Dogs Can Have Dementia, Too

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Mr.Everyone who has an older friend or relative experiences dementia. With nearly half of Americans over the age of 55 developing some form of dementia, according to the National Institutes of Health, it is becoming an important feature of our aging populations. From memory loss to mood changes and confusion, the symptoms of dementia are unfortunately omnipresent.

Dementia is also a sad reality of a dog’s twilight years.

Canine Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome (CCDS) has been diagnosed with increasing frequency in recent years. An international working group consisting of experts from Germany, Canada, Hungary and the United States developed the first standardized practices for the diagnosis of CCDS, and their new study published in the AMCA Publications describes the signs pet owners and veterinarians should watch for in aging dogs.

Lab-bred beagles had already provided scientific data on the cognitive aging process in dogs. But the trajectory of mental aging in family companion dogs is less well understood. Until now, veterinarians have relied on caregiver questionnaires regarding pet dog behavior. Although the responses may raise red flags, there is no systematic way to address these warning signs.

Read more: “How animals understand death”

“The good news here is that there is increased interest in finding treatments for CCDS,” Natasha Olby, study author and veterinary neurologist at North Carolina State University, said in a press release. “But in order to develop these treatments, we first need to ensure there is an agreed definition of the disease.”

In dogs, neurodegenerative changes that signal dementia include sleep disruption, anxiety, loss of house training, altered activity levels, and decline in learning and memory. Researchers created a diagnostic flowchart, based on these symptoms, classifying severity from mild to debilitating. They recommend that older dogs, like older humans, be screened regularly, which for a dog means starting around age seven.

The discovery of symptoms by a dog owner or caregiver would trigger more intensive follow-up with a detailed CCDS questionnaire. While the American Academy of Neurology recommends annual screening for memory problems starting at age 65, the study authors recommend screening every six months starting at age 10 for dogs, because dogs obviously mature and age faster than humans.

The guidelines are not the ultimate solution to standardized diagnosis of CCDS, but rather the beginning. “We recognize that this document is only the beginning of the process,” Olby admitted, “but it has been developed as a working document that can be added to over time as our understanding improves.”

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Main image: Mary Swift / Shutterstock

• Devin Reese

  Published on February 16, 2026

  Devin Reese is the editor-in-chief of Natural history and a science writer based in Alexandria, Virginia.