Digging
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Ok, I have 13yr old basenji girl who under normal circumstances I have to force to go out to potty in the rain. We've had rain here for the last week so our ground is a soggy muddy mess. Twice in the last 4 days my senior dog has gone out on her own (through doggie door) in the rain and started digging under a evergreen bush. Then she lays down in the soggy hole. If you call her she comes right back in the house. She's never been a digger before. Do senior basenji's go senile? I've noticed some other strange behaviors. Like she forgets she has her own food bowl. She waits for my other dog to eat, when he's done she goes and licks the bottom of his bowl, looks around like I'm hungry too… They both get the exact same food and the bowls are right beside each other.
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Strange behaviors at any age need a good veterinary check up. Please take her in and let us know. Could be something simple (like thyroid) or something serious.
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Yes, an older dog sometimes can be senile - forgetful, like an old person. Most animals can have that capacity. I have a nearly 17 year old cat right now who howls when we goto bed because suddenly she feels alone and doesn't know where her people or the B's are - when we call to her she follows our voices and joins us in bed, and is usually alright unless she gets up to use her litter box and forgets where we are again - she has also sat staring at us or off into space for no known reason, and when we touch her she jumps as though she was miles away in her mind.
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Yes, like humans older dogs can go a bit senile but there is no need to woryy - take her to the vet and he should be able to help her. Jewel (my senior) isn't quite as bad as that but she does get a bit muddled - she'll go to her water bowl and stand by it wondering why she went there. Occasionally when she's outside she'll do much the same forgetting and I have to go get her and remind her what she was going to do in the first place.
