<p>We have a 13 YO spaniel who has begun to whine, almost incessantly, for no apparent reason. He’s a decrepit thing who goes off his feed occasionally (but eventually does eat–just seems pickier for a couple of days) and pretty much sleeps all the time; moves very slowly due to hip problems. Vet has said for a couple of years now that this dog is living on borrowed time. We are wondering why he whines—even kind of whimpers as he sleeps. This is new behavior. Could the whining mean he’s in pain? We have vowed to not let the dog suffer, but how do we know? He doesn’t seem to have much quality of life, mostly because he just lies around sleeping. He does eat and drink, which I know are indicators…As all pet owners know, it’s very difficult when they are members of your family. Wish he could tell us what’s wrong. Anybody have a similar experience or have any word of wisdom to share? Really don’t want to go down this road…</p>
<p>I think any change in behavior is caused by something. With pets, it is just so hard to figure out the cause sometimes! I would call your vet or take him in. I would think that he was in some sort of distress to be whining nonstop.
Vets see everything and they just might have an answer.</p>
<p>Our 10 year old dog has developed some health problems and our lives have totally changed in the past 2-3 weeks. I say he just developed the problems but they have really been “brewing” for probably a couple of years. Developed a heart murmur (with no other symptoms), then we noticed that he was slowing down on walks, then coughing this summer, etc. Now the heart problem requires several medications and we are taking him outside ALOT more often (due to taking Lasix). Sad.</p>
<p>I’m sorry about your spaniel. Friends for life, as they say. Apparently there are several possible causes for this. There’s a lot of info on the web. For example:</p>
<p>“Old dogs often bark, whine or howl more often than they used to. Cognitive dysfunction and separation anxiety can be to blame, or this may simply be a means for your dog to get your attention. Again, it’s best to determine the cause of the increased vocalization in order to treat it. Medication may be necessary. … Changes in sleep pattern are common behavioral changes in older dogs, resulting in nocturnal restlessness, pacing or even barking or whining.”</p>
<p>[Old</a> Dogs](<a href=“http://apluspetgoods.com/petsupplies/olddogs.php]Old”>http://apluspetgoods.com/petsupplies/olddogs.php)</p>
<p>Sorry to hear about your dog. Our dog is going to be 10 in January, and I noticed that he is gradually becoming more whiny. He used to slam his entire body into hard objects when he could not “put on his breaks” while chasing a ball and would just bounce back without making a sound, and now he “complains” about stepping on a pinecone! He is going for his annual check up soon, and I’m not looking forward to it, because he will be yelping and screaming just about anything the vet is going to do to him - taking his temperature, checking his teeth, etc.
The web indeed is crawling with articles on pet health. May be this one will be of some use (make sure you talk to you vet):</p>
<p>[Behavior</a> Changes & Problems in Older (Senior, Geriatric) Dogs](<a href=“Ask A Vet Online 24/7 - PetCoach”>Ask A Vet Online 24/7 - PetCoach)</p>
<p>Thanks for these good links. We’re not sure how old our dog is because we adopted him and have always relied on the vet’s estimate. He’s had behavior changes, too (barking, increased separation anxiety, changes in sleep patterns). These articles will help us understand what’s going on.</p>
<p>We have a 12 year old dog and have noticed several of these behavioral changes. He has developed a heart murmur but does not cough or need meds (yet). He loves to go on walks but often we let him out in the backyard; sometimes he just stares and “forgets” why we let him out. I’ve also noticed vision and hearing changes. I’m the one who tosses and turns at night while doggy sleeps soundly and barely moves!</p>
<p>Here is another page I found very informative:</p>
<p>[Dog</a> Info - Alphabetical Index](<a href=“http://www.vetinfo4dogs.com/dogindex.html]Dog”>http://www.vetinfo4dogs.com/dogindex.html)</p>
<p>Dr. Mike also has a “catindex” (the link is on the left) and vet school information!</p>
<p>rutgersmamma,
I am also going through this. Dog is 13 1/2. In generally great shape. Bright, and he is the smartest dog I have ever owned. Over the past six months he has had sporadic episodes with dehydration and stomach problems. The last bout was two days ago. Long story short, he ended up at the only 24 hour care clinic around, 800 dollars later I brought him home and he has been fine since. The clinic wanted to do an ultrasound and then a colonoscopy. (spelling?)<br>
I asked what they were looking for and then explained that I wasn’t going to spend another two thousand to find cancer because I was not going to treat it if they found it. Vet agreed.
For now he is home, bouncing around the house (yes! at 13) going to work with me so I can ensure that he is not getting into something in the yard that is causing the problem.
Family is telling me that the next episode we will have to put him down. I’m not there yet and neither is the vet.</p>
<p>Our miniature schnauzer is 11, and we are dealing with some geriatric issues as well. He has terrible gum disease and has been losing his teeth and a systemic infection set in. Due to some other health issues, the vet did not want to anesthesize him to deal with the teeth, so put him on a pulse schedule of antibiotics (1 week on/3 weeks off) which is so far working wonders. (No more bad breath, much more energy, almost like his puppy-self). But he is definitely slowing down a bit, doesn’t jump up onto the furniture as easily or often, hesitates noticably jumping into our SUV (that jump must be higher than it used to be).</p>
<p>Oh. It’s about a dog. From the thread title, I thought it was going to be about me.</p>
<p>Finally a topic I know something about.</p>
<p>Our ancient Schnauzer was very vocal, slept more during the day, very restless and agitated at night, startling at nothing and stuck to us like glue. I consulted with the vet who said she was exhibiting signs of canine dementia. She started taking a medication called Anipryl. Within 3 weeks we had our old dog back: trying to play with the other dogs, eating better, and not crying all the time. I really was surprised. The medication is expensive (16 pound dog - more or less $80/month). After two months we had to bump the meds up by half a pill as she had developed a tolerance for it. She lived 4 or 5 more months, but they were good months. I wish we had started the pills earlier but she had been typecast as the nutty dog and we just thought her nervousness was evolving.</p>
<p>Have you tried any rimadyl for arthritis pain? Helped the old retriever of ours a lot.</p>
<p>I hope you can find some kind of treatment that works for your dog and the family. It is so hard on the kids when their childhood companions start to fail.</p>
<p>twomules - I am currently deciding whether to put my 16 year old dog on Anipryl. It’s nice to see that your had good results with it.
My dog gets around pretty well physically, but has dementia. </p>
<p>He gets confused/ traps himself behind furniture and in corners/ can’t figure out how to get in or out of an opened door/ has stopped eating dog food ( but eats the cat’s food)/sometimes does not seem to recognize us / and the worst one of all…he sleeps all day and paces all night. </p>
<p>It’s like having a baby again with the lack of sleep!!! We’ve been waking him up all day and walking him alot and that seems to help some, but every third night or so it’s back to the pacing.</p>
<p>The vet thought it would only take two weeks to show sings of effectiveness. At the two week point my husband and I went away on an 8 day business trip thinking that it wasn’t working. My mom kept giving her the pills. When we returned we were stunned by the change in her. My point… give it a little longer than expected and don’t give up on it too soon.</p>