<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;" class="">Kara,<div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">IF you’ve not googled Zonisamide, it appears that it is a relatively </div><div class="">new drug used in dogs for seizures and it mentions that they may </div><div class="">not be aware of all side effects. I would take Rooney off of the </div><div class="">Zonisamide and see if that helps and I would call my vet and let </div><div class="">him or her know what is going on. This drug is used in addition to </div><div class="">other seizure drugs like phenobarbital and potassium bromide or </div><div class="">instead of those drugs. Personally, with this behavior, I’d want to </div><div class="">try the standard drugs to see if they work better for Rooney. </div><div class="">Phenobarbital does affect the liver and after about 10 years on it, </div><div class="">my Gracie, who had seizures starting at 2 1/2 years old, had high </div><div class="">liver numbers and we switched her to Keppra (there is a generic </div><div class="">which is not terribly cost prohibitive). She did very well on the Keppra </div><div class="">and potassium bromide and was seizure free for the last couple of </div><div class="">years of her life. We lost her in Feb. of this year so this is pretty </div><div class="">recent information. </div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">Gracie was put on potassium bromide after her second seizure and </div><div class="">when she had a third, milder seizure a week later, the phenobarbital </div><div class="">was added. We were very lucky with Gracie as her seizures were </div><div class="">generally well controlled with medication. At one point the blood</div><div class="">work told us she could come off the phenobarbital, but after being</div><div class="">off of it for several months, she had cluster seizures and went right</div><div class="">back on it. </div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">If I were to have another dog with seizures that required medication,</div><div class="">I would opt for the Keppra (generic is levetiracetam) as it seemed</div><div class="">to me that Gracie felt a lot better on that than on the phenobarbital.</div><div class="">Search levetiracetam on <a href="http://www.goodrx.com" class="">www.goodrx.com</a> for the best price in your</div><div class="">area and call around to drug stores that are not listed, as well as</div><div class="">check some of the REPUTABLE online pharmacies. I got it at </div><div class="">Costco at a good price but then found a local pharmacy had </div><div class="">a better price (it was a Healthmart). Potassium bromide can be</div><div class="">used with the Keppra and we continued that medication also.</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">I know several people who have had hounds with seizures with</div><div class="">totally different scenarios so each hound is different. You may</div><div class="">want to see the neurologist to determine why Rooney is having</div><div class="">seizures although I don’t know anyone else with a seizure</div><div class="">dog that has seen one. I guess in some cases it might be of</div><div class="">benefit but my vet felt that in Gracie’s case, we wouldn’t </div><div class="">be able to change anything anyway, </div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">There is also a web site that would be helpful to you - </div><div class=""><a href="http://www.canine-epilepsy.com" class="">www.canine-epilepsy.com</a> Be sure and check it out.</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">I wish Rooney and you the best and hope you can find</div><div class="">something that will work well for him.</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">Donna, drool fueler for Bosley and Sunny</div><div class=""><a href="mailto:dlindy@mac.com" class="">dlindy@mac.com</a></div><div class=""><span style="color: rgb(30, 125, 131); font-family: 'helvetica neue', helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 17.003999710083008px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class=""><br class=""></span></div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><br class=""></div></body></html>