As our canine companions enter their senior years, it’s natural for them to experience a decline in various functions. This can manifest as a deterioration in memory, learning ability, awareness, and even their senses of sight and hearing. Aging can also subtly alter their social dynamics with family members and other pets. Recognizing and understanding these age-related changes is crucial for providing compassionate and effective care, especially when behavioral issues arise.
It is imperative to report any observed changes in your dog’s behavior to your veterinarian. Do not simply dismiss these changes as a normal part of aging, as many can be indicators of treatable medical conditions. A variety of therapies and interventions exist to alleviate your dog’s symptoms and manage any discomfort or pain they may be experiencing. In addition to seeking professional veterinary and behavioral expert advice, consistent engagement through play, exercise, and training remains a cornerstone of keeping your older dog healthy and mentally stimulated. While you may need to adapt these activities to accommodate their slower movements, reduced energy, declining senses, and any existing medical conditions, the principle remains the same. Engaging a Certified Professional Dog Trainer can offer innovative ways to teach your old dog new tricks, reinforce existing behaviors, and adapt training methods, such as using hand signals for dogs with hearing loss.
Recognizing Cognitive Dysfunction in Senior Dogs
Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome (CDS) is a common condition affecting older dogs, characterized by a decline in cognitive function. The signs can be diverse and may include:
- Confusion and Spatial Disorientation: This can involve getting lost in familiar surroundings, struggling to navigate around obstacles, or going to the wrong side of a door.
- Changes in Social Interaction: Dogs with CDS may become less interested in petting and social interactions, or conversely, become overly clingy and dependent on their owners.
- Increased or Repetitive Activity: This might present as aimless pacing, staring at objects, excessive licking, increased vocalization, or eating more rapidly.
- Decreased Activity and Apathy: Some dogs may explore less, groom themselves less, and show reduced interest in their surroundings or food.
- Increased Anxiety and Irritability: Signs include restlessness, agitation, separation anxiety, and general irritability.
- Disturbed Sleep-Wake Cycles: This can lead to restless sleep, increased nighttime awakenings, and sleeping more during the day.
- House-Soiling Lapses: Accidents indoors, in unusual locations, or even in sleeping areas can occur. Dogs may also show reduced use of their typical body language associated with needing to eliminate.
- Impaired Learning and Memory: This can manifest as difficulty learning new cues, decreased responsiveness to known commands, or an inability to recognize familiar people and pets.
Ruling Out Other Medical Causes
Before diagnosing CDS, it’s essential to rule out other medical conditions that can mimic its symptoms. Degenerative illnesses, pain, discomfort, or decreased mobility caused by conditions such as arthritis, dental disease, hypothyroidism, cancer, impaired vision or hearing, urinary tract infections, or Cushing’s disease can all lead to behavioral changes. These can include increased irritability, anxiety, aggression, decreased responsiveness, and difficulty with house training. If medical problems are ruled out, and there are no apparent primary behavioral issues unrelated to aging, then these signs are likely due to the effects of aging on the brain, diagnosing it as Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome.
Treatment and Behavioral Management of CDS
The primary signs of CDS can be remembered with the acronym CRASH: Confusion/disorientation, Responsiveness/recognition decreases, Activity changes, Sleep-wake cycle disturbances, and House training lapses.
Veterinary treatment for CDS often involves the drug selegiline hydrochloride (Anipryl®), alongside other potential medications and supplements. Combining drug therapy with behavioral modification strategies tailored to your dog’s specific issues is typically the most effective approach.
Specific Geriatric Behavior Problems and Their Management
Anxiety, Including Separation Anxiety:
Increased sensitivity, fear of unfamiliar individuals or pets, reduced tolerance for touch, and heightened anxiety when left alone are common in aging dogs. Hearing loss can exacerbate anxiety, making dogs more sensitive to noises. Your own frustration can also contribute to your dog’s anxiety.
For house-soiling issues, crating might be considered, but it can increase anxiety in senior dogs, especially if they are not accustomed to it or if they struggle with incontinence. If the anxiety is specifically due to your absence, it is classified as separation anxiety. Key indicators include pre-departure anxiety, house soiling or destructiveness shortly after you leave, and a refusal to eat while alone. It’s crucial that these behaviors occur only in your absence; if they happen when you are home, other issues may be at play.
A distinct form of geriatric separation anxiety can manifest as nighttime anxiety, where a dog’s perception of your sleeping is akin to separation. This can lead to pacing, panting, and demanding attention throughout the night. A thorough veterinary examination is vital to identify any underlying medical causes for this anxiety. Treatment for separation anxiety involves managing medical conditions and employing desensitization and counterconditioning (DSCC) techniques. Modifying your own responses that might exacerbate your dog’s anxiety is also beneficial.
Excessive Vocalization:
If your senior dog vocalizes excessively, especially at inappropriate times like during the night, it can be disruptive. Anxious vocalization often sounds like howling or whining. If it only occurs when you are gone, it may indicate separation anxiety. If it happens when you are home, further investigation by a behaviorist is needed. Causes can include hearing loss, CDS, central nervous system disorders, or medical conditions causing pain or increased need to eliminate. Punishing vocalization can worsen anxiety. Treatment involves addressing underlying medical and cognitive issues, and behavioral modification to identify and change reinforcing owner responses. Rewarding quiet behavior and, in some cases, using non-shock bark collars may be effective.
Restlessness and Nighttime Wakefulness:
Dogs who sleep more during the day may become restless at night. Sensory changes like vision or hearing loss, CDS, or other neurological disorders can disrupt sleep-wake cycles. A veterinary examination to rule out medical causes is essential. Treatment may involve retraining to reestablish normal sleep patterns, increasing daytime activity through walks and play, and using puzzle toys. Your vet might also suggest medications to induce sleep or promote daytime activity.
House Soiling:
Numerous medical issues, including sensory decline, mobility problems, brain tumors, CDS, endocrine disorders, and conditions affecting bladder or bowel control, can contribute to house soiling. If house soiling occurs only when you’re away and is accompanied by other signs of separation anxiety, that disorder should be considered. Changes in routine or environment can also lead to house soiling in older dogs. A comprehensive behavioral history taken by a qualified professional is often necessary to determine the cause and develop an effective treatment plan. Once medical issues are addressed, reestablishing house training using puppy-like methods—close supervision, confinement, and a regular outdoor schedule with rewards—is key. Adjusting your schedule or providing an indoor elimination area may be necessary.
Destructive Behavior:
The underlying cause of destructive behavior in senior dogs must be identified for effective treatment. This can range from pica (ingesting non-food items) to excessive licking, chewing, scratching, or digging. CDS can be a factor in licking and chewing behaviors. While treating underlying medical conditions and CDS may resolve some issues, others might require specific interventions. If anxiety, phobias, or fears are present, they need to be addressed. Modifying the home environment to prevent access to trigger areas and providing engaging chew toys are also important strategies.
Fears and Phobias:
Sensory decline, CDS, and anxiety can all contribute to the development or exacerbation of fears and phobias in older dogs. Addressing underlying medical conditions and CDS is the first step. Common fears include noises, thunderstorms, and reluctance to go outdoors or enter certain rooms. Owner frustration and punishment can worsen these issues. Management strategies include avoiding triggers and masking noises. Behavioral treatment can help change your dog’s emotional response to fearful stimuli. Veterinary consultation for anti-anxiety medication or pheromone therapy can also provide relief.
Compulsive and Stereotypic Behaviors:
These are ritualistic, repetitive behaviors with no clear purpose, such as excessive licking, spinning, pacing, air biting, or staring at walls. CDS and conflict or anxiety-provoking situations can contribute. Displacement behaviors, which occur outside their normal context during stress, can become compulsive over time. Drug therapy is often necessary, but identifying and reducing the source of conflict or anxiety can sometimes prevent the need for medication.
Aggression:
An increase in aggression in senior dogs can stem from various factors, including medical conditions affecting appetite, mobility, cognition, senses, or hormones, as well as pain or irritability. Changes in family dynamics or the introduction of new pets can also influence aggression. As dogs age, increased anxiety and sensitivity can lead to aggression towards unfamiliar individuals and animals. A proper diagnosis by a qualified animal behavior expert is essential for effective treatment, which may involve medication, behavior therapy, or environmental modifications.
Maintaining Quality of Life for Senior Dogs
Beyond addressing specific behavioral issues, maintaining your senior dog’s mental and physical well-being is paramount. Continued engagement through adapted play, exercise, and training not only supports their health but also strengthens your bond. Patience and understanding are key as you navigate these changes together. By working closely with your veterinarian and behavior professionals, you can ensure your aging canine companion enjoys a comfortable, happy, and fulfilling life.
