My dog had a seizure. Could a lavender diffuser be the cause now?

I'm so sorry about your dog. I know this is a very scary time. There are multiple causes of seizures. I'm not sure how old your dog is, but in dogs under 5 years old who are completely normal in between seizure episodes, epilepsy is the primary cause of seizures. In older dogs it could be inflammation, a brain tumor, and infection or problems with the organs (particularly the liver). I always recommend blood work first to look for any problems there. If the blood work is normal, the next step is to evaluate the brain by doing an MRI. If blood work has not been done, I would highly recommend it. If problems are found in the blood work, then you should treat that. If everything is normal in the blood work, I would recommend starting seizure medication. Some dogs will have seizures very infrequently like your dog started out. Those dogs don't usually need medication. But when they become more frequent and are clustering (multiple in a 24 hours period) then I would definitely recommend medication at this point. There are multiple different seizure medications to choose from, so talk to your veterinarian about that. Many times the seizures will be manageable with medications, but it takes consistent medication multiple times per day and blood rechecks for the drug levels. Honestly, some dogs will be very difficult or impossible to control and will continue to have seizures despite being on multiple medications. So to answer your question, yes, there is something you can do to help your pet and based on the number of seizures he is now having, he needs to be put on medication. I hope this helps!

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! First, you are no bother at all-that's what's we are here for. Secondly, yes, you have a cause for concern. Any time a known epileptic starts seizing again, especially with any frequency, it's time for a vet visit asap. Likely they will do bloodwork to make sure nothing has changed since you were prescribed medications last. You did not mention any phenobarbital or potassium bromide for long term relief from seizures? Is your dog on any any antiseizure medications or just the Valium as needed? If he is not on medications currently they may very well start him on something for long term relief. If he already is-they will likely adjust the dosages. I hope this helps!

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I'm sorry to hear that Taino has seizures; these can be scary for both him and whoever sees them. The lighting is not a cause of seizures in dogs. Seizures can be caused by things within the head itself (tumor, stroke, infection or inflammation), or from other systemic causes such as liver disease, kidney disease, certain toxins, etc. When all of these possible causes have been ruled out by diagnostics (bloodwork, MRI, cerebrospinal fluid analysis), it may be determined that a dog has idiopathic epilepsy. I recommend keeping a log of Taino's seizures to note when exactly they happen, how long they last, what they look like, etc. Definitely keep your veterinarian updated whenever he has a seizure, because he may soon require treatment with anti-seizure medication if they become more frequent or severe. I hope this is helpful - best of luck with Taino!

When diffusing these oils, make sure that Chloe has the option to escape the room if she is uncomfortable. They should be safe, but we can’t guarantee that she won’t have a negative reaction to them.

We do not typically see signs like you are describing before seizure activity. Dogs can have an "aura" immediately before a seizure, but it is commonly seconds or minutes before a seizure starts. What you are describing may be unrelated to her seizure. I am attaching a link to a handout with more information on seizures below including potential causes. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=560 I would recommend discussing Lexi's seizure with your veterinarian because seizures in dogs as young as Lexi may be something other than epilepsy. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Yes, this sounds like seizure activity. Unfortunately at her age if she is just now starting to have seizures that is not a good thing. Seizures starting at her age are usually indicative of an underlying brain lesion. I would recommend you take her in to your vet for an examination and some bloodwork. In the meantime, monitor her closely and if it happens again I would video tape the episode so you can show it to your vet. I hope this helps. Best wishes to you and Lily.

I'm sorry to hear that Izzy has been having seizures and I understand your concerns. I've been looking through the veterinary community's information network (VIN) and have been unable to find any studies, case reports or conference proceedings that can prove causation or even correlation of environmental exposure to molds causing seizure activity. While the lack of information does not make it impossible that Izzy's seizures are related to molds, it seems far more likely to me that given her young age, this is the onset of idiopathic (i.e. we don't know why it is occurring) epilepsy. The onset of epilepsy most commonly occurs in dogs 2-4 years of age. If molds are contributing to Izzy's concerns, I would expect to see respiratory changes rather than neurologic signs. To my knowledge, there are no blood tests available to test for environmental mold exposures in dogs. Continue monitoring her breathing, seizure frequency and duration, appetite and energy level. Unfortunately, there are no supportive therapies or supplements that can erase her mold exposure.