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Canine waking us in the wee hours

SheriS

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Hi all,
We are running out of things to try to get our almost 16 yr old female Havanese to sleep through the night. She's approx 9 lbs.
Beam-
Obsessed with food (it's pretty much all she thinks about).
Pretty low energy except for meal and snack times.
Mood (again) is always ready to eat her meals, but is not particularly interested in much else.

Cognitively, she can remember about eating, going out to potty...later in the day, she's sometimes confused as to why she's out, and getting on her pillow to rest. She can not hear at all and her vision is declining, particularly at night (cataracts).
She has been waking us 2-3xs per night/early morning, crying to be fed. My husband and I have lost a great deal of sleep, going on one year now. Our latest attempt was to try xanax but Fibi had an awful reaction to it.
She goes for strolls weather permitting. When she walks, she seems to be ok with it, but is not overly enthusiastic. I let her lead the way. She doesn't sniff as much as I'd like to see. She gets a lot of walking in the house because she's constantly getting up to see if there's food on her mat. She gets her snuffle mat everyday.

Regularly, she is seeing Dr. Herman for Homeopathy, an animal communicator who also does Reki/energy work and helps her so much with body dysregulation. She's been getting laser and massage approx 1x per month. She sees a holistic-minded vet regularly and has very little wrong with her blood work except for a little kidney decline and a thyroid disorder where she is given Levothyroxine for support.

We've tried Gabapentin with tramadol, tramadol alone and trazadone. Also, various flower remedies and some herbs. We've tried strategies to feed her with a self feeder. That failed. There may be a few other things, but this is what I can recall at this time.

Our vet suggested the drug Anipryl to possibly help with the cognitive issues, in hopes that it would regulate her mood and possibly her sleep some. She's been on it for14 days and we have yet to see a change anywhere. The vet said it may take 6 wks to reach therapeutic levels.
Do you know anything about this drug and if you've seen it be helpful in any way?

Is there anything that will knock her out at night w/o making her feel horrible?
She is so sensitive to drugs. Or a strategy for keeping her up during the day that won't involve massive hours of me engaging in it.


My apologies. This is long and not in the best order. I greatly appreciate any further suggestions.

Sheri & David Silver




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Sheri and David, when our animals' illness affects our lives so dramatically, just as parents or children with challenging problems, you do need to care for yourselves. Maybe take turns sleeping - or each take a few nights in a row sleeping, then switch.

After reading some of your older posts from 2023 - Fibi is blessed to have you and definitely you need some respite. Maybe even a few days away from home and have a pet sitter come stay with Fibi.

You are doing so much that is helpful, yet there is so much more to try.

Regularly, she is seeing Dr. Herman for Homeopathy,
What does Dr. Herman suggest? Ask if she is seeing response to the remedies she has suggested. Are you seeing any changes after each remedy? Are you communicating regularly enough with her?Maybe discuss with her if there is anything you are trying that could be an obstacle to cure. Would she suggest another homeopath's perspective would help? And you did try chinese medicine, maybe Dr. Herman could help you decide if you need to revisit that modality.

an animal communicator who also does Reki/energy work and helps her so much with body dysregulation.

This certainly seems to be helping since her body is doing well. What does the communicator say about the ravenous hunger and inability to sleep?

She's been getting laser and massage approx 1x per month.
Have you found that she is better for a few days after that treatment each month? Or no change?
Looking for tiny clues to improved BEAM is your key to deciding what approaches to try and which to stop.

Also, various flower remedies and some herbs.
There are many different flower essences - green hope essences, Jackson Galaxy, pet essences, and more. Give each one you try at least a few weeks, and again, look for subtle improvements.

We've tried strategies to feed her with a self feeder. That failed. There may be a few other things, but this is what I can recall at this time.

The joy of holistic healing is you never run out of things to try and the challenge is what next? Because she is sensitive, I would really stay away from drugs.

You may have tried many of these already - possibly, and looking for suggestions from @Dr. Jeff @Dr. Jean Hofve, you could try these covered in our webinars - yourself or someone trained in:
WEBB- whole energy body balance, Bengston method (the energy cure book), EFT, Scalar wave, different diets (all meat, mostly veges, healthy grains, cooked, raw, crockpot, etc), hiring a teen to come play with her, HTA - healing touch for animals, Eden Energy Medicine, emotion/body code (books and you tubes).

Ah, yes, more overwhelm to an already sleep deprived mind. First see what others suggest now, then use both your intuitions to decide what to try next.

Dr. Christina
 
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Update- Fibi had what seemed like a reaction to Gabapentin we gave her for the first time in a while and Anypril. It looked like a vestibular episode but lasted all night long. We gave her a homeopathic remedy prescribed by Judith Herman but she did not respond. Eventually, we gave her Cerenia and that helped only a little with her balance. She could not stop crying all night and was very uncomfortable.
She also takes Levothyroxine as mentioned above. Do you know if all or any of these drug interactions were the culprit?

She's finally sleeping. We have a call into the local vet.
 
Hey Sheri-

I'm sorry to hear about everything going on with Fibi.

I'm going to ponder her situation this am and get back to you later with what pops up.

In the meantime, perhaps just get her outside as much of the day as possible (even if she just sits there sniffing the air).
 
Thank you for all of these wonderful suggestions Dr. Christina. We will be in touch with Judy Herman when she's back in the office tomorrow. I think though that we're past using flower remedies and waiting several weeks for anything to potentially kick in. That is the only reason we turned to pharmaceuticals.
Fibi doesn't play and she is so high needs, we can not trust anyone to be with her. In addition, she'll have them up all night. She would be relentless in her pursuit to get food. By the way, the animal communicator said that her unstoppable desire for food may be due to her hearing loss and her needing sensory substitutions such as something tasty over and over again.
You see, the lack of sleep needs to stop asap. We are not seeing a light at the end of the tunnel here at this point.
 
YW Sheri!

I was thinking about Joan Ranquet's insomnia story on Mon.

How about EFT for you and Fibi before bed?
 
I hear you about the sleep.
If you were paying someone, then if they did not sleep it would be fine. You would be paying them to not sleep. !!

Love the idea of EFT. If you like Joan Ranquet's approach, you may want to work with one of her instructors who can work remotely.

Shannon Myers, [email protected] ,
Claudia Goodman, [email protected]
Becky MacPherson, [email protected]

Dr. Christina
 
EFT is a great idea!

This flower essence formula is designed for this situation: Jackson Galaxy Solutions Quiet Night

What we recommend for cats like this would also work for dogs, and that is Play Therapy. A good session before bed, followed by a small high protein snack, will help put her in a sleepy frame of mind.
 
Thank you all for your insights. I'm sorry I did not respond sooner. I'm used to the messages coming into my inbox.
@Dr. Jean Hofve, is the flower remedy Quiet Night something I should just use or should I have an appt with a certified flower remedy practitioner? She's a tough one at night...

Sheri Silver
 
Hi Sheri -
I am not a medical professional, but I have worked in the pharmaceutical industry. I understand a little bit of your pain you are experiencing so I felt compelled to chime in.

There is no way to tell how any of the drugs such as gabapentin, tramadol, trazadone or Anipryl work alone or in combination simply because there was never a systematic study done that would combine all these drugs, especially no such study would be done on a 16 yr old 9lb Havanese. This may no the the answer you were hoping to hear, but I think it is important to keep that in mind when making treatment decisions.

As a more practical suggestion - did you ever think of offering frozen treats? In the past, I would freeze some type of a broth (chicken or bone broth) and offer that as a treat. In fact, I found freezer trays/mold in the shape of the Kong toys. Licking the Kong treat may be satiating as well as offer mental and physical stimulation. Maybe place one of those frozen kong toys on the ground before going to sleep? It will probably not last the entire night but will tire out the pooch somewhat so she sleeps longer.

Good luck!
 
Hi! Not sure of your name but I appreciate your insights with regard to the drug interaction and suggestion of freezing treats. We are looking into a lick mat. Maybe the Kong toy would be a great alternative or even addition. Thanks so much and I hope you will see this reply. It's always nice to have input from members as well as the awesome Vets!
 
Hi Sheri - my name is Ive (pronounced Evay). I am glad you find the info useful. I always need to watch the calories for my little one because she loves food and at 8.5 lbs, she can easily gain weight. Hence the use of broth that is lower in calories especially compared to any type of a nut butter.
 
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