Frankie Is Safe Part II

Frankie

Frankie and Walter were rescued from two different animal shelters. We thought both were one step closer to their forever home, Walter was, but Frankie wasn't. Frankie had been adopted and returned to the animal shelter. Why? The adopter stated he had had a seizure. No additional information was shared.

Unsure what to make of the adopter's comment when they returned Frankie, California GSP Rescue wanted to make sure he was OK and healthy. While he appeared healthy and behaved like a typical German Shorthaired Pointer pup, Dr. Kang would need to examine and check him over.

California GSP Rescue made an appointment for Dr. Kang to see Frankie. There they took blood, and labs were done. Dr. Kang carefully examined Frankie, and the lab work came back normal. Dr. Kang surmised that he may have had a seizure, but he might never have another. If he had another within a month or once a month, it could be epilepsy, and he would need to be prescribed phenobarbital. Dr. Kang said to take him home and watch him.

Frankie was doing great. He was playful and vocal - he likes to talk and tell you what he wants. Nothing was out of the ordinary until later that same week when Frankie had a seizure.

We called Dr. Kang, who said to get him on phenobarbital immediately. Frankie appeared to stabilize, but the next day he had another seizure. Volunteer Lisa picked up the prescription. Again he seemed to be stabilized. Volunteers Nancy and Dan agreed to take him home to monitor him but soon realized he needed medical attention after he had several seizures over the next several hours.

Nancy and Dan took Frankie to an Animal Hospital, where he spent the night. There he received an IV with phenobarbital that stopped the seizures. The next day, Nancy and Dan picked him up. Frankie was out of it. While he was stabilized and not having any more seizures, he had very little body control. Nancy and Dan watched him and waited to see if Frankie would return to normal. It was too early to tell if he would suffer any brain damage.

Day by day, Frankie slowly improved. Each day he seemed to make a little progress. Over the next several days, he regained muscle control and learned to walk again. However, it was almost a week later when Nancy and Dan knew he didn't have any brain damage. He had begun talking to them, telling them when he wanted something. He was behaving like a typical young German Shorthaired Pointer! Frankie was safe and back to normal!

Frankie will be on phenobarbital for the rest of his life. However, the three different Vets that examined him independently said he could live a normal life. Like most young GSP’s, he needs a family that can give him the exercise and training he needs as he is young and has a lot of energy! If you are interested in adopting, please submit an application . If you are interested in helping support our efforts, please consider making a donation, or, better yet, become a Rescue Hero

Walter