Changing undesired behavior in a dog (for Irith Bloom)

[SheriS]

Hello all,
This post is directed to Irith Bloom if that's still possible. What an inspiring presentation it was!
I was unable to get into the forum until now...Our almost 15 yr old female Havanese (Fibi) recently and out-of-the-blue is going through a spell of waking in the wee hours of the morning. We first thought that she needed to pee or poo so we let her out, but it turned out that she wanted food. We modified her dinner meal by splitting it into two. Half given at 7pm and the other half at around midnight. We did this because she always settles down after a meal. Her waking has improved so that she's getting us up between 5 and 6 am, but this is still a early for us. We are giving her phosphorus 30c which seems to have helped get to 5am-ish. What suggestions might you offer to help to get her to 7am? She (like most dogs) is very motivated by food.
Btw, we also tried a Cat Mate timed feeder but she smelled it and kept pawing at it until it was time for it to open. Hardly a relaxing solution for anyone here.
Any guidance would be much appreciated!
Sheri & David Silver

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Sheri, I'll send your question to Irith.

 

[Irith]

Hi Sheri,

First, thank you for the kind words!

Second, Fibi is so lucky to live in a caring home like yours!

With that said, the first question I would ask is whether Fibi is having a little bit of brain fog given her age. Even for a healthy Havanese, 15 is getting on in years. @Dr. Jeff or @Dr. Christina may be able to suggest some remedies to help her think clearly even as she ages. Sometimes this is all that is needed to resolve this type of issue.

The second question is whether, due to age or some other reason, Fibi's digestion has shifted so that she gets hungry earlier. Would it be possible to leave a food toy with a small amount of food in it for her overnight, so she can "snack" when she gets peckish?

Another option (you may not love this one, but it's only temporary) is to set an alarm for the earliest time when Fibi tends to wake. Do this for three or four days, getting up as soon as the alarm goes off and then feeding Fibi. After a few days, push the alarm time about five minutes later. After a few days of that, move five minutes later again. Sometimes if you do this gradually enough, the dog starts to pay attention to the alarm, rather than their internal hunger signals, and no longer tries to wake you before the alarm goes off. Ultimately, the goal is a wake time that works for both of you. (I hope that makes sense.)

I hope something in here proves useful. Can you please keep me posted?

Thank you!
- Irith ("ee-REET")

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Thanks so much for your reply Irith!

Sheri, there are tons of age-related memory loss supplements, but this is the one which I use in my practice and which is research "proven":

Cholodin

What is Cholodin for Dogs and Cats? Cholodin is a dietary supplement that contains choline, amino acids, vitamins, and other important minerals.Cholodin is designed to support aging and geriatric dogs and cats.Choline is an important phospholipid found in…

www.vetrxdirect.com

 

[SheriS]

Thank you so very much Irith and Dr. Jeff!
Yes, to the brain fog. We have noticed cognitive issues esp after a bad fall down a flight of stairs about one yr ago.
Unfortunately, the food toy wouldn't work bc she would be asking for it constantly just as she does with any other food.
The alarm would be a great thing to try except her hearing isn't good enough. She's practically deaf.
We are interested in trying the supplement Dr. Jeff suggested and will def keep you posted.
Thanks again for all of the support!
Sheri & David Silver

 

[Irith]

Thanks for the update, Sheri!

I know this might not work, but just in case...
For the food toy, you could try giving her a food toy when you are about to go to sleep and then ignoring any requests for more after she finishes. It's a new situation, so she may be able to learn that she gets nothing extra in this context, as long as you ignore her requests entirely the first time (or two or three) that you use the food toy. Dogs can usually figure out when demand behavior isn't going to work, as long as the situation is new.

Anyway, I hope the supplement helps!

 

[Dr. Jeff]

YW Sheri!

 

[Dr. Christina]

Sheri, you may want to try some of the totally safe flower essences, starting with Rescue Remedy. Do a search on the site and the forum for the many essence resources.

Speaking with an animal communicator may help you understand what is happening and what may help fifi.

Be sure to schedule your 15 minute call with Dr. Jeff or myself.

You asked about homeopathic treatment and that you were giving Phosphorus. If you are giving daily, be sure to watch for any new negative symptoms. Remedies are usually not repeated daily forever. Try stopping a day and see if the benefits are still there.

Did the Phosphorus also help the brain fog? A correct homeopathic medicine helps all symptoms in addition to BEAM (quality of life, energy, etc). Maybe it is now time to begin working with a homeopathic veterinarian for the best chance for a long and healthy last years.

A member benefit is to download the Healthy dog Journal - this will help you monitor ALL symptoms and how they change after any treatments.

You may be interested in learning even more about homeopathy for pets. Go to the homeopathy button at resource library and you will get some basic information and then you can take four days of homeopathy courses I taught for Holistic Actions. Maybe the 2017 intro and the 2018 Intermediate classes.

Dr. Christina

 

[SheriS]

Thanks for the update, Sheri!

I know this might not work, but just in case...
For the food toy, you could try giving her a food toy when you are about to go to sleep and then ignoring any requests for more after she finishes. It's a new situation, so she may be able to learn that she gets nothing extra in this context, as long as you ignore her requests entirely the first time (or two or three) that you use the food toy. Dogs can usually figure out when demand behavior isn't going to work, as long as the situation is new.

Anyway, I hope the supplement helps!

Irith, Your suggestion just might work. First, I think we will ween her off of the midnight meal by giving her a wee bit less every night. Then we can introduce the food toy.
Does this sound like a good plan?
Much thanks!

 

[SheriS]

Sheri, you may want to try some of the totally safe flower essences, starting with Rescue Remedy. Do a search on the site and the forum for the many essence resources.

Speaking with an animal communicator may help you understand what is happening and what may help fifi.

Be sure to schedule your 15 minute call with Dr. Jeff or myself.

You asked about homeopathic treatment and that you were giving Phosphorus. If you are giving daily, be sure to watch for any new negative symptoms. Remedies are usually not repeated daily forever. Try stopping a day and see if the benefits are still there.

Did the Phosphorus also help the brain fog? A correct homeopathic medicine helps all symptoms in addition to BEAM (quality of life, energy, etc). Maybe it is now time to begin working with a homeopathic veterinarian for the best chance for a long and healthy last years.

A member benefit is to download the Healthy dog Journal - this will help you monitor ALL symptoms and how they change after any treatments.

You may be interested in learning even more about homeopathy for pets. Go to the homeopathy button at resource library and you will get some basic information and then you can take four days of homeopathy courses I taught for Holistic Actions. Maybe the 2017 intro and the 2018 Intermediate classes.

Dr. Christina

Thanks Dr. Christina, Yes...we do have an animal communicator. She tells us Fibi (not Fifi doesn't know why she's waking us so early. But she works on her every two weeks and has helped her So much with her BEAM.
Also, we've been working with Dr. Judy Herman since last yr. She said to keep giving her the phosphorus for now. I will check in with her in couple of weeks. And I would love to take your course!
We also had a massage therapist work on Fibi. She did some laser therapy as well.
Thank you!
Sheri & David

 

[Irith]

Irith, Your suggestion just might work. First, I think we will ween her off of the midnight meal by giving her a wee bit less every night. Then we can introduce the food toy.
Does this sound like a good plan?
Much thanks!

So sorry for the delay! I missed your reply for some reason. Anyway, that sounds like a great plan!