Why is my older dog suddenly lazy, losing hair, and eating more?

I am sorry your dog is not feeling well. The information provided and picture don't really match. If a patient is drinking more and losing weight I would be concerned about endocrine diseases like diabetes and cushings disease. However the picture looks more like possible skin mites or an underlying autoimmune disease I would recommend taking her to a veterinarian to help you resolve the issues. They most likely will need to run basic bloodwork and possible a skin scrape to determine if mites are present.

I would definitely recommend some blood work, if this hasn't been done recently. Older dogs are prone to a number of health issues that can cause decreased appetite along with being less active - chronic kidney disease and hypothyroidism are two possibilities that are both very common. In many cases, these issues are treatable (at least to some extent) once a diagnosis is made, so it's well worth checking for them if you can - hopefully, there are some things you can do to make him feel better for as long as possible, even though he's getting older.

These signs could be compatible with a metabolic or possibly endocrine disorders. Diabetes mellitus, hypothyroidism, renal failure, liver problems can be all responsible for those signs. A clinical examination at your local veterinarian is essential to confirm these clinical suspicions and treat appropriately. Blood tests and urine analysis would be ideally needed. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

I'm glad to hear that Charlie is still playful and eating well despite these changes. With his excessive drinking and urination, hair loss, and skin discoloration, my main concern is that he may have Cushing's disease, which is an endocrine disease in which the adrenal glands produce excess quantities of steroids. Other possible causes of his increased drinking and urination could be related to diabetes, kidney disease, urinary tract infection, among other issues. At this point, I strongly recommend taking Charlie to his vet for an exam and blood testing to try to get to the bottom of this issue so that treatment can be started. I hope this helps and that all goes well!

According to the symptom of weight loss, otherwise normal and elevations on bloodwork, I would advise having your pet checked for Cushings disease (due to elevated ALP) via a specific test that your vet can go over with you. Also an abdominal ultrasound should be considered as well to check for any obvious masses since the Globulins were a bit high. Weight loss can also be caused by a change in diet as well, especially if your pet was once overweight, so its best to discuss this possibility with your vet as well. Also it is worth mentioning that none of the medications you listed would cause weight loss as an adverse effect. I do hope that things work out well for your pet moving forward. Best wishes and take care!

It's hard to say whether or not Milo's behavior at night is an attempt to 'tell you something', but even vague behavior changes can sometimes be a sign of illness. Weight loss with an increased appetite are concerning and I'd recommend having your vet examine Milo. It's possible that he has intestinal parasites or a disease like diabetes that is causing these symptoms. The hair loss could be a sign of parasites or allergies.

Poor Louis! This type of hair loss can be caused by cushings and hypothyroidism among other things like allergies, bacterial or yeast infections and more. Keep in mind that both Cushings and hypothyroidism dogs usually show other signs as well, but not always. Dogs with cushings usually with have excessive drinking and urinating and/or excessive panting. Dogs with hypothyroidism are usually over weight and/or always lethargic. Cushing's and hypothyroidism both require specialized blood testing to diagnose so they were likely not tested for back in August of 2017. I would talk with your vet about your concerns and see if they feel like you need to run any additional diagnostics or if they think there is another cause. I hope this helps!