How To Stop Seizures In Chihuahua?

No one wants to own a chihuahua with seizures. It’s kind of scary, and there are some things that you need to know about it. A chihuahua owner or trainer who decides they need to help a chihuahua having a seizure has a challenging task before them. Reacting quickly when a chihuahua is having a seizure can make all the difference in the world. What this means exactly is that your response time should be as quick as possible when your chihuahua is having a seizure.

In this article, we will tackle the factors that can trigger seizures in chihuahuas and the best ways to prevent and stop them from happening. Keep reading, and don’t forget to share your experiences in the comment section!

TYPES OF SEIZURES IN CHIHUAHUAS

Seizures are a scary thing for pet owners, and many people are not equipped to deal with the situation. With this familiarity, you will be able to handle your chihuahua if they have a seizure.

🐕 Epileptic Seizures

A brain disorder causes epileptic seizures. They can be temperate or severe, and they can occur suddenly at any time of day or night. Epileptic seizures are unpredictable and can be life-threatening, so it’s essential to know the warning signs of an impending seizure.

A chihuahua having an epileptic seizure will lose consciousness, fall to the ground and experience rhythmic muscle contractions on both sides of its body. The chihuahua may also urinate or defecate involuntarily during this time.

Most chihuahuas who experience epileptic seizures do not need immediate medical intervention. However, when a seizure occurs more than five minutes without treatment or if more than one occurs in 24 hours, you should call your veterinarian immediately because your dog might have an underlying health problem that requires veterinary care.

🐕 Non-epileptic Seizures

This type of seizure is not associated with epilepsy. These seizures occur without any underlying brain disorder, and they usually last for only a few seconds or minutes.

Symptoms can include loss of consciousness, muscle twitching, shaking or jerking movements (convulsions), and changes in facial expression such as rolling the eyes back or blank stare, urination, or defecation while standing up. The head may also turn to one side during this type of event.

The cause can be a metabolic or toxic condition such as low blood sugar, excessive heat stress due to exercise or a hot environment, high fever from an infection such as canine distemper virus infection, which causes high fever and seizures when it affects young puppies under six months old. This may also occur due to chemical poisoning from exposure to antifreeze containing ethylene glycol and liver failure due to ingestion by chihuahuas who have eaten chocolate products containing caffeine. Also, seizures may be due to kidney failure causing electrolyte imbalances if untreated.

🐕 Head tilt and seizures

Head tilt and seizures are common in chihuahuas. This is usually caused by an imbalance of the nerves that control eye movement and can cause one or both eyes to point inward, giving the chihuahua a “cross-eyed” appearance. Seizures are characterized by loss of consciousness and muscle spasms, which may be accompanied by foaming at the mouth or urinating on themselves. These typically last only a few minutes but can recur throughout their lifetime.

Seizures can be caused by many things: brain tumors or strokes (which alter blood flow), infections (such as distemper), head trauma, transient ischemic attack (TIA), hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), and liver shunts. All of which require immediate treatment from your veterinarian to prevent further damage to your pet’s health.

🐕 Postictal period

After a seizure, the chihuahua will be completely alert and may even seem refreshed. The chihuahua will be able to walk around and eat on its own. It’s vital that you keep your chihuahua in a safe place if they have had a seizure because they can injure themselves during the attack.

If your chihuahua has had multiple seizures recently, it is possible that they are experiencing status epilepticus (SE). Severe SE can cause permanent brain damage or death if not treated immediately by a veterinarian who specializes in treating seizures in dogs.

TRIGGERS OF SEIZURES

Seizures in chihuahuas are a relatively common medical condition. It is caused by abnormal electrical activity in the brain and can result in involuntary jerking or stiffness, loss of consciousness, and other behaviors such as paddling or running. Seizures can be very frightening to watch, but most chihuahuas make full recoveries after one or two episodes.

🐕 Flashing lights or strobe lights

Chihuahuas with photosensitive epilepsy have a sudden, brief seizure when they see certain types of flashing lights. These seizures can last between a few seconds to several minutes, but they usually end before medical attention is needed.

🐕 High-pitched sounds

There are many triggers that can provoke seizures. Some of the more common ones include sudden high-pitched sounds. Many chihuahuas with epilepsy are sensitive to loud sounds. These sounds in the same area can be dangerous when they flash at different speeds or in a particular pattern. This may lead to a seizure for some chihuahuas but not for others.

🐕 Stress

Emotional stress can also trigger a seizure for some chihuahuas with epilepsy, especially if it is prolonged and severe enough to cause high blood pressure or rapid heartbeat (tachycardia).

A tension headache caused by work overload could trigger seizures in some cases. However, most headaches do not have this effect on those with epilepsy due to their normal electrical activity patterns in the brainstem region responsible for regulating heart rate and respiration control during wakefulness states.

Chihuahuas are particularly prone to seizures when they experience stress. Stress can be induced by a sort of things, including:

• being in a new environment, including a veterinarian’s office, the groomer’s, or dog park;
• when they are around other dogs; and
• being in a loud or noisy environment.

🐕 Menstrual cycle

The change in hormone levels may trigger seizures. The monthly menstrual cycle is a natural and normal process that occurs in most females of the species. It can be triggered by the change in hormones and an increase or decrease in estrogen, progesterone, and other hormones throughout this period. A seizure may occur when these levels are at their highest or lowest point.

🐕 Falling or sudden hit

A seizure can be brought on by any severe head trauma, such as being hit by a car or falling a long way. The force of the impact sends the brain bouncing around in your chihuahua’s skull and may damage nerve cells in the brain. This damage causes a seizure to occur.

Seizures that are triggered by head trauma usually happen within seconds or minutes after you’ve been injured. If you’re playing sports with your chihuahua and it gets hit hard on its head or shoulders, your chihuahua could have a seizure as soon as an hour later.

It’s possible for one chihuahua’s body to react differently from another’s when it comes to seizures caused by physical injuries like this. It relies on how much intenseness was used during the injury and where exactly it occurred on your chihuahua’s body.

🐕 Poisoning

It’s important to be familiar of the risks of poisoning in chihuahuas, especially if you live in a home with children or teenagers. The following are some common poisons that can cause seizures in chihuahuas:

• Household cleaners and detergents
• Insecticides
• Antifreeze and radiator fluid (ethylene glycol)
• Ammonia solutions used for cleaning floors and walls (ammonium hydroxide)

🐕 Dehydration

Dehydration is caused by a lack of water intake or excessive fluid loss. A number of things can cause dehydration, including:

• Vomiting or diarrhea (due to gastrointestinal upset)
• Consuming too much alcohol
• Being exposed to high temperatures without adequate hydration

MEDICAL CONDITIONS THAT CAUSE SEIZURES

Seizures are symptoms of an abnormal electrical discharge in the brain that causes changes in behavior, movement, or consciousness. They happen when there is a sudden surge of electrical impulses that disrupts normal brain function. Seizures may be caused by a wide range of medical conditions and injuries, including head trauma and stroke.

🐕 Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a brain disruption that induces seizures. When your chihuahua has a seizure, its body’s nerve cells send signals in an abnormal way. These signals can cause your chihuahua to experience changes in sensation, movement, or awareness. Seizures may affect your chihuahua’s mood, energy level, and ability to concentrate.

Epilepsy is often developed when something happens to the brain early in the life of your chihuahuas, such as a stroke or infection. However, it can also be driven by other factors such as problems with your chihuahua’s genes or even some medications taken during pregnancy.

Epilepsy isn’t contagious or degenerative. It won’t get worse over time, and it doesn’t mean your chihuahua has a mental illness! With proper treatment from a vet who knows about epilepsy, most chihuahuas with epilepsy can lead normal lives without experiencing seizures all the time.

🐕 Brain tumor

A brain tumor is the development and growth of abnormal cells in the brain of your chihuahua. Tumors can appear anywhere in the body of your chihuahua, but they are more likely to occur in organs that have a large amount of blood flowing through them, such as the liver and kidneys. Some cancers can also spread (metastasize) to other parts of your chihuahua’s body from where they started.

Tumors can be of two types: benign or malignant, depending on whether they are cancerous (malignant) or not (benign). Benign tumors grow slowly and don’t spread to other parts of your chihuahua’s body. In contrast, malignant tumors grow faster and may spread into nearby tissues or organs like bone marrow or lymph nodes.

A brain tumor can be located anywhere within your chihuahua’s skull, either on its surface or within the tissue underneath it. And it may cause symptoms related to its location. For example, seizures occur if it affects part of your chihuahua’s brain.

🐕 Stroke

A stroke is the impulsive loss of brain function due to a disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. Strokes can cause weakness, numbness, or paralysis on one side of the body of your chihuahua, as well as difficulty in speaking/barking and understanding others.

Strokes are also known as cerebrovascular accidents (CVAs). There are two main types: ischemic strokes, which occur when an artery becomes blocked by a clot, and hemorrhagic strokes, which occur when a weakened blood vessel ruptures and bleeds into the surrounding tissue.

🐕 Encephalitis

Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain. It can be due to a virus, bacteria, or fungus. A chihuahua with encephalitis will experience seizures and headaches. Sometimes, they can have high fever and lethargy as well. Encephalitis can be fatal if it’s not treated quickly enough or if the chihuahua doesn’t respond to treatment well enough.

If your chihuahua has been diagnosed with encephalitis, don’t worry! There are many things you can do to help keep them safe from harm. First of all, make sure that they get their vaccinations on time! Also, try not to go outside during peak mosquito hours (midday) and avoid standing water which might be where mosquitoes breed. You know how much dogs love playing in puddles!

🐕 Head trauma

Head trauma is a common cause of seizures. It can happen as a consequence of falls, injuries from various activities, or some accidents. This can also be caused by brain tumors, which grow from abnormal cells in the brain. As mentioned, these tumors might be malignant (cancerous) or benign (not cancer). Suppose your chihuahua has seizures that are not controlled with medication, and your vet thinks your chihuahua may have an underlying cause such as cancer or another condition. In that case, they will recommend having tests done to find out what is causing the seizures.

🐕 Inflammation of the brain

Many conditions can cause brain inflammation. The signs and symptoms of brain inflammation depend on the underlying cause, but they may include:

• Nausea, vomiting, and headaches
• Dizziness and fainting
• Weakness on one side of the body
• Confusion or difficulty moving quickly

HOW TO PREVENT SEIZURES?

If your chihuahua has been diagnosed with epilepsy, you may be wondering what steps you can take to prevent seizures. While there’s no cure for the condition, reducing the frequency and severity of epileptic episodes is possible by keeping your chihuahua healthy and low stress. Below are ten tips that may help keep your chihuahua safe from further health complications:

🐕 Premium quality food

The first thing you can do to help prevent your chihuahua from having seizures is to feed them premium quality pet food. Like humans, dogs and cats need a balanced diet to stay healthy. While all chihuahuas are carnivores, many commercial pet foods contain too many carbohydrates or fat for their bodies to absorb properly.

Chihuahuas, in particular, tend to suffer from diabetes and pancreatitis due to an inability of their bodies’ insulin release mechanism. This means that it’s essential to avoid any food that contains high levels of carbohydrates as well as fats because both contribute heavily to these conditions.

🐕 Low-stress environment

Provide your chihuahua with a low-stress home environment. Your chihuahua should have plenty of places where they can get away from noise and activity, as well as a few safe spots to rest and play. A crate or dog bed near the owner’s bed is one solution.

Another option would be purchasing an indoor doghouse that can be easily moved around the house or yard if needed. Providing these types of spaces will help keep your chihuahua relaxed in times of stress or confusion, which may prevent seizures from occurring in this situation.

🐕 Physically active and mentally stimulated

As a pup owner, you already know that your chihuahua needs to be physically active and mentally stimulated. When it comes to averting seizures, this is even more important.

Physical activity can help reduce stress in your chihuahua by releasing endorphins that ease anxiety. A good walk should do the trick! And as for mental stimulation…well, there are so many things out there that we can do to keep your chihuahua’s minds busy. Mental exercise can also reduce stress levels by releasing endorphins in the brain, just like physical exercise does! So go ahead and bring your tiny furry friend on an adventure every now and then, and don’t forget about yourself too!

🐕 Consult a vet

If you’re considering giving your chihuahua any kind of supplement or herbal remedy, it’s important to check first with your veterinarian. Some supplements can actually be harmful to chihuahuas. Some herbal remedies may interact with other medications, and some may interact with other supplements you’ve given your chihuahua. Other herbs may interact with other herbs you’ve given him as well.

🐕 Keep other dogs away

When you have a chihuahua with recurring seizures, it’s essential to keep the other dogs away from your chihuahua. This is because other dogs can transmit the virus that causes seizures. If you want to adopt another dog, then make sure that it doesn’t have any history of seizures or epilepsy.

If you’ve got more than one canine in your household and both of them are prone to seizures, then keep them separated at all times. The best thing will be if they live in separate rooms too!

CAN YOU STOP A SEIZURE?

Yes, you can stop a seizure in chihuahuas. The key is to go into the attack with a plan of action so that you can subdue your chihuahua quickly and safely. BUT! You should never attempt to stop a seizure yourself unless instructed to do so by your veterinarian because doing so could cause severe injury or even death for your pet if done incorrectly.

Because there are numerous different types of seizures and causes, it is difficult to predict how long a seizure will last or what kind of treatment will be effective. Seizure medications are available by prescription from your veterinarian but may not always be effective at stopping a seizure once it has begun.

HOW TO STOP SEIZURES?

Seizures are scary for any dog and even more so for the people that love them. They can be prolonged and drawn out or short and abrupt, but no matter what type of seizure your dog is experiencing, there are steps you can take to ensure they remain safe throughout the event.

🐕 Stay calm

Be reassuring and friendly to your chihuahua, even if she is acting a little strange. If you’re stressed about the seizure, your chihuahua will be more likely to get upset as well, and that’s not good for anyone!

Don’t worry too much about messes. Most owners report that their chihuahuas are perfectly capable of cleaning themselves up after each seizure by licking off any vomitus they may have produced while unconscious. Suppose this isn’t feasible because of how often seizures occur or because there isn’t enough time between them (as sometimes happens with cluster seizures). Simply clean up what you can when it becomes necessary instead. In that case, it won’t make much difference either way!

🐕 Support the head and neck

First, it’s essential to support your chihuahua’s head and neck. It would help if you positioned your hands on either side of their jawbone, which is behind their ears. If you’re supporting their head from underneath, make sure that your wrist isn’t supporting any weight because it could break under pressure. The bone here is not as strong as in other parts of the body! You can also use one hand on each side of their skull if that feels more comfortable for you or if there are two people helping out with this step.

Roll onto their side (if they’re lying on the floor). This will prevent them from aspirating any vomitus or saliva into their lungs during an episode. However, note that rolling them onto their back may also cause them distress by stimulating muscles involved in breathing that are already spasming during an episode. 

And so try turning first before trying to roll over otherwise, unless someone else is helping out at this point where they may be able to turn him/her over while letting go immediately afterward, so do not hesitate when trying this method first. Secondly, try turning them over onto their belly before finally turning him/her back again on his back if needed.

🐕 Clear the area around the mouth

If the chihuahua has a seizure, it’s important to clear the area around the mouth. This is because saliva could block their airway or be inhaled.

To prevent this from happening, use a washcloth or tissue to wipe the mouth and make sure that no cloth is placed near your loved one’s mouth during a seizure. It’s also vital that you don’t put anything in their mouth except for food or water while they are having a seizure since they may chew on it and swallow it before regaining consciousness.

🐕 DO NOT restrain your chihuahua

Don’t try to restrain your chihuahua during or after a seizure (unless he’s in danger of hurting himself). If it’s safe and secure for you to do so, pick up any items that might be dangerous (such as electrical cords) and place them out of reach until after the episode has ended. This will only make most chihuahuas feel more stressed and confused. If a seizure stays more than 5 minutes, call your veterinarian immediately.

🐕 Timing is important

It’s important to keep a log of when the seizure happens. This can help you determine what triggers your chihuahua’s seizures, how often they occur, and how long they last.

When did it happen? Was it during a certain activity, such as watching TV or brushing your teeth? How long did it last? If your chihuahua is having trouble sleeping at night because of frequent seizures, try getting it up just once an hour to see if there are any changes in its behavior or personality that might clue you in about when one is about to come on.

🐕 Record the seizure

Do not forget to record the seizure. A video or audio recording is useful for monitoring your chihuahua’s seizures and helping you identify whether there are any forewarning signs that a seizure may be coming soon. The most common type of people who use a seizure log is veterinarians.

Recording devices can be as simple as an old-fashioned camcorder. Still, it is advisable to use either a smartphone or tablet with built-in video recording capabilities because they are comfortable to use and lightweight. These types of devices allow you to easily store the recordings so that they can be shared with others when necessary (such as during veterinary visits).

BOTTOM LINE

Once you know how to identify the symptoms of a seizure in chihuahuas, it will become much easier for you as an owner of a dog to stop one yourself. The first step is always to remain calm and collected so that your own reaction does not have a negative effect on your chihuahua. This can be difficult, but once you know what to look for, it will be a lot easier to differentiate between an epileptic seizure and just an overly excited chihuahua barking or growling at people.

To know more about the most common diseases in chihuahuas, click here.