Old Dogs Barking At Nothing

Barking is par for the course.

Old dogs barking at nothing. Sometimes older dogs with health issues can exhibit strange behavior like barking for no readily discernible reason. This is a condition that s pretty similar to alzheimer s disease in humans. Ask your vet for an anti inflammatory med like rimadyl or dermaxx. Are so much less sensitive than our dog s it can seem like our dog is barking at nothing.

A dog that is overly sensitive to stimuli may bark and howl more frequently and at high volume to their environment especially if they are stressed or anxious. Dogs using barking as a way to alert us to intruders or to alert to prey when hunting. The excitable bark dogs bark with excitement just as people like to. Even dogs who are not showing signs of true canine cognitive dysfunction may experience changes in the way their brain processes information and the way he copes in his environment causing more barking a lot of times what happens with our senior patients is that they have had an underlying behavior concern almost their whole lives explains rebecca ruch gallie dvm ms assistant.

Finally some dogs bark to call alert to something. Age related degeneration can also lead to a range of neurological changes in your dog as their brains begin the gradual slowdown in old age. A dog may have spotted a stranger coming up the walkway for instance or may be responding to a knock at the door or an unfamiliar presence. Dogs that are developing dementia may be confused change routines without reason get lost in familiar places and sometimes bark at nothing.

The dog is a small older dog and this a great living space for her. They may bark at nothing or be barking for help but it is not a worrisome sign. If you suspect arthritis is an issue that is a very painful condition and some dogs just bark a lot when they re hurting. Doggie dementia and neurologic symptoms as dogs age they can develop symptoms of dementia just like people.

If your dog barks at nothing on a regular basis it may be worth getting them checked out by your vet. Older dogs can suffer from fears and phobias of noise and thunderstorms and less commonly of going outdoors entering certain rooms or walking on certain types of surfaces. Barking is a normal canine behavior but if your dog seems to bark all the time at nothing he could be hypersensitive. They will be able to prescribe medicines or advise on certain solutions to help.

There are lots of other symptoms of. Sometimes he may simply bark at nothing at all. Unusual night time barking is a classic symptom of canine dysfunction syndrome aka old dog syndrome.