Longtime member, not active. Had a basenji with the same diagnosis back in 2004. He took a tremendous amount of bicarb each day, his Fanconi was being well managed, but he started having seizures at night. Our vet gave us something to stop the seizure that we'd administer rectally. We kept track of the number of seizures and they started becoming more frequent, to about twice a week, if I recall. The final seizure he had he went temporarily blind and howled and howled and we knew that was it was time. I just sat on the floor with him and cried. A couple months later we looked at photos we had taken of him right before and he looked very, very tired. Very much the hardest thing we had ever done was to let him go across the Bridge, but after looking at those photos, we had done the right thing. Our vet had told us that it was possible he would have a seizure and not come out of it, and we certainly didn't want that.
Are seizures common?
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My beloved Dannii (basenji) started having seizures when he turned 8 and had gotten his vaccines. The clinic gave him his regular vaccine, plus they gave him a Rabies vaccine at the same time. Twelve hours later, he had a full blown seizure. He never had any problems before then. As Pat had stated, its no more prone to basenji's as to other breed of dog. However, I would hold off and do the vaccines every 3 years, instead of every year, especially when the dog gets up to around 7 or 8 years of age. Never, ever give ALL the vaccines at the same time (DHPP and Rabies). Always do the Rabies vaccine a month later. Congratulations on your new pup! Also keep in mind "a tired basenji is a good basenji" (they don't get into trouble by chew up stuff that they shouldn't. But no guarrantee's on that!!
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@hoffa I would say no more common than any other breed. It is mentioned here more often because people often come here for help with questions about illnesses. I suspect many more people come here because they are searching for help with a sick dog, than just general chat.
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I have never had a seizure, even though i have been in Basenjis for over fourty years. we do not have rabies here, so we do not have to the rabies injection, which may help. Do what basenjimom2 suggests which might help.
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@hoffa said in Are seizures common?:
I’m a research fanatic though and it seems that seizures come up constantly.
But don't you often find that the bad news comes to the fore and the good news just gets accepted and remains in the background ? People talk (email, post) about problems they have with their Basenjis or other dogs. No-one brags 'my dog had another year go by without a seizure !'*
On the other hand, if their beloved dog DOES have a seizure, they seek advice.
You have excellent advice already from this forum. Talk to your breeder ! (About seizures and about any / all of your concerns). She will be well aware of ANYTHING in her line and as a responsible person will open up to you..
I go along with Redial, I've bred Basenjis for almost 40 years in a rabies free country where vaccination is not required. My husband started in Basenjis in 1956, albeit in USA, until the mid 1970s when he came to England. No seizures in my experience or his.
There is a wonderful book - Who Killed The Darling Buds Of May - by Catherine O'Driscoll. ISBN 0 9523048 1 3 - subtitled 'What Vets Don't Tell You About Vaccines'. A very well known, experienced breeder in USA sent it to me many years ago and I still have it by me and dip into it frequently. I recommend it heartily, even for the faint-hearted !
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@zande Interesting, I have downloaded it and will read it when I get a chance.
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I've had 3 basenjis, only one had seizures, started about age 15 and not frequently - had increased to approx monthly by the time she was PTS (unrelated to seizures).
I now have some kind of crossbreed terrier, we think she's about 17, and she's had seizures on 3 occasions in the last 6 months. -
@zande said in Are seizures common?:
What Vets Don't Tell You About Vaccines'.
She's a one trick pony who, when questioned about research, science, proof, says "oh I have 2 best selling books".
Many people by the late 1980s were already raising alarms about overvaccination. Here is the facts as of now. Tiny breeds make up most of the vaccine-related problem. That we give a chihuahua the same shot as a great dane is insane. I think Jean Dodds is a lot off, but you can even see with her how small of an issue the vaccines are in overall seizure problems.
https://drjeandoddspethealthresource.tumblr.com/post/132332401041/seizures-epilepsy-dog#.XBjju1wzZPY
What makes me furious is that reporting isn't required. So if your dog has a problem, report it yourself. Until they get clear data, we don't know.
https://www.aaha.org/guidelines/canine_vaccination_guidelines/vaccine_adverse_reactions.aspx
Finally, know your dog and your breed. There are differences in vaccine response.
:::Nov 1, 2009 - Young adult dogs (1-3 years) and small-breed dogs were at higher risk. The top 5 breeds for reactions were Dachshund, Pug, Boston Terrier, Miniature Pinscher, and Chihuahua. Boxers were the only large breed with more reactions than average. Breed variations in response to rabies vaccination were recently reported.::
http://veterinarycalendar.dvm360.com/adverse-vaccination-events-separating-fact-fiction-proceedings
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I truly think you would be safe IF you vaccinate every 3 years. How old is the pup that you are getting? Has the pup had its vaccines, including rabies? If so, find out the date and go 3 years from that date. Granted rabies needs to be done every 3 years regardless, but not the others. You can always do a titer test.........its a different type of blood test that checks for the antibodies. Some breeds will still have a fairly good titer level. If that is the case; NO vaccines. This is just MY opinion, and my opinion only. I do know that vaccines can hurt the dogs immune system if they are over done, and vets will push for you to vaccinate every year. Its YOUR dog, and if your vet insists on vaccinating every year, FIND ANOTHER VET.
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After the initial set of shots I got to Titers with the exception of rabies... that is done every 3 yrs as required by law. That said I never "give whopper" shots... everything is split up by a number of weeks
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The puppy I’m getting will have his shots done at the vet. He’ll be around 12 weeks. He won’t have rabies. My last dog got all his puppy shots and boosters. After the age of 3 I learned about titers and did them instead. He always came back with enough antibodies until he died at 12 years old.
Thanks for all the responses, I really appreciate it.
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Our Tiki has had seizures since 3 years of age sadly. Since he started our vet has not pushed a single vaccine on him. He is now 5 and still has one about every 7-15 days. He gets his bloodwork done, all is fine and he's healthy. Our vet just keeps slowly increasing his meds to see if it makes a difference. I tried CBD oil even... but didn't help so I stopped...
I agree, those with certain challenges are more likely to post in the hopes of looking for advice or insight!
Besides this issue, he's a happy, sweet, loving boy! Couldn't imagine life without him.
