During my recent visit to NC, something scary happened to my sister's 10 y.o. Cockapoo, & I want to share it with you in hopes that if you ever see this, you'll know what to do.

My sister woke me saying "I think Aimee is having a seizure." The dog had suddenly gone deaf 3 weeks prior to this and was acting "spooky," not wanting to get in or out of the car or jump on the bed or couch. The vet had not found the reason.

The dog wasn't seizing, but was unable to get up or walk, was trembling as in fright, had bright eyes & equal pupils, and had a strange head-jerk to one side. It didn't look like a stroke to me. A look of panic was on her sweet little face. I ran energy while trying to figure out what this could be. The vet opens at 0700 so I had some time to work, & in 45-50 minutes, she was able to get to her feet & take a few steps. After another hour, it all returned, inability to walk, head-jerk, so they rushed her to the vet, & this time, seeing all of this, the doctor said "I know what this is."

It is called "geriatric vestibular syndrome," & it is actually quite common in dogs middle-aged & older. It's a dysfunction of the cilia (hairs) in the vestibular organ in the inner ear, a syndrome similar to Meniere's in humans that causes intense vertigo, loss of the spatial orientation, inability to stand or walk, & head-jerk to the affected side. In retrospect, this had probably been building up over the 3 weeks that she was so reluctant to jump on bed and get in & out of the car....her balance & spatial orientation were failing, she was dizzy, and she lost her hearing.

Now here's the good part: It's treatable and the treatment is Dramamine that you buy in the drugstore. A vet will need to make the diagnosis & this is absolutely an emergent event. In 8 hours after the first dose she was nearly normal in walking! By evening she was playing with toys. Next day we found her on the couch. This syndrome is so scary to see, that the vet said "The main thing I have to do in these cases is to convince dog owners that euthanasia is not the treatment for this!"

The labwork done on the day of the vet visit has come back & clearly shows that the dog is markedly hypo-thyroid, & will be taking a thyroid supplement starting today. This is a classic case of two PAIRED syndromes that are actually quite common in dogs...hypothyroidism & vestibular syndrome, which are easily treated. The vet said he grades these cases on a 1 to 10 scale and he gave Aimee a 3....so it's hard to imagine how scary an 8 or 9 would be. He told my sister, "Don't hold your breath, but her hearing may return or partially return, once the thyroid levels approach normal."

The QT/running energy did work during the first acute phase of this episode. This information is for dog owners "just in case" -- as it is a fairly common syndrome in dogs.

Thanks Ali for posting this.

I haven't actually seen a case or had it happen to any dog I have owned, but I still have a 12 year old Sheltie and loads of dog owning friends so this information will be invaluable.

You say 'geriatric' and your sisters dog is 10
what do you put the age range at for this problem?

Thanks again
Love and light
Faune

Good question on the age issue, and I wish I knew the answer. I would think any age from middle-age on, just a guess. Good question for the vet. I really hope you don't see this, it looks awful! Thankfully it's treatable.

Aimee started her thyroid medication yesterday & it takes a few weeks for levels to build. I'll keep you posted about whether all or some of her hearing returns...allowing for that to happen!

Faune,
It depends on the breed of dog, since small dogs become "geriatric" at a different rate than a giant breed dog. Since the smaller breeds may live to be 15 and beyond, 10 or 12 is about the "geriatric" age. Since some giant breeds only live to be 8-10 yrs old, 5 or 6 might be considered "geriatric". (I think that is why the pet food industry makes senior food for those dogs and cats over 7.)

In my years of working in both private veterinary practice and emergency veterinary medicine, I have seen many cases of vestibular syndrome. It can hit younger dogs as well if they have some sort of inner ear infection going on.

One of the drugs we used was dramamine to help them feel more normal. The thing you need to be mindful of is that sometimes these guys get so dizzy that they won't eat, and vomit frequently. So, I have seen some that needed to be hospitalized on IV fluids and IV medications until the nausea associated with the dizziness abated and they could eat. Otherwise, giving them oral medications is kind of futile if they can't keep the food or medicine down. Plus, you don't want to increase the vomiting possibility by forcing a pill down them if their body says "NO WAY!"

So, just some things to keep in mind. Thanks for the good info Ali! Glad the QT helped.

Thanks Ali and Jen for the information gratefully received.
It all sounds a bit like Menieres in humans.

Thanks again
Love & light
Faune