Overtime...

I think most of you know that I am a HUGE sports fan, especially football, but this post has nothing to do with sports despite the title.

I am in overtime with Humphrey.

One of my favorite pictures of Humphrey

Three weeks ago, today, Humphrey was getting off the couch on his pet stairs (we'll discuss how spoiled he is at a later date) when he suddenly seized up.  I immediately knew what it was having seen seizures in my brother.  Humphrey jerked and his eyes rolled back into his head and lost control of his bladder.  I had a brief moment of control and timed the event, because in my heart this seemed like it was going on forever. Reality shows the seizure lasted just over a minute.  When it was finally over, I was not even sure he survived the seizure.  It was absolutely terrifying.  I laid down on the floor with him to make sure he was breathing and to give both of us some comfort.

A phone call to the vet was next.  An appointment two hours later was made when they squeezed us in between other appointments.  During those two hours, I began to mentally prepare myself that this was then end.  It was brutal.  I think I cried for almost the entire time.  Humphrey was breathing, but that is about all I could say at this point.  He did not respond to his name.  He looked confused and out of it.  After about an hour, he attempted to stand up and needed some help.  He had very little control over his body.  My heart broke once again.  I could tell he needed to go to the bathroom, but he had no idea where to go.  Bacall and I led him out to the backyard and Humphrey followed out of love and trust.  We led him back in, because he did not know to come back inside.

His heart was beating, but it was like Humphrey, as I knew him, was gone.

It was finally time for the appointment, and I loaded up the dogs and went to the vet.  Bacall would not leave Humphrey's side, so she had to go, too..  She was all excited until she realized that we were at the vet, then I had two worrywarts at the vet.  Me and Bacall.

The first thing Dr. Gold did was calm me down.  He was actually pretty excited that Humphrey could walk in (it was a good sign).  I learned that seizures in dogs are more common that I had previously thought and more importantly, it was not a death sentence.  Epilepsy is even seen in dogs and with medication can be managed like it is in humans.  Whew.

The next thing that happened was that I learned I was in a 24, then a 48 hour window, before we decided anything.  Seizures can take up to 48 hours to recover from in dogs.  No medication was dispensed and we were sent home.

Humphrey was still out of it and it ended up being a very long 24 hours.  He had to be led outside when he would stand up, due to the fact, he did not remember how to go outside.  When he got outside, he would do his business and then just lay outside.  The temperatures that night were near freezing.  Bacall would go out and bark at him and nag him back inside.  During that long night, Bacall became a great sister to H.  She took care of him, worried about him, and for once did not challenge him in any way.

We made it thru the night and I called the vet to give an update.  Humphrey was starting to recognize his name and seemed a little more with it.

I was to call after another 24 hours.... the very important 48 hour mark.  Night two went better and he was starting to want food and snacks.  (A key indicator in Humphrey is whether he wants food, if he doesn't, you know something major is up)

By the end of 48 hours, I was no long having to escort him in and out to the bathroom; he responded to his name and could walk well, slowly, but well.

Humphrey was all the way back.

Whew.

Another phone call to the vet......
We now need to go 30 days without another seizure.  If he does have one within the 30 day window, he will most likely go on medication.  The vet's main concern is that Humphrey is 10 years old and seizures, especially major ones like he had, are hard to recover from.  I understood.....

I am in overtime with Humphrey.
We have had a AMAZING time during regulation and I got bonus time.
To cherish.
To enjoy.

He is a bundle of love.  He is happy.  He is not in pain.

He is, however, weaker than he was before the seizure.  He sleeps a bit more.  His walks take longer, but he still wants to go.  His back legs, sometimes, take a little bit to get going when he stands up.

We have a week to go before the 30 day mark.  I hope he makes it without another seizure.
But if he does, we'll get thru it and make the best decisions for him.

A dog lover....
Melissa