Hi. My 10 month old pug bitch had a seizure on Saturday morning. She was sick foamy yellow stuff beforehand. I feel really bad because she is sick sometimes (same foam) and I always put her in the garden while I clean up and am worried she has had more that I don't see. On the sunday morning after she had pooed and weed in the night which while rarely there is a poo she has not weed inside now for months. The vet has taken blood tests and they came back fine. She is due to have another blood test but I'm not sure what these are for. She's wormed, and was spayed mid April. She is fine in herself, her appetite is enormous although I feel she is weeing more. Oh I don't know really, just wanted to know if anyone had experience of this?  I am worried about my baby. Thanks.

My first question would be how often you feed your dog? Vomiting yellow frothy stuff is usually done by dogs that are hungry -that is very common indeed. Add that to the fact that small dogs that are not fed frequently enough can suffer from low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), one of the symptoms of which can be seizures. If you are not feeding twice a day, I would start doing so, and maybe even splitting the food into three or four smaller meals. It certainly can't harm and it may help.

Most dogs that have seizures tend to have epilepsy and the vet's first cause of action is to take blood samples -but epilepsy cannot be detected by blood samples so it's more a case of ruling other problems out.

My first frenchie had  epileptic fits always preceeded by bringing up frothy bile. His epilepsy was classed as idiopathic meaning of unknown cause - his fits were infrequent so he never needed medication. As Goldmali says, an empty tummy can make a dog bring up bile, so giving the same amount of daily food in more meals helps to keep food in the tummy, and the low blood sugar can cause collapse. If it happens again, take a video with your phone or cam  to show your vet - it can help with a diagnosis. Dogs often poo and/or wee during a seizure as their muscles go into spasm and then relax - all frightening stuff to witness.

A lot of brachycephalic dogs bring up white froth, often when excited or once back from a walk - its caused by their elongated soft palate -  the saliva gets whipped up by them trying harder to breathe, which then is too thick to swallow so they put their heads down to let it out - like regurgitating rather than wretching from the stomach. A lot of brachy owners keep a jif lemon handy to squirt in the mouth to break up the saliva, although the vet can prescribe a powder to keep the saliva thin. If she has other symptoms of brachycephalic syndrome, the vet can advise what to do.

Keep a record of everything that happens to her during an episode - the frothy bile, collapse, grimacing, time etc does she paddle her feet when collapsed?, it may be just bile from an empty tummy, collapse from the low blood sugar, epileptic fits or something else, Give your vet as much info as you can. Hope it was just a one off and she is soon well. x

I have toy breeds and immediately wondered about hypoglycemia.  As others have stated, it is important that the small breeds are fed frequently.

How many meals a day is she on?

Oh wow thanks guys, you've been very helpful.

I had been feeding twice a day but she had become fussy with it so I went to once a day a couple of weeks ago. That cured the fussiness but I couldn't keep it up because she began to try to literally eat anything!! So I moved it back, to twice. She eats no problem now, I think I feed too much actually!

She does have thick white drool hanging from her chops after a long walk sometimes, however sometimes it's just spontaneous.

She was paddling her legs when she fell over (in a puddle, of all places).

So then, do you think I should just wait and see what happens? I don't want to subject her to tests unnecessarily, although she is insured so it's not the cost. She is due at vets tomorrow.

Thank you all very much.

> So then, do you think I should just wait and see what happens? I don't want to subject her to tests unnecessarily, although she is insured so it's not the cost. She is due at vets tomorrow.

I think you should take her for her test and discuss her with your vet. The vet should tell you what the tests are for, and explain any options you might have. Fits can often be managed very well but it's best to have some idea of what you are dealing with. Your vet, or maybe even a neurologist, are best placed to advise you.

So if she was mine I'd be taking her back to the vet and asking lots of questions.

Hope all goes well for you both.

There is no test in the world that can show up epilepsy -sadly. Some vets recommend MRI scans, these cost four figures and will really only show a problem if there is a brain tumour or similar, not "just" epilepsy. (And if a tumour is found -which would be rare indeed-, there still isn't anythign much they can do, so personally I see no point in an MRI scan.) If it was my dog (and I have been in the same situation), IF it happens again I would film it and show to the vet as that is their very best way of getting a diagnosis -seeing it happen. Examining the dog when she is normal isn't going to tell them anything, but seeing it happen will. Then if the fits are not frequent, no treatment will be needed. You're usually talking about using medication if they occur every week or every fortnight. Many dogs can go months in between so fingers crossed! Needless to say she must never be bred from.

A few thoughts on the possible causes of seizures, some of which could be identified by tests:

It could be due to metabolic causes:

-Hypoglycemia or low blood sugar, has been suggested on this thread. This is quite common in Toy breed puppies.
-High blood ammonia levels also can lead to seizures. This metabolic disturbance is seen in dogs with liver disease (for    example, portosystemic shunts in puppies).
-High levels of circulating uremic toxins due to kidney failure have been known to cause seizures.

There are also toxic substances which have accidentally been eaten which could cause fits - such as insecticides, old paint, tar, I'm sure there's more.

Fits can be due to encephalitis, or inflammation of the central nervous system. I'm not a Pug expert but I think there's a possibility that Pugs are susceptible to something like this.

So there are various reasons to conduct tests. You may never get a definitive answer as to cause, but at least you can rule things out.

And you don't have to have expensive MRI scans to see a neurologist. You can just have a consultation for much less money if you want. (Although I know you said you've got insurance.) Sometimes a neurologist's advice regarding medication can be useful.

And of course it could simply prove to be a one-off, let's hope so. If she was my dog, I would keep the appointment at your vet's and take it from there.

Thank you for your advice. I will update tomorrow after the vet appointment. Hopefully as been suggested it was a one off!

A fit could be caused by number of things and whilst the most obvious is epilepsy if this dog were mine then I would be watching closely for signs of brachycephalic syndrome.

I am not trying to cause alarm but one of my dogs was diagnosed with this and his larynx collapsed resulting in him having to have a laryngeal tieback.

He is also a flat faced breed and the symptoms initially were him bringing up froth and he would have a sort of fit if he became excited.

The first vet I saw was convinced it was epilepsy and I feel we lost several precious months in pursuing that diagnosis as he went on to have a full collapse when if operated on sooner perhaps he may have only required surgery for an elongated soft palate

I'm really hoping that this was a one off episode and hope you get an answer from the vet soon

It's happened again! Vomiting foam and proper vomit. She keeps crying too. She had her nostrils widened and soft palate trimmed in August so her overall breathing is better. She does have episodes of reverse sneezing after eating sometimes though. 

She's had no different food. Why is she crying? She doesn't seem in pain, although what do I know. Vets tomorrow.

How did you get on ? x