[aerina519]

I have a 10 year old female German Shepherd, Jasmine, who is sick :( here is her story (sorry it's kind of long):

A few months ago I noticed she seemed to be drinking an excessive amount of water. I took her to the vet, they did blood work, and said everything was normal so I just chalked it off to being my imagination (since she turned 10 I realized she's not my little puppy anymore :( )

Then about 6 weeks ago she was lying on the floor and her hind legs were trembling, kind of like they were vibrating. It stopped once I started to pet her. About a week after that she had a full blown seizure - she fell over, thrashed around, her legs were stiff, and afterwards she was very disoriented - when we called her name she would look the other way and she seemed to not recognize us. So we went back to the vet for more blood work and again everything was normal. They said it could be epilepsy, but due to her age that was probably unlikely and they said to contact them immediately if she had any more seizures. A week after that we went to bed... she laid down for about a minute then got up and began pacing the room. She walked around and around and I could hear her licking her lips. She walked over to the bed and pressed her end against the edge of the mattress, and just stood there licking her lips. I called her up onto the bed and realized she was drooling... she laid on my pillows and wouldn't move no matter what I did (she is VERY obedient). She kept trying to lay down and go to sleep but she couldn't because it seemed she couldn't stop drooling and licking her lips. This lasted for about 25 minutes, and then she was fine. We went back to the vet, they suspected her liver, did more blood work, but again it came back normal. The vet told me that they have done every test they are able to do, and they ruled out everything except for her brain. They suspect a brain tumor but said there is no way for sure unless I take her to Colgate for an MRI and spinal tap which costs $5000 minimum. I love my dog very very much, I've had her since she was 9 weeks old, but I'm a single mom and I just can't afford that. She hasn't had any more seizures or strange episodes (she did fall down our back steps the other day but she's not hurt at all). My question is this... I came home from work 2 days ago and my bed was soaked in urine. I thought she was marking, because we had an incident a few months ago where the cat had an accident in the living room and in response Jasmine urinated on her bed and all over the floor that same day. Ever since then I've been finding puddles on her bed, on my couches, in the same 2 spots on the living room floor, and in my bed (she never had this problem until the cat marked on the floor). The vet said that since it started after the cat marked, and it only happened in certain spots, she was probably doing it on purpose. Well last night she slept in her usual spot on the floor next to my bed, and when we got up this morning I realized her back end was soaked in urine. So now I'm wondering if it is incontinence? And maybe the reason it only happens in certain spots is because those are the spots where she sleeps? Could this be linked to the potential brain tumor? I went and bought some diapers for her today, but they are the biggest any of the stores around here make, and they are much too small (she's a big girl at 91lbs). I'm ordering the next size up (XXL - the biggest I could find on the internet)... I'm just wondering if this could all be related? Does anyone know what else I can expect and possibly how much time I have with her? Other than these incidences and episodes she's perfectly fine, playful and happy as ever.

Any advice is greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Erin & Jas

[aerina519]

I'm sorry - correction: she pressed her "head" against the edge of the mattress.

[shazamataz]

This is a hard one, there are so many things that can cause both incontinence and seizures in an older dog.


My first thought when reading your story was a brain tumour. I can understand where you are coming from with the money situation though, I do tell a lot of people on here to simply find the money but in your case she is very old and it would not be recommended for her to have anaesthetic unless absolutely necessary (needed for an MRI)

Does she seem to be in pain at all or is it just the incontinence?

If it is a brain tumour or something similar then all you can do really is just keep her comfortable and watch for any signs of deterioration.

It is a completely personal decision but if it were my dog that is what I would do, I wouldn't want to put them through such extreme surgery at such an old age, I would just make them as comfortable as possible.

However that is worst case scenario, it may just be simple incontinence and the seizure/s may be totally unrelated.
I have a poodle here who has had 2 seizures and she also has incontinence, (however mine is only 2 years old) She is cleared of epilepsy and brain tumours and is a perfectly happy little girl other than those past 2 events.

I know this post isn't much consolation sorry but I do hope everything turns out OK for Jasmine.

[aerina519]

Thanks so much for your post... she isn't in any obvious pain at all, she still loves to play and wrestle with my daughter and the cats! The vet did mention that she would not be a good candidate for anestesia because of her age. I guess at this point what we'll do is just keep her happy and comfortable and watch for anything else. I have been thinking of taking her to an animal communicator just to make sure she happy and not in any pain... does anyone have any experience with this? Referrals?

Thanks again!

[shazamataz]

I personally haven't used one but hopefully someone who has can come on and answer this one for you..

If she is still happily playing and otherwise seems in good spirits then I would say you still have a fair bit of time with her.
Dogs always seem to know when there is something seriously wrong with them and in some cases will start to either distance themselves from their family by hiding or try to get extra close to you.

Years ago we had a little Shih Tzu who had liver failure, he seemed to know what was happening to him and would constantly hide under tables and try to keep away from us.

I am definitely no vet but from the sounds of it there isn't anything going on that is causing her any stress or pain at the moment.

Good luck and give her a big cuddle from me.

[aerina519]

Dogs always seem to know when there is something seriously wrong with them and in some cases will start to either distance themselves from their family by hiding or try to get extra close to you.

Yikes... she has been a little clingy these past couple of months. She sleeps upstairs now, but up until very recently, she would even go up the stairs at all.

But other than that she seems very happy.

[shazamataz]

I didn't mean to worry you, sorry, she might just not be feeling well with the incontinence :)