How I Want Owners to Track Dog Seizures (A Vet's Practical Guide)

This is a practical guide on how to document your dog's seizures in a way that is actually useful at the clinic. If you want the background of what canine epilepsy is and how it is diagnosed, I recommend reading our Canine Epilepsy 101 article first. This one is about the part the owner controls: The log.

To be honest: When I evaluate an already diagnosed epileptic patient, the owner's seizure log often influences my decisions more than my own examination does. Whether to start medication, whether a dose is working, whether we need to escalate: all depends on seizure frequency and pattern over time. A dog that seizes once every four months is managed very differently from a dog that has cluster seizures monthly, and the only way I can know which dog is in front of me is if someone remembers - or if someone wrote it down.

What to record for every seizure

• Date and Time. Time-of-day patterns are common and relevant.

• Duration. In the moment most owners overestimate.

• Type: Single seizure vs cluster seizure (several within 24h)? Was it generalized (whole body convulsions) or focal (twitching, 'fly biting', odd behaviour)?

• Video: 10 seconds of video tells a neurologist more than a full page of description.

• Context: What happened in the hours before (excitement, sleep, missed meal, missed meds), and how long the recovery took.

NOTE: A seizure lasting more than 5 minutes, several seizures without full recovery in between, or a first-ever seizure are all reasons to seek veterinary care immediately.

Why regularity matters

Some epileptic dogs are surprisingly regular. If your dog seizes every 25-35 days, that is valuable information. It means the next one is roughly knowable, so you can plan accordingly inside that window, keep rescue meds at hand, and you are mentally prepared. It also gives us a clean baseline: If the intervals start shortening, I want to review the medication. If it holds steady or lengthens, the treatment is likely doing its job.

How i suggest keeping the log

Paper works, and some of my clients do use a notebook. The problem is that it does not calculate anything, and it (often) stays at home when you visit the clinic. PetVitality's seizure tracker was built for this exact workflow: Each entry takes just a few seconds to log, there's an in-built timer, you can attach video, and the app calculates the seizure-free streak, a regularity score, and an estimated window for the next seizure once there is enough data. Before a consultation you can export the whole history as a PDF, which is honestly the format I wish every owner brought me.

Whatever tool you choose, the principles remain the same

• Log every seizure, including the 'small' focal ones. They count.

• Log as soon as possible after the event, while details are fresh.

• Never stop logging because things are going well. The quiet periods are data too.

Epilepsy is a marathon, and most epileptic dogs live good lives once treatment is dialed in. The log will be your contribution to getting it dialed in faster. Keep it simple, accurate, and bring it to every appointment.

- Fred from PetVitality