proprioception degeneration (i.g., touching one's finger to one's nose)
 

I hope some of you are dog lovers. My soulmate is a gentle angel of a dog named Owen. Owen has been experiencing declining proprioception (his brain's perception of where his body is in space without looking) which is seriously impacting his ability to walk, and hence, his quality of life. One of his greatest joys is hiking, so this is very important to him.

His doctor says it's a natural part of aging (and Owen is quite old, but otherwise amazingly fit and healthy). He says there isn't much that can be done except to keep Owen active because couch potatoes decline faster than active bodies. Owen has been a pretty active guy most of his life, but recently his body doesn't always cooperate.

Since declining proprioception is a common problem in many neuromuscular diseases, and I'm sure at least some of you knowledgeable people are also dog-lovers, I'm hoping you have some insights for me, and and some ideas about what I can do for my darling boy.

There must be motor skill exercises, dietary supplements, etc. that some people use to slow the progress of declining proprioception. Any insight into how this feels to Owen, what I can do to help him, etc. would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

I'm not a veterinarian (though I have many close ties to the profession), I am a therapy dog owner (twice now), dog lover, and I've been through canine dissociative disorder (a similar age-related affliction) more than once.

I'm sorry, but I don't know of anything that can be done to help your friend medically other than what his own vet has already said; AFAIK, it's not in our hands. All I can offer is the advice that I've posted here before:
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Doc

PS: There was a veterinarian here on NT a while back, but he has not been on that I'm aware of since last Dec.

Thanks, Doc. I appreciate the sentiment and advice.

Owen is pushing 17 years old, but he's nowhere near ready to take his exit. Until the last 5 months, it's been hard to convince people he's over 10. He's not arthritic; he's not in pain, and despite his sensory deficits, he still runs happy laps, full-bore, up and down the trail past me. I'm faster on the inclines, but he can out-hike me on the level. Overall, he's in better shape than I am.

When his time comes, I'll do the right thing for him. It sucks, but I've done it for half a dozen friends in my adult life. Owen will let me know. Meanwhile, I just want to do the very best I can to make his life as full and comfortable as possible.

Not every elderly person experiences proprioception deterioration at the same rate. I wonder what the ones who deteriorate more slowly do differently. Hmmmm... maybe I need a seniors forum.

Physical therapy on a dog can be iffy, when it's the kind they have to mentally learn from such as this. I found this page about dancing but it does include other exercises.

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Good luck with Owen! You're a good person to want to help your buddy. :)

Then you are probably aware that with dogs (and cats) they're often healthy and active right up until close to the end, then can go downhill very fast -- within a few months/weeks. Several Vets have told me that when something like this happens, they (the pets) are usually closer than we think. I think this may be a good thing -- they don't linger. :)

Self Pity
I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself.
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough
without ever having felt sorry for itself.
~D.H. Lawrence

There is some information on google, but I'll caution you that the prognosis is dim.

It sounds like you're already doing all that can be done.


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Give him extra love, but steel yourself. It's a personal decision, but when the time comes, I/we've done better when moving on and adopting another dog immediately/asap.

Best wishes,

Doc

PS (06-09-13, 12:05am) I spoke about Owen and his condition with a veterinarian friend earlier this evening. Unfortunately, all she could offer was to confirm what's already been said.