Can dogs get epilepsy?
Yep. They can also contract a number of other disorders that cause seizures. As anyone who owns an epileptic pooch knows, the seizures can be very variable, coming in either one long session or several short “clustered” seizures. Some are even so minor that you may not notice them happening; your dog’s legs may suddenly tense up for a minute or two at a time and then go back to normal. Major seizures, also called “grand mal” seizures, have several standard stages and can last up to an hour.

Seizures often originate with a traumatic brain injury, but epilepsy can also be present in a dog’s body from birth. In order to differentiate epilepsy from a brain injury, doctors often require your pup’s complete medical history, an EEG, and several blood tests. Medication is the remedy of choice regardless of the source of the seizures.