Head Shaking - advice

This has happened twice now, the first time was about 2 or 3 weeks ago, and the second was last night.

The first time, Max was sat on the sofa with me, and I noticed him shaking/twitching his head very slightly. A bit like Parkinson's Disease I suppose, rather than a "I've got something in my ear" shake. I quickly looked in his ears (and smelled them), looked in his mouth, got him to focus on me; and the twitching/shaking stopped.

He then went outside for a wee as my OH came in, and that was that. He never did it again, and I wasn't that concerned about it.

Last night, OH came in from work (about 11pm) and immediately got me out of bad as Max was doing it again. I checked his ears, mouth, got him to focus on me again, asked him to sit and gave him a gravy bone. All fine, went off to bed without a problem.

I really don't know what this could be (and of course, I'm thinking the worst, as usual). Should I take him to the vet? Obviously, he won't be doing the shaking/twitching thing, and will be his normal self.

What could they do except check his ears for deep infections? Would they/could they x-ray/scan for something more sinister?

Help!

It sounds like it could possibly be something neurological so I think a chat with your vet at the very least is in order. My Boxer went off his legs twice, was totally unable to stand, walk, get up or anything for no apparent reason, it wasn't a stroke or spondylosis and they gave him something that helped increase blood flow to the brain for the first time and the second time I let him recover without and that was it, only happened twice and he never did it again.
Fingers crossed it's sortable.
Becky

Start with the most obvious, have you looked in his ears...he could have an infection.... or it could be food related...Caroles Finn, suffered the same and I am sure it was down to food allergy.

If you are worried , a trip to the vets will would be best, he can look further down his ears to see if anything is causing it.

There are some neurological disorders , that can cause head shaking....do a Google on "head shaking" you will find plenty of information .

Head tremors are quite common in boxers, along with dobermanns and bulldogs Finn has them sometimes usually at the peak of his allergy season and after eating things that make his ears itchy, and it is usually due to hot itchy ears.

Our vet also suggested that they could be due to a muscle spasm in the neck as if they have been lying awkwardly as nearly all the time they occur when the dog is wakening up.

Its definately worth taking Max to the vet for an examination but usually no reason is found for these tremors even after scans and blood tests. Its just an unexplained thing. Epilepsy medication does not stop them either

This is a video of Finn having one

http://www.vidiac.com/video/1EDCC943...5AE4B8D1A2.htm

It could be Max has got a seed in his ear that has gone further in than you can see. Lucy was shaking her head a lot so l took her to the vets and they removed it for her. I would take Max to the vets to be sure he is ok.
Rosie

Poor Max, I'd take him to the vets just to be safe.
Could be a grass seed like has already been said, at least if you can rule out something stuck in his ear you can then try to find out what the problem is.
Big hugs to you

Thanks guys, I've got him booked in at the vet tomorrow evening (might sign my paycheck over to them whilst I'm there!! )

Thanks for the video Carole, it's pretty much like that, although not as fast as Finn gets in it, more like the smaller shakes.

His ears look fine, they're clean, no discharge and smell fine (well, like dog ears anyway) and he's happy for me to examine them; so I can't see any signs of infection.

Mind you, I'd rather it was a grass seed or infection than anything more serious

Hope Max is ok, keep us posted.

How did you get on at the vets with Max?

Max has the all clear from the vets....

They looked in his ears (said they were very clean!) and did a neurological exam which he passed with flying colours.

The conclusion is that (for now) it's "one of those things", a bit like his fit last year.

I should keep an eye on him generally, and watch for any changes to his balance, vision, dexterity, and for any other head shaking etc, and bring him straight back to the vets if I'm worried.

She only charged us half the consultation fee because I was only in with Murphy and him about 3 weeks ago (the runs) and because when she said hello to Max he stood up, and gave her such a big Boxer Kiss that he licked her glasses off her face