My senior bulldog has had this issue since 2013. He is is 12 years old is on prescription eye drops, supplements and antifungal wipes for his paws. No other current medications and is about 40 lbs.
We have had many ER visits and scary fainting/collapsing/urinating episodes (might also look up 'syncopal fainting episodes' which is common in bulldog breeds) For my dog, he would begin gagging, vomiting, fainting/choking, collapsing, then bowel movement. Every time he needs assistance to help breathing because of his oversized tongue prevents him from recovering (turns blue). It is very scary. He did have maybe 2 or 3 seizures when he around 4 or 5 but stopped since. He now has sleep apnea also so we have someone with him 24/7 and we monitor him on a home camera when we are away. I'm not sure what exactly causes the episodes, but i'm sure he has some type of airway syndrome. It took many vets, medications, methods to develop a good plan for him and he's finally in a happy healthy state. Hopefully our experience might give you some insight. We've tried so many things, but the frequency of the episodes greatly reduced when we did three major things.
1. Dental check up revealed infected teeth that were inflaming his sinuses and severely exacerbating his allergies. The Extraction and regular dental cleanings have changed his life. This year we have decided not to undergo sedated dental cleaning unless it is absolutely necessary due to his age so we've upped his home cleanings (try using a waterpik!)
2. Diet Change/Allergy management. This one took year and years. We found a good dry kibble in 2015, but i noticed his allergies/GI/stool were still causing issues and he was gaining weight/elevated protein levels. He wasn't excited about food and would often starve himself to the point of vomiting (triggering another episode). I also noticed certain dog treats/jerky would trigger episodes. Beef and Pork seemed to make it worse, we had to try a lot of different brands and combinations. I switched him to fresh food on 02/17/22 and i noticed instant results. He has lost over 5 pounds and his allergies/GI/stool/appetite/energy have improved trifold. His dry eye has also improved by over 75% (no more crazy boogers!) Its unfortunate i only discovered this 2 months ago. Fresh food is very pricey but it has helped in my vet costs and i do want to give him the best last years of his life and he is now obsessed with his new food.
3. Find good quality supplements. We use Prudence Hip and Joint High Potency Soft chews and Vet's Best Allergy chews which contains sea kelp. No slouchy hips here! Ask your local holistic dog feed store team they helped me with references on food brand and local vets that specialize in certain breeds.
I have also gotten him an elevated angled feeding bowl and have spread his feedings out to 3 to 4 times a day to avoid low blood sugar (another trigger) / bloating / aspiration.
Wishing you all the best with your pal.
