Paralysis upon Awakening - What's going on?

[Cynthia B]

Vet has no idea.

Dog has the run of the house when I am at work; in the summer the back door is locked open just far enough for him to squeeze his narrow hips through, so he has access to my securely-fenced 2/3 acre as well.  Usually he's bouncing up and down woo-wooing when I get home from work.  Or staring through the front window with his ears as far up as he can get them.

The other day when I came home from work, he was sleeping in his (doorless) kennel, but he couldn't get up.  He struggled briefly, then gave me that worried "I've-fallen-and-I-can't-get-up" look.

I put the kennel door on & my neighbour and I carried the kennel, dog and all, out to the van and we went to Emergency.  By the time we got there, he seemed to be fine.

Later I remembered that this is not the first time this has happened.  The first time, I just had time to say, "Dwyn, you're scaring me" and he pulled himself together.

Epilepsy?  Sleep paralysis?  Heart?  Next time I will check his gums for perfusion (shock), but I didn't think of it at the time.

Any other ideas?

[silvia]

ah ok, so may be compatible with absences.... i hope you find out soon.. (or that it woudnt happen again of course, so you can just forget!!)

[Gaby Clayton]

absences lasted a few minutes and then he seemed to bump into things for a while after and have difficulty walking :(

[Cornelia]

Hi Cynthia, Have you or your vet checked for cataplexy in dogs? Have a look here:

http://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/neurological/c_multi_narcolepsy...

Quotes from the above link:

"Narcoleptic and cataplectic episodes can last from several seconds up to 30 minutes,"

"During a cataplectic episode, the dog is in a paralyzed state, although its eyes remain open, and it has control over its eye movement. The dog remains aware and conscious of what is going on around it during this type of episode. Typically, the dog will come out of an episode in response to other external stimuli, such as when it hears loud sounds, or when it is petted."

[silvia]

interesting.. sleep paralysis, mentioned by cynthia, may also be related to narcolepsy..

[Cynthia B]

Fascinating!  

"During a cataplectic episode, the dog is in a paralyzed state, although its eyes remain open, and it has control over its eye movement. The dog remains aware and conscious of what is going on around it during this type of episode. Typically, the dog will come out of an episode in response to other external stimuli, such as when it hears loud sounds, or when it is petted."

That sounds EXACTLY like it.  He's FINE once he wakes up.  No fear, no confusion, no bumping into things.  

It's SO reassuring to have you guys out there with your centuries of experience!!!

[Howard Glansfield]

I hope you have found the answer.I had a dog that was behaving in a similar way and she was diagnosed with epilepsy but the attacks didn't happen often.She was about eight.She was put on a low dose of Phenobarbitol and was greatly improved.

[Cynthia B]

Thx. I'll be keeping that in mind as I monitor him. I don't believe he needs it right now--but the moment I do, we'll be following up with the vet.