Seizure Dogs

The reasons to have a dog just keep growing. The latest is the news that certain dogs can detect when their owner is about to suffer an epileptic seizure…
A few weeks ago, Dog Diaries reported on dogs who ‘sniff out’ cancer in people, saving lives in the process. But that’s not the end of our faithful friends’ medical condition-sensing ability. There is also plenty of evidence to suggest that certain dogs can respond to the signs of an epileptic seizure before any outward symptoms are shown, making them a valuable asset to people suffering from the disease.

The reasons to have a dog just keep building up, and this is no exception. After a series of reports about people with epilepsy who owned dogs that could ‘sense’ an oncoming seizures, extensive research into the subject was conducted. Despite this, scientists remain baffled as to how it is done. One theory is that the body produces differing levels of chemicals when it is about to suffer a seizure, and the superior olfactory senses of dogs alert them to the scent of these chemicals.

Born heroes
Interestingly, trainers and researchers have found that a dog cannot be trained to react to an oncoming seizure. They can be trained to respond with care by helping the sufferer to lie down safely, even to dial a special emergency button with their paws, but the ability to react in a way that alerts humans is something a dog is born with. It is not dependent upon breed, age or gender, but, it is suggested, on temperament.

Michael Goehring, of the Great Plains Assistance Dogs Foundation in the US, which trains about two seizure alert dogs per year, agrees that dogs need to have a temperament conducive to alerting.

‘Every dog can [alert], but not every dog cares to,’ he says. ‘They all detect seizures, but not all respond appropriately.’

A very ‘independent’ dog, Mr Goehring says, ‘may pick up on a seizure, but won’t feel any innate obligation towards helping the person.’ In contrast, ‘a super-submissive dog will react very dramatically by stressing and panting, but they are doing that out of concern for themselves, and we don’t want a dog to feel stress every time there’s a seizure,’ he said.

Images by pets.webmd.com