One of my dear friends who manages two local pet emergency clinics recently suggested an article emphasizing some of the perils associated with aging pets. As we discussed the variety of different issues, it became obvious that many of these old age changes correlate to what frequently happens to humans too.
For example, older pets frequently forget their yard boundaries and can wander off and get lost. I remember this happening once when my 16 year old Springer went out into the back yard to do her business. She always took about 3-5 minutes and would then be at the back door waiting to come back in. This time, I had to go out looking for her and found she had wandered about four condos away and had no idea where she was or what she was supposed to be doing. Her increased deafness and blindness made it even more challenging to retrieve her. Luckily she had not wandered out into the road! You see older dogs and cats also get cognitive dysfunction or old age senility. This can be especially dangerous around pools. Older, blind pets that fall into the pool can become too disoriented to find their way out and frequently drown! Don’t let this happen to your elderly pet!
Older pets can also become incontinent with age, a symptom obviously problematic to humans too based on the number of “Depends” and bladder control commercials on TV. So that young dog that sleeps in your bed now will probably start leaking urine in the bed when she is elderly. Forewarned is forearmed.
Many clients complain that their old cat is not only showing increased nocturnal activity, after sleeping all day, but are especially more vocal at night too! Like people, both cats and dogs tend to become more night-time pacers, but cats also tend to be much more vocal while wandering. A yowling cat will definitely interfere with your sleeping habits! These pets also are more arthritic and have more trouble jumping up and down off beds and furniture, and are therefore more vocal in requesting a hand up or down. Having steps built to their favorite sleeping area can help alleviate this problem. Older pets often forget when they were last fed and thus wake you up for food throughout the night. Setting up small food stations throughout the house can frequently stop this behavior. I remember one case where this 18 year old Siamese, who slept in bed with her 75 year old owner, would howl at night to get fed. This cat was too elderly to jump off the bed, so we had the owner set up a TV tray of food next to the foot of the bed so the cat could feed during the night. Finally, the owner could then sleep through the night without having to get up and fix a midnight snack for her kitty.
Remember, if your pet is showing any behavioral changes which you think may be associated with age, contact your veterinarian first to rule out any medical issues, and she then can help you address any behavioral issues.
