Constantly hungry

[aljeana]

Not sure which board to put this on but as Amy is 14 years old my question may be age related.

Amy is 14yrs is in good general health apart from her eyes sight & hearing she has had cataract operations is on eye medication but is stable & copes really well, she is fit & active for her age.

The last 2 weeks there has been a noticable change in Amy she has become very agitated / stressy constantly asking & mythering for food, she can have her meal & within a few minutes she is acting as tho she has not been fed this will go on all day & evening.

She gets herself so wound up running in & out to the kitchen checking the bowels her food has not changed.

I am really not sure if there is a medical reason for this we are not aware of any strokes

Any one got any advice 

[Jessie_Pup]

Dogs can get dementia when they get older. Same sort of symptoms as humans. Our old cocker spaniel used to stand in corners  not know where his food bowl was and goingmout to the garden for the toilet. Would have a word with your vet.

[PennyB]

Lady is like this too (she's 13)

Some of symptoms re standing in corners etc can be due to liver problems (not just dementia) so worth investigating - bloods (dog needs starving overnight) & urine test

[aljeana]

The other odd thing Amy is doing is eating dirt 🤔

This has only started recently which made us think does she think she is lacking something will pop her to our vet maybe blood test would be a good idea

[Mudmagnets]

I don't know if Amy eats her food at a fast rate, but I know Branston used to and then look round for more anywhere he thought it might be lurking, so I decided to hand feed him his food (luckily kibbles) and this seemed to make him feel more full because he was taking longer to eat. Just wondered if hand-feeding would be worth a try?

When I worked for meals on wheels we used to deliver to some older people with dementia and they used to eat their meals and soon after  forget that they had, and phone up to enquire where their dinner was 

[aljeana]

She eats quite slowly so its looking more like Dementia that setting in apart from the stroppy / stressy episodes resembling a naughty teenager 😂 she is fine

[PennyB]

I would still get her checked by vet as I put it off re Lady as I thought her symptoms were dementia but was chatting to vet about something else and she told me other things can mimic dementia at this age too (eg, circling, running into walls and acting confused after meals, compulsive pacing, disorientation, head pressing are from liver problems but they affect the brain) - Lady had a full blood panel for 1st test then later just basic blood test and she's having urine tests every so many weeks now.

[jennycockerspaniel]

Sorry to hear this Louis is now 141/2 and constantly after food  he barks and barks for some  and  even  when just been just been fed  and follows a me in kitchen barking  andeven room to  room he  he has to have his teeth cleaned as noticed wet mouth and swollen gumswhen stayed last  has blood test and every thing fine for anesthetic  He paces  and has cataracts and hearing not so good I do worry about him

[aljeana]

Jenny
Amy sounds just the same we are supposed to be arranging for a wart to be removed & her teeth to be cleaned at the same time her lip folds are getting inflamed never had a problem with them all her life so this is something new . Bless them such a shame to watch them get old

[Emilyoliver]

Cushings disease also has constant hunger as a symptom.

[Holly Berry]

Rosie, 14 1/2 is also constantly hungry. The blood taken a couple of months ago when she had a few basal stem tumours removed, showed that she had raised liver enzymes. When we went back for her checkup, my normal vet, who was off sick for her op, felt that her liver was quite compromised, but only a biopsy would give the definitive answer, but he felt she wouldn’t tolerate any further anaesthetic, it’s quite an invasive procedure and the chances were it was just the liver wearing out.

She too stands and stares and has become quite unsteady on her feet as if her coordination is a problem at times, at others she’s quite lively. She’s also lost a lot of muscle definition and weight.The vet told me to give her milk thistle, which seems to help. She’s not in any pain and isn’t distressed, apart from believing I’m starving her and she hasn’t eaten for days 

It’s sad to see them get old and she’s aged quite rapidly in the last few months.

[jennycockerspaniel]

Yes they are so special  and every dayt xx

[PennyB]

Rosie, 14 1/2 is also constantly hungry. The blood taken a couple of months ago when she had a few basal stem tumours removed, showed that she had raised liver enzymes. When we went back for her checkup, my normal vet, who was off sick for her op, felt that her liver was quite compromised, but only a biopsy would give the definitive answer, but he felt she wouldn’t tolerate any further anaesthetic, it’s quite an invasive procedure and the chances were it was just the liver wearing out.

She too stands and stares and has become quite unsteady on her feet as if her coordination is a problem at times, at others she’s quite lively. She’s also lost a lot of muscle definition and weight.The vet told me to give her milk thistle, which seems to help. She’s not in any pain and isn’t distressed, apart from believing I’m starving her and she hasn’t eaten for days 

It’s sad to see them get old and she’s aged quite rapidly in the last few months.

This is how Lady is too - my vet concerned she's going downhill faster than she thought (she's a bit of a favourite with my vet so she was upset when she saw her today)

[PennyB]

It seems Lady may have cushings disease which have discovered may mimic some of senile symptoms too

[MIN]

one of my staffies had Cushings disease. I remember her drinking lots and pee lakes of clear ( almost water)pee.  Further investigations showed up a tumour. Saying that with medication (vetoryl) she lived a good life.