[Dailydrool] Morse - restlessness at night

[Rebecca Louisa Stanton]

Hello all, and drool to all in need at the moment.  Morse is particularly
keen on peanut butter at the moment, and drools copiously when he has that.

Any help or advice you could give with this would be really appreciated.
Morse was diagnosed with haemangiosarcoma over 2 months ago (inoperable),
and he is nearly 14.  He isn't in much pain from what we can gather, he is
a bit uncomfortable at times, but still wants his walks, is eating well and
is digging, woofing and happy.  He has always slept a lot during the day,
and still does that, but previously always slept well through the night.
He used to sleep in the bedroom with us, but about 3-4 years ago he began
to find the stairs difficult, so I started sleeping downstairs with him.
He has a memory foam bed and a duvet over it, and I have my duvet next to
his, and sometimes he sleeps up on the sofa.  However, any time between
10pm and midnight he will get up and want to sleep either in the hallway,
kitchen or outside in the garden.  I will join him if its in the hallway or
kitchen.  If its outside I had been sleeping outside with him, but as of
yesterday temperatures are dropping to nearly zero now, so I sleep just
inside the doorway with the door open so he can come and go - freezing! - I
try and dissuade him but he won't relent, and he will usually spend about
an hour sleeping outside in his mud patch where he digs.  Last night he
started being restless at 11pm and it went on til nearly 4am.  I have tried
lights on, lights off, covering him up with a blanket, taking the blanket
off.  We don't have the heating on as its been warm, and I think he will
balk at the fire going on, he seems very heat sensitive these days.  I have
tried giving him extra food, thinking that maybe a really full belly would
mean sleeping through, but it doesn't help!  The vet suggested Diazepam but
he has been taking 20 mg at night, and it just makes his legs wobbly but he
still wants to go out!  Is it the bed he doesn't like?  But then he sleeps
on the hall floor which is hard, and seems to prefer that!  Is it a little
bit of doggy dementia?  Or is it related to the haemangiosarcoma, is he
feeling something is wrong and its unsettling him?  Poor lad.  I am doing
all I can to help him but am all out of ideas.
thank you for any advice.
Becky, Morse and Pumbaa ATB
pummorse at gmail.com
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