 Barked: Mon Mar 14, '11 8:26pm PST |
 | |  | | Just thought I'd share in case anyone else is thinking/wondering about this therapy for doggie senility.
Duncan is nigh 16 years old. Well past the average life span of beagles. (I need to take some new pictures of him, but it sort of makes me sad at this point...) Anyway, he didn't even seem to age much, until about 1.5 year ago, since then his health has steadily deteriorated in many aspects.
Anyway, one of Duncan's issues is basically senility. It's hard to tell what is what sometimes, because his sight and hearing also are failing, and he pees and poops inside, but the vet says there may also be a loss of nerve sensation that is contributing to that, due to arthritis in his spine.
But, Duncan seems confused a lot - like he doesn't know what's going on around him. For a while he became - how can I explain? - in a bad state of mental distress. He would spend all day pacing madly, sniffing intently, and walking through his own pee and poo messes (I do work, so someone isn't always right there to clean).
I tried supplements (like Missing Link and a couple others), no help. My vet suggested we try Selegiline which is a drug that has been used in human Alzheimers patients, I think? I agreed with great skepticism because even my vet said it only has any apparent effect, at all, in about 50 percent of cases where it's tried.
Taking the Selegiline daily, Duncan has improved incredibly. He is not pacing in that freaked out way. He still pees and poops inside, but he avoids stepping in it, which I think is a very basic sign of a dog mental health.
I don't know for sure if it's the Selegiline, but the improvement happened just after I started him on it, so maybe it is just a huge coincidence, but I am keeping him on it because I think it is working.
I know there can be some side effects but the last two labs, his bloodwork has come back showing very healthy on everything.
Anyway, has anyone else tried Selegiline specifically? |  |  | |  |
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I am not at this stage in life yet. I hope others can share their experience with Cognitive Disfunction and any help they have found dealing with this issue.
Dogster Obsessions: The Starter Kit for Dogs by Wildebeest
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