Please please help me, I am very scared for the health of my dog!!

My first thought, although it's just a guess, is that he may have had a seizure.

 Let us know what the vet says.

BlazinB

We hadn't done anything out of the ordinary today, went for a 1 hour walk, did a bit of training, no special foods or anything out of the ordinary. Tonight my dog was sleeping in his comforter and he got out and sat by the chair I was in, I had my headphones on so I wasn't really paying attention. Then I noticed he was dragging himself like his legs weren't working. When he tried to stand up, he'd just sort of roll over or fall down again. His face was shaking in fear (like someone with Parkinsons would shake) and his tail was between his legs. Then strangely he began to walk a bit awkward, then a bit more, then he was walking normally with his tail wagging. I thought he was fine. Then he lost control of his bladder and seemed to  stumble around again. Again he picked himself up in a minute or two and was walking normally. I had him on my lap trying to comfort him and he threw up all over me. Slimy substance mixed with kibble he hadn't fully chewed. After he threw up he seemed to be feeling better and was walking around, tail wagging again. Now he's napping in my lap, seems totally fine. I was going to take him to an emergency vet but  once I got my stuff together he was walking normally as usual.

I am definitely calling the vet tomorrow to figure this out...does anyone have any idea what might be going on? I'm so scared for my dog, I've only had him 2 months but I love him very much..he is a 7 year old dachshund btw. thanks for any help or ideas.

Wow, that is very scary.  Good luck.  I was thinking bloat at first, but doubtful after further reading, your dog is not really a candidate for that not being in the right size group, but it could happen I guess?  Then you said he seemed fine walking around normal so even less likely.  My guess is whatever you have been feeding him has caused this bad reaction.  Yes, I believe most all problems with our dogs are related to food and nutrition.  If you can't seem to pin it down and your dog continues to have problems in the future, send me PM and I'll be happy to recommend something I am fully confident will work well for your dog.  If you Vet tells you it must be the chicken, the beef, the rice, without even running any tests...trust me, they are throwing darts and don't have a clue and maybe even encourage you to walk out of the office with the food they sell.  CC.

I agree, it seems as if he had a seizure. Cadie, one of my dogs, has mild epilepsy - she has seizures very rarely, but they are full blown when they do occur. When a dog has a seizure, he will lose control of his movement and possibly bladder and will collapse and lie down shaking a lot, and drooling excessively. Just comfort him and keep talking to him throughout the ordeal - it is very scary to witness, especially the first time, but it will eventually pass. Some last just a couple minutes, some 20-30 (at least with Cadie). Be careful after it seems like it has passed too, another one often occurs after the first. If he starts having them often, your vet may put him on medicine - I think it's Phenobarbatol (sp)? Also, if necessary, it's a good idea to block off stairs. Should the dog feel one coming on and try to find you or just happens to be above a staircase, he could fall all the way down. Oh, and your dog may come try to warn you when he feels one coming on. Cadie does this - she'll come to wherever we are and act very worried.

 Good luck at the vet! He/she will definitely be able to give you a wealth of more information but I hope this helps. I'll keep your dog in my thoughts. : )

 My first thought was that the dog had a seizure.  Dachshunds are prone to several health problems.  Among them are disc disease, mammary tumors, and seizures.  They are also a deep chested breed, and despite their size, they can be prone to bloat, especially if they exercise hard immediately after eating.  The loss of bladder control is common with seizures.  Usually, they can be treated with medication.  If you got your dachshund from a reputable breeder, the breeder will want to know if it turns out that the dog has had seizures - that may help him/her revamp the breeding program to try to eliminate it.  If you didn't, you'll know better next time.  But, truthfully, sometimes, no matter how good the breeder is, a dog can come up with this disorder. Good luck!

It also sounded like a seizure to me - my Sheltie had them, and they were terrifying. Our vet put her on phenobarbitals, and although it took her about a month to get used to the side effects (she walked around as if she were drunk, basically), once she adjusted to the dosage she was back to her old self, no more seizures, no more heavy side effects.

I know how scary it can be to watch your dog go through something like that. I'm sure your dog was very happy you were with him to comfort him at the time. Best wishes to both of you!

Then I noticed he was dragging himself like his legs weren't working. When he tried to stand up, he'd just sort of roll over or fall down again. His face was shaking in fear (like someone with Parkinsons would shake) and his tail was between his legs. Then strangely he began to walk a bit awkward, then a bit more, then he was walking normally with his tail wagging. I thought he was fine. Then he lost control of his bladder and seemed to  stumble around again.

Also, I'm sorry, I couldn't let this go - I think it is HIGHLY unlikely that your dog's regular diet could cause symptoms like this. The only time I could possibly think food would cause him to lose control of his legs would be if he ingested poison, but again, it sounds very much like a seizure to me. And if he had ingested poison - enough to make him lose control of his body - I highly doubt he would be back to normal a few minutes later.

Your vet will be able to give you much better information, especially since you were able to be there with your dog and take note of all of his symptoms. Poor little dude, I hope he feels better soon. 

I'm definately going to say seizures as well. I hope he's ok and let us know how it goes at the vet. 

I HOPE you will read all the way to the bottom.  Yes, it sounds like a seizure ALTHO I'd like to know how long after eating he threw up food that was this undigested. 

However, please please please don't run to the vet in a panic demanding seizure meds.  Seizure meds are a double-edged sword.  Dogs often wind up on seizure meds that truly shouldn't be on them.  One or two or even three seizures does **not** mean your dog needs to be on seizure meds for it's life (and once you get them ON seizure meds it is very difficult to get them off them). 

There are other things that can help seizures immeasurably.  TCVM (traditional Chinese veterinary medicine) has very strong herbals, and of course acupuncture, that can often completely elminate the need for drugs -- in fact I've heard the head of Neurology at the University of Florida at Gainesville say many many times "If your dog is seizing less than a couple of times a month -- please don't resort to meds first -- PLEASE try herbals and acupuncture!!"  Yes, that's the head of Neurology at a large state vet school!

Seizures are VERY scarey -- it can be as traumatic (and maybe more so) for the owner than the one seizing.  Particularly when you don't know what's happening. 

Now, I'm also going to say this could sound like things other than seizures.  It could also sound like a pinched nerve.  A pinched nerve can make it so a dog can't defacate or urinate, AND it can make it so they can't stand or bear weight on their legs (I've seen that with one of my own dogs).  If the body then just 'lets go' of waste that may diminish the 'pressure' on the nerve causing the mobility problems. 

A vet visit a.s.a.p IS most definitely in order.  I'm not saying don't go to the vet -- quite the opposite.  I'm simply saying please don't demand seizure meds "to make it stop".  So often people get scared and feel *they* can't cope with a seizing dog and they don't try other methods first.  Take your time and let the vet diagnose this.

If you can possibly do it, please -- before you make any medicine decisions -- try a TCVM vet.  I'm not saying to leave your 'regular' vet -- not at all.  But adding TCVM can help your dog so much.  http://www.tcvm.com is the Chi INstitute and on the left side of their homepage is a locator that will help you find a vet who has completed their ceritification process (and it's a good qualifying agency). 

Good luck - and please let us know what happens?

Hi everyone, thanks for all the posts and well wishes. He is doing fine today. I think you guys are right about it being a seizure.  I don't know if food could be a factor, I've been feeding him Canidae chicken and rice, his bowel movements have been normal. He ate after our walk and it was probably around 6 hours later that this happened. I was afraid maybe he was paralyzed because he couldn't walk at first, thank God its not that. I will report back to all of you what the vet says and the course of action for treatment. Thanks so much again.

Take Callie's advise and don't assume.  I had a friend who's dog started to have seizers and was put on meds, they dog always seemed different and then started to show other problems.  At one point, this was about 13 years ago now - she researched dog food and decided to look at nutrition.   Shortly after having her dog on a better diet, she stop the meds.  The dog never had a seizer again.   My point is that meds aren't always the answer  I also know someone who's cat had two seizers in one week and magically never had another one in over 10 years.  They changed nothing - it just never happened again.

My little Emma is epileptic. She seizures, periodically. At one point, she cluster seizured every day.  Diet modification, acupuncture, herbs, and Rescue Remedy have helped her tremendously! She has seizures about twice a year, now, with no drugs. Definitely take him to the vet, and have all the tests done, but hold off on the meds til you've researched more. I hope your baby is feeling well, tonight. I'm sorry you had such a scary experience. Seizures like that are very scary, especially if you've never experienced a pet having a seizure, before.

Also, if your dog is young, consider a consultation with a holistic vet.  A friend of mine did that, her dog was treated with belladonna, I think.  Anyway, he has been seizure-free for several years. 

I don't really have any personal experience with these sort of symptoms.  But, I did sit for a lab a few years ago who had very similar ones and he had a blown disc in his lower spine.  So, it's possible Callie is onto something with that.  He'd have problems, then he'd be fine for awhile.  Then after awhile of that the symptoms started to worsen and he'd have trouble getting up at all.

 What did the vet say?