Can a quiz tell me if my dog has dementia?

No. A quiz can show whether the changes you see fit the pattern vets look for, but dementia in dogs is diagnosed by a veterinarian after ruling out pain, sensory loss and other illnesses that cause the same signs.

What are the first signs of dementia in dogs?

Early signs are often subtle: staring into space, getting stuck in corners, restlessness at night, new anxiety, and house-training accidents in a dog that was reliable. They come on gradually over months.

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Does my dog have dementia?

Tick the changes you have noticed over the last few months. The quiz groups them into the six areas vets ask about and tells you what the pattern suggests.

Disorientation

Interactions

Sleep and waking

House soiling and memory

Activity

Anxiety

Ticked

in 0 of 6 areas

Nothing ticked. Go through the list with your dog in mind, including the small things you have put down to age.

This tool organizes what you have noticed. It can't examine your pet, and its result is not a diagnosis or veterinary advice. Take what it shows to your vet; if your pet is in distress, go to an emergency clinic now. Full disclaimer

How to read it

The six groups follow the areas vets use when they assess an older dog for cognitive decline: disorientation, interactions, sleep, house soiling and memory, activity, and anxiety. One sign in one area is common in any old dog. Signs in several areas that are slowly getting worse are the pattern that matters.

The quiz cannot tell you your dog has dementia, and it cannot tell you they do not. It gives you an organized list to take to the appointment, which is what a vet needs most. Note roughly when each change began.

Changes that appear suddenly, over hours or days, are not typical of dementia. A sudden head tilt, loss of balance, collapse, a seizure or sudden blindness needs a vet the same day.

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