oh no! Gordon's Ataxia is back.

GordonDaSheltie

GordonDaSheltie

Forums Regular
Gordon's ataxia is back. He had an episode about 6 weeks ago and another last night. Normally it lasts 2-3 hrs and he's fine in the morning but when I woke up this morning he is still stumbling a little bit and isn't is normal self. its breaking my heart :(

We've never seen a classic epileptic fit, and I'm not sure whats causing the ataxia and neither do the vets.


I'm worried because he hasn't fully recovered 11hrs later. He's had them on and off since he was 10 weeks. over the past years I think he's had 6 in total. All of them mostly the same if not improving each time expect for last night which showed pronounced signs and duration.

I think its proprioceptive Ataxia rather than cerebral or vestibular. I'll try and take him to the vet today because it hasn't cleared but normally we don't do it as the vets say there isn't much they can do without witnessing it or doing CT scans, MRIs etc.

His last full blood test showed slight low blood platelets which the vet wasn't concerned about.

Have you seen this in shelties before?


You can see his head wobble in video 3
Poor baby still wants to play a bit.
 
I am so sorry to hear that this has popped up again!

It's actually really timely for me because earlier this week Lexi had a similar episode. I panicked, threw her in the car (didn't spend much time observing) and rushed her to the vet. She was dazed when we got there, but was no longer stumbling around. Bloodwork showed slightly low protein and slightly low WBC (we had luckily done bloodwork 2 weeks prior so saw every shift). They put her on an IV, and she improved throughout the day. That night we brought her home, and she shook her head some and rubbed it against the couches and she couldn't sleep at all and kept shifting her head around. I started thinking maybe it was vestibular (face rubbing/shaking head = ears?). So we took her back to the vet the next day, and they didn't see any ear issues, though agreed it could have been vertigo.

This has never happened to her before, and we haven't seen any thing like it before or since.

I wish I had some answers but know I know how you feel. It was so scary to see Lexi that way--all you want to do is help. I pray you're able to get some answers for you and Gordon.
 
its horrible not knowing whats causing it! It is like vertigo but our vets have never mentioned that as a cause. I wonder if perhaps the low protein has something to do with diet? Ive always had a feeling Gordon's could be diet or metabolic related but again the easiest answer is a type of epilepsy i suppose.

Gordon showed anemia when he had his first ataxia but the emergency dept described it as his body was making more red blood cells ( i think) and they weren't worried. The second time he had an episode i mentioned it to the clinic vet ( not emergency) and she was worried that a puppy so young would have anemia and wanted to do another test which came up all normal. Now, the last blood test he did a month ago for his desxing showed low blood platelets but the vet who attended us said it was a non issue. And today's vet from the same clinic looked through them again and said that they were significantly low but because they can't find any bleeding that it wasn't really a concern right now. urgh! its driving me mad! So they took more blood today and will call me soon to let me know what they find.

Was that the first time this has happened to Lexi? How old is she?
Gordon was still quite dazed this morning but after doing a poo at the vet became all bouncy and what i would describe as normal. Even the vet said it was a significant change and that she was pleased to see it.

Hope Lexi is okay soon.
 
Do you take Gordon to a holistic vet? If not, it might be worth a second opinion from one. In my experience they tend to spend more time per case and become more alarmed by any abnormal test results.
 
Just thought of something. It might be obviouse but have Gordon and Lexi been tested for the MDR1 mutation? It's most common in collies but shelties can be affected as well. Ataxia is one of the primary symptom and is brought on by several medications (including heartworm preventatives when given at higher doses). Surprisingly, it's sometimes overlooked by vets, especially when it occurs in a breed other than a collie.

Here is a link to more info for anyone who may not be familiar with this genetic disease (it's an Australian Shepherd site but the same info applies regardless of the breed affected): http://www.ashgi.org/home-page/genetics-info/faq/mdr1-faqs

Edited to correct link
 
Last edited:
Poor Gordon, hope he's a bit better after a rest. I was going to ask if it's the hot weather - but I checked the BoM site and it hasn't been that hot in Adelaide. Have you ever documented the dates? I only know a schnauzer with episodic Ataxia, the attacks were like epilepsy but he was aware and responsive. The owner never got a clear diagnosis (she did get an MRI), but after keeping a diary she did find he was more likely to have an attack the day before she had a trial or comp.

What bad timing with Zara coming in a couple of days. I really hope he's feeling better by then.
 
I'm glad to hear that Gordon is back to acting like normal. Maybe it won't happen again? I know that's a long shot, but one can hope, right? I just hate that you don't have answers, especially since you've seen this happen to him several times. It's hard feeling like you just can't help.

Lexi is 7, and as far as I know, this is the first time it has happened to her. I guess it's possible that it has happened while we were at work, but I've not seen any other signs. Also, (I didn't mention this) it was accompanied by severe nausea. So before her episode she threw up her breakfast (and she never throws up), and that night threw up her dinner. She also did a ton of lip smacking which I understand is an indication of nausea in dogs.

They did mention the possibility of a bleed in Lexi as well, but saw no other symptoms. And the odd thing is, since we took her back to the vet the very next day, they ran bloodwork again and both the WBC and the protein were improved. Even the vet was very confused and couldn't explain it. Which is why they didn't think of a food issue (also, as I mentioned before, we had done bloodwork 2 weeks prior and it was totally normal!)

I was also asked about medications--whether she had gotten into any, or whether we had recently given monthly heartworm or flea and tick. The episode happened at the end of the month, and we had given the meds on the first, so we pretty much eliminated that.

I think the vet was hesitant to mention any sort of seizure activity (like epilepsy) because typically you see the dog be non-responsive, rigid, etc. That doesn't seem to explain both Gordon and Lexi's episodes.
 
Okay so I have an interesting update.

At first the vet thought given his previous history that he most likely has petite mal epilepsia and that his ataxia is his "seizure" however I feel that because at minimum it lasts two hours with our last event lasting almost 11 hours that this is an odd thing.

I got the blood results back and now the vet wants to put the epilepsy diagnosis on hold because his blood sugar levels came in quite low. They were half of what they were when they did his last blood test when he was desexed which was fully fasted for 12 hrs and and a reading just over double.

His blood sugar last came in a 3, and before that the fasted results were 6. Blood tests were taken a month apart from each other.

She now wants to look into hyperglycaemia even though she adimant it wouldn't be a insulinoma because of his age. I know many things can cause hyperglycaemia which isn't the tumor but that hyperglycaemia can cause ataxia in dogs.

So basically it might still be a odd form of epilepsy but it might not be. So we wait for the vet to consult with her team for a new plan for further diagnosis.

Kids good news in that we still have no definite news.
 
I forgot to add, he slept most of the day after the vet yesterday ( no more ataxia just very mellow energy wise) but this morning he was 100% back to his normal physical and emotional self.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top