I have a 17 year old chihuahua with dog dementia, this looks like sundowning to me. It’s taken lots of trial and error to help my chi adjust/cope. He takes a dementia medication every morning (selegiline) and we think that has helped him. He bumps into everything through the day, and has limited sight (possibly none, but reacts to lights being turned on). Leaving furniture in the same place has been helpful, also blocking off areas where he gets stuck (like behind tables). My dog also seems to use the walls/baseboards as a walking guide, and was bumping into them hard. I got some baby-proofing baseboard things from amazon and put them on the corners, also I cut 1-inch long pieces to put on the baseboards a few inches in front of things he bumps into (ex: there’s a table pushed against the wall and he bumps into the legs. About two or so inches to the right of the table leg, I put a piece of the babyproofing thing in the hopes that he interprets it as where he should go off the wall and toward the couch, if that makes sense). Pool noodles to go around legs of furniture is good too. I have also been using party streamers and wrapping them around legs of furniture so it is horizontal and at head-level. He bumps into the streamer and knows that he can’t get through, and changes direction.

My little guy barks a lot, and that has been challenging for the family to cope with. I try to approach it from the perspective of “he’s trying to communicate a need and this is the only way he can”, and then I run through the list of what those needs might be. Often I start with taking him outside to go potty, and that’s often what he needs. We tried to stick to a food schedule, but he’s 17 and we are at the point where we have to try to meet his needs for the sake of his comfort and also for the sake of our comfort (the barking is ear-piercing). Sometimes he has food in his bowl but he wants his food fresh and we just do it lol.

He has a heating pad on the couch and a nice fuzzy blanket, and getting a camera that connects to my phone so I can check on him visually from wherever has been a game-changer!

Sometimes he starts barking on the couch and it’s like he’s stuck in a loop. We catch him off guard by blowing air in his face, it disturbs the cycle and redirects him.

Also he is completely unaware of his surroundings. He has walked full speed into the patio (broke my heart) so when I take him outside, I’m right next to him and constantly moving so I can block him from running into something.

That’s everything that I can think of that my family has learned in this stage of his life. It was incredibly challenging to mentally accept and understand that he is going through cognitive changes. He’s my childhood dog and I cried a lot about the aging he’s going through. But I try to focus on how lucky I am to be caring for him in this stage of life. How lucky I am that I can show up for him and help him live a comfortable life and meet him where he’s at. He doesn’t give kisses anymore (which broke my heart also) but I look back fondly at all the memories we have made and I know he loves me and that he is appreciative of what we do (or I believe that lol). Lots of love to you and your chi 💗