Needing the toilet in the night.

[TheLurpackYears]

Ddog is 12 1/2 , border collie and exceptional fit and well- the vet says she could pass for 8.
This is a bit long, but I'd appreciate some help and advice.
Unfortunately she now needs to go out for a poo 5/7 nights at least once and I am shattered, 2 smallish dc and mid divorce, I could really do with being able to switch off for a whole night.
This started about 18 months ago and her poos were very loose. The vet ran several tests and diagnosed Giardia, it cost me hundreds in co payments and a large amount of time cleaning our house. Another vet suggested that the test was actually a false positive. I changed her food to a senior blend and her poo has been solid since.
I think she is also starting to show some signs of dementia, some nights she gets me up with urgent barking and when I get down stairs she's got no idea why I'm there . She also grumbles and grunts frequently with lots of very low pitch growling which is impossible to sleep through.

Ah OP, I'm sorry.

I do think it may be time to start looking at her quality of life and what you can do to make things easier for her. Would she be more reassured if she slept upstairs, or with the radio or something left on for her?

Check with the vet again

If it is indeed dementia, you need to ask the difficult questions about quality of life and how to go about making the hardest of all decisions

My dog used to need to go out frequently at night and I know how utterly exhausting it is. She's recovered now but is younger than yours.
I can only echo what others have said about seeing the vet again and thinking about her quality of life.

Thanks all. Her quality of life at the moment is pretty excellent. She has me at home with her most of the week, the children adore her , she spends hours a day keeping an eye on next door's cat and running around the garden. She is now fed on demand (although not so much in the evening to help with the poos) as she can't always find her food bowl. Some days she eats nothing and others 4 times.
I'm loath to jave her in my bedroom, her facts are th worst and she's always slept in her crate.
She's got her jabs next week, I'll ask the vet.
The vet has previous for doing expensive test instead of treating the obvious thing- I took her with symtoms of a UTI after she wee'd all over the sofa once- they had her in for scans and tests. Finally they prescribes antibiotics and she was fine.
I appreciate that at her age she is probably going to live another 2 years or so.

Our dog started to just not be able to control it, so she was stand up from lying down and there would be poo where she sat. We ended up having to keep her bed in a small downstairs area to contain it. She was still loving walks so we kept her going but I do think this is the start of the end and doing it earlier rather than later is far more kind.

It sounds like there's something wrong with her digestive system: the loose poo, terrible farts, inconsistent appetite.
I know you said you changed her food but have you looked at supplements to help her digestion? Healthful Pets is a good site as is Aniforte.

The dementia is a worry though and I'd be concerned she is distressed at night. If you sorted out the farts, maybe she could sleep in your room then.

I'll look at supplements to see if the odour can be neutralised!
She's always been very vocal and communicative, her noises at the moment aren't distressed.
She's never had a very accute sense of smell and her eyesight has deteriorated a little, so that contributes to her not picking up on a food bowl. She's always been a healthy weight and the vet will weigh her next week.

If she can't come in your room then I'd strongly recommend leaving the radio on for her, or the TV, so that she has some kind of background noise. Dogs can find it really soothing.

I'll think about trying some background noise for her, I have a hearing impairment, I'm not sure I'd cope with with radio on all night.

What about a white noise machine?

How many poos does she do on average in a 24 hour period

How many poos does she do in the day
How many at night

I would not free feed her.
I would give her food at set times and remove it if she doesnt eat it. Easier to control her bowel movements if she eats at the same time. Also they she can be guided to her bowl and be reminded to eat.

I could try white noise.

She has up to 5 poos in 24 think, 1 maybe 2 or occasionally 3 in the night. She's always been to the toilet alot, possibly because it's always been an option as I've always worked from home. She has always had a toilet command and will wee when told to.
She will sometimes stand near her bowl and bark at it, which first made me think of dementia. Sometimes she will then eat if I go and give her a big hug and tell her it's delicious and she can eat it now. If I had an audience they'd think I was going potty I'm sure.

That is more poos than many dogs so I would be looking into a physical reason for all the night time poos.

If vet reckons no health issues then I would look at food. Although you can get a gardia test online if you want to check this out yourself for £30.00. It is notorious for coming back.

It is perfectly reasonable to give your expectations to the vet and say you do not want really expensive tests, there are often alternatives.

Thank you. I'll have a chat with the vet this coming week. She's didn't need to go out last night so I got some uninterrupted sleep and am feeling alot more rational about the situation!