Has anyone heard of Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome ? Its a kind of dementia, my little dog has got all the symptoms the main one being not sleeping at night, just wandering round and barking all night,she is 11,I can't get any sleep, she has been to vets and had blood tests which were ok,he gave her some like sleeping tablets,but won't prescribe them indefinatley she seems ok with them but its the last one tonight,I wondered if anyone had any ideas, may be Lottie ? I have just found on the internet there is some tablets called Anipryl but I think they are American so I don't think I will be able to get them here unless there is something simular,can anyone help ? I'm so tired !

Hi,

I can totally sympathise... as can most people who have visited my shop and met Eddy :rolleyes:

Try and get hold of a product called Aktivait, it's available without prescription:
http://www.petmeds.co.uk/c-187-aktivait.aspx?gclid=COrTkYHNpZcCFYwh3godoUypDA

Aktivait can make a big difference as it basically clears out the toxins that causes the problems with the dog's brain funtion, effectively lowering the brain's age and slowing down the aging process.
If you don't think there's any improvement, ask your vet about upping the dose - my local VN told me to recently and it did seem to work (unfortunately, I forgot again until yesterday when I realised Eddy could now have it twice a day so hopefully he'll improve again soon!).

I'd also recommend getting hold of a DAP diffuser that plugs in and place that near her sleeping place to help her feel more reassured, and serene-um works pretty well for both of my dogs, I use it to help settle Takara at times when she's anxious and for Eddy to calm down his barking periods.

You could also have a look at getting an anxiety wrap/t-shirt or just use a doggy t-shirt on her (but buy the size down from what she should have) the anxiety wrap/t-shirt or tight t-shirt works on the basis of applied constant pressure and can help them feel more reassured.

Because the barking and unsettled nature is caused by confusion, reassuring things such as DAP and the t-shirt should help to minimise the symptoms whilst serene-um works to up the dog's serotonin levels and makes them feel happier and the Aktivait works to clear out toxins.

Hope that helps, and if you need any help with the wrap/t-shirt let me know.
I find it helps to wrap Eddy tight in a blanket at bedtime :)

My lovely old lad went into doggy-dementia, and he had to be taken for the "Long Walk" a month ago.

He was getting so bewildered, poor old fella.

Like with the human population, I suppose, as medical care advances, and longevity increases, we are going to see more of it.

I do wish I had known about the Aktivait, though. I think it'd have been worth a try.

Getting trix was a big help as it perked him up no end for the last 6 months or so.

Our old lass Sapphire(almost 18 years old) has this, she was diagnosed almost a year ago. She has Clomicalm and Activait and it does help her. Also there is a food that is absolutely fantastic for dogs with this condition - Hills prescription B/D, you can feed it on its own or we mix it with a spoonful of Bakers Senior which has antioxidants to help the brain. She has gone from being a dog that barked all night and who would just stand and sway or walk around in circles on the spot and look so lost like someone with Alzheimers on occasion, to a dog who sleeps through the night, wolfs her food down and occasionally still go's and picks up her toys.

18? Wow! :o What a fabulous age for a dog HH, what breed is she?

She's a gorgeous little whippet lab x:) I have had her since she was 2 weeks old

That's amazing, bless her. She's obviously been very well loved. How is Merlin doing now?

Here's a pic of Sapphire doing what she does best bless her
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v355/lynneb66/SapphireDec2008.jpg

Merlins paws have made a full recovery thank you. We are still tackling some behavioural issues he has been left with but are positive he will be o.k. The Council are still investigating the kennels and are hopeful for a prosecution

aww bless her, she looks a cutie! Glad to hear Merlin is on his way to being better. Hope the prosecution is successful. Did you ever get any reply from the kennels? I'm guessing they're still "looking after" other people's animals at the moment :(

No response from teh kennels at all and we have started a private prosecution against them to recoup costs etc

Thanks all for replying, Lotti I have ordered some Activait this morning I will try, and I also went to vets, he gave me some Vivitonin to try which is on prescription and he says there is one called Selgian and also a food called Hills Prescription B/D which is supposed to be very good ,which you could look up ,I know we dog lovers will try any thing for our "babies"
mine is a Shi-tzu x poodle age 11,I also have a Shi-tzu 12 and a young Lhaso x cocker I luv
um !

I will be calling in your shop,what time do you open ? I only live up the road.

Hills B/D is what Sapphire has and it has made a huge improvement. She was put on vivitonin to start with but found we got better results with Clomicalm and Activait. I hope things start to improve for your dog