We nose huMom receives alot of question around the use of an anti seizure medication our fursister Olivia had taken for most of her life.

Good afternoon, Dot & Jerry Underfoot here to MeowNow about potassium bromide.

If your good dog is diagnosed with epilesy & is having seizures, vets often prescribe phenobarbital first. Potassium bromide will be added to control seizures that are not controlled by phenobarbital alone, or to  good dogs that do not tolerate phenobarbital well.

Potassium bromide is a medicine that works by calming the brain’s electrical activity, making seizures less likely to happen. You might hear it called by brand names like K-Bro Vet, Epilease, or Vetbromide. It usually comes as tablets, capsules, or a liquid that you give by mouth, often with food to keep your dog’s tummy happy.  Olivia took the liquid form twice daily or every 12 hours.  HuMom would use a syringe to saturate a food ball that Olivia gobbled up happily.

When your good dog starts on potassium bromide, your vet will figure out the right dose based on your good dog weight & how serious the seizures are. It’s impawtant to follow your vet’s instructions closely. The medicine can take a few week or even a few month to fully build up in your good dog’s system, so patience is key. Sometimes vets give a higher loading dose at the start to get it working faster, but that can cause more side effects.

Meowing of the side effects, your good dog might seem a little sleepy, wobbly, or thirsty at first. They may need to drink & pee more than usual, or even throw up sometimes. Some good dogs might get a bit more hungry or feel tired. In rare cases, there could be skin issues or other more serious reactions, so it’s wagnificently impawtant to keep in touch with your vet & let them know how your good dog is doing.

It is also impawtant to keep your good dog’s diet consistent, especially the salt content because changes can affect how the medicine works. Also, never stop the medication suddenly without checking with your vet since that could cause more seizures.

Overall, potassium bromide can be meowsome in helping to control seizures & in keeping your good dogs feeling better. Just make sure to work closely with your vet, watch for any side effects, & give wagnificent amounts of love & support to your Mighty Epilepsy Warrior during the process.

Also it is pawsitively impawtant to give this medication on schedule. Make a note of when you need refills & get them before you run out. Set a timer on your watch or phone to help remind you to give the medication on schedule. For reminders on refill pawscriptions or schedule bloodwork a calendar or daily journel that you look at everyday is helpful.  HuMom has a calendar where she keeps reminders on the refrigerator that she checks every morning.

If you miss a single dose of potassium bromide, skip this dose & resume the normal schedule as soon as you remember.
Potassium bromide or most anti seizure medications should be tapered before stopping. As always, please contact your good dog’s medical team before making changes to their medication.

Potassium bromide is eliminated by the kidneys & monitoring is difficult because it has a long elimination half life of 25 to 46 days.  HuMom always gave Olivia Kidney Tone & Liver Tone to help give her kidneys & liver a gentle cleanse every 3 to 4 months.  Omega Alpha supplements are suitable for both cats & dogs. Kidney Tone & Liver Tone are pawsitively easy to use & better absorbed due to their liquid formulation.  Olivia never had issues with either her kidneys or liver.

You may be asking, ‘How quickly does potassium bromide work?’  It may take 6 to 12 weeks before you see improved seizure control. Don’t become discouraged by this fact. Your good dog’s Vet will monitor blood levels 3 weeks & again 3-4 months after starting the medication. Once the bromide is working they may be able to decrease the dosage of other anti seizure medications your  good dog may be taking.

In addition we would like to MeowNow potassium bromide should be given with food.  Abruptly discontinuing potassium bromide can precipitate severe seizures.

In cats, over 1/3 of furbulous felines develop a severe asthma-like lung condition. Potassium bromide is not a good choice for seizure control for us cats.

Other impawtant notes are:

• Shake the liquid form well before use.
• Do not switch between liquid & tablets without dogscussing this with your veterinarian, as the medication can be absorbed differently in different forms.
• In general, the liquid form of the potassium bromide over the tablets is often recommended, as it seems to cause less GI side effects.
• Changes in salt content will change how your good dog’s body metabolizes this medication.
• Similarly, salty snacks or drinking ocean water can dangerously drop your good dog’s medication levels & should be avoided.  
• IV fluids can cause a sudden drop in blood levels of potassium bromide. It is pawsitively impawtant to discuss this with your veterinarian before any surgical procedures or hospitalizations.

Impawtant Information Regarding Potential Side Effects:

Many Canine Epilepsy Warriors will take this medication with no side effects, or a low level of tolerable side effects. Regular checkups & bloodwork ensure that your good dog is using this effective seizure medication safely. You should contact your good dog’s medical team if any side effect is excessive & interfering with your wooftastic dog’s quality of life.

• Many good dog’s will act sleepy or drunk while their body adjust to the medication. As we meowed earlier it can take 2 or pawsibly more weeks for some to adjust. If your good dog is especially uncoordinated, keep them away from things like swimming pools & staircases until they are more sure on their feet.
• Some puppers will be hungrier on this medication. Watch the amount of food they are eating. It may be helpful to switch them to a diet food so they can eat more food & not get fat. HuMom gave Olivia lots of low callorie snacks like carrots & cucumbers.  She loved them. It is also important to watch for inappropriate eating. Some dogs will start eating toys or getting into the garbage while they are on this medication.
• Increased thirst & urination is often seen with this medication. It is impawtant to have water available always. Keeping your good dog well-hydrated & allowing frequent business trips (urination) helps maintain the right balance of potassium bromide in their system & avoids complications related to overdose or toxicity.
• Some furleggers will vomit on this medication. This can often be remedied by giving half of the dose twice a day rather than a full dose once a day. If your furlegger is vomiting, dogscuss dividing the dose with your veterinarian.
• This medication has been associated with pancreatitis in some good dogs. Dogs with chronic pancreatitis may be better controlled with a different seizure medication.
• Your Canine Epilepsy Warrior’s chloride levels will read as high on most bloodwork. This is normal, & is simply the machine mistaking the bromide in the medication for the similar molecule chloride.

That was a lot to chew all at once.  Nose we will be adding this post to our Resource Page so you can find it again with ease.

If you have any questions we will do our pawsitively best to find the anwers.

 

Have a purrfect week!

Remember to be gnawsome, be kind & stay safe.

Dot & Jerry Underfoot😻 head boops 😻

                                  Remembering CEO Olivia & Eddy forever🐾💜🐾

 

 

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