Phenobarbital

Question
I have a Doberman that will be 12yrs old soon. She has been on Anipryl 30mg and Deramaxx 100mg for about a year now. She has been doing very well until December 28,2004 when she had her first seizure followed by another on January 8. Our vet did blood work, came back normal. Our vet gave us Phenobarbital, 1gr two times daily. My question is, I am a little afraid to give her these pills because of all the other meds she is on. Do you think that a dog should be put on Phenobarital after only having 2 seizures? Thank-You  Tami Good

Answer
Hi Tami!
I would definitely discuss the mix of these medications with your veterinarian.  Some side effects may occur, but perhaps the dosages are low enough that there would be no problem.  A discussion with your veterinarian is needed.
As for the Phenobarbital.  Being that the seizures were close together, a seizure disorder may have developed, making Phenobarbital a good choice to control it.
Being that your dog is almost 12 years old, I would be concerned that a neurological problem may be causing these seizures, and a myelogram may be necessary to decifer why these seizures are occuring.  The Phenobarbital is masking the problem, but we still don't have an answer as to what is causing the problem.  Epilepsy tends to develop earlier in age.  A cause for seizures won't usually show up on bloodwork.  Sometimes there is a need to go further with other diagnostic procedures to figure out what is causing these symptoms.
I would definitely come in to contact with your veterinarian and see what else he/she would suggest.
I wish I could be of more help,
Hilary