Old dog wandered off: searching for a senior dog or one with canine cognitive dysfunction
Search slowly and close to home, on foot, more than once. A confused older dog may be stuck or silent and may not answer you.
Search close, slowly and more than once
Begin now, on foot, around your home and yard, and go back over the same places several times. Look under, behind and inside things. An older confused dog may not be running from anyone. It may be stuck behind a shed, standing in a neighbor’s garage, or lying in brush, and it may not answer when called. Search as if you are looking for a person who cannot tell you where they are. Check your own house and yard again as well. Then ask neighbors to check their sheds, garages and yards, and call animal control and your vet. Go now, and do not wait until morning, especially on a cold or very hot night.
Why older dogs get lost
Cornell’s veterinary college says cognitive dysfunction syndrome can start around nine years of age or older, and it lists getting lost in familiar places, being stuck in corners and staring into space among the signs, along with wandering the house at night and sleeping more by day. Merck also lists disorientation. Cornell says the changes come on slowly and can be hard to notice, so your dog may have this without a diagnosis. Other conditions can cause similar signs too, so a vet needs to sort out the cause later. Cornell adds that many older dogs also lose some vision and hearing. This means a dog that walks out an open door may not find its way back, even if it has lived there for years.
Where to look
Start with the places a confused dog might walk into and fail to walk out of. Cornell notes that dogs can get stuck in corners and not know how to back out, and it suggests blocking spaces such as behind the couch. So think about the outdoor equivalents: behind sheds and woodpiles, between a fence and a garage, under decks, in hedges, along the inside of a neighbor’s fence, in ditches and in window wells. Check open garages. Walk slowly and look at ground level, since your dog may be lying down. Pay special attention to pools, ponds and drainage channels. Then widen the search one block at a time, and return to the first spots after a few hours. A dog can reach a place you already cleared.
Calling may not help
Do not rely on your voice. If your dog has lost some hearing, it may not hear you at all, and a confused dog may not respond even if it does. Search with your eyes first. When you call, stop and listen afterward, then look for movement. Use smell, since Cornell notes that older dogs often keep their sense of smell: bring strong food and let the wind carry it. At night, use a wide flashlight and look for eye shine, because a dark-coated dog can be easy to miss. If you find it stuck or lying down, approach from the front, speak and stamp your foot so that it can feel the vibration, as Cornell suggests for dogs with hearing loss. Then touch it gently.
Why weather and time matter
Older dogs have less margin. The AVMA lists old, ill and thin pets among those especially vulnerable to cold, and says arthritic and elderly pets may have more trouble walking on snow and ice. Heat and thirst can matter too. So keep searching at night if it is safe to do so, and do not take a long break on the first night. If your dog takes daily medication or has a condition such as diabetes, call your vet now and ask what the risk is and what you should tell a finder. Follow your vet’s advice on this. You should also ask them to flag your dog’s record, in case someone brings it in.
What to put on the poster
Tell people what they will see, and make it easy for them to help. Try this: Elderly dog, confused, may not hear you. Check your yard, shed and garage. May be lying down or stuck. Please call right away, day or night. Add a recent photo, because an older dog can look quite different from the pictures you took years ago. A gray muzzle, cloudy eyes or a stiff walk are good details. Tell people that the dog needs medication, if it does, without listing the drug. Keep one identifying detail to yourself. Cross streets are enough. Put extra flyers on the doors nearest your home, because the first hope is a neighbor’s yard.
Who to tell, and what to tell them
Say the words senior dog, possibly confused, to everyone. Animal control officers and shelter staff need to know that a slow, dazed dog with no collar may be a lost pet, and not one that was abandoned. Ask them to phone you if an elderly dog of your dog’s type comes in, and go to see any possible match in person, because descriptions of old dogs vary. Call emergency vets as well, because a finder may take a weak old dog straight there. Tell the mail carrier and anyone who walks your street at dawn. Humane World for Animals advises telling people that your dog is missing, so that they do not assume it has been abandoned.
After you find your dog
Go to your vet the same day, and describe what happened. Mention any night pacing, staring or getting stuck that you have seen at home. Cornell says that blood and urine tests are used to rule out other conditions with similar signs. Your vet can talk through what helps. At home, assume that this can happen again. Keep doors and gates closed, use a leash even in your own yard, and keep a current tag on the collar. Cornell suggests nightlights and an extra walk before bed for dogs that roam at night. Block off any spaces outdoors where your dog could get stuck.
Sources
Cornell Riney Canine Health Center, cognitive dysfunction syndrome: vet.cornell.edu/departments-centers-and-institutes/riney-canine-health-center/canine-health-topics/cognitive-dysfunction-syndrome and senior dog dementia: vet.cornell.edu/departments-centers-and-institutes/riney-canine-health-center/canine-health-topics/senior-dog-dementia. Merck Veterinary Manual: merckvetmanual.com/dog-owners/behavior-of-dogs/behavior-problems-in-dogs. AVMA cold weather safety: avma.org/resources-tools/pet-owners/petcare/cold-weather-animal-safety. Humane World for Animals: humaneworld.org/resources/how-find-lost-dog.