As a pet owner, witnessing your four-legged friend having a seizure can be distressing. However, understanding seizure signs and knowing how to respond can make all the difference in ensuring your pet’s safety and well-being.

Veterinary neurologists are specially trained to treat nervous system disorders affecting a pet’s brain, spinal cord, and nerves.

Veterinary neurology is the branch of medicine that treats pet diseases of the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system.

Boudreaux is a 4 year old male neutered Papillion that the owners brought to BVNS for recurrent back pain.

Hobbes is a 2-year-old Weimaraner who presented to our Springfield location in August 2010.

Max is a 19 year-old, male castrated mixed breed that presented to BVNS for circling and a head tilt.

Prinz is a 9-year-old German Shepherd mix referred to BVNS for an inability to walk in the hind legs and severe back pain of less than 24 hours duration.

Tiki is a 4 year-old spayed female Maltese referred to Bush Veterinary Neurology Service after one week of 30-60 second episodes of lethargy, shaking and keeping her head down.

Squirrel is a 10 year old, male, castrated cat that presented to BVNS for persistent, intermittent 15 second seizures (non-responsive, left side facial twitching progressing to generalized twitching, salivation) despite treatment with multiple doses of valium and 10 mg/kg of phenobarbital.

Dallas is a 3-year-old Beagle that presented to our Springfield location for back pain and the inability to walk in the rear limbs.

Cooper is a 9 year old Airedale Terrier referred to BVNS for the inability to walk and severe neck pain.

King is a 12 year old mixed breed referred to BVNS for the inability to get up.

This morning Lucy was discovered in her crate with large amounts of saliva, urine and feces.

Misty, an indoor / outdoor cat, was discovered non-responsive with dilated pupils.

Riley, 2 year-old male Cocker Spaniel, was referred by Apple Valley Animal Hospital for left-side weakness and concern for spinal cord lesion.

Winston, a 6-year-old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, was referred by Seneca Hill Animal Hospital for collapse with a concern for a seizure-like episode.

Herschel is a 10 year old Poodle-Mix that presented to our Woodstock location for a 24 hour history of progressive back pain and the inability to walk in the rear limbs.

Augustus “Gus” is a 1 year 10 month old Standard Poodle who presented to our Woodstock location for a 24 hour history of difficulty walking in the back legs.

When Fergie came to BVNS in Springfield, she was unable to jump and was having difficulty navigating steps and curbs.

Lucy was discovered like this in her crate and is now being treated for organophosphate toxicity in the emergency room. What do you see in the video? What could be wrong? How would you prove it and treat it?

Duke is a 7 year old, MC, Pitbull presenting for right head tilt that was a gradual onset and progressive over the last 6 weeks. Hypermetria on the left thoracic limb was noted about 6 months ago. He is bright and responsive at home and does not seem painful.

CSM is a disease that affects the cervical spine in large and giant breed dogs. The etiology is multifactorial and thought to represent a combination of genetic, nutritional, and degenerative causes.

Motley presented to BVNS to see Dr. Young in February 2018 due to lethargy and decreased motion of his tail. His owners had noticed that in previous weeks, Motley's outgoing energy and happy tail wag was diminishing.

Traumatic brain injury in dogs and cats can occur due to a variety of causes including motor vehicle accidents, falls from a height, crush injuries, or attacks by other animals.

Lufa, an 8 year old Pomapoo (Pomeranian/Miniature Poodle mix) was referred by Veterinary Referral Center NoVA for seizures and impaired mentation.

Travis, a 3-year old MN Dalmatian, presented to BVNS Richmond in April of 2017.

Suki is a one-year-old, female spayed Yorkie who was referred to BVNS by Dr. Mazur at Clocktower Animal Hospital in Herndon, VA.

For this edition of the BVNS Neurotransmitter, Dr. Bush would like you to answer questions about a 10.5-year-old Labrador named Barney (pictured below) with sudden onset of weakness and poor balance.

Sassy is an 11-year-old female domestic short-hair cat.

Buttercup is a 1-year-old female, spayed domestic shorthair cat.

Milo is an 8-month-old neutered male Boxer.

Gizmo, a 3-year-old, M/N, 4.3 kg, Chihuahua-Jack Russell Terrier mix, was let outside on 2/16/21 and returned dragging his pelvic limbs.

Anti-epileptic drugs remain our primary treatment modality for seizure disorders but do come with the potential for side effects.

Luckily, rabies is a disease that most people have no experience with, other than the vaccination of their pets. It is important to realize that rabies is fatal over 99% of the time and that more than 59,000 people worldwide still die of rabies every single year.

Ziva was adopted by her family at 7-years-old. Her background medical history includes coxofemoral osteoarthritis and previous treatment for heartworms.

Henrietta is a four-year-old spayed female cat whom presented with a sudden onset of abnormal head movements.

Mya is a seven-year-old rescued Doberman. She and her sister were placed into foster care.

Chloe is a four-year-old female spayed, mixed breed who presented to BVNS with frequent sitting, collapse, slower to eat, weakness, and excess salvation.

Stella has a long history of being a hunting dog and had been on a hunting trip -3-4 weeks prior to the onset of clinical signs. We believe she may have suffered a wound or was otherwise exposed at that time.

Berkeley is a 2-year-old FS Miniature Pinscher