Coping with old age

[stellnme]

When Stella died a year ago, I thought we would get a respite from old dog worries with Basil who is now 4 and a half, and Ned, who always just does fine.  In September we adopted Tuppence, a 10 year old Iggy, and she is still healthy and spritely.  Over the past few months, we've realised with a shock how Ned has deteriorated.  He came from Blacktown Pound in 2006 to a rescue, had parvo and survived and then went up for adoption.  He was classified as "at least 2" then, but our vet thought he was even older.  At the very least, it would make him 14.  He seems to have lost his spark - he always kept pretty much to himself but lately we've caught him just standing in places with his head down like a little statue for reasonably long periods. He's still eating well, but having accidents now and then, he doesn't want to be around anyone and takes himself off to a quiet place.  Lots of old dog behaviour and probably dementia as well.  He's not long had a vet check and we know he's not seeing as well as he used to and slowing down, but aren't we all!   Just watching him for any new signs but having been there quite a few times before, I'm sad to say that I think we are seeing the start of the long decline.   How did others cope with this? 

[Loving my Oldies]

No advice, just hugs and understanding.  As you would know from experience, it really does depend on the dog and, of course, we have to adjust a lot or a little bit the way we behave around the house, always keeping an eye on them and ensuring they are comfortable.  

[stellnme]

Thanks, DDD, you've been there many times too. 

[WoofnHoof]

I'm going through this with Lulu, it seems like you have these tough little dogs that never need the vet and then all of a sudden you turn around and they are old and in decline  

[stellnme]

So true @WoofnHoof After Ned recovered from his bout of parvo before he was adopted, he hasn't had anything!  He has a yearly vet check but mostly he is happy to potter around, have a walk around our property - he really doesn't like traffic at all, and eat and sleep the day away.  Suddenly we're watching him all the time.    I know there's not much to do, apart from maybe another vet visit to rule out a few things, but my tough little dog isn't so tough anymore.

I'm sorry to hear you are also going through the decline with your Lulu.

Edited February 1, 2018 by stellnme

[Papillon Kisses]

You could ask your vet about trying Hills B/D and dementia meds.  

[_PL_]

I'm no help.  Just spoil him.  

If he's interested in food ... we give the old folks little tastes of everything. NikNak's favourite is a bite of peanut butter sandwich.   Nothing special, just breaking the rules of not feeding people food.  I know he hasn't got long, his liver is ..... old.  He gets prescription diet but it's not tasty. 

We've got some IQ puzzles for the oldies to keep their minds active. They like those   And it's fun to watch them work things out. Liver is too rich so we pop lamb puff in the puzzle instead.

 

Beta blockers / dementia meds can assist, might be worth a try. 

[stellnme]

Taking Ned back to the vet tomorrow for a check.  Things continue to decline so want to know where we are standing with all that is going on.

[stellnme]

No real surprises at the vet visit.  Ned is pretty much blind, at best he is seeing shadows, which may be the cause of his confusion and reluctance to go outside to toilet.  In short, lots of old dog stuff happening but no one thing that we can do much about.  He is on a senior vitality supplement - can't do any harm.  We had a long talk about their decline, but Ned isn't there yet.  We will try lots of things, including solar lights on the back deck which may be of some help, and just look after him.

[Tassie]

That's tough .. but I guess good to know what's going on.   Definitely worth trying the solar lights.   Ned is lucky to have you in his corner.

[poochmad]

Well, I never expected to be in here or participating in this conversation, but our 10 year old has suddenly changed. 

 

Hes acting more like a 12 year old, than 10.

 

it just happened, one week he was fine the next he didn’t know my husband and he’s my husband’s first dog who absolutely loves him.

 

jindi is 9 and acts like a 6 year old.

 

my husband is in denial how bad it is. But I’ve had old dogs before, but Henschke is worse.

 

god it sucks.

 

sorry snm you’re going through this. I always thought that little dogs would live a lot longer than bigger dogs.

[stellnme]

It seems the heartache of making the decision for one failing dog wasn't enough.  I've received a diagnosis of Cushings and Renal failure for my sweet Tuppence, the 10 year old Italian Greyhound I only adopted in October.   I am investigating all options and still processing this heartbreaking news and at the same time, having to let Ned go next week due to vastly deteriorating health.  At the moment all seems just a little bit unfair.

 

[stellnme]

Ned left us this week.  Easter was heartbreaking as he had several falls and was a very distressed dog.  The vet suspects that a tumour might have made him go blind relatively quickly and contributed to his erratic behaviour, but we'll never know for sure.  He was just an old, unwell dog that I had to step up and call time on.