Help for Dogs With Dementia—And Their People

Does Your Senior Dog Do This?

rat terrier with Alzheimer's with her head in a corner

Or this?

Terrier with dementia standing with head under chair

You are not alone. Talk to your vet if you think your dog may have dementia or cognitive dysfunction. Then explore this site for information and support from other people who have gone through this with their dogs.

Eileen Anderson holding rat terrier Cricket with advanced dementia

My name is Eileen Anderson. My dog Cricket was diagnosed with canine cognitive dysfunction, also called dementia or doggie Alzheimer’s, in 2011 at the age of 15. She had been showing signs even before that.

For the rest of her days, I worked to make her life as happy and safe as possible. She lived a good life for two more years.

I created this site and wrote a book to help others whose dogs have dementia. If your dog has dementia, I hope you find out sooner than I did.

What you can find here

A guide to canine cognitive dysfunction: symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and how to cope.

Photos and videos that demonstrate the signs of canine cognitive dysfunction.

A printable symptoms checklist you can take to your vet.

General tips on how best to care for a senior dog.

Stories by many other people who have also helped their dogs through this (for instance, the comments at the bottom of the Symptoms page).

Information that may help you make a decision about euthanasia if such a decision becomes necessary.

Most important: my book, which has the information you need to help your senior dog live as full a life for as long as possible.

Book: Remember Me?Loving and Caring for a Dog with Canine Cognitive Dysfunction by Eileen Anderson

My book can help you.

Here’s what people are saying about it.

  • I hope everybody will get a copy of this. Might just be the best thing you ever do to help your clients who have an aging pup. -- Anne Springer. Paws for Praise
  • For anyone dealing with canine cognitive dysfunction this book is a must read! Beautifully written by Eileen Anderson (so you know it's going to be fantastic!).—Denise O'Moore
  • Thank you for writing it. It has helped me so much in dealing with my Bear’s CCD!—Pam Erickson
  • This book is amazing and spot on! Highly recommend anyone battling CCD read it!—Kris Beacom Becker
  • Remember Me is one of the best resources on canine cognitive dysfunction/dementia out there. If you have an older dog and are wondering about canine dementia, this book is a must read.—Blanche Axton
  • I cannot recommend more than enough - it was what brought me to the CCD group, and it helped me to articulate to LewLew’s Vet what I was seeing.—Kelly Mattingly Lewis
  • While always conveying deep compassion and sensitivity for dogs with CCD, Eileen provides a wealth of sound and well-researched advice to owners of dogs with the condition.—Linda Case, author of Dog Smart
  • This is a great book. We are so fortunate to have Eileen Anderson. She makes sense of the science, writes so well and is compassionate about the lives of all our dogs.—Kathy Ewald
  • Once you have read this book, and I recommend you read it now, you'll want to keep it accessible as a reference for when you need it most.—Lori Stevens
  • Once I began reading Remember Me? I knew I had found something special. The book helped me to understand how to give Skye back quality of life. Remember Me? is a must-read for all dog owners.—Pat Wojcik
  • I considered this book to be a combination of an encyclopedia on Canine Cognitive Dysfunction and a journal providing great emotional support in helping my dog, Mona, and me deal with this horrific disease. It is the most comprehensive and helpful publication on CCD. I have recommended it to every owner with a dog suffering from this disease.—MaryAnne Rasmussen, New York City
  • Katherine Howie
    This book is brilliant and well worth a read. Jack was so precious to us and with the help we obtained from this book we managed to keep our best friend happy and content for a further 2yrs. Forever grateful.—Katherine Howie
    Katherine Howie
  • Abigail Hollar
    Addressing decline of a beloved dog can be very painful. "Remember Me?" taught me how to better care for my aging dog, and made the hard decisions I had to make, easier.—Abigail Hollar
    Abigail Hollar
  • Nora
    Eileen's book, Remember Me?, was a huge help to me while caring for my aging Golden Retriever, Molly. Eileen clearly explains about the condition of Canine Cognitive Dysfunction and goes step-by-step with suggestions for helping the owner deal with this to make their senior dog comfortable, while continuing a good quality of life. Her recommendations for changing various things in the environment, the routine, diet, and sleeping, as well as supplements, made a great difference in Molly‘s ability to enjoy life in her final years. I am so grateful to have found Eileen‘s book and blog. I most highly recommend them!—Nora
    Nora
  • Helena Lane
    Thank you for writing this wonderful book which has been my salvation.
    Helena Lane
  • Shannon Thier
    I found Eileen's book fascinating and chock full of information that can help other guardians who don't know what to do or the signs to look for when their dog begins to show signs of canine cognitive dysfunction. Eileen has boatloads of insight and she writes meticulously. Whether or not you have a dog experiencing CCD right now or not, it's definitely a book that I believe everybody should have on their shelf.
    Shannon Thier
Buy the Book Now!

A Message from Eileen

Video Transcript for “Dog Dementia: Your Dog’s Life Is Not Over”

>> EILEEN ANDERSON: Hi, I’m Eileen Anderson and this is about dementia in dogs. This is about help for you when your dog is old and losing their mental capacity.

My book, Remember Me? Loving and Caring for a Dog with Canine Cognitive Dysfunction will help you with your aging dog. This is my dog Cricket, who will help us with some examples.

Dementia in dogs is much more common than people think, and the sad thing is that most dogs are diagnosed when the disease is already fairly advanced.

I didn’t recognize my dog Cricket’s first symptoms, and she had probably had dementia for at least two years by the time she was diagnosed.

I don’t want anyone else to have a delay like that. There is medical help for cognitive dysfunction in dogs, and there are many ways you can help your dog have a good life even as their mental functioning is declining.

Remember Me? tells the story of my dog Cricket and me, and I bet a lot of you will see yourselves and your dear dogs in that story.

It describes the symptoms of dementia in dogs and the process of getting diagnosed. It covers the current, validated treatments. But most important, the focus of the book is on how to make it easier for you to take care of your dog as the condition progresses. And how to take care of yourself, too, because it’s hard on you and your family.

There are more than 30 photos in Remember Me, and it’s full of tips about everything from wandering to loss of house training to helping your dog continue to eat well.

There will be ups; and there will be downs, and there will be heartbreak, because our dogs never live long enough, no matter what their physical condition. But Remember Me? can help you through it, and it can help your dog have many more happy days.

Remember Me?  won the 2016 Dog Writers Association of America Maxwell Award for best book on health and behavior. It’s available as a paperback, hardback, and all major ebook formats. Click on the link to purchase your copy.

Buy the Book Now!