Our dogs are living longer than ever thanks to enormous advances
in medical and a highly evolved understanding of
what they need to thrive. No one knows this better than the
faculty of the Cummings Veterinary School at Tufts, who treat
more than 8,000 older dogs annually. Their philosophy of caring
for aging dogs combines empathy for each individual dog and
owner, a comprehensive approach to patient care, cutting-edge
science and technology, and a commitment to innovation. Good Old
Dog brings their renowned clinic into your living room, arming
you with essential advice to see your dog through his golden
years. Featuring • tional advice—not every senior diet is
right for every senior dog
• Emphasis on treating conditions common to older dogs so they
live longer
• How to evaluate complicated procedures and decide what’s right
for your dog
• The cost of caring for an older dog and how to shoulder the
burden
• How to identify cognitive decline and how to manage it
• Advice on creating a y and comfortable environment
• How to determine when “it’s time” and how to cope with the
loss
• And much more
Common Questions About Aging Dogs Answered in Good Old Dog
Q: Regarding a dog’s age, is it really seven human years for
every year lived?
A: Not exactly. For a medium-size dog who weighs between twenty
and fifty pounds, yes, that’s about right. For a large dog, one
who weighs more than ninety pounds, every year of life is closer
to the equivalent of about every eight human years. For a small
dog under twenty pounds, each year is the equivalent of about six
human years. That’s why small dogs, on average, live longer than
large ones. They "use up" fewer years with each year of life.
Q: If I choose a dog food that says "senior" on the label, I’m
giving my older dog the tion he or she needs, right?
A: Who knows? "Senior" is a marketing term, not a specific
tional term, so it means whatever the manufacturer wants it
to mean. Some "senior" dog foods are high in calories, some are
low in calories, and some have a ent composition that is not
well balanced for all older dogs, with levels of sodium, protein,
and other ingredients all over the . The only way to know if a
food is right for your geriatric dog is to make sure there’s a
sentence on the package that says the food is appropriate for
maintenance, not for growth or gestation and lactation.
Q: If a dog has , she or he will limp, right?
A: Not necessarily. If the is in the same spot on both
hind legs or both front legs, the dog may waddle or shuffle. That
is, the gait will look symmetrical, unlike a limp. But waddling
and shuffling are not normal ways of walking, and a dog who is
not walking normally should be taken to the vet for an exam.
Q: Why is it that dogs with cancer who are on chemo don’t go
bald?
A: It’s rare for a dog on chemo to lose hair because dogs get
lower doses of chemotherapy for their size. In people, the
with chemo is to try to cure the cancer. In dogs, it’s to extend
life but not rid the body of the malignancy. Since chemo can be
so debilitating, with side effects that include , diarrhea,
and infections, and since an older dog with cancer will lose not
decades of life but only a few years at most, the veterinary
community feels it is not right to put such a dog through a
medical regimen that will destroy the quality of life while
affording the animal only a few extra months to a couple of
years.
Q: Why is it that you never hear of dogs dropping dead of a
heart attack?
A: Dogs don’t get heart attacks, generally speaking. They get
heart failure, a progressive disease that takes its toll over
time. Fortunately, much can be done to forestall the effects of
heart failure and grant an affected dog several more years of
good-quality life.
Q: My ten-year-old dog doesn’t come when I call him anymore. Is
he falling prey to age-related dementia?
A: It’s hard to say. He might just be going deaf. Dementia is a
bit tricky to diagnose in dogs because they are unable to
communicate in words that they don’t hear or can’t see as well or
have other declines that could be mistaken for dementia. Good Old
Dog has a checklist with constellations of symptoms that, taken
together, indicate when you should take your dog in for a
neurological evaluation to see if he has the canine version of
Alzheimer’s. New methods to treat the disease are emerging, and
the sooner your dog is correctly diagnosed, the better chance you
have of stalling any cognitive decline.
Q: A dog will let you know when "it’s time" to put him down,
right?
A: Not necessarily. Many conditions in older dogs that look like
"this is the end" are very treatable. While we believe that
euthanizing a dog who is in constant pain and has no quality of
life left is a responsible and loving thing to do, you should
never make a choice to euthanize without first taking him to the
doctor for a professional workup. We’ve delivered the good news
to many dog owners that, despite their fear, the dog’s time has
not yet come.