Canine Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome

Now that I’ve introduced Valentine, our beagle mutt that we lost last summer at the age of 15, I thought it might be a good time to discuss Canine Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome, or CDS. While Tootsie Roll has demonstrated some signs of CDS, Valentine could have been a poster child for the disease. CDS is caused by physical and chemical changes that affect brain function in older dogs. Although not identical, pathological changes in the brains of dogs with CDS are similar to those seen in human Alzheimer patients.

Dogs with CDS may show behavioral changes such as confusion and forgetfulness, and may be less responsive to their owners. Advances in veterinary medicine have made it possible for our companion animals to be with us longer, which is a wonderful thing. However, these advances have increased the population of geriatric pets, resulting in more dogs with CDS, and requiring us pet parents to become more knowledgeable about the syndrome.

The classic signs of CDS in old dogs include:

• Reduced activity

• Changes in sleeping patterns

• Reduced responsiveness to people
• Lack of interest in surroundings
• Confusion, disorientation
• Pacing, wandering
• Inability to recognize familiar people
• Increased thirst
• Excessive panting
• Difficulty eating or reduced interest in food
• Loss of bladder and bowel control
• Difficulty navigating their environment

Valentine exhibited a number of these CDS symptoms. She would sometimes pace the floor and wander around, appearing to be confused. I once caught her staring into the glass door of our entertainment center and was sure that she thought it was the doggie door. I think Valentine’s problems were exacerbated by the fact that she had lost much of her vision. Fortunately, the loss of appetite and bladder control didn’t appear until the end of her time with us.

The most unusual behavior change that we noticed was her attitude toward her big sister, Tootsie Roll. From the day we brought Valentine into our home, she had always deferred to Tootsie’s top dog role. As she got older and CDS began to set in, she started picking fights with Tootsie. Everyone would be calmly sitting in the family room, and Valentine would begin to stare at Tootsie. Then she’d start to growl. Then, when we would try to defuse the situation, Valentine would go after her. It was so puzzling because we could never identify anything in particular that would put her into that frame of mind. It would just come out of the blue. I don’t know if she felt that it was time to challenge the aging alpha dog, or if she was feeling threatened in her beta situation, or what her befuddled little doggie brain was telling her.

There are a few things that may help dogs with CDS. Studies have shown an improvement in most dogs within one month of starting to receive L-Deprenyl (Anipryl). CDS is often associated with the depletion of dopamine, and this drug works by helping to prolong dopamine activity and by reducing the amounts of free radicals in the brain. Dietary changes may also help to alleviate CDS. Therapeutic diets containing antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids are recommended.

Environmental stimulation in conjunction with dietary change, is good for old dogs. You CAN teach an old dog new tricks, and you should, to keep your dog’s mind working. We’ve all experienced or heard stories about older dogs becoming more lively with the introduction of a puppy into the household. Use caution with that because a very old dog might not adjust well to such a dramatic change.

Finally, the best things we can give our old dogs are love and understanding. Learning about CDS will help us to understand why our old dog has changed. And, love will help everyone to get through a difficult period in our friend’s life.

Beagle – The Ultimate Chow Hound

According to Wikipedia, “beagles are scent hounds, developed primarily for tracking hare, rabbit, and other game.” In my experience, beagles are chow hounds, dedicated to eating anything they can get their little paws on. To illustrate this point, I need to introduce Valentine, the beagle mutt we lost last summer at the age of 15. I affectionately referred to Valentine as my “problem child”. She would eat anything that remotely resembled food, and that was usually at the core of whatever trouble she caused.

Valentine had to endure induced vomiting twice. We came home from work one day to find a kitchen cabinet door open and an empty bag of Nestle’s Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels on the floor. Valentine’s paw prints were all over this caper, but we couldn’t be sure that Tootsie had not partaken once the bag was open. So, both dogs were whisked off to the vet, where we subsequently learned that Tootsie was innocent of all charges, and Valentine had kept the feast to herself.

The second time Valentine was forced to undergo induced vomiting was when we thought she had ingested mouse poison. One of our neighbors had a fake rock in their yard which contained blocks of mouse poison (bad, bad idea). Somehow, this rock made its way into our yard and we found Valentine with her nose in a mouse hole in the rock. We didn’t see Tootsie near the rock, but since she was in the vicinity, both dogs were once again raced to the vet. The dogs were force fed some nasty charcoal-based product, which is designed to absorb the poison, and which they both promptly threw up in my car on the way home.

Then, there was the time that Valentine ate almost a whole loaf of bread. Living near conversation land, many of the neighbors will put out old food for the critters that reside near us. I looked out the window one day to see Valentine in stealth mode making her way toward the back of our neighbor’s garage. I rushed over, only to be greeted by Valentine with a slice of bread in her mouth, all that remained of the loaf. Since this occurred on a Sunday, we had to take her to the emergency vet ($$$), where they did several nasty things to get the bread to come out one way or the other. Valentine spent the night at their office and greeted us the next morning looking for her next meal.

Dogs of various breeds are prone to getting into different kinds of trouble all because they do what their instincts tell them to do. It’s almost hard to get mad at them for doing what comes naturally. As owners, we need to be aware of what drives our dogs and try to keep them out of peril as best we can.