"Is it too late to train my old dog?" an owner recently asked me.
"What would you like to teach him?" I replied.
"I'd like him to be more reliable on commands."
"Does your dog seem to be attentive? Does he hear reasonably well? And does he appear to act 'normally' in other ways?"
"I'd say 'yes' to all three."
"Then it's not too late."
The Human's Perspective
Of course, much depends on the owner's point of view. At some age -- perhaps by six or seven -- your dog may seem to have learned all you want him to know, or that you want to take the time to teach him. Perhaps in your own mind, you've moved from the "train the dog" stage to the "enjoy the dog" stage. If so, you may have convinced yourself that the dog was probably too old to learn anything new anyhow. And that's fine. However, if you want to teach your old dog new tricks, here's some promising information.
The Dog's Perspective
Health, of course, is a factor of learning in any dog at any age. According to the authors of Canine and Feline Behavioral Therapy: "Experienced clinicians know that the behavioral signs of cognitive dysfunction could be a reflection of an organ system abnormality other than, or in addition to, brain degeneration. Quite likely is the possibility that other neurological diseases, hypothyroidism, arthritis, and cardiovascular disease will intensify some signs that also reflect the loss of memory and learning."
Yet, the authors report, research shows that even at 11 to 12 years of age, only about 20 percent of dogs' learning ability is mildly impaired and only "severely impaired" in another 10 percent. Even at 15 to 16 years of age, the authors say, only 30 percent are mildly impaired and only 35 percent are severely impaired. So even in a "worst-case" scenario, many of our canine senior citizens are still capable of learning.
Stanley Coren's The Intelligence of Dogs offers some additional insights. Coren is an authority in the field and a professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia. According to Coren, "There are noticeable changes in the physiology of the older dog. After age four or five, the brain begins to lose weight and bulk at a rate of 2 to 5 percent per year. Thus the brain of a twelve-year-old Labrador retriever may weigh 25 percent less than it did when the dog was four."
The Nutrition Factor
Although Coren says a dog's intelligence has matured by age three or four and gradually declines after that, he points out that you can maintain high levels of learning by providing the dog with optimal nutrition and stimulating experiences.
According to holistic-practice veterinarian Konrad Kruesi, D.V.M, a dog must have optimal nutritional and intestinal health for its brain to function at its best. This principle, he points out, is "especially important in senior dogs that have developed physical, mental, or hormonal weaknesses." Doctor Kruesi notes, for example, that stomach atrophy is common in senior dogs. He says, "They may not secrete the digestive juices needed for efficient breakdown of dietary proteins. Weak digestion of proteins would impair the senior dog's ability to produce neurotransmitters or protein hormones such as thyroxine (thyroid hormone)."2
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