Harleyhijinks allergies, apoquel and seizures, oh my!

[harleyhijinks]

Just past 6 months of age our Frenchie, Harley (aka harleyhijinks) started showing signs of allergies which is an ongoing battle we have been dealing with ever since. (He is now just over 2 years old)
His skin breaks out in hives, he smells, he scratches until he has open hot spots, he lost nearly half his hair, you name it. We have had allergy testing done (mainly environmental) and had him on immunotherapy but that didn't produce any positive results. He takes prednisone daily and has been on and off antibiotics to clear up his skin issues. This summer he finally got on Apoquel and while initially it worked wonders (outbreaks stopped, all his hair grew back) about one month in to the Apoquel he started having seizers. Also I have recently noticed that he is again loosing his hair and is becoming overly itchy. The vet said to keep him on two doses of Apoquel a day but I fear this either alone or in combo with the prednisone might be triggering the seizures.

As far as his seizures go, we were not home the first two times they occurred, now I have seen 4 additional. Today was the first time he had two in one day. Usually they come every 2-3 weeks. Last night Harley was very itchy so I gave him another Apoquel and 4 hours later 1/2 a prednisone and I commented to my husband that "watch he will have another seizure" and this morning he did. This time he vomited a horrible smelling mixture of yesterdays dinner, bile and what almost smelled like poop. Then about 8 hours later he had another seizure more like the previous ones i have seen were he foams at the mouth and urinates a little. What is odd is that all of his rashes, bumps and outbreaks he had last night are now gone and his skin looks great.

We have spent thousands on this guy and will continue to do what we need to I am hoping for any feedback or suggestions that other frenchie owners may have.
Currently he eats grain free, is on an Nyzmes regimen, has a teaspoon of coconut oil once a day, takes one omega 3 a day, takes Apoquel at least once a day as recommended but sometimes twice if he seems extra itchy and on top of that Prednisone as needed.

I would love your expertise and suggestions from this desperate frenchie momma. Thank you!

 

[MaplesMommy]

Poor fella

So what was the outcome of the allergie tests? Are they all environmental?

Together with the seizure medication, there are also a few things that are known seizure triggers, that Id try to avoid as much as possible. Turkey,Rabbit, Rosemary extract are a few. Rosemary extract is often used as a natural preservative in treats. When talking about seizure, you have to talk about inflammation. What causes most inflammation is sugar. Therefore Id be very cautios with what I feed and the carbohydrate content of my food. Of course the ingredients and their quality play an important role as well.
I dont know if you have heard about Dr. Jean Dodds, but in her newest book she has a chapter on seizures. If you want me to I can send you some lines.

I dont think we have any members with dogs suffering from seizures on the board.
But maybe somebody can chime in.

 

[Alice Kable]

I am so sorry Harley suffers from allergies. It seems there must be something that would give him relief and not cause seizures.

 

[2bullymama]

You and your poor baby!

When you had the allergy testing done... were dust mites on the list by any chance?

 

[davidh]

Sorry you are having trouble with your baby. Does his food have chicken in it? If so get him off it as chicken is a known allergen for them. Also see if your vet will try Temaril P instead of Apoquel. Hope that helps.

 

[Jakeyjake]

Sorry Harley is suffering from allergies and seizures. Poor baby.
In our own experience, Jake takes 5.4 mg. of apoquel per day and weighs 30 lbs. We also give him medicated baths every week. He has tested positive to environmental allergies and we tried the allergy shots for over a year with little improvement. When we initially started him on apoquel the dosing was twice as much and he would vomit. So we dropped it down immediately. And because the apoquel only lasts for 18 hours, it was a challenge to find when to dose. I also do not want to give him steroids long term, so that was not an option. We also did the Nutriscan test from Dr. Dodds which indicated he should avoid, pork, potatoes, peanuts, and corn. It is a saliva test that is done through the mail and can be found on line. Not sure how accurate it is, but I thought anything was worth a shot.
If Harley is not responding to the apoquel and pred. you may want to try atopica. I would discuss it with your vet.
Stella is on 30 mg of cyclosporine/atopica and she weighs 20 lbs. It can cause stomach upset/vomiting/diahrrea. If I give her a higher dose she gets an upset stomach and will not eat. So although she still scratches, the allelrgies are much better and no staph infections. We understand that allergies can only be managed to a certain degreee, but will not be eradicated 100%
Not sure about the seizures. It may be a separate issue. Again, I would discuss with your vet. Perhaps he should see a neurologist. Good luck!

 

[harleyhijinks]

Thanks for all your thoughts. Harley ended up have 4 seizures in 24 hours this weekend and we are currently 24 hours seizure free. We have stopped the Apoquel for now. His seizures seem to occur when he has a skin flare up, we give him Apoquel and prednisone...not sure if it is all 3 that trigger it or it could just be one or none if it and he just has seizures.
I've read up a lot on Apoquel and it is so new that long term effects aren't really known yet. I do know prednisone is not good long term either. It is a frustrating process and right now I am looking to strip away everything and slowly introduce the drugs one at a time to see what if any effect they have on his seizures and what offers the best results for his allergies.

 

[Cbrugs]

Jax suffers from environmental allergies as well (allergic to everything green outside) and to turkey. He gets allergy shots bi-weekly and is on Apoquel once a day. I also give him baths once a week with a medicated shampoo and I have a couple different sprays I use as well for when he starts scratching his pits. He also gets paw soaks when needed.

The vet does not know if the Apoquel and Prednisone together can be causing the seizures? I would think that is something a vet should know...potential adverse reactions with different medications. I agree that you may want to see a neurologist to try and figure out what is causing the seizures.

 

[Jakeyjake]

Thanks for all your thoughts. Harley ended up have 4 seizures in 24 hours this weekend and we are currently 24 hours seizure free. We have stopped the Apoquel for now. His seizures seem to occur when he has a skin flare up, we give him Apoquel and prednisone...not sure if it is all 3 that trigger it or it could just be one or none if it and he just has seizures.
I've read up a lot on Apoquel and it is so new that long term effects aren't really known yet. I do know prednisone is not good long term either. It is a frustrating process and right now I am looking to strip away everything and slowly introduce the drugs one at a time to see what if any effect they have on his seizures and what offers the best results for his allergies.

I so feel your frustration. I think that stopping the meds. is smart to see if the seizures stop. Maybe you can keep a little journal of his symptoms on a daily basis that you can look back at to help figure triggers out. I had to do that with Stella to find the right dose of atopica because I was having trouble getting her to eat. Then she started having bouts of diahrrea every two to three weeks so I started adding a little home cooked lamb and rice to her kibble and it has stopped. Stella has to live in a shirt still to prevent her from irritating her rib cage with her nails and breaking the skin. Poor dogs and these annoying allergies. Keep us posted. I am curious to see if his seizures are related to the meds.

 

[bullmama]

I so feel your frustration. I think that stopping the meds. is smart to see if the seizures stop. Maybe you can keep a little journal of his symptoms on a daily basis that you can look back at to help figure triggers out. I had to do that with Stella to find the right dose of atopica because I was having trouble getting her to eat. Then she started having bouts of diahrrea every two to three weeks so I started adding a little home cooked lamb and rice to her kibble and it has stopped. Stella has to live in a shirt still to prevent her from irritating her rib cage with her nails and breaking the skin. Poor dogs and these annoying allergies. Keep us posted. I am curious to see if his seizures are related to the meds.

Excellent advice. [MENTION=51]TheOrionShow[/MENTION] may have some advice as well.


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