Hi there, I have a 8yr old male cat named Tinker that I got from a shelter 7 years ago. December 30th he had his first seizure. He was having one every 5 or 6 days. I called my vet immediately and was told to make an appointment with a Neurologist. Unfortunately there was nothing the vet could do after the seizure. Took him to the Neurologist 2 weeks after the first seizure (took that long to get him seen) they did a Neurological exam and blood work, everything came back normal? He has been on 8mg of Phenobarbital every 12 hours since January 21st. 11 days so far. He takes the pills pretty well (which surprised me) Since I got him 7 years ago he's slept on my bed with me EVERY night. Two nights ago he started sleeping under the bed and this morning for the first time ever he hist at me trying to get him out from under the bed. I get up at 2:30am to get ready for work and give him his pill and then again 12 hrs later. He is a different cat now, he seems very unhappy and depressed. Has anyone else dealt with this??
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Cat having seizures
- Thread starter Wayne Mac
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Call or email your vet and let them know. phenobarb is a barbiturate so it can be sedating, but the dose is probably too high if it’s making your cat depressed and mopey.
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Just out of curiosity, was the first seizure or any subsequent ones a grand mal or petit mal seizure? It is my understanding the usual Phenobarb dosage for a cat is 2-3 mg twice a day. However, I am not a vet and your neurologist must have had a good reason to prescribe 8 mg. You can discuss this with him at your next appointment. However, if you are worried about the side effects you mentioned you can always call and discuss this with him sooner rather than later. When our dog was on Phenobarb for seizures, (first one was a grand mal), I felt the dosage was too high. I told the vet he was acting like a zombie. They did lower it and he did fine. Of course, every situation is different but you are the best advocate for your cat.
I thought this post would be very helpful for you regarding a special community just for epilepsy in cats:
Seizures - Need Advice/experience With Seizure Medications
Best of luck and fingers crossed for Tinker.
I thought this post would be very helpful for you regarding a special community just for epilepsy in cats:
Seizures - Need Advice/experience With Seizure Medications
Best of luck and fingers crossed for Tinker.
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2-3 mg per kilogram of body weight usually.Just out of curiosity, was the first seizure or any subsequent ones a grand mal or petit mal seizure? It is my understanding the usual Phenobarb dosage for a cat is 2-3 mg twice a day. However, I am not a vet and your neurologist must have had a good reason to prescribe 8 mg. You can discuss this with him at your next appointment. However, if you are worried about the side effects you mentioned you can always call and discuss this with him sooner rather than later. When our dog was on Phenobarb for seizures, (first one was a grand mal), I felt the dosage was too high. I told the vet he was acting like a zombie. They did lower it and he did fine. Of course, every situation is different but you are the best advocate for your cat.
I thought this post would be very helpful for you regarding a special community just for epilepsy in cats:
Seizures - Need Advice/experience With Seizure Medications
Best of luck and fingers crossed for Tinker.
