Phenobarbital Dog

Phenobarbital is an inexpensive and easy to use drug, which makes it the most popular canine seizure medication on the market. Phenobarbital isn't FDA approved for dog usage, but veterinarians tend to prescribe it due to its efficiency. It is only issued with a prescription.

Treating between 60 and 80% of cases of idiopathic dog epilepsy effectively, dog owners can administer the drug on a daily basis to stop seizures, or administer it mid-seizure to stop the shaking.

Phenobarbital is a barbiturate and a nonselective central nervous system depressant. Seizures are caused when the balance of excitation and inhibition in the neurons of the brain is disturbed. Phenobarbital works by increasing the action of GABA (the inhibitory neurotransmitter) and it also appears to inhibit the release of glutamate (an excitatory neurotransmitter) from nerve endings.

Side Effects of Phenobarbital

As a result, many of the side effects of Phenobarbital are neurological. You'll notice your dog appearing lazy, sedated, restless, hyper-excited or uncoordinated (ataxia). These side effects will disappear after a few weeks of treatment when your dog's system gets used to the medication.
Phenobarbital affects your dog's activity and metabolism. She will gain weight easily, so avoid giving her extra food or treats to keep her weight at a healthy level. Increased thirst, urination and appetite are common. As your dog adapts to the medication, these side effects will taper off.

Long-term side effects of Phenobarbital include frequent urination, excessive drinking and eating. Because your dog is eating more, he'll most likely gain weight, a secondary effect of the drug. Although, it's rare, Phenobarbital can also cause anemia, which would necessitate discontinuation of treatment.

The common side effects of Phenobarbital are excessive hunger, excessive thirst, excessive urination, lethargy and ataxia (hind end weakness). It is not uncommon for some patients to demonstrate depression or sedation when Phenobarbital therapy is initiated. These effects are usually transient and resolve as the patient acclimates to the medication. If these side effects do not resolve, or if they are extremely pronounced, talk to your veterinarian.

Less common, but more serious side effects of Phenobarbital are scarring of the liver and liver failure that can be irreversible. Monitoring liver function while using Phenobarbital is vitally important.Phenobarbital changes the way your dog responds to other drugs. The veterinarian needs to know about all medications youe dog is taking, such as lysodren, antihistamines or antibiotics.

Rarely, anemia (lack of red blood cells) can occur with Phenobarbital exposure.

I have listed some links where you can get the medication for your dog. Just thought that you might want a little more information about the medicine before giving it to your dog. Just a habit I have of researching the medicine before giving it to a loved one whether it is 2 legged or 4 legged.

Liver Damage

Liver damage is the most dangerous side effect of Phenobarbital. Although it only occurs in a small percentage of dogs, long-term use of Phenobarbital can cause scarring of the liver, and subsequent liver failure.

A reduction in the amount of Phenobarbital taken can prevent any long-term damage to the liver. Additionally, by monitoring blood levels frequently will help alert you to any problems in your dog's body before it is too late. Symptoms of liver damage to watch out for include jaundice, weight loss, vomiting and dark urine.

Liver damage can be presented by combining Phenobarbital with potassium bromide or milk thistle. Potassium bromide allows vets to prescribe a lower dosage of Phenobarbital in order to lower the likelihood of developing liver damage, but can affect the salt levels of your dog's diet. Monitor his salt intake after beginning treatment.

Dietary protein levels have some effect on the half-life of phenobarbital, with a lower half-life of the medication reported in dogs on protein or protein and fat reduced diets .

There is a dietary approach to seizure control in humans that is referred to as a ketogenic diet. In this diet, a patient is kept off food for several days to induce a ketoacidotic state (a situation in which fats are being broken down and producing more acidity in the blood than normal). After this state has been induced it is maintained by feeding a high fat, low carbohydrate diet. I think that protein levels are usually higher with this sort of diet than normal, not lower, though. This diet is not utilized much in dogs because it is hard to induce a ketoacidotic state in dogs by withholding food so it is questionable whether it is possible to get any benefit from the diet, in dogs.

There are dogs that are reported to have improvements in seizure control when fed diets that contain novel proteins (diets meant to rule out food allergies) and the new hypoallergenic diets with hydrolyzed proteins (HA (tm) and z/d (tm)) may be helpful in this situation. I am not sure these claims have ever really been proven, since that is hard to do because of natural variations in seizure activity. In a dog that also seems to show sensitivity to foods by vomiting or diarrhea, it really seems worthwhile to consider trying one of these foods, just to see if food sensitivity does play a role in the seizure activity or digestive problems. Truthfully, this approach hasn't produced much benefit in our patients, that I can remember, but it doesn't hurt to try.

The only other reason that I can think of to control dietary protein in a pet with seizures is to control seizures associated with liver disease. Reduction of dietary protein is a really important part of treatment for seizures and other central nervous system disorders associated with an inability of the liver, for whatever reason, to process ammonia properly. If this is part of the problem with your dog's seizures, then restriction of dietary protein is important.

Overdosage

Treatment of phenobarbital overdose consists of removal of ingested prod­uct from the gut if appropriate and offering respiratory and cardiovascular support. Activated charcoal has been demonstrated to be of considerable benefit in enhancing the clearance of phenobarbital, even when the drug was administered parenterally. Charcoal acts as a "sink" for the drug to diffuse from the vasculature back into the gut. Forced alka­line diuresis can also be of substantial benefit in augmenting the elimination of pheno­barbital in patients with normal renal function. Peritoneal dialysis or hemodialysis may be helpful in severe intoxications or in anuric patients.

Adverse Effects/Warnings

Dogs may exhibit increased symptoms of anxiety and agita­tion when initiating therapy. These effects may be transitory in nature and often will re­solve with small dosage increases. Occasionally dogs will exhibit profound depression at lower dosage ranges (and plasma levels). Polydipsia, polyuria, and polyphagia are also quite commonly displayed at moderate to high serum levels; these are best controlled by limiting intake of both food and water. Sedation and/or ataxia often become significant concerns as serum levels reach the higher ends of the therapeutic range. Increases in liver enzymes and anemias are more rare, but these potentially serious adverse effects have been reported in dogs.

Gold bead implants are a permanent form of acupuncture. The gold beads are implanted on the acupuncture points on the dog's back and head. The gold beads are very tiny, about the size of a pinhead or tip of a fine ball point pen. They provide a long-term stimulation of the points. This form of treatment was pioneered in the 1970's. As with all forms of treatment, it will work for some and not for others. The first gold bead implants performed in the US was done in the early 1970's by Dr. Grady Young. Dr. Terry Durkes in Marion, IN began doing clinical research on using the implants in 1975, and initially used them to treat seizure disorders and hip dysplasia.

Success Rates
Dr. Durkes lists the following as his success rates for epilepsy:

60 % of dogs are "cured". They no longer have seizures and will no longer need any Phenobarbital. If the dog is on Potassium Bromide (KBr), they will have to continue its use.
20% of dogs will "no longer have seizures", but are required to take Phenobarbital but at a reduced dose.

20 % of dogs will "continue to have seizures". Some of these will at least have fewer seizures and will have less severe seizures. Some of course will not be helped at all.

Dog owners, who recognize the early signs and
symptoms of illness or pain in their dogs, will not
only relieve their loved one's suffering but may
also be able to save themselves an expensive trip to
the veterinarian. Not only is it important to
recognize these signs early to relieve pain and
suffering, but it is much more effective to treat an
illness when it is detected early.

The dog owner should keep an accurate and detailed
account of their dog's symptoms to help the
veterinarian correctly diagnose and effectively
treat the dog's illness or condition. Most canine
illnesses are detected through a combination of
various signs and symptoms:

Temperature, Respiratory Rate and Heart Rate

A newborn puppy will have a temperature of 94-97º F.
which will eventually reach the normal adult body
temperature of 101.5º F. at the age of 4 weeks old.
Take care when trying to take your dog or puppies
temperature as the thermometer can easily be broken
off in the canine's rectum. Also any form of
excitement can cause the temperature to rise by 2-3º
when the dog is actually in normal health. If your
dog's temperature reaches 105º or above OR 96º or
below please take him/her to the emergency vet
immediately!

An adult dog will have a respiratory rate of 15-20
breaths per minute (depending on such variables as
size and weight) and a heart rate of 80-120 beats
per minute. You can feel for your dog's heartbeat by
placing your hand on his/her lower ribcage just
behind the elbow. Don't be alarmed if the heartbeat
seems irregular compared to a human's heartbeat, it
is irregular in many dogs. Have your vet check it
out and get used to how it feels when it is normal.

Behavior Changes

Any behavior changes that are not associated with a
change in the household atmosphere, such as jealousy
over a new pet or child may be an indication of an
illness. Signs of behavioral changes may be:

-Depression

-Anxiety

-Fatigue

-Sleepiness

-Trembling

-Falling/Stumbling

If your dog shows any of these signs, he/she needs
to be kept under close watch for a few hours, or
even a few days, until positive signs develop or
he/she has returned to normal. Do not try to
exercise the dog or put him/her in any situation
that may cause stress. Most veterinarians will want
for you to keep track of when the symptoms first
appeared, whether they are getting better or worse,
and also whether the symptoms are intermittent,
continuous, or increasing in frequency.

Pain

Dogs that are in pain will likely indicate that they
are suffering by giving you clues as to where the
area of discomfort is. For instance, a dog that has
abdominal pain will continually glance toward their
belly, bite or lick the area, and will not want to
leave his/her bed. The dog may stand hunched over,
or take the 'prayer position' which is when a dog
gets down on it's forelegs with the hind legs still
standing, because of the pain in her abdomen area.

Dogs can not tell you that they are hurting or cry
real tears but a dog may vocalize their pain in a
different way. A dog that is hurt suddenly (such as
being stepped on) will cry out or wimper in pain.
This also happens when an external injury or
internal injury (such as an organ) is touched.
Whining or vocalization that is unprovoked may be
caused from an internal injury as well. Some breeds
of dogs (such as the American Pit Bull Terrier) have
a higher pain threshold and need to be watched more
closely for signs of pain. Breeds with a high pain
tolerance are more likely to endure the pain without
vocalization.

Another clue to pain is a change in temperament. A
dog that is in pain may show signs of aggression.
Please take note of this before concluding that a
dog has become vicious and let your veterinarian
know so that the correct treatment can be
administered. Also females in general (even humans!)
have days when they are just in a bad mood for no
obvious reason. Take note of days of times that
these mood swings occur as well as any events that
might have triggered them.

Other signs that your dog may be sick:

-Ears: discharge, debris, odor, scratching, crusted
tips, twitching or shaking.

-Eyes: redness, swelling or discharge.

-Nose: runny, thickened or colored discharge,
crusty.

-Coughing, sneezing, vomiting or gagging.

-Shortness of breath, irregular breathing or
prolonged/heavy panting

-Evidence of parasites in the dog's stool, strange
color, blood in the stool, or lack of a bowel
movement (constipation).

-Loss of appetite or not drinking as much water as
normally would.

-Weight Loss.

-Strange color of urine, small amount of urine,
straining, dribbling, or not going as frequently as
normal.

-Bad odor coming from mouth, ears, or skin.

-loss of hair, wounds, tumors, dander or change of the
skin's color.

-Biting of the skin, parasites, scratching or
licking the skin frequently.

This information was meant to help educate you
to the signs and symptoms of probable pain or
sickness in your dog. If any of these symptoms occur
over a prolonged period of time, please seek the
help of a veterinarian. I hope that this article
will help stress the importance of keeping watch
over your dog's health patterns and the importance
of keeping an accurate, detailed health record for
your veterinarian's convenience.