Hi,
I hope someone can offer some advice.
A friend at my dog club has a 12 year old Rough collie.
The dog is looked after daily by her Mother.For the past 2 weeks her Mother has had the dog full time due to the family holiday.

Now at arround 9PM the dog is starting to get anxious, panting /pacing up and down. When the family go to bed the dog gets worse, scratching at doors looking to go out for a walk several times through the night despite not appearing to need the toilet.
The weather here is unusually hot at the moment.

Any ideas as to what is going on?
Any help would be appreciated

The first thing I would do considering the dog's advanced age is take her to the vet for a complete Senior exam. It's possible that she's suffering from some kind of dementia or is losing her sight and/or hearing. The vet may be able to prescribe medication/s if the problem is the first item.

Could she be given a place to sleep in the bedroom, perhaps on a cushion beside the bed or in her crate?

Thanks Elaine,
the dog has had a full check at the vet and everything was OK, He charged £80 for the 'consultation' and a 'calming air freshner'

John

John,

One thing you might try is giving the dog a combination of Rescue Remedy (Bach Flowers) and Melatonin for her anxiety. And be sure not to reassure or try to soothe the dog when it's acting this way. I know that's difficult to do but, if anyone is reassuring or soothing the dog they are rewarding the unwanted behavior.

Also, if your vet did not do specifically a senior exam (ask him/her) you might want to have one done or, if you aren't totally satisfied with your vet's answers, you might want to get a second opinion. If your vet is allopathic maybe go to a holistic vet for the second opinion (and vice versa).

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..........Now at arround 9PM the dog is starting to get anxious, panting /pacing up and down. When the family go to bed the dog gets worse, scratching at doors looking to go out for a walk several times through the night despite not appearing to need the toilet.
The weather here is unusually hot at the moment.......Any ideas as to what is going on?......

From the limited information, I can't help with the source of anxiety. I can offer a suggestion for calming the dog, though. If the dog has a long walk on her lead in the evening, then it will take the edge off whatever it troubling her while other things are tried.

Exercise is even more of a relief to an agitated dog than it is to an agitated person.

I don't mean that it necessarily the cause of the agitation; I just mean that whatever the cause, it can help.

Does the mom assume full leadership role in the eyes of the dog? Maybe the dog thinks it's in the lead and gets worried when it gets separated from its pack. Perhaps the behaviors began as a means for the dog to retain some control over the family.

If health issues are ruled out and the dog is empty (not having to pee/poop), then the family should ignore the dog's pesterings and take back control. Before bed there should be a long walk, no food within a couple hours min before bedtime, ensure the dog is empty, go inside and then matter-of-factly head to bed. When the dog pesters it should be ignored as coming down to let the dog out rewards the behavior. If the family is concerned about messing in the house they can wake up in the middle of the night to let the dog out (when it's not fussing) without making a big deal of it (only to reward any outdoor pottying), then it's back inside and back to bed with no fuss. That will just address the nighttime behaviors but the daily life between the mother and the dog needs to be examined to see who is truly in charge. Incidentally, if the dog does mess during the night then it should definitely be examined by a vet in greater detail; a second opinion from a different vet may be in order.

Another thought- is there a lot of stress in the household with the holiday, besides the sudden absence of its owner?

Thanks everyone for your input,

My friend excercised the dog well just before the time the anxiety started........did the trick last night.
I think when the dog stayed with Her Mother for the fortnight the pack order has changed so She is going to reinforce that.
And because of the dogs age He has been allowed to take over a little?
Again thanks for taking the time to offer sound advice

John

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Thanks everyone for your input,

My friend excercised the dog well just before the time the anxiety started........did the trick last night.......

John, I think your friend will do well by enforcing the pack structure, as Diana pointed out. It's a source of anxiety for a dog to suddenly perceive that he is "in charge." It's a source of reassurance and security to know his place in the pack order and to know he has a 100% pack leader.

And yes, structured exercise is vital, no matter what the anxiety is. A tired dog is a far less agitated dog. <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Good job.

Does anyone at the mothers house suffer from insomnia
Dogs like children are great at ratting others out, on what they learned or heard but shouldn't repeat
Perhaps someone exciting is a night owl at the Mothers house
Next guess is the change in diet, when switching back home
Alot of people with experience will deviate from reccommended feeding practises when left on there own
The quick adjustment back could be upsetting the dogs stomach
My guess the dog will be back to normal routine in 7 to 10 days
If not see another vet, get a second oppinion