Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome

[Fur Elite]

I stumbled upon an article in dog magazine that made me go "EGAD...that is what my dog is doing!" and have been researching it. I believe this relates to the post by sheila about her old dog as well.

I have a 13 year old mixed breed who has been sleeping all day (nothing new) and then around the evening begins pacing from room to room. No purpose to it, just going room to room. Then she sometimes gets stuck under a raised foot rest, or in a corner and can't turn around. Often she just stares into space at a wall. I have found that these are symptoms of this cognitive dysfunction syndrome. She doesn't soil the house or become confused outside, so it isn't well pronounced. Apparantly, there are supplements and medications that can slow the progression of this disorder which they relate to alzheimers.

My general question is, at the age of 13....is this something to medicate or is this aging? They say that CDS is NOT part of normal aging, but I really wonder about things like that...they say 2/3 of dogs will have symptoms by the age of 10 so I don't quite understand how it isn't a part of aging. I am not sure if I should talk my vet into trying this medication or not. My vet is more on the "don't medicate unless you really need to" and I can appreciate that perspective. However, at her last check up I had not really noticed this behavior (i thought it was just her getting old) and didn't mention it. Anyone know more about this?

[Soap]

My vet's dog had CDS. If your dog has it she will get progressively worse.
There is a drug called Anipryl for CDS.

[Fur Elite]

I have read of that drug. I shall ask my vet. You know, I had dismissed her behavior as simply "getting old". The articles all say that most people just assume the same thing.

[Helly]

My general question is, at the age of 13....is this something to medicate or is this aging? They say that CDS is NOT part of normal aging, but I really wonder about things like that...they say 2/3 of dogs will have symptoms by the age of 10 so I don't quite understand how it isn't a part of aging. I am not sure if I should talk my vet into trying this medication or not. My vet is more on the "don't medicate unless you really need to" and I can appreciate that perspective. However, at her last check up I had not really noticed this behavior (i thought it was just her getting old) and didn't mention it. Anyone know more about this?

Fur, would you consider Alzheimers or Senile Dementia part of normal aging? Of course not. But they are age related. The operative word is "normal". CDS is an abnormal, age related condition, just like Alzheimers or Senile Dementia.

Things that could be considered normal parts of aging include diminished vision and hearing, aches and pains, arthritic changes in joints, loss of muscle tone, diminishing kidney function. Body parts are getting tired and wearing out.

Forgetting who you are, where you are, and what you're doing there isn't a normal part of aging. It's a medical condition that develops with age.

If it were my dog, I would give the medication a try. She's 13; I don't think you need to worry about long term side effects. Do you really need to? Well, it could make her last years more enjoyable for both of you. If it doesn't help, you can always stop using it.

[Fur Elite]

Good advice. Thanks Helly. I will ask next vet visit here in a couple of weeks.

[sheilabgroomer]

Fur, thanks for the post!!! I am going to ask Harley's vet about his thoughts on medication for her as well. Harley does a lot of the night time wandering you mentioned. I had thought it was from her arthritus and not being able to stay in the same spot comfortably but maybe that is it. She will also stare at the wall and have a look on her face like she is trying to figure something out. Poor things, they say getting old isn't for sissey's and I believe it!

[shihtzugal]

My toy poodle did this also. During the day she was a normal dog, though at age 9 slept alot. Once night hit, wow....she would run through the rooms barking, kept going to the back door barking, would let her out, but she seemed confused, panted heavily. This would keep up all night long till daybreak. I was getting desperate, lack of sleep.
My vet laughed, thought I was nuts. Knowing her 15yrs I asked to let me try phenobarbital...It worked immediately... My baby was back...I dont know what the problem was, but the med worked for her.

[scullysmom]

I know this seems crazy but try bananas. It works for Alzheimer’s and worked reasonably well for my toy poodle. There is something about potassium that helps.

[Reader]

I know people get cognitive dysfunction, too. It's one of the three main symptoms of schizophrenia and also a problem with bipolar disorder. So it is not neccessarily age related because young people can get it,too. I'm not sure how it's treated in people, but it would be nice if something helped it.

[scrubapup]

I JUST posted about this under "when is it time" thread. My Lily had CCDS. Her symtoms had already started by the time I found her, but progressivly got worse. The pacing - getting "stuck" under furniture when she really wasn't stuck, staring at walls for hours at a time until somebody picked her up and turned her around, forgetting what "outside" was for... the list goes on and on. On top of that, she was completely deaf, and by the time she died, had very little eyesight left.

She was on Anipryl for a little over a month. Getting a pill down that dog throat was almost impossible. And it's a teeny tiny pill that was broken in half. My husband use to tease me because I never cook him breakfast, but every morning I would cook Lily an egg in an attempt to hide that pill. Although she was blind, she always managed to find it. LOL!!

Anypryl gave her the hershey squirts. It got so bad that I made the decision to take her off the drug. She might have been nuts, but at least she wasn't sick all the time. I've heard of other dogs doing great on anipryl. It just wasn't meant to be for Lily.