old dog....new house?????
She is beside herself with worry that this move will totally disorient him more. At least now he nows the lay of the land but in a new house with stairs at different areas, doors and doorways furniture not in the same place....well. She is afraid it will be too much for him... When he comes over my house he bumps into walls and we have to watch the stairs and the door, cuz he will just keep walking... She has no wonderful forum to get suggestion and comments on, so I told her I would ask you... Opinions???? WOULD it be kinder for her to help him over the bridge?? OR....Should she try moving him and seeing how he does. She wants to do the best for him..she loves him so!!!!! |
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| That is a terrible dilema for your friend. I guess if I had to do that I'd try the move and see how he did. Could they maybe keep him in one area until he gets more orientated? It is so sad when they get to that stage in life. |
Wow, no real good choice there  I would do as Ilene said - give it a try, and see how it goes.  |
| It's a tricky call. I would bring him into the new house and see how he does before making that decision. The layout will be different, but he will have familiar smells and his people around. As long as she can keep him safe (blocking access to stairs in particular), I'd wait to make such a decision until it is a clear one. Wish her luck!  |
| Give him a chance. Don't count him out yet as no one knows what could have been. Vance |
We moved when Basil St.B was going blind. Suddenly he had acreage and couldn't enjoy it  Plus we have sprinkler heads permanently above the ground, lots of fences and gate.............but he learned the whole yard. Neighbors would walk down the fence and call him and he'd find his way, through the gate and around the sprinklers to the fence. OK sometimes he stumbled. One thing I did eliminate was stairs. He could not do stairs after his eyes went.......he could go up, but now down and would whimper until I led him down. Evenutally the old guy will learn a few rooms and be comforatable. Outside, on a leash. Whenever in a strange environment, he must be on a leash next to the upright. Too overwhelming in a strange house. |
| I would go ahead & move him into the new house but give him a place (a room maybe or a larger gated off area) that is all his. When Isaac got older he was more content to stay in his kennel. Most of the time he slept but when he was up he could see me working around in the area & hear me & he was totally content. There were times that I tried to get hm to go into the family room with Jim but he'd always wander back over to his kennel (his area). I think because he felt safest there. |
| Have her take him to the new house GSD's are very stoic and smart Place his favorite bed where he can get to it easily Give him some time to adjust It seems like he has little time left so let him decide Give hugs to them both for me There are some great GSD boards out there. http://www.germanshepherdhome.net/forum/ |
| I'd also give him a chance to adjust and gate off the stairs. I also would suggest crating or limiting him to one room ( if he's not use to a crate ) when he's alone. I would also suggest that when she is home, when possible, she keep him on leash as she moves through-out the house ( like with a new puppy to your belt loop to keep an eye on them ). That may help acclimate him to his new enviroment. I'd also like to send prayer's and best wishes to your friend, only she knows what is best.............Kathy |
| Thanks to everyone who gave me such wonderful advice. I will be talking to her this weekend so I will be showing her all your posts. I am sure whatever she decides will be the best decision for her and Max. BUT~~~ the suggestions here, will give her an option she thought she didn't have. |
| I would think he'd be fine. He'll just need a little time to learn his new surroundings and if it's a smaller house, it should be even easier. Bear has some pretty serious OCD issues and I had had concerns when we just recently moved, too. He still has his crazy moments but he's settled in to the parts of the house that he's comfortable in and is just fine. I wish his favorite places to lay weren't the places where I need to walk the most but he's getting old so I don't make him move. If he's happy, great! |
| We moved in April with our 11 yr old OES, Harry, and he didn't have any problems getting used to a smaller house with a different layout. He was quite frail, his eyesight was going and was wobbly on his legs, but he was very happy in the house and garden while we were in. |
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