Aging is the one thing science has yet to find a cure for. And our pets suffer the results of the body growing older just as their human owners do.

Some dogs may exhibit a number of behavioral changes linked to senility. This condition is now commonly called Canine Cognitive Dysfunction, or Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome.

Signs of Canine Cognitive Dysfunction
There are four main areas where symptoms appear. They are disorientation, interaction with people, activity level and sleep, and housetraining.

Disorientation may present itself with an animal that wanders aimlessly, gets stuck in corners, stands at the wrong side of a door or appears not to recognize people or familiar commands and words.

Changes in interaction with people may include seeking more or less attention than normal, not wanting to be petted, or the dog not responding to his or her name.

Activity and sleep changes in the dog show in such behaviors as sleeping more during the day and less at night; barking for no reason; forgetting meal times; and wandering aimlessly.

Housetraining changes are obvious - urinating in the house, not asking to go outside or forgetting why they are there when they do go out. This is not the same as incontinence, which is usually a physical problem.

Not Always CCD
There are also a number of other reasons for abnormal behaviors in senior dogs. Chronic pain can cause changes in behavior, in particular pacing and not sleeping at night.

Other hormonal disorders can also cause changes, especially those involving eating patterns or aggression.

Canine medications can also cause changes in behavior, as can many other diseases and medical conditions.

Take the Dog to the Vet
A thorough medical exam with blood work will be necessary in order to determine if your pet has a cognitive disorder due to aging.

There is also a syndrome called societal disassociative disorder, which is similar to CCD and is caused by loss of senses such as hearing and sight.

There is a medication called Anipryl, which is now commonly prescribed for dogs with this condition. It may help somewhat with some, if not all of the symptoms, but the improvement is usually temporary.

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