We have two golden retrievers, one is a 20 month old male and the other is a 7 month old female. The male is 90 pounds, the female 40. Both came from the same breeder.
The male started having seizures just after his first birthday. He would seize 2-3 times a night, exhibited really frantic behavior, and we were left wondering where our sweet, gentle pup had gone. He was not neutered due to an undescended testicle that we were waiting for, and since he started seizing anesthetic and thus surgery is out of the question.
Anyway, after several thousand dollars in vets, drugs, etc. we finally got his seizing under control. He did lose upwards of 20 pounds at one point, stopped eating altogether, and was generally on death's doorstep. The breeder was devastated and gave us a puppy left from a recent litter as we thought we'd have to put our male down.
After getting the puppy, he suddenly turned around. Now several months later, he is the picture of health though he does get phenobarb twice a day. He is a gorgeous dog and from looking at him you'd never think anything was wrong.
The root of his seizing, digestive issues, and elevated white blood cell counts is still undiagnosed. He continues to have abnormal bloodwork. He also has bladder control issues and will urinate on himself during sleep.
The problem that we have-- in the last several months, he has gotten extremely aggressive. Our female is afraid of him, and there are days when I am too. It is like he has lost the ability to censor himself. There is no sense of boundaries in his mind. Our neurologist described him as "juvenile," and our female has passed him in maturity. He will jump, bite and not release-- he has done this to my arm on several occassions, and he nearly caught my face this afternoon.
He will go after our female even when she is in the most submissive of positions. Friends and family no longer come over, they are afraid of him. He is impossible to contain as he goes ballistic in his crate if any kind of activity is going on around him. He becomes hyperactive even with a small bit of stimulation. He has on many occassions knocked grown men over.
We have devoted our life and our money and our energy to saving this dog and getting him back to optimum health. Obedience classes have no effect. We have tried every technique under the sun. I am convinced the behavior issues stem from the seizing, and that there is some underlying issue whether it be a brain tumor, imbalance, or brain damage.
I have had dogs and horses my whole life and have never encountered such an issue. I don't know what to do and am afraid we have no options but one we were hoping to avoid. Any and all advice, suggestions, input would be appreciated.