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Managing elderly dogs overnight - advice please!


westiemum
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HA HA HA YA ALL!!  And particularly you DD!!! :rofl:  Sorry for the very late report.   I had the work phone today and every idiot in the state rang it today - the latest one about 20 minutes ago. (insert rolley eyes here).

 

It didn't work - we still had a 3 am traipse to the back lawn.  But she was less restless overall   

 

So I took her out today with me this morning  and I might have succeeded in wearing her out.   She's also had her pain relief a bit earlier tonight - so hoping that might help.  I'll give her a snack and a drink later tonight before bed.  

 

Will come back again in the morning ASAP - and LG if you've jinxed me with your 'years of broken sleep ' comment I'll haunt you forever! :laugh:

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On ‎11‎/‎03‎/‎2018 at 12:55 PM, westiemum said:

 .... there is absolutely no settling her now until she gets what she needs - even at 2.30 or 3 am! 

.... question is... what other brilliant ways you have of managing elderly pups, particularly overnight?   ....     

In Frodo's last year I had to simply resign myself to living with sleep deprivation.  At least twice a night, often four times, he would say he had to go outside, or snack, or be shown where his water was (still).  And I'd say it took months for me to get over it, totally exhausting.  In retrospect I wish I'd put him onto five meals a day instead of 2-3.  I now do that with Rheneas and feel it makes life easier for him - my logic that it's probably better to start the "smaller and oftener" meal snacks well before it becomes a need and another change for their systems to cope with.

 

Rheneas still has a little sight and hearing.  But no voice, and that is a major worry now: management gets an extra degree of difficulty - he has a great 'sign language' range, but of course I can't see him signing when it's dark.  Need to kind of sleep with one eye open to be aware when he gets up to walk around.  We think Rheneas is 14+, a year or two younger than Frodo who was 15+.

 

Not wanting to sound negative, for me it's not so much a management plan, more of flexibly coping with their needs day to day, ( or more so night to night).  A good torch to hand in case there is a power outage at a critical time is a must.

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8 hours ago, PossumCorner said:

But no voice, and that is a major worry now: management gets an extra degree of difficulty

is YOUR hearing OK ? 
The BEST thing I found with my dogs is one or two of these( fishing rod bell..around 2-3 $)  clipped/wound around /sewn on  to a collar . They DO need to have long spring so they wobble with slight movement ..and very quickly , each sound is able to be interpreted  :) 
image.thumb.jpeg.cd2f48e4b6bc0f657ab9265c7dd11d03.jpeg

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1 hour ago, persephone said:

is YOUR hearing OK ? 
The BEST thing I found with my dogs is one or two of these( fishing rod bell..around 2-3 $)  clipped/wound around /sewn on  to a collar . They DO need to have long spring so they wobble with slight movement ..and very quickly , each sound is able to be interpreted  :) 
image.thumb.jpeg.cd2f48e4b6bc0f657ab9265c7dd11d03.jpeg

We used a cat bell. This would have been much better.

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10 hours ago, PossumCorner said:

Not wanting to sound negative, for me it's not so much a management plan, more of flexibly coping with their needs day to day, ( or more so night to night).  A good torch to hand in case there is a power outage at a critical time is a must.

I don’t think that is sounding negative at all :).  It says it like it is when we have elderly/ill/recovering pets - both management and coping.  I had to keep a torch in my bedside cupboard when I had Orla because of her toileting habits :eek:  :eek: .  Wooden floors don’t show up what might be lying in wait for the unsuspecting foot.   Particularly if you are stumbling out of bed without glasses and having been woken from a deep deep sleep.    

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Guest crazydoglady99

Could you swap her meals around and give the raw meat in the morning, chicken wing in the evening? Then a tiny snack just before bed? 

In theory.. the chicken wing might help her stay fuller?

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Nothing negative in there ! :)

 if one wants to be available / be ready to act ..torches/towels/phone/whatever ready to grab saves a lot of sleepy fumbling :)
A hint as well  ( as long as dogs are NOT trained to use these ) use  a Connie human bed pad as a bedside mat ..so, when you do step out of bed , if someone has urinated , there's no puddle, and floor is protected . 
(O.T.)  this is what I also use when dad visits . He uses a bottle for night time bladder relief ..and a large Conni pad/mat on the floor saves worrying for us all :)  

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For elderly  dogs teaching them it’s okay to use an indoor toilet is often easy or setting up a toilet approved area .

We have sensor lights through our house for the dogs ( these lights come on if the power goes off ) but we have a doggy door with 24/7 access which the oldies use .

We have had the odd 14/15 that would have an accident so we do set up a it’s alright option for night ,a carpet runner in our case was easy to teach the geriatrics to use and they do ,hose off easy peasy .We are tiled so not the end off the world 

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You lot are truly brilliant.  Thank you.  Yes I was up again last night but a bit later at least - and I think I'm starting to get used to it - sort of! 

 

Thank you all - the limiting bit for me is I'm in a rental - so need to be a bit cognisant of that.  BUT, I have this very odd atrium thingo in the middle of the house that is open to the outside - a real throw back to the 80's/early 90's.   I suspect it was designed by an architect for putting plants in who didn't know much about plants - but the truth is its too cold in the winter and far too hot in the summer - so it's pretty much a waste of space.  And its right outside my bedroom - so instant geriatric doggy toilet me thinks!!   So if she's still with us when the weather starts getting cold again, I could put a bit of turf in there or a doggy toilet and she could go in there at night!  Would sure beat carrying her out on the back lawn down four huge steps in the dark and in the freezing cold at 3 am!  And while I'd have to lift her over the lip, at least I wouldn't have to go down the steps and outside! 

 

IMG_3233.thumb.jpg.a8ef1819d0ceecd6ee7447f07c644573.jpg       IMG_3234.thumb.jpg.05db97f3499afb07e1fa3d05cb8a0fca.jpg

    

Swapping around the chicken wing to the night is a good idea - the fattier meat might be more satiating for her - bit like LCHF for us!   And yes I have a sensor light in the hall for her - tick! But I haven't put the torch next to my bed - thats a great idea.

 

PC thanks for your post - your description is absolutely spot on - thats exactly what its like - and yes maybe I just have to recognise and get used to the fact that I'm now in for a time of broken sleep until she returns to God.  This happened with Mac too - and in hindsight it heralded his last days.   As much as I can't bear that thought, I know its coming.  But overall she still has great quality of life - she eats, poops, and pees well - and just loves company, going out in the car or in the Macmobile.  But when that changes I'll make a different decision.  So yes I know its coming - but we're not there yet.   Thanks everyone!  Much appreciated.

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