<\/figure>\n\n\n\nDogs may not always be able to communicate that they\u2019re in pain. However, it\u2019s not uncommon for a dog to sustain an injury and it goes unnoticed for days because it\u2019s in a spot that isn\u2019t easy to see right away. That\u2019s why it\u2019s so important to be vigilant of the warning signs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The following signs may indicate that your dog has been physically injured:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\nThey\u2019re walking funny during the day: <\/strong>The most common sign a dog has sustained an injury is the walking funny. If this happens carefully inspect their legs and their body for any kind of injuries. Also check their paws. If their nails are overgrown it can be pressing into their paw and causing pain.<\/li>\n\n\n\nThey become agitated or lethargic: <\/strong>If your dog is lethargic during the day and restless at night, it\u2019s a sign that they may have sustained an injury. If you inspect them and there is no visible wound, you should take them to the vet as this can be a sign of health problems or internal injuries as well.<\/li>\n\n\n\nThey keep licking themselves:<\/strong> If your dog keeps licking a spot you normally don\u2019t see them clean, it may be the location of their injury. Very carefully inspect the spot for any abrasions.<\/li>\n\n\n\nThey\u2019re acting irritable: <\/strong>If your dog is normally fun loving, but now they snap at anyone who dares to try and pet them, chances are they\u2019re in some type of pain. This is one of the most common signs that they not only have an injury but a particularly tender one. They\u2019re keeping people away to prevent them from touching it and worsening it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\nIf you do find an injury, it\u2019s important that you try to avoid putting any pressure on the wound. Instead try to make your doggo as comfortable as possible until you can get them into the vet. Remember, even seemingly minor injuries should be checked out, as there could be internal injuries that are related.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your Dog May Have a Medical Issue<\/h2>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nThere are many medical problems\u2014some mild and others serious\u2014which can cause your dog to become restless at night. In a lot of cases, the problem is simply depriving them of sleep and causing them to act restlessly. Just think about the last time you just needed to sleep but stared at the clock all night instead and you\u2019ll know exactly how frustrating that can be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mild Medical Issues That Cause Misbehavior<\/h3>\n\n\n\n The following issues are relatively easy to treat, however they can keep your dog up at night.<\/strong> Because they are painful or irritating they can make it hard to rest, increasing unwanted late night behaviors. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\nArthritis:<\/strong> Some dog breeds are more prone to it than others, however any dog can develop arthritis. If they have, the pain could be keeping them up at night and leading to anything from howling to restless behavior.<\/li>\n\n\n\nInfections\/rashes: <\/strong>When a dog has an infection or a rash it can be hard to spot at first. The infection may not be visible at all and the rash could be covered with fur. Visible or not however, both of these can keep your dog up at night when they should be resting.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\nSerious Medical Problems That Cause Restlessness<\/h3>\n\n\n\n The following issues are generally seen as serious and require immediate professional care. <\/strong>Don\u2019t freak yourself out too much however, because all of these issues have treatment options available should they be the problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\nCognitive dysfunction:<\/strong> This is a particularly large possibility if your dog is getting into their twilight years. Many breeds of dogs get less sleep as they age. Still, if they\u2019re also acting restless they could be experiencing some cognitive dysfunctions that need addressing. Vets generally prescribe medications to deal with these issues.<\/li>\n\n\n\nCushing\u2019s syndrome: <\/strong>Dogs sometimes begin over producing the stress hormone cortisol. When this happens they may appear out of it during the day, panting more than normal, and restless at night. The kind of thing you\u2019d expect to keep you up at night would be panting, heavy breathing and pacing.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\nPay close attention to what your dog is doing during the day because there may be additional symptoms that are less noticeable than their late night restlessness. If you notice them panting heavily, urinating more frequently or generally not acting like themselves, it\u2019s time for a vet\u2019s opinion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your Dog Could Be Experiencing Side Effects of Medication<\/h2>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nIt can be easy to miss the correlation between your dog taking medication and their behavior changing. Especially if the side effects don\u2019t present right away. Still, some medications can cause dogs to misbehave or act restless and aggressive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If your dog has started taking medication within the past month and now they\u2019re freaking out at night, you should talk to your vet about taking them off of it. It\u2019s best if you make as many observations as possible before you see them however, because it will help them rule out other problems first.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s important that you don\u2019t take them off the medication immediately without consulting a professional, as it could potentially be dangerous, depending on the medication. That being said, it\u2019s also important that you get a hold of them quickly because the side effects of some medications can cause seizures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So Really, Why is Your Dog Freaking Out at Night?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nIf your dog is freaking out at night, you\u2019ll want to explore all the possible reasons why. Causes for restlessness and bad behavior range from having too little activity in the daytime to serious health concerns like heart failure. Fortunately, there are many treatments available for each of these problems. Once you discover what they are, you can do something about them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If your dog isn\u2019t getting enough attention during the day you can establish a care plan. If they\u2019re suffering from anxiety, there are therapies and medications available to help. The same is true for physical health concerns. The key is to find the treatment that works best for your dog. That starts with observing their behaviors more closely with this knowledge in mind.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Does your dog freak out during the night? Find out why that is, how to avoid it, and how to deal with it. We have also discovered that the int…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5307,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[177],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pawsinsider.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5294"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pawsinsider.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pawsinsider.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pawsinsider.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pawsinsider.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5294"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.pawsinsider.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5294\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pawsinsider.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5307"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pawsinsider.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5294"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pawsinsider.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5294"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pawsinsider.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5294"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}