seizure and they started him on Phenobarbital, with a side of Valium whenever it looked like he might have another episode. I picked him up on Wednesday evening and was given his pills and two syringes of valium; syringes without a needle. Basically they were to be administered anally if it looked like he was on the verge of a seizure or in the middle of one. It ended up that I did have to use one. The thought of sticking something up my dog’s ass was not appealing, but when it comes down to it, you do what you gotta do.

I ended up boarding him at the animal hospital while I was at work yesterday and am doing so again today because I just can’t imagine leaving him alone at this point. The drugs seem to be helping, but it’s still not clear if they will prevent further seizures. I also can’t leave him alone because he is not the same dog he used to be. I don’t know if it is because of the drugs or if he suffered some damage during one of the seizures.

He doesn’t seem to remember anything.

He paces the house like he’s never been here before.
He sniffs Levi, my other dog, like he’s just met him.
Once the alpha dog, now it doesn’t matter who goes in or out the door first.
He doesn’t remember which food dish is his or where he used to sleep.
His toys are left untouched.
Where ‘sit’, ‘stay’ and ‘release’ were once communicated through my hand signals; he stares dumbly at just the word ‘sit’…

…and ‘Calvin’. He doesn’t even respond to his name. It gets me teary-eyed when I think of how my four year old granddaughter calls him ‘Calvy’ (she says it all drawn out like, ‘Caaaal-vee), and now he may not recognize her the next time she visits.

It’s like he’s a different dog.

Again, I don’t know if it's his medication or if it’s something more. I’m hoping it’s just the meds and he’ll get back to being his old self. Only time will tell.

As much as I want my old friend back, I’d settle for us getting to know each other again…just as long as he’s okay.

19 comments:

Badass Geek said...

Oh, that is so tough. I'm sorry that this is happening.

I hope the vets figure something out soon, something that will let him get back to normal.

Nej said...

Poor poor puppy!!!!!!!

Unknown said...

Oh honey! Sorry to hear about it...I hope it gets better soon. Hugs to you both!

Wait. What? said...

Oh I am so - so sorry!! I know how difficult it is to watch our fur friends go through pain and suffering and I am hoping that it is the drigs that are slowing his mind down a bit.

Hold onto hope and keep doing what you gotta do. Sending good thoughts and prayers your way today.

Cat

Gin said...

Oh God this is horrible! I am so sorry. He is so lucky to have such a good mom as you, but it has to be so tough.

Caron said...

It is something you hope you never go through and just reading about someone's experience puts such grief and fear into me for my own pets. Such love you have for Calvin; he needs you. I hope things get better quickly.

Unknown said...

Oh man. this just sucks. I am so sorry to hear that Calvin (and you) is going through something like this. I'm willing to bet, however, that the drugs are responsible for much of his current mental state. He'll be his old self once they figure out why he's having the seizures, fix it, and get him off the drugs. Hopefully.

Aunt Juicebox said...

Oh no! =( I'm sorry to hear that. I hope he gets better. I actually know two people who had dogs years ago that lived with seizures. One of them fed their dog canned salmon on the vets advice to control it, and the other one gave their dog fish oil capsules every day (also vet advice). I wouldn't say they never had them again, but it did seem like they only rarely had the seizures after that. But it's natural, and can't hurt him even if it doesn't help.

Sheila said...

Poor Calvin....I'm so sorry. Let me know if I can help in any way!

Mike said when their dog used to have seizures, they had to give him children's chewable tylenol....

The Peach Tart said...

Aw. I hope he comes around. Just keep loving him.

Lola said...

Oh, no! I'm so sorry you're going through this with that sweet boy. It probably is the meds that are making him feel so out of sorts.

My Mojo had some minor seizures a year and a half ago. I researched the hell out of it, got rid of every single thing in his diet that could bring on seizures (the list is long), and he was fine after a few months. The food he's on costs a fortune, but he's been perfectly fine.

This site helped me tremendously http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/site_map.htm

Good luck, and hang in there!

Anonymous said...

I am sorry to hear what your dog is going through. It's tough for them, especially as they do not know what is going on.
It's likely a lot of his episodes could be controlled through diet. The more you read about what "traditional" dog food consists of and what it can do to a dog long term is frightening. Try and search out some diets on the internet. I switched my dogs to a natural food diet that does not contain any chemicals or animal parts. They are a lot healthier for it too.

Evansmom said...

Sorry to hear this. :(

meleah rebeccah said...

Oh no! I'm so sorry to hear the news about Calvin. I sure do hope his personality changes are due to the medication.

Aunt Becky said...

Oh sweetie, I'm so sorry. I just can't imagine. Please, let me know if I can help. Even if it's just to listen.

Organic Meatbag said...

I'm so sorry...as a dog lover, this just breaks my heart...I sincerely hope he gets back to his old self in the next few days..

kapgar said...

I'm so sorry. Watching a pet's decline is not easy. I know from experience.

If you need to talk, you know where to find me. Just let me know.

Coal Miner's Granddaughter said...

Oh, honey! I'm so sorry. I don't know what to tell you except do everything you can to make him happy/comfortable and I'm giving you the biggest hug at Adam's party.

Anonymous said...

How awful. I am so sorry to hear about Calvin. I hope he is able to get back to his old self very soon.