Dr. Marie replied:

Oh dear. It really sounds like Oddie is in distress.

If this was a young dog I'd be worried that he has separation anxiety. But, it would be a little bit strange for a dog to develop separation anxiety at 16 years old.

It does sound like he is anxious about something though. While I won't be able to tell you exactly why he is doing this, I can give you some of my thoughts.

It's possible that he has pain somewhere. An elderly lab is bound to have some arthritis pain. It's possible he is getting sudden bouts of spasms, perhaps back spasms, that are causing him distress. If this were my case I would likely try him on a prescription anti-inflammatory medication for a couple of weeks to see if this reduced his symptoms.

It's also possible that this is some type of seizure activity. When dogs have seizures it is common for them to act very strange for hours before or after the seizure. Unfortunately, at his age, if this is due to seizures then the most common reason for seizures would be a brain tumor.

It could also be due to severe anxiety. If your vet is not able to find a cause for his problems then they may consider trying him on an anti-anxiety medication such as Reconcile or Clomicalm. It is unusual, though, to have anxiety this bad suddenly appear in an older dog.

I wish I had a more concrete answer for you. I would highly suggest having your vet do a good exam on him. Hopefully they can get you some answers!

Dr. Marie.

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