Seizures in Dogs: What to Do During and After a Seizure

The two things that feel most caring are the two to avoid. Holding your dog close to calm them, and reaching into the mouth to protect the tongue, both come from a good place. Cornell is clear that dogs do not swallow their tongues during a seizure, and that the jaw can clamp down hard and without warning, which causes severe bites. Holding your dog down does not end the seizure either. It can injure your dog, and it can injure you.

So, keep your hands back and do this instead:

1. Start a timer. Note the exact time it began. Your phone's stopwatch is fine. Seconds feel like minutes during a seizure, and the real number decides what happens next.
2. Clear the space around your dog. Move chairs, table edges and other objects away rather than moving the dog. Only move your dog if the spot itself is dangerous, such as the top of stairs, next to a pool, or near a fireplace.
3. Make the room calm. Dim the lights, turn off the TV, and keep children and other pets out of the room.
4. Put nothing in the mouth. That means no fingers, no objects, no food, no water and no medicine. Do not pull the tongue.
5. Record video if you can do it safely. Film from a distance, never near the mouth. A short clip helps your veterinarian tell what kind of event this was.
6. Stay put unless waiting is dangerous. Cornell advises against driving with a dog who is actively seizing unless an emergency veterinarian tells you to. Call the clinic while you keep timing.

Many people search for how to stop a dog's seizure immediately. The honest answer is that you cannot stop it at home with first aid. Veterinary teams use injected drugs such as diazepam or midazolam for emergency seizure control, according to the ACVIM consensus statement on seizure management. Some dogs already diagnosed with epilepsy have a rescue plan their veterinarian prescribed for home use; if your dog has one, follow it exactly as written. For everyone else, the timer, a safe space and a phone call are what you have, and they matter.

The five-minute rule is the one to hold onto. The ACVIM consensus statement defines a seizure lasting five minutes or longer as status epilepticus, meaning seizure activity that does not stop on its own. Cornell's advice is direct: if your dog has been seizing for more than five minutes, go to the veterinary clinic immediately. Prolonged seizures can drive body temperature dangerously high and can cause brain injury and death, per the Merck Veterinary Manual and Cornell.

Seizures that come close together are the other big warning. Veterinarians call these cluster seizures. Cornell describes multiple seizures in 24 hours as a medical emergency, while the ACVIM statement uses three or more generalized seizures in 24 hours as a treatment threshold. Because the definitions differ a little, treat any second seizure in the same day as a reason to call an emergency clinic, especially if your dog has not gotten back toward normal.

Call an emergency clinic now if you see any of these:

• A seizure lasting five minutes or more.
• A second seizure before your dog has recovered from the first.
• More than one seizure in 24 hours.
• Continuous or nearly continuous seizure activity.
• Your dog does not regain consciousness or respond to you.
• Trouble breathing, severe overheating, a serious injury, collapse, or a possible poison.
• A new seizure in a very young, elderly, pregnant or already sick dog.
• A dog already treated for epilepsy who has an unusually severe seizure or a big change in pattern.

You can look up emergency veterinarians near you in our directory. I'd do that today, before you need it again, and save the number in your phone.

A possible poison changes the plan. Xylitol from sugar-free gum and baked goods, chocolate, coffee and caffeine products, some rat and mouse baits, certain insecticides, human medications and some wild mushrooms can all cause tremors or seizures, according to the ASPCA and the Pet Poison Helpline. If your dog seized and you think they got into something, it is an emergency. Bring the package, the ingredient list or the bait label with you, and call a veterinarian or poison service on the way. Do not make your dog vomit unless a veterinarian or poison-control professional specifically tells you to. Our entries on whether dogs can eat chocolate, coffee and mushrooms go into each food, and the Dog Toxin Dose Checker can help you understand an exposure later. Neither one replaces that phone call when your dog has seized.

If your dog has had seizures before and always came out fine, that history matters, but it is not proof that this one is safe. Cornell notes that some dogs with epilepsy have infrequent, brief seizures. The pattern stops being reassuring when a seizure runs longer, seizures come closer together, recovery is slower or rougher than usual, or a missed dose or possible toxin is involved.

The period right after a seizure is called the post-ictal phase. Cornell lists what it can look like: confusion, sleepiness, restlessness, stumbling, temporary blindness, unusual hunger or thirst, whining, anxiety, and sometimes aggression. It can last minutes or hours. Some dogs bounce back fast, and others seem off for up to 24 hours.

That aggression piece is worth knowing ahead of time. A dog who cannot see well and does not know where they are may snap at the person they love most. It is not a behavior problem, and it is not the moment for training. Approach slowly, speak softly, and give your dog room.

While your dog recovers:

• Keep them in a quiet, closed area away from stairs, pools, the street, children and other animals.
• Offer water only once they are alert enough to swallow normally. Do not force food or water.
• Hold off on walks and outdoor time until your dog is alert and steady, and keep them on a leash when you go out.
• Watch breathing, whether they respond to you, whether they can stand, and whether each hour looks a little better than the last.

Call a veterinarian promptly if your dog is not steadily improving, stays very confused or blind for many hours, cannot stand, has trouble breathing, seems injured, has another seizure, or still has recovery signs after 24 hours. The ACVIM statement treats a prolonged, severe or unusual recovery as one of the reasons to consider medication and more testing. Even when the seizure was short and your dog looks normal again, a first seizure still needs a veterinary visit.

Your vet was not in the room, so you are the witness. Good notes and a short video often tell them more than any single test. Start a seizure diary with the first event and keep it going. Based on the ACVIM and Cornell guidance, write down:

• The date and the exact start and stop times, plus how long it lasted.
• What your dog was doing just before it began.
• Signs in one part of the body, such as face twitching, snapping, staring or a single limb moving.
• Whether your dog seemed to lose consciousness.
• Whole-body movements, peeing, pooping, vocalizing and changes in breathing.
• Anything that might have set it off: illness, poor sleep, heat, a missed dose, or a possible toxin.
• How many seizures happened in 24 hours and whether your dog recovered between them.
• What recovery looked like and how long it took.
• Any medication, its schedule, missed doses, side effects and rescue medication used.
• Video, when you could get it safely.

Also tell your vet about every health condition your dog has and every medication or supplement they get.

One seizure does not mean your dog has epilepsy. The International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force explains that idiopathic epilepsy, the kind with no cause that can be found, is diagnosed only after recurrent seizures and after other causes have been ruled out. Book a visit with your regular veterinarian after any first seizure, even if it ended quickly.

Veterinarians look at three broad groups of causes. The first is idiopathic epilepsy. The second is a problem outside the brain, such as low blood sugar, electrolyte trouble, liver or kidney disease, a toxin, or certain infections. The third is disease in the brain itself, such as a tumor, inflammation, infection, a birth defect, head trauma or a blood vessel problem. Low blood sugar also comes up in dogs with diabetes, which our diabetes article covers.

Age is a strong clue. Cornell notes that dogs under one year are more likely to have a birth defect, a poisoning or an infection such as distemper. The Task Force reports that idiopathic epilepsy is more likely when seizures start between six months and six years of age, the dog is normal between seizures, and basic blood and urine tests come back normal. Breed can be another clue, since some breeds have an inherited tendency, but it is a clue and not a diagnosis.

Not every tremor or collapse is a seizure, and not every seizure is epilepsy. Toxins can cause tremors, and other problems can cause collapse or confusion. This is where your video earns its keep.

A typical first workup includes a detailed history, a physical and neurological exam, a complete blood count, a blood chemistry panel with glucose, electrolytes, kidney and liver values, and a urinalysis. Depending on what turns up, your vet may add liver function tests, infection or toxin tests, or hormone tests. According to the Task Force, MRI of the brain and a spinal fluid test are especially recommended when seizures start very young or later in life, the neurological exam is abnormal between seizures, the first event was a long seizure or a cluster, or medication stops working.

Cost is a fair question. I could not find a reliable national price for 2026. One older example is from Purdue University's veterinary teaching hospital, which listed a seizure workup with MRI and spinal fluid collection at roughly $2,200 to $2,700 in 2021, and roughly $2,700 to $3,200 as an emergency. Treat that as a historical example from one hospital, not a quote. Ask your own clinic for an estimate before each step.

Not every dog who has a seizure needs daily medication. The ACVIM statement lists situations where treatment is supported: a brain lesion or earlier brain disease, a seizure of five minutes or more, three or more seizures in 24 hours, two or more seizures within six months, or a prolonged or severe recovery. Cornell adds that some dogs with idiopathic epilepsy do not need treatment at first, depending on how often and how badly they seize.

Drugs veterinarians commonly use include phenobarbital, potassium bromide, levetiracetam and zonisamide. I'm naming them so you recognize them, not to suggest one. Never start, stop, combine or change a seizure drug without your veterinarian, because stopping suddenly can make seizures worse. Once treatment starts, it is often lifelong, with regular exams, bloodwork, liver checks where relevant, and blood level tests for some drugs. Medication lowers the number of seizures, but it does not promise a seizure-free future.

You may have heard about CBD. A 2023 study by Rozental and colleagues looked at it as an add-on for dogs whose epilepsy resisted standard drugs, and the canine evidence overall remains limited and mixed. Nothing I found supports CBD as a replacement for prescribed medication. Ask your vet before adding it.

The outlook depends on the cause, how often seizures happen, the age they started, whether there is brain disease, and how well your dog responds to medication. Cornell reports that about 20% of dogs may need more than one drug to control their seizures. The Merck Veterinary Manual reports that about one-third of dogs with idiopathic epilepsy may resist multiple drugs. Those figures come from different sources and groups of dogs, so they are not one combined number.

Long-term costs can include repeat exams, blood tests, prescriptions, emergency visits, hospital stays, a veterinary neurologist, MRI and rescue medication. Prices vary too much by location and drug to give a fair monthly figure. Questions I'd bring to your vet:

• What do you think is causing the seizures, and how sure are you?
• Does my dog need medication now, or should we watch and keep a diary?
• What blood tests will we need, and how often?
• What should I do at home if a seizure starts, and when should I leave for the clinic?
• What will the next steps cost, and are there options at different price points?
• How will we judge my dog's quality of life over time?

That last question is also where the hardest conversation belongs. If seizures become hard to control, quality of life and end-of-life decisions are something to work through with your own veterinarian, who knows your dog.

Toxins, low blood sugar, liver disease, infections, brain disease and idiopathic epilepsy can all cause seizures, per the Merck Veterinary Manual. In dogs with known epilepsy, the seizure diary fields that Cornell and ACVIM guidance point to include illness, disrupted sleep, heat and missed medication as possible triggers. Logging these over time helps your vet find a pattern.

Not every seizure involves the whole body. Signs can include repeated face twitching, snapping at things that are not there, staring, one limb moving, or a short spell where your dog does not respond. Cornell guidance supports booking a vet visit soon when these new signs show up, even if they pass quickly.

Veterinarians use "focal" for seizure signs limited to part of the body, like twitching in the face or movement in one leg, sometimes with staring or brief unresponsiveness. Note them in your seizure diary whenever they happen. A video is the best way to show your vet what you saw.

Avoid fingers or objects in the mouth, pulling the tongue, holding your dog down, and giving food, water, supplements, CBD or medicine. Also avoid waiting through repeat seizures just because an earlier one ended safely, and avoid inducing vomiting after a possible poisoning unless a professional tells you to, per the ASPCA.

The research I used does not cover diet for seizure control, so I won't guess. Ask your veterinarian before switching to a homemade diet, and mention any food change when you review your dog's seizure diary together.

If your dog just had a first seizure and seems to be recovering, call your veterinarian today and describe what happened, using your timer and video. If a seizure passed five minutes, a second one came, or your dog is not coming back to normal, go to an emergency clinic now and call ahead.

Then do three things while it is calm. Save the ASPCA (888) 426-4435 and Pet Poison Helpline (855) 764-7661 numbers in your phone. Find the closest emergency veterinarian and save that number too. And start a seizure diary. If a walker, groomer or family member ever cares for your dog, give them the five-minute rule and the hands-off rule so they know what to do if it happens on their watch.

• academic.oup.com: ACVIM consensus statement on seizure management
• ASPCA: ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center
• ASPCA: ASPCA
• Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine: Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine
• Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine: Cornell
• Merck Veterinary Manual: Merck Veterinary Manual
• onlinelibrary.wiley.com: Rozental and colleagues
• Pet Poison Helpline: Pet Poison Helpline
• PubMed Central: International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force
• vet.purdue.edu: Purdue University's veterinary teaching hospital