Strange Behaviour

[kirsty79]

Hi All,

I really hope someone can offer me some advice about my old girl.

Jess is 12 1/2 , loves her walks, is happy to play fight with my 4 yr old basset and most days has a happy wagging tail!

However, over the past couple of weeks she seems different. Firstly her food. She loves her food as much as the next dog, we feed her dry biscuits and a breeders choice dog patty twice a day. She starting leaving some in her bowl and not finishing it, so we stopped giving her the biscuits thinking maybe we were overfeeding her slightly, so just giving her the patty breakfast and dinner. That was ok for a few days, now the past couple of days she has started leaving some of the patty. She is eating but nowhere near as much. She has no treats or anything else between these two meals.

Also, she has started losing control in terms of the toilet during her sleep, not pee but poo.

Next is her panting, lots and lots and lots. The only time she doesn’t seem to pant is when she is sleeping.

And lastly, she was pacing. She kept getting up, going to the back door as if she needed to go out, we opened the door, she’d go out wander about, stand as if she was straining to hear something and then come back 5 minutes later. She must have done this about 6/7 times. She seemed stressed about something?

I don’t know if I should be concerned or if I’m overreacting or if maybe its signs of old age?? She went to the vets approx 2 months ago, got a clean bill of health (also had some minor blood tests to check if everything inside was in working order and got the ok)

Can anyone help / offer advice or have you experienced this first hand?

Thanks

[persephone]

Hi- it's hard when they get old... more frequent checks are good, to catch problems early .

Your old girl sounds stressed.. old age can bring all sorts of things-with body bits wearing down and malfunctioning .

With the incontinence and general change of habits/restlessness, I suggest your vet sees her soonish. "just Old Age" can be managed to make things easier ... or if this isn't possible, you can make informed decisions.

best of luck with her...

[Scarlet]

She really needs to see your vet and you are not overacting - you know your dog better than anyone.

[GomezAkita]

The best thing I can tell you is to take her to a vet ASAP, even if it turns out to be nothing.

Always better safe than sorry with our furry family.

[deerhound owner]

There is an old dog behaviour questionnaire tool that is aimed at picking up signs of dementia here but you will still need to follow up with your vet. It may help alert you to other subtle behavioural changes as well.

[Kelly_Louise]

We see the same things in our old girl as well... but she has Cushings disease, which makes it more complicated. For the incontinence, Chloe only has these randomly, and only at night, so we manage it by making sure someone is always up and makes her go out to toilet a couple of times during the night. If not, she is inclined to hold it (whether it be she doesn't want to move because she is older/more tired now, or her arthritis is getting worse) and she usually fails. But if someone gets her up and goes outside while she toilets, she has avoided further 'accidents'. She does have very, very early indications of kidney failure as well (noted on her last blood test) - and this, as well as her Cushings playing up probably contributes to these incontinence episodes.

There are so many things it could be - but I also suggest a vet visit. You can pass panting off with the weather/heat sometimes, but if it is something unusual that you have noticed, it could also be a sign that she is in pain, or signs of any number of diseases. I always find that anything you notice that is strange, or unusual/inconsistent behaviour for your dog - needs to be checked out thoroughly.

Even if it is nothing but old age, at least you will be able to put your mind at rest and devise a plan that will help control further incontinence episodes, and make her more comfortable etc.

[Little Gifts]

I have an old staffy here and she was diagnosed with dementia earlier this year. She has the pacing - kind of like she was going somewhere and forgot where it was. She also stands hovering doing nothing a lot like she is trying to remember something. She is also deaf and blind now so that also doesn't help! Toileting is our biggest problem. She has forgotten about toilet training like a puppy. It is like she has forgotten the warning signs and just goes where ever she is. We've had to resort to nappies and she gets me up to toilet about 3 times a night. I have heard of poop falling out while an older dog sleeps though and it seems more like old age incontinence. There is medication for dementia.

Can't help with the food issue - that's never been a problem with any of my dogs! And my old girl (almost 16 1/2) still rough plays with my younger dog every single morning and night and we bought her a doggy pram so she could catch a ride if she got tired on our walks but she wont use it! Some of the issues you face caring for an older dog are a little like having a puppy again!

[luvsdogs]

There is an old dog behaviour questionnaire tool that is aimed at picking up signs of dementia here but you will still need to follow up with your vet. It may help alert you to other subtle behavioural changes as well.

This is what I was thinking.

[kirsty79]

I have an old staffy here and she was diagnosed with dementia earlier this year. She has the pacing - kind of like she was going somewhere and forgot where it was. She also stands hovering doing nothing a lot like she is trying to remember something. She is also deaf and blind now so that also doesn't help! Toileting is our biggest problem. She has forgotten about toilet training like a puppy. It is like she has forgotten the warning signs and just goes where ever she is. We've had to resort to nappies and she gets me up to toilet about 3 times a night. I have heard of poop falling out while an older dog sleeps though and it seems more like old age incontinence. There is medication for dementia.

Can't help with the food issue - that's never been a problem with any of my dogs! And my old girl (almost 16 1/2) still rough plays with my younger dog every single morning and night and we bought her a doggy pram so she could catch a ride if she got tired on our walks but she wont use it! Some of the issues you face caring for an older dog are a little like having a puppy again!

Thanks everyone for your advice

Puppy Sniffer - That is exactly how I wanted to word it!! It’s like she is going somewhere but then forgets where she is going and why. Like, she has woken up, thought to herself she should go to the bathroom, but then forgets when she gets outside and just comes back. She also wanders around the house a lot as if she is trying to decide where to sit down but is getting confused. And she definitely has started hovering.

How do vets test / diagnose dementia? What does the medication do?

[Vickie]

Agree, can't hurt to take her back to the vet.

My Zeus is nearly 14. Six months ago he was given the all clear for his heart & lungs. Last week I was told his heart is not great & he has some fluid in the lungs. We have started him on medication & have fingers crossed that it will help.

We are lucky that he still wants to play & eats very well but at times he pants very hard. He seems to be panting less regularly on medication and I am trying not to let him get too excited.

I know it's his age, but just want him to be as comfortable as possible while he's still happy.

That's all any of us can do (apart from spoiling them rotten) until we need to make the right decision for them.

[kirsty79]

Agree, can't hurt to take her back to the vet.

My Zeus is nearly 14. Six months ago he was given the all clear for his heart & lungs. Last week I was told his heart is not great & he has some fluid in the lungs. We have started him on medication & have fingers crossed that it will help.

We are lucky that he still wants to play & eats very well but at times he pants very hard. He seems to be panting less regularly on medication and I am trying not to let him get too excited.

I know it's his age, but just want him to be as comfortable as possible while he's still happy.

That's all any of us can do (apart from spoiling them rotten) until we need to make the right decision for them.

I know what you mean Vickie. I have been rather sooky with Jess recently, spoiling her, and giving in when she wants to get on the sofa - anything to keep her happy and her tail wagging! It breaks my heart when she is standing around looking confused.I just really hope I'll be able to make the right judgement and decision if needs be.

Have done the questionnaire from the link given and it states she is in the "at risk" bracket

Off to make a vets appointment now.

[idigadog]

It sounds like doggy-dementia. We just went through that for 6 months with our old girl Phoenix

First started the incontinence. She didn't even realise she was pooping on her bed or if she felt the urge, it was too late by the time she got herself up. It was hard taking her away to races because she would lose control in the dog trailer and ultimately end up in a mess.

She would stand staring at walls for ages until you snapped her out of it by calling her name. It's like they just lose themselves for a little while and don't even realise they are doing it.

Phoenix didn't start the heavy panting until the later stages and I think it was because she wasn't as active, fluid was building up around her heart and lungs. She also slept for I guess about 22 out of 24 hours per day.

It's so hard to watch them getting old but if I'm perfectly honest, it was harder losing one of my younger boys and not having such a great innings with them. Love her as much as you can, you will know when it's time. She will tell you

[Little Gifts]

Kirsty my vet just did all kinds of response tests. She knows my dog very, very well and usually she carries on like a banshee at the vet but that day (and since) she just took the whole thing in her stride, which was an indicator of a changed personality and sign of dementia. We did have to give urine and have her kidneys checked (think it was kidneys?) as the tablets can affect them. But all her organs are still working well despite her having mammary cancer. Even with dementia they can still have an enjoyable life. When my girl is engaged with you her mind doesn't wander - it is mainly when she is doing nothing in particular it is noticeable. We have a fairly strict toileting regime in place now as well - I spend lots of time encouraging and praising a deaf dog to go to the toilet - my neighbours must think I'm a little mad. Oh and one other indicator I remember was her getting stuck in corners and behind doors (mainly the toilet door - can't pee in piece at our house). They can go in but struggle to problem solve how to get out again.

From memory I think the medication is to stop things getting any worse. She is certainly a lot better on it but not what I would call normal. The vet will explain it all to you. It is manageable and I really don't think the dogs really know what's happening.

[stormie]

I would seek vet advice first and have some bloods run. It may be dementia but I would want to make sure it's not a medical problem causing her pain/stress/discomfort.

[Ozstar]

Wishing your old girl all the best.

It is so hard with our oldies.

I have an 11 1/2 year old Basset Hound, she is blind and deaf and full of cancer but her brain is still very sharp.

The past month she has dropped a huge amount of weight regardless of how much she is getting fed. I have spoken with my vet about the weight lose and there is nothing more he/we can do for her now. It is time to say goodbye

Leanne

[mutt lover]

My old girl Lady in pic here is now around 16/17 years of age and the last 8 months she has started getting worse with her dementia. and has gotten really grumpy and doesn't want to be brushed now and if I go to pick her up she gets really stressed and gets grumpy.

She also walks in circles has become very vague lol as when I'm on computer she will come in and lay on her bed there then get up walk into lounge stand in middle of room and bark at nothing and when I go in and call her she looks really confused like she was looking for me and when I call her she turns around like Oh there you are and will follow me back into office for about 5 mins then do the same thing again over and over again.

She is still able to get up and bark at door when she wants to go toilet but have found that if I have a full day at work she can't hold on as long as she used to and have found poos on the kitchen mat only but she won't look at me like she feels so bad (poor little angel) and like I care if she goes on kitchen mat or lino floor, but I now put newspaper down if I'm gonna be away all day and she will go on that but I still get the (I done something bad) look which I ignore and praise her and tell her she's a good girl and its ok!

[jensgreys]

We are going through the same problems as many of you with our 13 yr old greyhound.

Last summer I had every test possible done on her for her terrible panting, she just stares into space and pants and drools and having no teeth doesn't help the drooling. We had an Echo Cardiogram done by a heart specialist and his report was that she had nothing more than he would expect in an old greyhound. Our vet did bloods and nothing showed up the same with the back xray because she has a very dropped back and she will be sitting on the ground if her back legs collapse anymore. I used to wake up at around 1am and she would be just panting like crazy but the rest of our dogs were sound asleep so I would get up and take her outside to the patio to try and cool her down. Then came winter and we had our old crazy mad girl back again, she even did the 5km MPW very slowly but she finished. But a few months ago I started finding little parcels around the house, the first time I went to step over one of the dog beds and looked down to find a nice round ball of poop and a few weeks later another in the kitchen and then no more for a while, until one night after she had eaten her meal she went off down the yard to the toilet and then ran in the back door as usual and when I walked in the laundry she had left another nicely formed bundle of poop for me. She has never lost her appetite infact she eats twice as much as our other young greyhounds and then comes to the bench after tea for more but in the last 2 yrs has lost around 3kgs. She often while in the middle of her meal has to run off to go to the toilet and then comes back eats a little more and runs off again but that improved over winter and has just started up again. I am so worried about this summer, thank goodness we have air con as that's all she did last summer was spend all day under that. Our vet couldn't find anything wrong with her but was inclined to think it might be in her mind and we took her back tonight just for another check up and he said the same thing but she was so much better in the winter although where we rugged our other greys up in nice warm coats all winter we couldn't put anything but a very light one on her. If you do a google of dog bowel incontinence there are a lot of sites that can help you control the problem like this one if you scroll right to the end of the page there is a good article on bowel incontinence and why it can be happening.

http://www.srdogs.com/Pages/care.cd.html

[kirsty79]

Wishing your old girl all the best.

It is so hard with our oldies.

I have an 11 1/2 year old Basset Hound, she is blind and deaf and full of cancer but her brain is still very sharp.

The past month she has dropped a huge amount of weight regardless of how much she is getting fed. I have spoken with my vet about the weight lose and there is nothing more he/we can do for her now. It is time to say goodbye :rolleyes:

Leanne

Hi Leanne,

I am so so sorry to hear about your old girl. I can't begin to imagine how terrible it must be for you. I can't even stand to think about losing one of my two - it has me in tears every time. I know the time will come, but if I am brutally honest, I don't know how I will cope, I'm just not that strong. I know I will be a mess.

I can't offer any comforting advice as I haver never been in your situation, just know that you are in my thoughts and prayers at this very difficult time.

Kirsty

[Little Gifts]

Wishing your old girl all the best.

It is so hard with our oldies.

I have an 11 1/2 year old Basset Hound, she is blind and deaf and full of cancer but her brain is still very sharp.

The past month she has dropped a huge amount of weight regardless of how much she is getting fed. I have spoken with my vet about the weight lose and there is nothing more he/we can do for her now. It is time to say goodbye :rolleyes:

Leanne

I'm so sorry Leanne. Mine is blind, deaf, full of cancer, has dementia and is losing weight and feeling bony with loose skin despite having increased her food intake. But she is still full of beans so we'll continue on until she isn't. The vet has told me once she goes downhill it will be a very quick deterioration. I'm trying not to think about it at all until the time comes.

[Little Gifts]

Here's a pic of my old girl taken in August when she turned 16. She used to be nearly all black brindle!