Concussion care for dogs

Question
After accidentally hitting my dog with my car this morning, my vet diagnosed him with a concussion ( he had bleeding from his ears and erratic eye movements). He spent the day at the vet and had a dose of cortisone and is now home. He ia acting responsively to us, but lethargic and panting from time to time. We walks, but is a little wobbly.  Is this normal post-concussion behavior normal? Will he worsen or are we in the clear?
my family and love him so much and I am devasted by the accident!

Answer
This is pretty normal behavior post-concussion but I am sure your veterinarian gave you instructions to watch out for him. Panting is from the steroids most likely- they can cause a dog to have flashes almost like hot flashes if given a large enough dose.

As long as his eyes are not still moving back and forth (nystagmus) then he should be fine. Nystagmus is a symptom of brain dysfunction and should be watched for.

The lethargy is also normal and is a good thing because he needs to rest- not be up moving about.

I can't tell you if he is in the clear. If his symptoms worsen then you need to call your vet immediately. If they gave you some printed instructions then read them over again. It is hard to absorb anything the vet tells you in the moment as you are too stressed to remember it. A good vet knows this and should provide some written instructions for you to read later.

Again, if his symptoms worsen, then call your vet. If it were my dog I would be up at 3 am checking on him!!

I am sure the vet wouldn't have sent him home if he was worse than what he is.
So check on him later, call the vet if he gets worse and be grateful you both got a second chance!!

Please let me know how he does.