Vet Neurologist Explains - Brain Tumor Symptoms

[@angeljohnson234]

I'm happy but so sad that I watched this video. My 13.5 year old is exhibiting many of these symptoms. From the looks of it, she either has a brain tumor or meningitis. I'm heartbroken and really scared but I will be calling a specialist in the morning. I'm glad there is a pet neurologist that is willing to share their knowledge with the public. Thank you.

[@floridaredfishin8209]

Any updates?

[@jamesmyers3500]

Thanks for the update! Where we live a brain scan would be too expensive especially since there is little to do to correct the situation

[@dailydoseofreason6663]

Very informative. Appreciate you including real examples to help people identify these presentations. Thank you

[@cliveferguson1260]

Awesome video Doc, very informative. Keep up the great videos

[@DVMCellini]

Thanks man!

[@cchan1034]

Dr Cellini, thank you so much for this video. We’re in deep mourning for our sweet 2 yr old Chihuahua. Your list, videos, and explanations have given us the closure we so deeply needed that our young boy had a brain tumor that took his life. Have you ever seen brain tumors that will change the texture of the coat (grow longer)? What about a change in overall bone structure? (It seemed our dogs bones got bigger and longer but very stringy and weak) his overall skull shape and fur had totally changed in one year. For reference, our boy had a grand mal in July 22’, another on Feb 23’ that required ER hospitalization, and he passed away this week. He first showed symptoms right after his 1st bday. First being behavioral.

[@COMMANDER-ONE]

Thank you very much for taking the time to make this video.

[@Thediydog]

I wish I’d seen this two years ago. I lost my 13 year old dog to a presumed brain tumor. It started with what the vet thought was vestibular syndrome in March. That got better after a couple of months, but I lost her in October. In between she had every symptom you listed, including vision loss which we thought was just age because she had also lost hearing the previous year. The sunken spot in her head wasn’t so dramatic as these examples though. In the evenings she would circle the coffee table over and over. I’m not sure what could have been done at the point of the vestibular symptoms if we knew what we were dealing with. Just heartbreaking.

[@SelmaAymara]

There was most likely nothing you could've done...❤😞 they don't put 13 year old dogs through cancer treatments or operations. How did they treat your dogs vestibular disease? My 13 year old dog is put on cortisone. The vet thinks vestibular, but the cause is not clear. Could be a tumour in the brain. The cortisone should stop swelling around a tumour...

[@DrCellini]

The good content keeps coming!

[@DVMCellini]

Off today? Must be nice.

[@DrCellini]

@@DVMCellini ha I wish

[@amullerdvm]

Was typing a similar comment and then realized I would be plagiarizing Dr. Cellini Jr

[@ChrisRRT]

@@DrCellini wait you aren't off? Oh I see your watching KZbin at work. 😅😅😅

[@danb9131]

Can you do a video on head tremors, Dr. Cellini? My English bulldog has them every now and then, but my veterinarian doesn’t know why. Can you please educate us on head tremors?

[@DVMCellini]

Sure!

[@Lemonade_Stand_]

I think brain tumours are some of the most devastating things to watch as they progessively deteriorate. Watching my sister's dog go from a happy, outgoing, energetic dog to a miserable spawn of satan was heartbreaking.

[@susansigsworth8730]

My dog has a seizure the other night but she paces she doesn’t go in circles she just goes up and down and like she’s a soldier on duty , she started at me weird and growls into thin air , so worrying she’s at vet on Tuesday, she’s 9 in November

[@donthedude]

Hello, Our 6 year old male lab suddenly went blind over a matter of a weekend. Went to vet and then later neurologist for MRI. He has a mass unfortunately on brain. We are doing steroid treatment at the moment but it seems as his mood is slightly changing and just more blah these days. Thank you for the video as we know what we are headed for. Just trying to enjoy the quality of life left and let him live like a king!!

[@DVMCellini]

Best of luck to you guys!

[@floridaredfishin8209]

Any updates?

[@crissieburdette4654]

My dog is having what our vet said was considered a type of seizure (fly biting seizures, I think). She took blood work and did an exam. From the exam, she thinks a brain tumor is possible, but ruling out blood borne causes. It's been 2 long weeks! 😢 She put him on what she said was a high dose of gabapentin but it is having no effect whatsoever. He has always been super healthy, has no problems, and even has all his teeth. Vets hardly believe he's almost 13 yrs old. Now, all of a sudden, this? Thank you for your in-depth information. Subscribed! ❤

[@kellylynn9163]

Zonisamide for dog seizures has less side effects! Hope your dog is doing okay.

[@jamiejaskowiak]

My 4 year old female Chihuahua passed a week ago. 5 months ago she started having violent seizures. With some pacing. She seemed to get better. Having 1 per week. Then last week she had a cluster of seizures, went into a coma and died. I took her to 4 different vets who said she probably had idiopathic seizures. I am starting to wonder if it was a brain tumor

[@joza3077]

most vets are absolutely fukn worthless

[@rosarioquiroga8300]

Thank you, for your help 🕊🙏🫶

[@MairiVoorhees]

Can you do a video on Dementia in dogs please? I have a 12 year old Greyhound, aside from an old fracture a happy dog, but lately he seems a bit ...lost. Like walking a couple of steps, then staring into space, not realizing is food is right in front of them, getting home after a walk and pooping in the hallway and getting restless around evening. The sundowning is something you get in human dementia patients as well. Besides, it's an interesting matter

[@amandaferris1341]

My Boxer Nala who will be 9 next month was vomiting her food up for about 2-3 days which isn't really uncommon for her every once in while something unsettles her stomach but she had a very bad seizure last night out of nowhere while we were all sleeping in the bed together, convulsing just like in the first video you showed along with foaming at the mouth and she lost control of her bowels urinating a little. This went on for maybe 1- 2 mins before she started to come back too.. she didn't lose consciousness just had a blank spacey look during and after like she was confused/disoriented pacing back and forth through the bedroom and hallway before getting her to lay back down. She seems better today.. has been a little tired but were just at a loss at what could've caused this out of nowhere! We do know that her k9 mom and one of her siblings also had seizures that were apparently brought on by lymphoma and brain tumor for the other so we're really scared for her vet appt next week which is the earliest they had. We were without power when all this happened because of winter weather and wondered if it's possible that maybe stress/anxiety could have brought this on with the power outage maybe? She's literally been fine other than vomiting a few days prior and having bad smelly gas today but nothing else. What like to know what your honest thoughts are? She is my best friend and I cannot imagine losing her right now! 💔

[@lissakaye610]

One case I saw at vet ER was similar to thc tox except the dog insisted on traveling around the perimeter of the room using the wall for support. It had a hyper menace response, impaired gait, and diminished mentation.

[@haniiiff]

Love your videos

[@DVMCellini]

Thanks for saying that

[@haniiiff]

@@DVMCellini its facts

[@lucasluz5575]

my dog ​​started having symptoms this week (Monday), disoriented, walking non-stop, on Wednesday she was already leaning her head against the wall and screaming, she was sedated and intubated early this morning (Friday), everything happened very quickly... the doctors didn't She can undergo MRI because she has heart problems and cannot be anesthetized. It is not known exactly what is causing this, corticosteroids were started 7 hours ago. She is a 6 year old American Bully, I'm scared for her, I'm desperate.

[@rebeccamedrano3329]

I am dealing with my 4lb Chihuahua that had a couple of seizures in May 2023 and started having them again in September. He is on two seizure medications and a steroid. I do not have the money to have an MRI done on him to confirm that he has a brain tumor. He seems to be doing on with the medication so far. I guess my question is what is his quality of life like for him. Right now I keep him in an area with his bed, water and food. He seems to sleep most of the time and when I am home with him I hold him a lot and just love on him. When he goes outside to do his thing, I have a hard time getting him to follow me or my voice to come back inside. He seems to have a hard time hearing or seeing me. I also have him on the Pro Plan Neocare dog food. He eats wells and stays hydrated. I just don’t want him to be in pain. I feel like he is in stable condition. What are my options? Is there another way to determine if he has a brain tumor or not?

[@DVMCellini]

I’m not able to give medical advice but I can consult with your vet. They or you can email me at [e-mail] and I can explain more. The cost is $100.

[@travisbrock87]

Exactly my issue, I’d have to go to Dallas pay over 3.2k for a scan for my 9yr old bff that wouldn’t even leave me with enough money for any type of surgery. 3 gran mal seizures in 24hrs first time in his life.

[@sallygold]

My nearly 17 year old Dachshund long term diabetic for nearly 9 years , deaf for 3 years progressively and blind dog ( not from diabetes she had cataract surgery in 2017) she has CED. Gunderson flap surgery then one eye removal in May as due to non cancerous inflammatory mass. Grade 2 heart murmur no meds needed atm. She has a big specialist team. I’m just wondering as she had a seizure, however due to alpha Trak shortage in my country I could not test her BG when it happened she has been on the same food/ dosage with at home curves under vet specialist guidelines and they review them for years. so I gave her glucose anyway after the jaw chomping stopped should of done straight away in hindsight no soiling herself when it happened but head jerking etc Her gums were cold, like when she had a hypo and needed iv glucose once before and when one of my dogs had bloat and survived his gums were cold. These are the only times I’ve noticed cold gums on my dogs. All Bloods and biochem fine following seizure. Do all dogs get cold gums from seizures can not find anything on it? I’ve noticed she is more wired at night sometimes prior to This happening and have been checking Bg as normal as her blood sugar can be low randomly it feels sometimes, was thinking dementia or something metabolic but bloods etc ruled that out, but this night she was fine, she started the berensa injection when the behaviour night changes started, unsure if related. if it happens again the vet will do a CT or MRI. I know SRT is a tx option for brain tumours. My other dog had palliative SRT for a metastatic pheochromocytoma with ascites and ascites was gone 3 weeks later he lived 11 months with good quality of life when originally given days and no tx options. I have pet insurance of course. I Hope this makes sense I’m just hoping and wondering if this sounds more like low BG? I’ve had a few unexpected low bgs before but if this was one it was nothing like she has experienced before and really no explanation for it. Thanks for your videos I follow you here and on TikTok and don’t worry I won’t get a chiro to fix her! 😀

[@anndouglas7172]

We have had my dog for a while now he is only 8 years old and only in a matter of four days he has just changed he was a exited dog loved to be pet and loved to go on car rides like how you said he is a very exited lab always happy , and now he has turned into a whole new dog that’s emotionless if he sees our car he does not even get exited, it’s like he doesn’t know where he is or who we even are he will not even respond to his own name. my dog is a pit lab mix and he is acting sluggish exactly like the lab in the video he also just paces non stop he walks around stops into a corner (like he is stuck) for a second or way longer then starts over again. Also it’s like he has seizures but it’s not a non stop shaking seizure it’s like he is screaming and whining for a minute then he stops, then just continues with his pace. This is horrible for us to just watch him doing this over and over again and we really do not want to resort to putting him down. A MRI or any kind of other scan is way to expensive we do not want to do we need help.

[@bettysmith4527]

I found your channel by watching your brother trying to pass a vet exam, he should stick with people medicine. My cat reportedly had a brain tumor, I did not pay for an MRI because I did not have 10K plus for removal of the tumor anyway. He was walking in circles and in the end became so restless and aggressive towards myself and the other cat, I had to euthanize him, as his quality of life had deteriorated after three years on prednisone. I brought him to a second vet for. a second opinion, because I wanted to make sure that circling could not just be a behavioral type issue, prior to euthanasia. So my question for you is; can circling in a cat, along with progressive aggression, howling, seizure like activity (he would run around in wide circles and howl loudly (these were unstoppable and would last about 1-2 minutes at most), and in the end it seemed like he was seeing and hearing things that were not there. Is it possible his symptoms were caused strictly from a behavioral issue vs an organic disease process? These symptoms started at 9 years old and progressed for three years before I had to have him euthanized. He did improve with prednisone until about the last six months. Circling was ALWAYS to the left. (I have plenty of videos if you ever need any for educational purposes)

[@DVMCellini]

Going in 1 direction or showing other “lateralizing” or asymmetric deficits is generally due to a physical lesion rather than a behavior or systemic issue.

[@bettysmith4527]

@@DVMCellini ty, I appreciate your response!

[@Z_Victory_Z]

Does the muscle atrophy also occur with encephalitis/meningoencephalitis as well? Is this symptom unique to tumors?

[@kirtidaparekh3091]

Very very informative video.my 17 year female dog is having vestibular disease.

[@ChrisRRT]

Can dogs have strokes? If so could you make a video about it.

[@DVMCellini]

They absolutely can and maybe I will!

[@valerielevallois4299]

Hello, my 12 year old Yorkie has been pawing at his eyes for about a week (i initially thought he was having tooth pain and he already had a teeth cleaning on the schedule). I took him to the vet in case of a potential infection and was given antibiotics while awaiting his dental cleaning. but then i noticed one of his eyes started pointing outwards, the other one was normal. I took him to the vet immediately. They looked at his eyes, checked pressure, did some neurologic exercises to check his reflexes and all was normal. No nysagmus either. then they did an eye stain and turned out he has a scratch in that eye (it went untreated because i thought the eye rub was tooth pain.) My question is, can a scratch in an eye cause a symptom that is so closely related to a neurological disease? Sometimes he slightly tilts his head on that side if he’s needing to focus on something visually. He can also be a tad wobbly but he has pretty bad hip dysplasia so it’s the “norm” for him. He isn’t doing any pacing and no seizures, How far progressed does a brain tumor need to be by the time it causes eye misalignment? I just want to get ahead of any potential devastating issue. Thank you!

[@erockbrox8484]

So I have a question. My dogs back legs were developing atrophy and he was having seizures. I believe that he had a brain tumor, what do I do if this happens? Go to a regular vet? Or go to a neurologist? Do doctors who normally remove brain tumors on people, do they also work on dogs?

[@gymboy2007]

Do you have a recommendation for dog toys? Are there ones you would stay away from?

[@DVMCellini]

i like kong's stuff. i may also have affiliate links in the description :) but seriously i use kong products all the time they're great.

[@louannepre2498]

Thank you!!!!

[@kerenman1638]

My cat has been lethargic and has the jumping behavior you described. I rushed him to ER yesterday because he couldnt move and was intermittently crying most likely because of pain when touched. He has sensitivity in his spine at first the vet suspected herniation. But I got an even worse diagnosis back from vet today, MRI shows a mass in his brain and two smaller spots that look very much like the mass on each side of the brain where the ears are. Vet told me prognosis is not good and the mass(es) are at locations very hard to get to, doing a biopsy is risky. Conclusion is we can try antibiotics and if that doesnt help then there might not be anything else we can do. My question is, all we know is there is a mass and two unknown spots. He is not displaying other symptoms you described. Should I be as worried as I am? Should I even be thinking about letting him go at this point?

[@lynnm.2405]

My dog developed a big lump above his eye a couple of weeks after vet cleaned his teeth. She said it was an abscess and operated. Never got smaller. When I bought him back in, she said it was a tumor and growing into his brain, maybe cancer. I'm pretty mad about the misdiagnosis. Do you think the teeth cleaning could have something to do with this?

[@rsanchez190]

Can it be treated, will they be back to normal?

[@jwrees57]

I am thinking my 7 year lab got his brain tumor from pro heart injection. Wish the vet had not talked me into using it

[@magnumpi28]

If a 13y10m dashund who had heart murmer and was on meds and for protien in urine and needed a dental cleaning for dental infection but fine othersise and was running the park today then a few hours later just resting got him something to eat at home and started shaking a little and yelped and got paralysed then died a few hours later. The emergency vet said he had a brain tumor and probably needed a neorloist and MRI and was in grave condition?? However i called a autopsy vet and she said it sounded like heart?? Ps. When he woudl lay his head straight to lay down when it hit the floor he woud yelp just a little and lay his head on side we figured it was tooth past few months

[@joshjenkins9823]

Would some of these brain tumor signs also be signs of canine cognitive dysfunction or dementia?

[@DVMCellini]

They can def overlap yeah

[@skeptigal2785]

In cats, would the presence of the "third eyelid" on the affected side be a sign, possibly along with blindness)? Also drooling on that side along with head tilt? I'd be interested in hearing the other clinical signs in a follow-up video.

[@DVMCellini]

it could be but an ear infection is more likely

[@katherine7507]

Question, my 18y/o cat had episodes where his pupils (bilateral) would dilate and he would run into things. Episodes would last anywhere from 2hrs to 2 days. He would often sleep a lot after one of these episodes, and I noticed he started twitching in his sleep. Saw vet ophthalmologist who said his eyes were totally fine, no papilledema, blood pressure issues, etc. He did not have any circling behavior or focal deficits. These episodes went on for about three months before he died. We never got a dx, but I suspect it was a brain tumor causing atypical seizures and/or swelling that affected his vision. However, I have never heard of symptoms from brain tumor that are episodic and bilateral. Have you ever seen this?

[@DVMCellini]

You might have been seeing partial seizure activity which itself can be cause by a brain tumor or other structural brain lesions. It’s possible a lesion could be in 1 spot then trigger a seizure which then would propagate throughout the brain, resulting in a “bilateral” appearance to the episodes. Just my guess.

[@Xiaooooom]

Just noticed the dog in thumbnail is the one who got 3D printed skull for the tumor!

[@Mikeymaybeme]

I believe our dog has a brain tumor on its right side based off what you said, with blindness in the left eye. He has all the other symptoms as well just like the black lab from the beginning, we’ve been to the vet a few times already. If we go to see a neurologist do you believe that specific type of tumor is something that can be helped or removed and how much money does that type of tumor usually cost for treatment or removal. Thank you!

[@DVMCellini]

Yeah it depends on the tumor appearance and especially location, that determines if removable or kot

[@Mikeymaybeme]

@@DVMCellinihanks for the response if I could ask you one more thing, if our dog had the nerve sheath tumor, what are some signs that it had moved into the brain. He had the muscle atrophy of head, circling, stumbling on right side, loss of appetite and energy and blindness

[@DVMCellini]

Pretty much all of those things you named!

[@sawa7__684]

thank you

[@Sabs761010]

Hi, my french podle start one month ago to give turns in circles it does all the time, it has 15 years old i thinks it is a tomour do you believe that with CBD can improve her live?

[@iphonerepairsfromhome]

Natural treatment options?

[@DVMCellini]

None that I know of

[@joza3077]

@@DVMCellini ofcourse you dont🤡

[@erockbrox8484]

The audio is off from the video. Like there is a delay.

[@u.laura1989]

Hi! New here, just wondering if this applies to cats/kittens as well?

[@DVMCellini]

Yup!

[@u.laura1989]

@@DVMCellini would love to pick your brain about my kittens condition..he’s currently awaiting two specialist appointments (neurologist and ophthalmologist). He is honestly an Angel he’s been through so much. This is the current issue and His case is very interesting…wondering if you’d be interested in hearing. Would love an experts take as we could be waiting months for an appointment unfortunately.

[@jess5604]

Hi, how do I know if my dog has a brain tumor vs doggy Alzheimer’s? My dog is 16 years old, has arthritis and I was told she had Alzheimer’s… she used to pace around a lot more until I moved her to live with me. She’s much calmer now, but slowly walks around in circles from time to time and presses her head and face into corners and walls. It seems to comfort her when I cover her eyes… I’m taking my dog to a neurologist, but my appointment isn’t for another month. Thoughts?

[@jasonfarley8158]

MRI

[@prettyinpaintschool]

Are those other pupil things you mentioned easily treatable? My kitty has the pupil problem (and a bit off-balance), and a couple of weird episodes of being more off-balance. But otherwise she is completely fine and normal. I’m hoping that it’s not tumor, but at least if it is, it’s still so early and slow moving, that it will be a breeze to treat? Tysm!

[@alyhoskin9363]

Was the black lab diagnosed with a brain tumor? My yellow lab circles/leans left like that. He also has GOLPP, he had tie back surgery for laryngeal paralysis in Aug 2020 and is doing great (breathing wise). He’s too old for anesthesia to do an MRI to see if he has a brain tumor. His neurologist has no answers without an MRI :/

[@DVMCellini]

Yeah it was from my recollection. Did your neurologist outright say your dog was too old to mri? If not then I’d maybe talk with them about specific pros/cons. The anesthesia for mri is pretty minimal relative to other procedures. They just need enough to stay still and that’s it.

[@alyhoskin9363]

He’s a light weight when it comes to meds and sedation. They’ve sedated him for chest X-rays about a year ago and he was out for days. He was a lot better than too. I’m afraid he wouldn’t recover from anesthesia

[@alyhoskin9363]

And the neurologist said even if it was a brain tumor there’s nothing they could do so he didn’t recommend an MRI

[@makaylabby017]

My grandma dog went to vet couple months ago and he was aggressive and not the same max he use to be so we took him to vet they said he had a infection in kidneys but our dog zoey had a brain tumor and he doing all the same exact as her and they gave him phenobarbital for seizures cause he had four them in a day it made him more aggressive now the vet gave him keppra and it making his legs give up on him and keeps putting his face in corners tripping everywhere doesn't know where he is he also breathing hard rn when he falls he can barley get up..

[@makaylabby017]

They also called the vet today and told what he doing and they also said he could have a brain tumor

[@genericname8727]

I’m waiting to pay thousands of dollars to test my dog for a brain tumour. I think she’s just got epilepsy though. She’s only young but the vet thinks it makes it even more unusual that she’s got signs of epilepsy. Unfortunately putting a young dog on anti-seizure meds can apparently cause liver issues long term but I guess I’d rather it be epilepsy than a brain tumour

[@sherrydawson6253]

Very interesting. Those poor dogs. So sad. So once the tumor atrophies the muscle. Would it be best to put them asleep? Like for me I could not afford brain surgery. Thanks for educating us.

[@DVMCellini]

usually with those specific tumors we recommend radiation therapy. i've seen many dogs live very long time with just that. so long as the tumor hasn't invaded the brain yet, its very possible to have a good outcome.

[@Mysticfoxxxy]

I needed to euthanise my kitty today. One month before she was lively, but it was extreme rapidly growing, so in the end she just circled with maybe 30 clear mins a day. I hope she is happy in heaven. She almost got 17, my little rebel 🥲

[@mateo-6965]

Have you heard of households that had COVID and it affected their dog in weird ways?

[@donapaulen8700]

Could have given a heads up prior to showing the dog seizing! 😕

[@kayakins3051]

This is awful to watch the sez but good info