Update

I am going to share our experience as Henry gets used to his Phenobarbital so others can know what to expect when starting their dog on Phenobarbiital. Keep in mind, it can vary for each dog. I believe part of how Henry is doing today is damage caused by his recent cluster that he is not finished recovering from yet.

The ataxia from the Phenobarbital has started. He fell twice today. This is something that is expected improve over the next few weeks/months. He is also restless and rooing quite a bit. His last Valium dose was Tuesday morning at 2:45 am. Tuesday night we slept through the night. Last night he was pacing alot and rooing and crying, so we brought him up in our bed and he slept much better after that.

Every day will be a little better.

Henry was throwing up every day, but has stopped. We are foregoing the Potassium Bromide, at least for now, and going with the higher dose of Phenobarbital. The Potassium Bromide wasn't going to kick in for awhile anyways, and the vet was planning to wean Henry off the Potassium Bromide later, and with Henry's sensitive tummy, we have just decided to forego it for now.

When your pet is on a lifesaving addictive med like Phenobarbital, measures must be taken to make sure a dose is NEVER missed. We have programmed into our phones, the phone # of 3 different pet sitters as a back up. If it has been to long since a pet sitter has been by, we have her visit for a bit, especially as Henry scares easy.

And about Valium, I hear many others who have dogs with epilepsy, saying their dogs did not respond well to the Valium and they even felt the side effects of the Valium were worse than the seizure. It seems to be on a case by case basis on how your dog does on it. Henry responds extremely well to the Valium and we are VERY glad for Valium and will ALWAYS have Valium on hand.

Something I like about Phenobarbital, you can give your dog an extra dose after a Grand-mal, and it helps prevent another Grand-Mal from coming on.