When to euthanise

[Chorley 123]

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hello
Out of desperation I am here. My 8 year old border collie developed epilepsy almost 3 years ago. In the last 4 months he had to go on to medication due to seizure frequency.

Two weeks ago he suffered a cluster seizure. He was put on Levetiracetam for 7 days as an add on drug and they stopped. 4 days ago they started again. He was put back on the Levetiracetam but it didn’t work. His dosage was upped to x5 pills every 6 hours. He has been on this for over 24 hours. He is still fitting. About 3 a day. They start as focal seizures but progress to the grand mal ones. Yesterday evening he had 2 back to back, we thought we might loose him. We are running out of options. The fits are triggered when he almost falls asleep. My husband has kept him up and awake for 16 hours. We are trying anything to try and break the cycle. The vet has moved from discussing treatment to euthanasia. Does anyone know of anything else we could try. We literally have little time so taking him half way across the country would not be feasible. Many thanks in advance for any help.

 

[JudyN]

I'm so sorry to hear this Has your vet said that there is any chance of recovery? Do you trust him/her? I have no knowledge of epilepsy in dogs, but it does sound as if your dog's quality of life is very low right now.

If in doubt, don't hesitate to get a second opinion from another vet - whatever you decide, it may help give you peace that you did the right thing for your dog.

And... ((((hugs))))

 

[Rinkydinkydo]

hello
Out of desperation I am here. My 8 year old border collie developed epilepsy almost 3 years ago. In the last 4 months he had to go on to medication due to seizure frequency.

Two weeks ago he suffered a cluster seizure. He was put on Levetiracetam for 7 days as an add on drug and they stopped. 4 days ago they started again. He was put back on the Levetiracetam but it didn’t work. His dosage was upped to x5 pills every 6 hours. He has been on this for over 24 hours. He is still fitting. About 3 a day. They start as focal seizures but progress to the grand mal ones. Yesterday evening he had 2 back to back, we thought we might loose him. We are running out of options. The fits are triggered when he almost falls asleep. My husband has kept him up and awake for 16 hours. We are trying anything to try and break the cycle. The vet has moved from discussing treatment to euthanasia. Does anyone know of anything else we could try. We literally have little time so taking him half way across the country would not be feasible. Many thanks in advance for any help.

Personally I'd let him go,I couldn't see my best mate going through that. I know it's a hard call to make,but it's one we have to make.

 

[Chorley 123]

I'm so sorry to hear this Has your vet said that there is any chance of recovery? Do you trust him/her? I have no knowledge of epilepsy in dogs, but it does sound as if your dog's quality of life is very low right now.

If in doubt, don't hesitate to get a second opinion from another vet - whatever you decide, it may help give you peace that you did the right thing for your dog.

And... ((((hugs))))

The vet has said that there is something specific going on in the brain. He has suggested an infused drip £4000, and then an MRI £3000 but he cannot guarantee that they will be able to pinpoint what it is. It is all about trying to get control of the epilepsy, which we are struggling to do.

I am struggling to make the decision to euthanise as between fits he seems ok, wants fuss and to play with his ball. I keep hoping that it will stop or we’ll be able to break the cycle.

 

[Tinytom]

We had a very similar situation few years ago and had a MRI scan which showed a brain tumour ...sadly our bull lurcher was only 18 mths old ...it broke our hearts ...we let him go as the seizures were getting worst and he was distressed.....im sorry but vets rarely suggest putting a dog to sleep if there are other options. ...as hard as it is you have to think of his quality of life ....
Its a really crappy decision to make ...i really feel for you xxx

 

[Whippylove]

Hi, I've been there sadly my collie x Suzie suffered epilepsy for many years we kept her going but she just got worse having one seizure after another, then wandering around our house not knowing where she was it was heartbreaking. We made the decision to have her pts for her as she didn't deserve to suffer the way she was. Its the hardest decision we have to make for our babies but we need to think about their quality of life. You will know when the time is right x

 

[lurcherman]

Sometimes we just got to honest with ourselves and say ITS TIME, sad times, all I can say we’ve all had to make these calls for the best of the dog, my sis lost hers the same way and it was a border, I’m feeling your pain .

 

[Hemlock]

You are the only one who can make this hard decision, and I send you strength, support and empathy for whatever you do.