Dog Seizures: What to Do in the Moment (Vet Guide)

A seizure is one of the most frightening things you can watch, and your instinct will be to hold your dog and comfort them. Try not to. Here is the calm, ordered version of what actually helps: - Do not put your hands, fingers, or any object in your dog's mouth. Dogs cannot swallow their tongue, and a seizing dog will clamp down and bite hard without meaning to. This is the single most important rule. - Do not restrain or hold your dog down. Restraint does not stop the seizure and can hurt you both. - Move furniture, sharp objects, and anything hard away from the dog so they cannot injure themselves against it. - If your dog is near stairs or a ledge, gently guide them away from the edge by the hips or with a cushion, without putting your hands near the head. - Dim the lights, turn off the television, and keep the room quiet. Reducing stimulation can help. - Note the time. Time the seizure from the first twitch to the moment it fully stops. This number matters enormously to your vet. - If it is safe and someone is free, film the event on a phone. A video is worth more than any description you can give. - Speak in a low, calm voice. Your dog cannot hear or respond during the seizure, but a calm room helps the recovery afterwards.

Most single seizures stop on their own within one to two minutes. Get your dog to an emergency vet immediately if any of the following is true: - A single seizure lasts more than 5 minutes. A seizure that will not stop is called status epilepticus and is life threatening. - Your dog has two or more separate seizures within 24 hours. These are called cluster seizures. - Seizures come one after another without your dog fully recovering consciousness in between. - This is your dog's first ever seizure. It needs to be checked to find out why. - The seizure happened alongside any known or suspected toxin exposure. - Your dog is a puppy under 6 months of age, or a dog over 6 years of age having a first seizure. In these age groups a serious underlying cause is more likely. - Your dog struggles to breathe, has blue or grey gums, or does not come round properly after the seizure ends.

After the shaking stops, most dogs go through a recovery period called the post-ictal phase. This can last from a few minutes to several hours, and occasionally up to a day. It can be as unsettling to watch as the seizure itself, but it is usually normal.

A seizure is a symptom of abnormal electrical activity in the brain, not a diagnosis in itself. Common causes include: - Idiopathic epilepsy, meaning epilepsy with no identifiable underlying cause. This is the most common reason for recurring seizures in otherwise healthy young adult dogs, often between 6 months and 6 years. - Toxins. Xylitol (in sugar-free gum and some peanut butters), chocolate, rodenticide (rat poison), and permethrin (in some flea products meant for dogs but toxic to cats, and dangerous in overdose) can all trigger seizures. - Low blood sugar, especially in toy breeds, puppies, and diabetic dogs on insulin. - Liver shunt, a blood vessel abnormality more common in young dogs. - Kidney or liver disease, which lets toxins build up in the blood. - A brain tumour, which is a more likely cause when seizures begin in an older dog. - Head trauma, recent or historic. - Infection or inflammation of the brain.

Not every collapse is a seizure, and telling them apart helps your vet. This is where your video is invaluable. - A true seizure usually involves loss of consciousness, stiffening or rhythmic paddling of the legs, and often drooling, chomping, or loss of bladder or bowel control, followed by a confused recovery. - Fainting (syncope) tends to be brief and floppy rather than rigid, is often linked to a heart problem, and the dog usually recovers quickly and normally with no long confused phase afterwards. - A vestibular episode (a balance problem, common in older dogs) causes a head tilt, circling, and flicking eye movements, but the dog stays conscious and does not convulse.

Seizures are episodic, and details blur fast under stress. Try to capture: - A video of the event. Say it plainly to yourself in the moment: film it if you safely can. It is the single most useful thing you can bring. - How long the seizure lasted, from first sign to fully stopped. - The time of day it happened. - What your dog was doing just before it started. - How long recovery took, and how your dog behaved afterwards. - How often seizures are happening, if this is not the first. - Any possible exposure to toxins, any missed meals, and any medications or health conditions.

Seizures are episodic by nature, and the details that matter most to a vet, the duration, the frequency, the time of day, and what came before, are exactly the ones that blur once the fear fades. Owners often end up telling a vet "it happened a couple of times last month, I think," which is hard to act on. Omelo lets you log each episode in a couple of taps and builds a clear timeline you can share with your vet, so a pattern is there in front of you rather than reconstructed from memory. Omelo does not diagnose, treat, or prescribe, and it is not a substitute for a vet. It helps you bring a better history to the professional who can.

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