The concept of service dogs is readily understood by most people – especially when they assist people with an obvious disability. But service dogs assist people with a wide variety of disabilities, including those with seizure disorders.

Liz Rudy has had epilepsy for nearly 13 years, but only in the past 5 years has it seriously impacted her life. Liz describes her condition: "I have 2 types of seizures … complex partial seizures in which I lose consciousness and wander about aimlessly and myoclonic seizures in which my arm or leg muscles will contract forcefully and send me crashing to the ground with no warning (no loss of consciousness). Following my seizures, I sometimes experience periods of visual impairment and weakness in my left arm or leg."

Prior to 1991, Liz's seizures were controllable with medication. At that time, she had a golden retriever named Ribbon who exhibited the ability to alert to seizures. A few minutes before a seizure, Ribbon would position herself in front of Liz and bark at Liz's face. Because the seizures were not extreme, Liz only utilized Ribbon's abilities around the house. After 1991 when her complex partial seizures became uncontrolled and she developed the myoclonic seizures, Liz began to rely on Ribbon even more. Unfortunately, Ribbon was 11 years old and would not be up to the task much longer. Liz took the suggestions of several friends to get a new puppy and see if the ability to alert to seizures could be passed from dog to dog.

Little is known about how or why some dogs have the ability to alert to seizures. Few training centers specialize in seizure alert dogs, and those rarely guarantee results other than the dog staying with the person during the seizure. It appears the majority of seizure alert dogs have an innate skill or develop the ability after associating with a person who has seizures. Liz noted that trainers she knew thought that the dog picks up subtle changes in body language or odor that herald the seizure. She considered the experiment of Ribbon teaching those skills to a puppy a long shot, but worth the effort.

Liz obtained Raisin, a 7-week-old golden retriever from a reputable breeder, and began training her to have excellent social and obedience skills. To maintain the right of access to all public places with Liz, Raisin would have to have impeccable manners. To be of value at the time of seizures, Raisin would have to stay with her despite any and all distractions, but not so aggressively that she would attack anyone trying to help Liz. As for the seizure alert training, Liz left that up to Ribbon.

Within about a month, Liz noticed Raisin taking an interest when Ribbon would alert. Liz bestowed both dogs with tons of verbal praise after each alert. She noted, "The behavior exhibited by Raisin during the next several months became progressively consistent. Each time Ribbon alerted, Raisin would put her front paws up on me." The experiment seemed to be working.

When Raisin was 6 months old, Ribbon died. The experiment was over; Liz could only wait to see if it had worked. To her delight, it did. "I remember very clearly the first time Raisin jumped on me to let me know something was wrong – (then) I had a seizure," she said.

Two months later, Liz took Raisin to Sue Miller, a service dog trainer at the Prison Pet Partnership Program (PPPP), for evaluation as a potential service dog. With her assistance, Liz and Raisin became unofficial participants in the PPPP training program. Using the list of requirements for PPPP graduates, Liz learned the techniques necessary to train a service dog. They went through the program and continued standard obedience training as well. After 6 months of hard work, Raisin earned her status as an official service dog able to accompany Liz anywhere she went.

Liz describes Raisin's alert. "2 or 3 minutes before a seizure occurs, she will come and sit directly in front of me, stare at my face, and start to bark at me. The bark is very high-pitched, unlike her normal bark." The warning allows Liz the time to get to a safe place and sit down, preventing her from walking around aimlessly or falling down. Before Raisin became a working service dog, Liz injured herself several times during seizures. She has fallen down countless flights of stairs, through a plate glass window severing a femoral artery, and was even hit by a car.

Because Raisin's forewarning has been 100% effective, Liz can proceed through life with a sense of assurance that she will be safe. Raisin has prevented falls in the shower, at the top of a steep flight of stairs, and while cooking at a stove. And she continues to learn new tasks as the need arises. Liz explains, "Because of my recent vision problems following a seizure, Raisin has learned to walk a straight line to help guide me."

As with many owners of service dogs, Liz notes that Raisin also contributes to her emotional well-being. "During the time when I first developed myoclonic seizures, my life sort of fell apart. Raisin helped me get through it all," she said. "Because of the frequency of my seizures, I became unemployable – I was forced to give up my work as a small animal veterinarian. With the loss of control over my health and life, worries about my future, and potential financial problems, I became frustrated and depressed … By focusing on Raisin's training and care during this time period, I maintained my sanity. Raisin was the reason I got out of bed in the morning – she needed me to feed and care for her. She helped fill the long days that had previously been spent at work. Raisin helped me to smile many times during those days."

Liz credits Raisin with enabling her to get her life back. "With Raisin's help I have been able to return to my normal lifestyle. I have returned to school to pursue an advanced degree, and I do veterinary work on a part-time basis. Because of Raisin, my seizures don't interfere to any degree with my ability to lead an active and healthy life."

As with many service dogs, Raisin has a very positive effect on the people around Liz as well. Liz likes to call her a "goodwill ambassador for epilepsy," explaining that since service dogs are so visible in public, people often ask questions about what Raisin does. Once they find out, they are fascinated and want to know more. "Suddenly epilepsy loses its negative/scary connotations to a segment of the general public. Hopefully these encounters also serve to help educate the public about service dogs in general," said Liz.

For Liz, life would not be livable without Raisin. "Raisin is my constant companion. Whether lying quietly beside me during a lecture, flying cross-country stowed under an airplane seat, or maintaining my safety at home, she makes my future seem very secure and bright."

Originally published in Alert, National Service Dog Center^® Newsletter Vol. 6, No. 4 1995. Edited for the web and updates.