Hello everyone. Im confused at to what is going on with my almost 13 year old Eskie. She is a sweet dog, always has been. This week she tried to warn me off by biting (not hard enough to break skin). She has never bitten before. She also has fleas, but has been bathed and had advantage applied. I cannot brush her, she sees the brush she tries to bite me. She has arthritis as well and is slowing down quite a bit. We went to the vet yesterday and she tried to bite two vet techs. She has always been good at the vet, and has never needed to be muzzled before. My vet put her on a pain medication, and said her back was arching when she did the physical. Im just worried because I don't know what is wrong with her. I want my sweet girl back.
My American Eskimo has started biting
- Thread starter ReneeM
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Gabby88
Well-known member
It sounds like she might be in pain. Dogs are much more likely to be agitated easily or aggressive when they're in pain.
saphire
Christiane's Chinchillas
Ditto!
Gabby88
Well-known member
Another thing to check is her vision. Older dogs can go blind, and everything is much more frightening when they have no idea what's going on because they can't see.
Pain and vision would be the two things I would be concerned about.
Pain and vision would be the two things I would be concerned about.
Jenn
ZooKeeper
13 sounds like quite the elderly age for this breed. My guess, as already stated, that his health is declining, and he may be in pain. I would take him to the vet and see if they can find anything wrong with him. Also, pay attention to the times that he nips at you. What are you doing? Where are you touching him? Maybe you can pinpoint an area that might be bothering him.
ETA - sorry, she is not a he! lol. I didn't read carefully enough the first time!
ETA - sorry, she is not a he! lol. I didn't read carefully enough the first time!
Give the pain medicine a chance to work. If it doesn't work, ask for something else. Becoming deaf, blind or in pain could cause a dog to start nipping. Could also be (less likely) thyroid and lyme disease. Brain tumor is another thing I would think of in an elderly dog. Don't be afraid to tell the vet techs to be extra gentle with her. I worked with some vet techs that were kind of rough without realizing it.
Jenn
ZooKeeper
bleh, I really didn't read your post well enough! You already went to the vet, sorry. Did the vet put your dog on pain med. without knowing what is bothering her? It could be intestinal, or arthritis, or anything in between...
She nips when I touch her underneath or she sees a brush, but she let's me pet her with no problems. They have checked her for heart worm and lymes disease, these test were negative. She still responds well when I call her, and appears to have no problem with her vision. She is still quite able to catch treats in her mouth 
she is loving the wet dog food she eats before taking her meds (she needs to have food in her tummy when taking her pills). Thanks for the help everyone, I didn't even think about her vision going. Sometimes I don't realize how old she is. I got her when I was 15. I hate seeing her suffer and hope she has several years left.
This is her from several years ago:
she is loving the wet dog food she eats before taking her meds (she needs to have food in her tummy when taking her pills). Thanks for the help everyone, I didn't even think about her vision going. Sometimes I don't realize how old she is. I got her when I was 15. I hate seeing her suffer and hope she has several years left. This is her from several years ago:
Has she been checked for matted hair mats? They can be painful when they are very close to the skin. And I would have bloodwork done to check liver/kidneys out just because she is 13. An xray might be in order as well to check for any tumors that may be causing the pain "underneath".
Jenn
ZooKeeper
if she is so upset when she sees a brush, I too am wondering if she has mats, or some sensitive skin issue...Can you get her to lie down so you can get a good look at her skin?
BTW, she is beautiful!
BTW, she is beautiful!
Your vet could be right about her back hurting her. At work we often saw small/med. size dogs with back pain. There owners often said that they would simple walk near their dog or reach under/over them and they would yelp.
Annieo
Loving Pet Owner
I can't help you with your diagnostic unfortunately, but I hope everything works out. I agree with the others than when a pet gets nippy, they are in some type of pain, or worried about being in pain.
Good luck, keep us posted!!
Good luck, keep us posted!!
Ash
Trouble....
I had a friend with a lab who started biting due to cancer. I hope it's not the situation with your girl, but throwing that out as another possible option.
Pooky125
Well-known member
Not sure if you've gotten the biting thing figured out yet, but if not, you might want to consider finding a canine chiropractor, acupuncturist, or massage therapist. I had an older, arthritis bound horse who would start to nip when his withers were out.
A family friend also had an older dog with some pretty serious health problems towards the end of his life. He found him an acupuncturist to work on the dog twice a month. Put a spring in that old dogs life for his last few months. He swore up and down it was worth every penny.
A family friend also had an older dog with some pretty serious health problems towards the end of his life. He found him an acupuncturist to work on the dog twice a month. Put a spring in that old dogs life for his last few months. He swore up and down it was worth every penny.
