One of the more frightening things you can witness is your pet having a seizure. Whether it is a full convulsive-type seizure known as a grand mal, or a more mild form which might present as some intense shaking or shivering, known as a petit mal, it is very scary to watch. The truth is, pets can seizure for many reasons, and it is important to try to identify the underlying cause of a seizure disorder in order to more effectively treat the problem. One of the more common seizure complaints we see are those caused by epilepsy. Epileptic seizures seem to strike out of nowhere, can often affect relatively young to middle aged dogs that are otherwise perfectly healthy, and can cause seizures of varying degrees. Epileptic dogs seem to have an abnormal focus in the brain which fires erratic neural impulses in response to otherwise normal stimulation. The problem is everything else is normal, and it is almost impossible to predict what stimulation my cause this random firing at the seizure focus.