Animal Rescue Discovers Truth About Dog Surrendered for 'Having Seizures'

A dog who was surrendered to an animal rescue amid concerns he was having seizures turned out to be suffering from narcolepsy.

Farkle arrived at Touch of Grey Rescue, a nonprofit organization in Central Florida that saves hundreds of senior and special-needs dogs every year, having been surrendered to a local shelter.

"His owners thought he was having seizures so we offered to foster him to help diagnose and treat his condition," Wendy Johnson, the president and founder of Touch of Grey Rescue, told Newsweek. "Shortly after coming to us, we realized Farkle wasn't having seizures at all...he was just taking naps!"

According to veterinarian Dr. Jamie Lovejoy, narcolepsy is "most commonly an inherited disorder," which is why it is often diagnosed in young dogs.

"A recessive gene linked to narcolepsy has been found in Doberman pinschers, Labrador retrievers, and dachshunds," she told PetMD. "But any breed can be prone to the condition. Multiple gene mutations that cause similar clinical signs have also been determined."

Johnson didn't immediately realize Farkle had narcolepsy. Little was known about his past, though she could tell he had experienced difficulties. "He came to us underweight with skin issues, a tail that appeared to have been broken at some point, and some fearful behavior," she said.

But there was something "special" about Farkle that made her determined to help. "Part of the reason I offered to foster Farkle is because I have epilepsy myself," she said. "I knew seizures were nothing to be afraid of, and I wasn't going to rush him to the hospital if he had one."

During one of these seizures, Johnson noticed that the sound of a door creaking snapped Farkle out of it. In time, she began to suspect what was later confirmed by a veterinarian: Farkle had narcolepsy with cataplexy, a condition characterized by severe sleepiness and a sudden loss of muscle control.

Johnson said food is probably the biggest trigger of Farkle's narcolepsy, though toys, new people and certain smells can also lead to episodes. "Like a lot of dogs, Farkle spends the majority of his days napping, although he might be a bit sleepier than your average dog," she said. " Farkle can rarely finish a meal without nodding off. Sometimes when he is sniffing around the house we will hear a thud and know he found a good crumb!"

She says one of the biggest challenges now with Farkle is trying to keep him awake during feeding time. "Making high-pitch noises, talking to him or petting him while eating sometimes helps," Johnson said.

They have also had to make adjustments to how and what they feed him."We do not give him edible bones or chews that could potentially get lodged in his throat during an episode. Instead, we feed him smaller pieces and even soften his food at times," she said. "After watching him collapse on top of stainless steel dog bowls, we also adjusted to feeding him on an eating mat on a soft bed."

Despite these challenges, Farkle has always been a joy to be around. "Farkle loves eating anything, chewing on nylon bones, going for walks, playing tug, and getting belly rubs," Johnson said.

Maybe that's why Johnson decided to make Farkle a permanent part of their family. "We have fostered hundreds and hundreds of dogs in the past 20 years, but Farkle was special," she said. "My husband fell head over heels in love with him. We all did. So we decided to formally adopt him."

The family now lives back in Upstate New York. Farkle has a fellow rescue dog to play with in the form of Johnson's other rescue dog, Kiara.

Johnson has also been able to turn the story of Farkle, as well as some of the other rescue dogs she has interacted with, into a series of children's books.

The Farkle and Friends series chronicles the rescue dog's adventures. He may have already got his happy ending, but it sounds like Farkle's life story is about to get a second chapter.

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