Does anyone here have any experience dealing with this? My almost-13-year-old female Doberman has started keeping me awake all night with pacing, whining, restlessness. She's not really showing any significant symptoms of dementia in the daytime, just occasionally standing like a statue and staring off into space, and me having to repeat commands like come into the house many times.

I had her to the vet a few days ago, and she agreed what's happening is definitely suggestive of sundowner syndrome, but she wants to rule out any other possible causes. We're trying giving her her arthritis med in the evening instead of morning, in case it's pain that's keeping her awake (that hasn't helped any -- and she sure isn't acting like she's having any joint pain.)

The vet also suggested a night light of some kind. Well, I ended up just turning the TV on, very low volume, and that will settle her for a while. Both she and my male Doberman sleep in the bedroom with me. He sleeps in my bed all night long. She sleeps on one of two dog beds on the floor. She is allowed on my bed if she wants, but she does have a bit of a hard time jumping up onto it these days, and up to now, has been perfectly happy with the dog beds.

She has always been one to try to wake me up an hour or so earlier than I'm ready, and I would tell her to go back to bed, and that usually worked. But these days, it's an all-night affair, me trying to get her to sleep, so I can get some sleep, and I am very sleep-deprived right now. She's not, because she turns around and sleeps all day. I guess maybe I'm going to have to try to train myself to do that, too.

https://positively.com/contributors/sundowner-syndrome-in-dogs/

Do you have access to a specialist in canine geriatric medicine?

I mention this because when my granddog (a BorderTerrier) started to suffer from Sundowner Syndrome (in exactly the ways you describe), relief was finally gained when the gerontologist experimented a bit -- it turned out that SAM-e, along with a very solid daily routine were the best help for him.

Here's a bit more reading ...

https://www.senioradvisor.com/blog/2017/03/how-to-help-your-dog-with-sundowners-syndrome/

Thank you both for the links. Those were both among the information I had already found online, but I appreciate your posting it here.

Connie, depending on how things go, I may ask my vet if there is a specialist she could refer me to. But I know she has some ideas she wants me to try. She wants a report from me tomorrow or the next day about how Tasha has done this week with changing the timing of the pain meds and giving her some light at night when she seems stressed. So far, those changes don't seem to have helped much if at all. She still seems unable to sleep for more than 30 to 45 minutes at a stretch, then she's up and pacing and whining again.

My vet has mentioned trying either melatonin or selegiline, the latter being a prescription med that apparently is used in the treatment of Parkinson's disease in humans. I am a bit alarmed by the potential side effects, so I guess I'll be cautious about that one.

If anybody has any experience with either of those two, I'd be interested. Also, I will ask my vet about the SAM-e.

Our daily routine is pretty regular already, but I will think about any improvements I could make.

Oh, gosh, I feel so bad for her ... confusion and anxiety must be so awful ... so scary ...

Needless to say, I am saying nothing negative about any GP vet.

But thank goodness there're geriatric specialists when you need them ...

Just a little update. I think I've finally hit on the right routine and "cocktail" of supplements and remedies to help Tasha with her nighttime restlessness. She's getting 200 milligrams of SAM-e, which has to be given on an empty stomach, so she gets that late afternoon, a couple hours or so before the evening meal. Then, at bedtime, she gets a 3 mg tablet of melatonin, along with an herbal liquid marketed for pets that contains valerian, passion flower, chamomile, and skullcap. This is the same stuff I have used successfully on my other dog who has thunderstorm phobia.

In addition, when I put them outside for their last potty break, I will spray both of the dog beds (because she switches from one to the other during the night) with Adaptil, a pheromone spray that is marketed to help dogs with various anxieties. It's an alcohol-based spray, so you want to keep the dog away for five minutes or so while the alcohol evaporates.

Now, which of these four different things is doing the trick, or which combination, I do not know. Over time, I may experiment with reducing some of them, but for now, this is my routine, and I have had very good results for the last week or ten days. I don't know how long that will be the case, but for now, she's happier and I'm happier, and we haven't had to resort to any prescription meds yet.

Thank goodness, Cheri! So relieved for both of you!

I've had good results with SAM-e and melatonin, too.

Thanks, Connie. Just keeping my fingers crossed and taking it one day at a time!