Hi, my poor 13 year old dog Lucy, is 4 days into a Vestibular Episode, for anyone that’s doesn’t know is a condition that affects nerves in the inner ear. The symptoms are quite frightening, we thought we were losing her to a stroke, she is still very disoriented, with her head tilting to one side, the eye flickering has lessoned.
She is happy now to go for short walks & is drinking water, but she will not eat at all.
I am wondering if any of you have experienced this condition in your own dogs?
Our vet, whom I trust completely, gave her an anti sickness jab & said it should clear up in 2 weeks & that was it.
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Sometimes it is small “stones” (crystals of something) in the inner ear. And then it may depend on what they eat or drink. Or it is just chance.
I have had it a bit. I could feel dizzy when I turned on my other side in bed 
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@pietkuip Yeah, we asked if it could be her food, but they said no, they confirmed that they are happy with her diet, so we don’t stray from it, because it’s varied, with a mix of wet & dry dog food, turkey mince, salmon & only natural & grain free treats. The biscuit she has is 2 gravy bones at bedtime, she also loves raw carrots & apple. She is in tip top shape.
It came on out of the blue, no warning. We heard her stumbling around about 5am Thursday, the vet says it probably Idiopathic ie age related. If she’s not back to normal in 2 weeks, then they will arrange more tests. This is Lucy, taken late last year.
I appreciate your thoughts 
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I’ve experienced this myself it’s called labyrinthitis it comes on suddenly and can be a post viral symptom. The hairs in the inner ear lose their hair tip crystals which help with balance and proprioception (knowing where you are in space). I woke up and thought I was having a stroke! It took 9 mths to recover. It affected my driving, bending down, and turning my head around quickly. I had physio exercises to do daily. I’ve no idea what these might translate to regarding dog anatomy. Anytime I have a virus now it comes back a little- I now know to rest/avoid caffeine/do the exercises and it goes quickly.
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The anatomy is quite similar in all mammals I think: three semicircular interconnected tubes filled with a liquid, next to the cochlea.
Yes: when bending down to tie shoelaces etc. I fell over once! But I knew what it was.
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Hi @LucyCharm Yes, my dog Gracie had two of these episodes, they are frightening indeed. She recovered fairly quickly from the first, but the second took longer. She wouldn’t eat for over a week. They experience fairly severe nausea and are fearful of vomiting. I eventually got her to start eating with spoonfuls of wet cat food, and each day she ate a bit more until I could transition her to her usual food. Recovery was very slow the second time, but that was a year ago and she is doing OK at 15. My friend’s dog had a very severe episode and the vet suggested euthanasia. My friend wanted to give her a chance, she didn’t walk or eat until about 2 weeks after, and had a permanent head tilt and lack of coordination, but she lived another couple of years to age 14. My dog’s head tilt and nystagmus resolved quickly both times. So considering your Lucy is going on short walks and is drinking only 4 days later, I feel confident she will recover fully. I used a harness to give her the stability/security too. I wish her a speedy recovery!
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@Hikergal
Thank you very much for sharing your experience, it has given us some much needed confidence that she will get through this.
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@BonnyinBrighton
Yes, I’ve had labyrinthitis & you’re right it’s horrible. In dogs the symptoms are similar, but more likened to vertigo. The cochlear nerve swells, along with up to 2 other nerves. It’s ideopathic, meaning it’s age related & sudden & as far as we know, there are no underlying problems.
I really appreciate your response, thank you
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Our old dog experienced this at the same age and it was frightening for her and for us. She was restless all night and staggered around knocking over things. (She was also wearing a cone at the time while a wound healed so that created a lot of havoc.) While the symptoms eventually more or less disappeared, she was never the same afterwards. She refused to spend the night indoors and slept in the grass outside the door even in the winter – sometimes in the morning we found her covered in snow, still asleep. Our cat (who spent the night outdoors as well) learned that if he jumped on her early in the morning she would bark and we’d come open the door. (We didn’t open the door when the cat meowed that early). So Praline began sleeping at the bottom of the meadow. She lived through two winters like this but we had to put her down at 16 when she was deaf, lame from arthritis and one morning we found her asleep on the road in front of the house. 
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@KChev
I’m so sorry to hear that your dog went the way it did 
Thank you for sharing your experience with us.
Thankfully, Lucy is improving a little every day. She is eating every day, not anywhere as much as she used too, but she is drinking, peeing & pooping, so all is good there. She still has the head tilt & looses her bearings, but she is now enjoying her walks again & playing with her toys, which is a joy to see.
Thank you to everyone for sharing your experience with me, I really appreciate it 
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