Why is my 8-year-old dog suddenly clingy, whiny, and vocal all the time?

HI, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! There can be multiple reasons for a dog to suddenly act clingy: fear, separation anxiety, and medical conditions. Medical conditions could be: pain, anal gland issues, fleas, overall nausea from kidney or liver disease, brain tumor or as some dogs age they develop cognitive dysfunction or doggie dementia. If Snicker's behavior persists then I recommend an exam and possibly blood work be done by your Vet. Sadly his symptoms are non-specific and can mean many different things. I hope this helps and I wish you and Sage the best!

Hello, and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Your description sounds most suspicious of generalized anxiety. There may have been something that spooked your dog recently to cause the behavior change, making him want to be near you all the time and causing him to seek reassurance. However, given his breed, it's also possible that he's just got too much pent-up energy - many high energy breeds can develop either anxiety or boredom if they aren't given an outlet for their energy and a way to tire themselves out. I recommend making sure your dog has a way to RUN his energy off daily. (with his breed and age, a walk probably won't cut it). You can take him running, or if he's ball motivated, throwing a ball is a great option to get him running. Fenced in dog parks are good options too. If tiring him out doesn't help reduce his clingy behaviors, I recommend consulting your vet and having them do a physical exam and likely some screening bloodwork. Sometimes panting, whining, and being generally clingy are the dog's way of telling us that something's not right, which can be the first sign of a disease or health problem. I hope this helps!

Poor girl. I am not sure if this strictly behavioral due to old age and a bit of senility or if she has an underlying issue. It would be worth while getting her examined by your vet to have a health profile done via bloodwork to ensure everything is normal, especially since this behavior is happening in consecutive days. If she is having senility issues, then that can be addressed with medication (i.e. Reconcile) or with a prescription diet (ie Hill’s B/D). Another possible cause for sudden whimpering in older pets is arthritis. This can be helped with joint supplements (ie Dasuquin, Cosequin, Rejuvenate) in mild cases or prescription pain control medication (ie Rimadyl, Galliprant) through your vet in more moderate to severe cases. I hope that things are well for your pet Mimi moving forward! Take care.

Sounds like Kaden has a pretty significant anxiety disorder. I suggest you speak to your vet about what treatments are available. Often times older dogs will change and start exhibiting behavior like this when their eyesight and/or hearing starts to get poor. That may be the problem. I don't know. You can refer this article for some options to help anxiety but it seems like the prescription medications work best. ( https://www.petcoach.co/article/7-natural-treatments-for-dog-anxiety/ ) The bump on the leg is hard to see but it looks like it may be a lick granuloma. He could be licking that area because the underlying bone is hurting him or it could be from the anxiety. ( https://www.petcoach.co/dog/condition/acral-lick-dermatitis/ )

I wish our pets could talk. This could be behavioral or medical. Pain from arthritis can cause behavior changes. Dogs can become senile, it could be separation anxiety. Changes in senses like blindness or deafness can cause behavior change. I would recommend an exam to rule out medical problems before assuming it is behavioral. I am a big fan of crate training to give dogs a sense of security and safety. Get a nice orthopedic bed and favorite treats or toys to make this a safe enjoyable space. Hope that helps.

The behavior changes you describe could be a sign of pain somewhere or a number of other problems - sometimes it’s difficult to say what might be wrong when signs are relatively vague. Abnormal behavior and whining does not necessarily sound like an urgent problem to me unless he is showing other signs of illness as well. If you are very concerned or if Herbie has had other symptoms like vomiting, diarrhea, decreased appetite, coughing or a change in urination you could see if you can move up your appointment with your vet.

This could be a delayed grieving from loosing his mate. I would try some calming pills like vetriscience composure and a calming collar like adaptil. These will hopefully take the edge off to help him. If not, I would consider talking to your vet about starting him on an anti-anxiety medicine to see if this helps. I hope this helps!