The Dog Behavior Answer Book - Arden Moore [85]
Another way to help dogs and people in transition is to act as a foster home for the pets of women who are victims of domestic violence. Ask at a social services agency, shelter for women, or humane society to see if there is such a program in your area.
If you have lots of time and patience, think about becoming a puppy trainer for a service dog organization. These programs take a serious commitment and an understanding that you are just “starting” the puppy for someone else. There are several national programs where you can find more information — see Resources, page 315, for details.
PART VI
Changing Lives, Parting Ways
In my days as a daily newspaper reporter, I marveled at how my favorite metro editor could juggle so many things so well. She seemed to take the hiring and firing of staff members and the changes in layout and design in stride. She shared her secret to survival: recognizing that the only constant in life was change. That adage certainly holds true when it comes to our dogs. Many of us adopt puppies or young adult dogs with the good intention of keeping them for the rest of their lives.
Sadly, life can interfere with our best intentions. Events like divorce, the birth of a baby, relocating, or the onset of pet allergies change our ability to provide a home for our pets. Sometimes behavior issues arise that seem impossible to cure. If our dogs do spend their whole lives with us, we must face that time we wish never would occur: parting ways with our canine friend because of his death or our own.
We can’t stop change and we can’t live forever. But we do our best to prepare for the unexpected curve-balls life hurls our way, such as divorce and death and other changes in our lives.
Doggy Dementia
Q Zeke, my black-and-tan terrier mix, is 15. She used to love stalking squirrels, but now she would rather sleep all day. On walks, she can be only a few feet away from me but all of a sudden will start looking all around and acting as if she has completely lost me. In the house, she sometimes stares blankly at the walls. Can dogs develop dementia in the way people do?
A I am sorry to hear about Zeke. Memory loss and signs of confusion in older dogs may be symptoms of cognitive dysfunction syndrome, which is often described with the acronym DISH, for disorientation, interaction reduction, sleep difficulties, and house soiling. Zeke is clearly disoriented, because she wanders aimlessly, becomes lost in your house, and stares blankly at walls. You may have noticed other changes in her behavior as well. Sleeping more during the day, waking up in the middle of the night, and barking for no apparent reason are also telltale signs. House soiling by a senior dog can be caused by forgetfulness but may be a sign of a medical problem.
In the past, owners — as well as many veterinarians — usually dismissed these symptoms as normal signs of aging. But today, growing gray in the muzzle doesn’t have to automatically mean cognitive dysfunction. I encourage you to take Zeke for a thorough veterinary exam. As they age, dogs need more frequent checkups, and many veterinarians recommend a senior wellness exam. This particular series of tests at age seven (sooner for giant breeds) establishes a baseline of health and can uncover potentially serious problems before symptoms become unmanageable. Fortunately, treatments are now available that may not cure age-related canine dysfunction but can at least slow down the degenerative process.
In addition to a visit to your family veterinarian, you might consider consulting a veterinary specialist who can perform specific tests, such as ultrasound or MRI, to determine if there is a medical reason (age-related kidney or liver problems, for example) for changes in Zeke’s behavior or if Zeke is displaying signs of cognitive dysfunction syndrome.
You can’t put the brakes on the number of birthdays your dog accumulates, but you can take purposeful steps to keep her feeling years younger. Veterinary researchers are learning ways to manage canine senility