Old dog anxiety

[RootSkier]

We have a very good boy who is 14. Over the last six months or so, he's started acting a little goofy. Primarily, he will refuse to leave a certain area of our (sunken) family room for days on end, even though he has to to get to where everyone else is. It's not about the stairs, he has no problems with those. The real problem is that he barks incessantly when he is there. He also does the same thing with going outside and then immediately wanting to come back in, then repeating the same process.

We think he is just generally confused. His eyesight and hearing are not great, so that probably doesn't help either. He remains in otherwise decent health and is great with our kids and the neighbors' kids, so it's not like he is a menace to himself or others.

Has anyone experienced a situation like this? Should we talk to our vet about drugging him with doggy valium or something? Are there more homeopathic-type remedies? We have given him melatonin but it doesn't seem to do anything.

[AdironRider]

My pup went through this for about a year before he passed. My wife and I think his senses were going like you mention so he was more alert to odd noises and people driving by he could no longer recognize.

We would give him remadil (I think that is how its spelled) which I believe is a pain reliever, but it usually calmed him down and shouldn't require a trip to the vet.

Unfortunately you probably aren't going to break this out of him if our guess on the senses going is correct.

[concretejungle]

I don't know about it but my cousin is a vet in Missoula (she does house calls) and does acupuncture/estim. I can get you her contact info if you'd like.

[GhostofSeasonsPast]

CBD tincture sometimes helps, but can get pricey.

[PNWbrit]

My pooch is starting to exhibit some of these behaviors.

Deafness really is particularly hard for him to get used to I think.. He seems very much more vulnerable and guarded when outside and easily startled by movement.

[iceman]

Deafness, blindness, pain can all be factors plus doggie dementia is a thing . It just sucks to get old no matter who you are, basically

[XXX-er]

reminds me alot of myself actualy ^

[AdironRider]

But maybe you're a savant at pinball?

[Conundrum]

My old timer is doing something similar but without the barking. He's got his place outside and his place inside where he hangs out 95% of the time. He has bad hips and arthritis in his front. We put him on rimadyl which did make a big difference. We use KV Supply and buy a generic which is much cheaper than what the vet sells but I did have to send a prescription in to KV Supply.

[frorider]

Doggie senility is real and the associated anxiety episodes can be heartbreaking to watch. Our shepherd lived to 17, and during the last 2 yrs we gave her small doses of Xanax per the vet’s recommendation. It made a huge difference.

[old goat]

We have an 11 year old who gets stuck in rooms sometimes--just won't cross the threshold. Her senses seem fine but she's been through 3 operations on 2 knees in the last year and lost our older dog, her life long companion. It seems like she's lost her self confidence. The older dog did go deaf and would sometimes stand in the middle of the room not knowing what she meant to do (like her owner) but otherwise not a lot of anxiety--just a lot of pain from her arthritis.

[XXX-er]

But maybe you're a savant at pinball?

I kinda doubt it

but i have figured out how to get the free dope by following the youngsters out the door when they head out behind the micro brew for a smoke break

[Grange]

My 14 year old lab has dementia among other issues. She will stand in a corner with a vacant stare at times and now has accidents in the house. On the flip side she still loves to fetch and tries to play with other two dogs. I haven't seen her get territorial or prefer to stick to one area.

[RootSkier]

Appointment with the vet scheduled for this week, hoping for a xanax prescription.

Coincidentally, I am flying with the 2 and 4 year old the next day.

P.S. I doggie xanax the same as people xanax? Asking for a friend.

[MontuckyFried]

My 14 year old lab has dementia among other issues. She will stand in a corner with a vacant stare at times and now has accidents in the house. On the flip side she still loves to fetch and tries to play with other two dogs. I haven't seen her get territorial or prefer to stick to one area.

Sadly, we're starting to see similar traits with our 13 year old lab/GSP mix. Kind of annoying (and sad) when I let the dogs out for their first/last time for the day and she just stands there on the porch, staring off into space. I've started to have to walk her around to make sure she goes, since all of a sudden she just will not go on her own. I've known her for 7+ years now and she has never had an accident until just the other day, when she really let it go in the kitchen (thank God it was there and not the carpet). Due to the location on the tile, I could tell it was a no kidding accident; probably just a moment of incontinence.

She can still run with the best of them, and can probably still out-hike most dogs, but it breaks my heart to see these moments of senility. Other odd behaviors shows me she's kinda starting to lose her marbles. I bet she'll run like the wind 'til the day her heart finally conks out, though. I hope she goes out like that...on a hike or something since that's her favorite.

[frorider]

P.S. I doggie xanax the same as people xanax? Asking for a friend.

Same as human Xanax. Which means by law that when you pick up the pills, the pharmacist has to talk with you about the risks of addiction the patient faces. Pharmacist will be trying hard not to laugh during this discussion.