Why is my senior dog shaking and hiding, even without a thunderstorm?

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Miss. Trembling can indicate pain in a dog. This could be belly pain especially if she has had any vomiting or diarrhea. It can be from muscle or joint pain or perhaps she is experiencing anxiety. Thunderstorms and fireworks are big causes for anxiety this time of year. If her symptoms continue, she will need to see her veterinarian to determine the cause. I hope this information helps!

Usually, this means that your dog is anxious or frightened of something - many dogs shake or tremble during thunderstorms or when neighbors are using fireworks outside. It could also mean that Bella is in pain for some reason - she may have injured herself somehow, or she could have a problem like a slipped disc in her back causing her to be painful. If the [shaking](https://www.petcoach.co/article/why-is-my-dog-shaking-most-common-reasons/) and hiding does not resolve over the next few hours, or if she has any other symptoms such as vomiting, not eating, or lethargy, I would recommend having her examined by your veterinarian to diagnose and treat the underlying cause.

Poor girl! Yes, this could be stress from the thunderstorms. Fireworks and loud noises can be really scary for dogs. One important thing to do to when your dog acts scared is not to reassure her. We think we are comforting her when we do that, but it's actually reinforcing the behavior and telling her it's ok to be scared. I recommend getting her a thundershirt to wear when there are fireworks or loud noises. These have been reported to help dogs with anxiety. At home, you can put her in a dark quiet room by herself to self-soothe. You can also turn on the TV or music to block out the sound. Finally, you can consider get a pheromone diffuser called DAP that helps dogs with anxiety.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. If she is unvaccinated for distemper, I would potentially consider this as a possibility but in older animals, distemper is not commonly seen. She may be uncomfortable from something (painful) or an infection / systemic disease. If adjusting the temperature to keep her warm does not help, I would recommend having a veterinarian examine her so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Shaking often indicates pain and can be seen with arthritis as they age. This could also indicate a problem with the nervous system and one major cause of this in senior dogs is a condition known as cognitive dysfunction. Below is a link to more information about this condition. https://www.petcoach.co/article/cognitive-dysfunction-senility-in-dogs In order to narrow down the cause of this, a vet would need to examine BlueBerry and may need to do some testing. It's likely that this condition can be treated, so it's worth taking her to the vet as soon as possible to prevent her condition from getting worse. I hope that helps and BlueBerry gets better soon.

There could be a couple of reasons why Elliot is shaking constantly. These things include pain, being cold, injury, fever, nausea, or a serious illness. I'm not sure if she is showing any other signs such as vomiting, diarrhea, limping, or lethargy. If she is only shaking but is otherwise behaving normally, eating normally, drinking normally, and moving normally, it's fine to wait until Monday to have her seen a vet for this problem. Keep her quiet and warm, and rest her as much as possible. Should she start showing other signs such as the ones I mentioned above or any other concerning ones, then I would take her into a vet right away for evaluation and treatment. I hope this helps!

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. This behavior could be due to older age and brain senile problems but also shivering and lethargy could be caused by arthritic pain. A visit at your local vets is recommended as Carly will probably benefit from medications to treat chronic pain or from medications that help for dementia.