Have you noticed a slight difference with how your longtime pet responds to your calls lately, particularly how long it takes for him to finally recognize the call? Or have you been noticing this already in the past and has been bothered to see that it keeps getting worse everyday?
If you have been living with your pet for a long time now and you are certain he’s already way pass his expected doggie lifespan then it’s time for his visit to the vet for a round of consultation. Due to the “life extension” that most vets give to our ailing pets, it was proven that pets are now living longer than what’s expected of them. This, to the delight of pet owners since we love our pets so much, we wanted to keep them for life but unfortunately, longer lifespan exposes them to a disease similar to Alzheimer’s disease in humans.
Canine Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome or CCDS is also referred to as doggie Alzheimer’s. This condition manifests as our pets age. CDS is also found out to be a brain disease, as what Alzheimer’s disease is to humans. It also makes our beloved pets to have erratic sleeping patterns, confusion and disorientation at times and losing control of their housetraining pattern. The latter being the number one problem for pet owners since they have to put up with messy pees and poops.
According to statistics made for canine cognitive dysfunction syndrome, dogs—and even cats—are more exposed to the disease when they reach the age of 8 and above but goes into full force at about age 13 and accelerates as the years progress. The common symptoms of CDS are:
· Confusion and disorientation. This includes wandering aimlessly around the house and walking in circles. The pet owner would also notice the lapses in reaction time such as greeting a friend or when the owner calls him. Sometimes, you would notice that he’s fast becoming distant and won’t come when called.
· Erratic sleeping pattern. A pet owner is most likely to notice unpredictability in his pet’s sleeping pattern which includes sleeping all day and wandering aimlessly at night when he should have been sleeping. As the disease progressed, there will be more sleep and less waking up. Sometimes, pet owners refer to this symptom as fatigue.
· Limited interactivity. Your pet no longer greets you at the door, oftentimes, ignoring you. Most of all, he would bark at friends and families like he sees danger when he used to love them.
When you see these signs, it is best to seek help from your vet to advise you on how to handle these things and also to rule out other age related illnesses that can affect your beloved pets such as hearing loss and other internal disorders.
