Contagious seizures.

Dr. Marie replied:

Thanks for an interesting question.

There are not many contagious things that can cause seizures in several animals in a household.

There are some toxins that can cause seizures. These include:

• Some pesticides such as organophosphates


• The Japanese Yew Plant


• Methomyl fly bait


• strychnine


• 5 flurouracil anticancer medication

However, a toxin does not sound likely if your dog is having seizures every 10-12 days.

Has any blood work been done on Blake? If there is evidence of kidney or liver damage then this could be a cause of seizures.

If not, then the next test that would be helpful is a CSF tap (spinal fluid tap). However, this is a test that usually has to be done by a specialist. Examination of the spinal fluid can tell us about certain types of infections and some parasites that can affect the brain and spinal cord.

If your vet is suspicious of a parasite affecting the spinal cord it may be worthwhile putting him on a combination of doxycycline and clindamycin just to be sure.

It does sound like it could be epilepsy though.

I really hope he improves soon!
Dr. Marie

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