# Lamb with seizures - Help!



## StockDogLovr

I have a lamb who is 3 weeks old or so and has been healthy up until today, when I observed him having a seizure. After the seizure, he acted like he couldn't see, and was crying for his mom but couldn't see the herd to find her. I was able to walk up to him. Even when the herd came up to him and his mom was near him, he didn't recognize her and kept crying and pacing around frantically. A visitor said she saw he seemed to have another seizure. When we were examining him, he seemed to spook away from us with quick movements, so there was some vision, but he was still unable to find his mom. I am very worried that we will have to put him down. He's fat and healthy otherwise, a real shame. 

Has anyone seen such a thing? The herd has been on pasture exclusively but I'm pretty sure there aren't any poisonous plants. There are rattlesnakes but I haven't seen any out in that pasture and didn't find any bites that I could tell. I thought maybe he looked swollen around the eyes. 

Any ideas?!!


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## Ross

Fever is the thing to check for first and get some thiamin or a large dose of B complex into him. Might need a vet to dose pen G and dexamethasone sounds like an infection.


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## StockDogLovr

I went out to take his temperature, and he was back with his mom and sister, going around as if nothing had happened! Given that, what else could it be?


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## Double C Acres

Look up 'polio' in sheep. I would do as Ross says....treat with thiamin and B complex.


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## StockDogLovr

I did go ahead and give him B complex, which is what I had on hand, though he was back to normal. Hopefully that was the problem, and it is treatable. So glad this forum is here!


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## Ross

I suppose sheep like any other animal can have epilepsy too. Without seeing what happened we're down to wild guesses. Maybe it was choking on a poorly chewed cud? Maybe it ran into something as was stunned?


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## StockDogLovr

Well, it happened again several days later, and I gave him another dose of B complex and all had been well with him since then. However, today, I rode my horse up to my herd while they were resting in the shade and when everyone jumped up, that lamb's twin sister flipped out, fell over backwards, and then had the blindness, bumping into things and calling for her mom. Odd that it is both lambs from that ewe. The brother lamb was fine. I'm worried that I have something in this pasture that is deactivating the thiamine. I have dexamethasone now and will treat her with that and the B complex. Are there any feeds I can supplement with that would be high in B vitamins? I read that grain can CAUSE this problem, so not sure where to go from there...


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## MDKatie

Could it possibly be grass tetany?


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## Ross

Sheep make thiamin in the rumin so maybe something to boost the rumin? Thiamin def doesnt really show as seizures though. Anyone know if sheep have a fainting gene like some goats???


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## StockDogLovr

It sure looked like a seizure initially, but I wonder if it was more that when all the sheep jumped up, the affected lambs jumped up but since they were blind they couldn't orient and sort of flopped until they got their legs under them. I wish I could have video-taped it - I got my camera going after the ewe lamb had flopped and then settled in one spot. After that, she started bleeting for mom and began wandering aimlessly, bumping into the barn post etc.

I will get some Probios paste and see if that helps.


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## StockDogLovr

Oh, what's also strange is that when I went back to inject with B complex, she was back to normal, following mom, just like her brother when it happened to him, so there was some kind of recovery. Maybe that's only possible at the very beginning of the syndrome.


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## Curtis B

One of my bummers does the same thing, but while eating a bottle. It seems like his legs go out, kinda shakes around, then runs in circles like he is lost. After a minute, he comes back to finish eating. I pawned it off on sucking too vigorously and getting light headed.


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## bergere

Almost sounds like they are being poisoned some how. 
Either they are nibbling the plant, or they can get it through the ewes milk.

Here is a good web site to look through, maybe something will catch your eye.
http://www.extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/WS/WS_37_ToxicPlants08.pdf


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## lasergrl

lambs CAN be epileptic. Merk vet manual notes lambs are more prone to epilepsy then cattle or horses. If you have other lambs and these two are the only ones doing it, it is probably congenital. I wouldn't keep the ewe, or at least use a different ram on her next year.


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## krebolj

Jump start has probios and vitamins in it, TSC carries it. Nutritional yeast is also good for b12 and the rumen. Baking soda helps regulate rumen activity. B complex doesn't have enough thiamine to treat polio without lots of it. You can't overdose on B vitamins though, so a large amount won't hurt. If you recently used Corid, that could cause a thiamine deficiency as it blocks absorption during treatment. If you can get thiamine injection from the vet, that would be best. I believe the routine treatment for polio also includes dexamethasone, which Ross mentioned already. If none of that helps I would assume it is epileptic.


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## TedH71

Have you consulted with your vet about the issue?


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## lexierowsell

I know this is really old, but what was the outcome with these lambs SDL?


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## winchesterfarm

I would also like to know the outcome. I have a ram lamb bottle baby, about 4 weeks old, who has these little "episodes" where he has what appear to be seizures, disorientation etc.. as described in thread, then he is fine after 2-3 minutes. I got him when he was 4 days old and had aspirated milk before I got him so I was concerned because he had a terrible cough and rattling in his lungs, which is now almost gone thankfully, he is fat and healthy otherwise but still has these seizure like episodes. Thanks!


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## Brandi Foscalina

winchesterfarm said:


> I would also like to know the outcome. I have a ram lamb bottle baby, about 4 weeks old, who has these little "episodes" where he has what appear to be seizures, disorientation etc.. as described in thread, then he is fine after 2-3 minutes. I got him when he was 4 days old and had aspirated milk before I got him so I was concerned because he had a terrible cough and rattling in his lungs, which is now almost gone thankfully, he is fat and healthy otherwise but still has these seizure like episodes. Thanks!


what was your outcome to this? i have a lamb right now who has the same symptoms and I'm not sure what to do with him


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## Bearfootfarm

Brandi Foscalina said:


> what was your outcome to this?


The person you're asking has posted once in the past 5 years.
That was their first and only post.
Try these sites:

http://www.sheep101.info/sheepdiseases.html

http://www.sheep101.info/201/diseasesa-z.html


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