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my buddy keeps nudging his bowl, whines, then barks?

18K views 158 replies 26 participants last post by  Karen519 
#1 ·
Okay, so my golden is 14 years old and arthritis. As of this point we don't know anything else but he has been kind of lazy these days and lays down a often.

We were feeding him beneful for awhile, then he did what he does in this video. We switched over to canned wet food, now he does it for that. Any ideas why he would do this?? After awhile though he will eventually force himself to eat it... if he goes too long not eating sometimes I'll just give him table scraps.

Buddy and his bowl?? - YouTube
 
#2 ·
Besides feeding him something better than that cwappy grocery store brand, you need to raise his bowl up. These dogs with arthritis have a hard time bending over to eat. It hurts. My Danny and Sammy would lay down to eat, but if your dog isn't comfortable doing that you need to get a raised platform for the bowl.
 
#3 ·
I can't believe that you don't know what he's telling you...he doesn't like his food. He doesn't like his food!
 
#4 ·
Two things. Your elderly dog probably isn't being lazy, but he may very well need some pain medication for his arthritis. Please speak with your vet asap and see what he/she recommends. Buy your dog a nutritious, palatable food. He's very clearly telling you that what you're currently feeding is unhealthy, unappetizing junk....which it is. You don't have to break the bank to get a much higher quality food. You can get sample small bags from most reputable pet food stores and see which one he likes.
 
#5 ·
i got it from a 100% organic store and it was really expensive.. kind of figured it would've been the most healthiest to give him. i'll shop around today and look for something. the vet gave us ramidyl but she told us she needed to do x-rays for him and blood work which costed about 400 and i don't have it because im only part-time working and full time in school. its been about a month since the ramidyl ran out and he's not at his worst, but i can tell hes bothered.

i love this dog so much but i just kept reading different things online that keep contradicting alot of my theories. i'll try to get a cash advance this week to get him in there because i can't stand to think hes hurting this bad ;(
 
#6 ·
If you don't want him to be on rimadyl long term, talk to your vet about milder alternatives that do not need as much oversight.

Our two old dogs were on tramadol and aspirin. And we made various alterations in our home to help them out. Thicker bedding on the floor for them since they couldn't get up on the beds and couches. And in the case of your dog, I'd suggest raising that bowl up for him.

Beneful is one of those foods that I keep getting alarming "DON'T EVER FEED" posts on my facebook from my instructors and fellow dog people. Honestly, at his age I'd feed what he enjoys eating. You don't want to switch to something crazy if it is going to upset his stomach. I wouldn't personally feed Beneful though.

Other things you can do.... Phycox - is pretty expensive a joint supplement, but many of my friends with elderly dogs swear by it. I've never given it to my dog, but it's something I've kept in mind later on down the road when my Jacks is an old man.There are other joint supplements as well that may help at least alleviate his joints locking up and so forth.

Good luck - and considering his old age, I am sure you have been taking great care of him if this has just been a recent development with the food.
 
#14 ·
With a dog that age, when something is amiss and he has a change in behavior or appetite , I'd be off to the vet for a check up. Could be simple like not wanting that food but could be serious like hemangio sarcoma of the spleen, etc. Get a check up and bloodwork!


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I had that thought too... but having gone through the whole spleen thing twice, there would be other symptoms as well. Our guys stopped eating everything. They certainly didn't whine or squeak at the dog food bowls. They ignored them completely. I hope it's just arthritis bothering him.

Good luck with your vet!

Our two old guys ate Nutro Natural Choice pretty much all their lives. The only difference was the one was on a senior bag, but the other had to stay on adult (he lost too much weight eating senior kibble).

Any of your mid-range type foods should be fine. Just be careful throwing too much crazy stuff (raw coatings, etc) at him. Again, going by the video and pictures, he looks like he's been well-cared for.
 
#8 ·
I hate being the first to bring this up, but your old guy may be dealing with some end-of-life issues. 14 y.o. is a very senior Golden. It's difficult to find a food they will eat but not upset their delicate system. He isn't being lazy, he may be hurting or just not have the energy to be active. He may have a bad tooth or just losing interest in food. Is he still drinking plenty of water?

Personally, I'm not in favor of blood work for such a senior dog, I feel we should leave them in peace and not be stuck and prodded. The tests may give you and the vet some insight as to what is going on but probably change the outcome. JMO

Hugs to your "sugar face".
 
#18 ·
He actually threw up this morning from drinking too much water, it made me feel like hell! I was thinking that since he wasn't eating food, he'd feel full or something by drinking water?

But anyways, I went to the vet and got another 14 doses of rimadyl which should hopefully get him up to speed and feel a little better till I can get the money for some blood work+xrays.

I'm off to go food shopping for him tonight. thanks for the responses everyone!
 
#9 ·
Cameron

Cameron

I completely agree he needs Rimadyl or some type of pain med that the vet can give him. I think he doesn't want to eat and it could be because he's in pain.
I also agree he needs bloodwork to determine what is wrong. When they are older, we can't afford to wait!
 
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#10 ·
i called the vet's office today and spoke to a secretary, told her that i wanted another bottle of the rimadyl because his symptoms are returning. she is going to talk to the vet then give me a call back. if she says no, i'll find a way to get him in there. something i had noticed while he was on the rimadyl was that he was smashing his food (eating a LOT more often), and his hips gained weight again (probably muscle). when the perscription was all done, he was good for about a month. buddy's energy increased and he could actually get up the stairs on his own. he doesn't whine or bark ever, only when he goes in his dish.

can anyone recommend a food that their elderly golden loves? i'll go out and buy it right now if i can find it :(

just wanted to share the cuteness below lol



 
#11 ·
Buddy

I would also buy him the RAISED DISHES, as it's hard for them to bend WHEN THEY ARE OLDER.
My dogs eat Purina Pro Plan Shredded Chicken Senior
-it has glucosamine in it and they love it.

I agree with the person that said at 14 you could be dealing with something more serious. I would ask the vet about doing bloodwork.
 
#13 ·
Aw, what a beautiful boy :D We put our boy's dish on a small foot stool to raise it to a comfortable level.

You could always mix in some chicken, turkey, broccoli, and other goodies as a topping. They get bored eating the same thing day after day ... as we would. A little beef and chicken broth also adds flavor. You can buy that at Kroger in cardboard cartons. Keep it refrigerated.
 
#15 ·
My senior girl would only eat Pedigree canned food. I know it's probably not the greatest food, but it was all she would eat for the last few months. We tried all that expensive good food, but Pedigree was all she would have. It smelled really strong compared with other food. One thing I learned about senior dogs, don't buy a lot of any one kind of food. Buy a little bit of each, that way if they don't like something, you aren't left with a case of something that you will never use. I think finding a food he will eat and pain killers are about all you can do for him now. So spend time with him and enjoy him while you can.
 
#16 · (Edited)
Our 14 year old Rhett started doing the same thing during his last year with us, with the exception of the whining and we would switch his food to something else that he liked. He would enjoy the change for a little awhile and then would do the same thing again.

After several food changes over the course of several months, we finally raised his food bowl and we noticed he didn't do it any longer however we also noticed his health had really started to decline as well as his appetite. He did develop hemangio of the spleen and liver and could have been related affecting his appetite as my wife eventually had to start feeding him by hand to take any food at all. At the age of 14, I would have your vet check him out to make sure nothing else is going on.
 
#17 ·
We also switched to hand feeding our old girl. It worked really well. Maybe your boy may go for that too.
 
#19 ·
Your Buddy is a very handsome boy. Thank you for the pictures so we can appreciate his beautiful sugar face. We do what we can for our babies & try to give them good lives. It looks like Buddy's been enjoying a great one!
 
#20 ·
CAMERON

Our boy takes Tramadol - a pain reliever - and it works well. Also inexpensive. He can't take Rimidyl because of the prednisone in his chemo protocol.

All the best to you two :D
 
#21 ·
Love your Buddy, such a sweet old gold.
 
#23 ·
Your boy is beautiful:smooch:. I love those sugar faces and miss Copper so much.

Can you talk to your vet and ask what he/she recommends for Buddy that is affordable? some are more willing to take that into consideration than others I know. for example, copper was about 65 pounds and was taking 50mg of rimadyl a day so my vet prescribed the 100mg tablets and would cut them in half for me. Surprisingly that made quite a difference in the cost.

Copper took rimadyl for a few months as a senior, but it gradually became not enough to handle his arthritis and spondylosis. He got quite dizzy and disoriented from tramadol, but as Andy's dad said, that does help a lot of dogs with their pain and it is inexpensive.

Copper's mobility and level of pain gradually increased his last year. We had used supplements with good results at first (Duralactin was the best for him), then rimadyl and finally predisone. Although the prednisone could shorten his life (as his ortho specialist said), I felt that a shorter life while feeling good was preferrable to a longer life with so much pain.

Raising his food bowl might help a lot. I know copper had a very hard time reaching the floor since his neck was painful. You could possibly find a stool or use a cement block to keep his bowl higher. shelf liner underneath it will help keep it from slipping.

I also used an electric massager on Copper which he loved although another srnior on here would have none of it. Cold packs and also a heating pad helped when placed along his spine. He would go to sleep while having his "treatments" in the kitchen floor.:D

the last few months I took him to a holistic vet for acupuncture and laser therapy which made a huge difference in his mobility and quality of life. Not cheap though I know. It might be worth checking into though since some of the seniors on here did quite well with just monthly visits although copper went much more frequently

adding some gravy or broth to his food and letting it soak or even warming it might help encourage his appetitie. Just don't add too much at first since it might cause stomach upset and you surely don't need that!

good luck with your boy. He sure makes me smile and I wish I could offer even more advice, although I've written you a tome.
 
#24 ·
My senior boy Clyde has arthritis quite bad. He is 12, and was just recently put on tramadol, and rimadyl. I too bought the 100mg tabs, and I cut them into quarters. He has been weaned off the tramadol, and is taking 25mg. of rimadyl after beakfast and dinner. He also gets fish oil, a joint supplement daily, and an adequan injection monthly. It has had amazing results for him, he can prance like a pup again. It has been so worth doing it!
 
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#25 ·
really quick heres whats going on so far:

we got a dell computer box and put it on its side and threw his bowl on it. i think it brought it maybe 65% closer to him, its definately a help. aside from that, i got some prime cut canned chicken food and he's been digging at it alot more than the other stuff we had but a few times I still saw him do the whine. it is an improvement though as to before he would starve himself and I would be forced to give him table scraps. he actually refused a little spaghetti the other day.. it must be his stomach.

=======================
The rimadyl situation: (sorry for the length)

he was living at my dad's house when he initally had rimadyl. this maybe was 2 months ago. he lived in a cold part of the basement and they went to work all day so he basically had nobody around. my dad's girlfriend called me and said to check on him because he wasn't moving much... he was very very tired, laying around, he couldn't stand at all and when he did, he was limping like crazy. i brought him to the vet, got rimadyl, and returned to my dads house. they gave him the rimadyl and he actually had gotten better.

about 2 weeks after buddy finishing the rimadyl script, my brother moved out of my dad's and in with me. it was against the lease to have dogs here. another week went by we talked about him not getting any love at our dad's so we took him to our place anyway. when the landlord comes i just say hes here for the day because my dad's coming back from vacation usually.

it has seemed like the effects are slowly returning to him. a few days ago i obtained more rimadyl from the vet. when he was given rimadyl the first time, i didn't see his reaction because i didnt live with my dad. i gave him 50mg's that night. almost within the first couple hours i noticed he was acting strange.. his tail was wagging and it seemed like he was happier, but he was panting excessively and hyperactive. he wouldn't leave me or my brother alone. i don't think it was playfulness at all, i felt a vibe like it was kind of like 'help me whats wrong!'. i was so sad, so the second day, i gave him 25mgs in the morning, 25mgs in the evening. it still made him hyper and seem like he was off the wall. running around, not sitting down, he just couldnt be still.

so i went out to the grocery store around 6pm and came back at 8pm and i was scared to death... he was tired like I had never seen him before tired. he was sleeping to the point where I was calling him, petting him, trying to tickle him, and he just wouldn't budge. he would open his eyes for a sec, lift his head from the floor and look at me, then boom right back into deep sleep.

i was so afraid that i'd wakeup and witness the most awful thing ;( i slept maybe 3 hours just looking over the side of my bed to make sure he was still breatheing. the signs looked kind of like liver failure (google's answer).

---

i am talking to my brother today to see what the hell we can do as far as getting him in there for an official diagnosis... this is really hard to watch as to its made me break down a couple nights and tear up. i've been through some crazy things in my life but this dog really is a part of me forever. it is my intention to get him in there today or tomorrow.

ill keep posting when things develop! thanks everyone for the compliments, if he knew what wonderful comments everyone stated, i know he'd be licking everyones faces :)
 
#26 ·
Thanks for the update. Sending prayers for sweet Buddy to feel better.
 
#27 ·
Cameron

Cameron

Praying for sweet Buddy and for you. I would take Buddy to the vet right away, so they can figure out what is wrong.
Have they done xrays for Buddy?
It could be something very serious!
 
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