Taurine and Canine Epilepsy

Health

Hello everyone, CEO Olivia here. A few days ago I had a unwelcome visit from the epi monster. However, I had gone 107 days without a seizure. That’s a good run for me. Several months ago my huMom added a supplement called Taurine to my diet. We think it is helping me keep the monster at bay.

Taurine is an amino acid & is considered to be a long-lasting anti convulsant. Low levels of Taurine has been observed in both human & canine epileptics. According to vetinfo.com, it has been speculated that puppies with low taurine levels may develop epilepsy.

Taurine is released during a seizure & has a protective effect on the brain (much like GABA) during the event. Since it’s an inhibitory compound, it allays seizures & can reduce their frequency.

Taurine also plays a role in regulating the levels of other amino acids. Since the levels of amino acids in epileptic dogs are often irregular, taurine supplements can be very beneficial for them.

By contrast, a diet deficient in taurine can lead to a higher frequency of seizures in a dog with epilepsy. Besides this, taurine is a metabolic transmitter that regulates the blood sugar levels. This is particularly important because incorrect levels of blood sugar is also related to a higher incidence of seizures.

Two things you should know before buying a Taurine supplement. Be sure to get capsules, not tablets, since tablets may have binding agents added. Be sure it’s 100% Taurine with nothing else added. As always, check with your vet before adding anything to your good dogs diet.

CEO Olivia ❤

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10 thoughts on “Taurine and Canine Epilepsy”

  1. Daniel K Warner's avatar

    My dog Violet, has had seizures since she was around a year and three months old. She would have seizures once every two weeks to a month, and sometimes they were cluster seizures. She was put on a keto diet, and given CBD oil, but her seizures continued. She was never given any anti-seizure medications. Then we stopped all vaccinations and flea medications, and amazingly she stopped having seizures. She was seizure free for almost three years, but a month ago she had a seizure and then another one a week ago. They were mild, but I’m stumped as to why after nearly three years is she having them again. I’m going to try taurine along with glycine and MCT oil to see what happens. She only has seizures at night when she’s sleeping, so I started giving her a little melatonin at night. Thank you Olivia!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Knotty Toys for Good Dogs's avatar

      Most seizure occur when we are at rest. There are studies that show break through seizures occur just as we move into sleep or just before waking. Sending you & your Epilepsy Warrior pawsitive energy & strength 💜nose nudges💜

      Like

  2. Mai's avatar

    Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge. When is the best daytime to give Taurine? We just received our capsules, but can’t find any information on best time to give. We also use multi vit, CBD, MCT and homeopathics, I guess Taurine should be given with time gap to all the other things.?. Thank you. Surrender’s mum.

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Cam's avatar

    Thanks so much for this info Olivia. I was searching for information on GABA and epilipsy for our 2 yr old Golden Retriever and chanced upon your article. Keen to try Taurine supplementation now for her. I’m just wondering what dosage information you use? Our vet is wonderful but hasn’t had experience with Taurine. Here in Australia it seems that most Taurine is sold as a powder rather than capsules (I think for fitness folks) however they are unflavoured and not cut with anything else so i assume still suitable. Thanks for any help.

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Monika's avatar

    My boy started having seizures when he turned 11 years old. I found information online which led me to use CBD oil, Taurine, SamE as supplements in addition to Gabapentin which the Vet subscriped for him. Our boy is also on a raw meat diet, where he gets chicken hearts and beef heart (high in Taurine) regularaly. He’s had since one seizure in 2022 and so far 1 seizure this year. He’s turned 13 now. He also has arthritis, had surgeries on both knees when he was 8. He’s on Boswellia/Turmeric supplement, as well as green lipped mussles. He gets dried sardines as treats. He’s 29kg, medium sized dog and other than the potential of seizure, and losing his hearing he’s in pretty good shape for his age. Next problem we encountered is that he’s sundowning. Restless during the night etc. Now I’m looking into what supplements could help with that, since he’s also robbing me of my sleep.

    Liked by 1 person

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