Why is my senior dog whining, eating poop, and losing appetite?

Question

I have a 16 yr. Old Chiweenie. She is fixed, no general health problems. She has increasingly started whinning at night ,all hours of the night. She constantly tries to get to the litter boxes to eat cat poop. I can not for the life of me figure this out & it causing me too loose sleep at night. She sleeps alot during the day. Her eating habits have decreased somewhat but she drinks plenty of water & sweet tea. Please help, I can't afford to get her to a vet right now. Pet's info: Dog | Dachshund | Female | spayed | 16 years and 7 months old | 27 lbs

Sarah Box, BVSc · Accepted Answer

I am so sorry to hear of these concerns for Nypsy. Changes in behavior such as increased anxiety and inappropriate eating can be an indication of a neurological issue. This could be a condition known as canine cognitive dysfunction (doggy dementia), lesions in the brain can also affect behavior and are more commonly suspected if there is increased aggression or the onset of seizures. The change in appetite could be due to a metabolic issue such as kidney disease, which can cause a pet to feel nauseous. These types of conditions would require bloodwork with your veterinarian to diagnose. Dental disease is also very common in older, small breed dogs. It can contribute to changes in food intake due to oral pain. I would recommend tempting Nypsy with some tasty treats such as boiled chicken or a little canned dog food. Also do not offer her any more sweet tea-sugar is not good for our pets and if Nypsy is suffering from some sort of metabolic issue it could make things worse. When you are able I would recommend taking Nypsy to your regular Vet for a thorough physical exam and possibly some bloodwork to rule out anything significant.

Why is my senior dog whining, eating poop, and losing appetite?

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