Sam was supposed to be my overnight foster dog. He was being returned to SOS Beagle Rescue, Inc. for biting one of the children (and the father) in the adoptive family. I was to hold him overnight until we could get him to our veterinarian, and to have him placed in a long term foster home for assessment. Well...boy - so much has happened...this is Sam's story...
Sam was an owner surrendered outdoor hunting/field beagle from Tennessee. (He, and his pregnant girlfriend, "Sadie"...yes - Sammy is a DADDY.) His owner couldn't afford to keep his beagles, so they came into rescue. When he was brought to rescue in September 2004, he was heartworm positive. Sam was treated for heartworms, transported up to NJ, and adopted out to a loving family in December 2004. After two weeks in the adoptive home, Sam bit the adoptive father while they were all sleeping on the couch together. It did not break the skin, and the family believed Sam was having nightmares (maybe he had been abused?). They noticed that Sam would have growling and snapping incidents in his crate at night a few times a week. Unfortunately, this eventually culminated in Sam having a snapping "attack" while sleeping next to the 5 year old child in the family. Sam bit her on the face - resulting in a hospital visit and stitches. Sam had a bite report filed with the NJ Dept of Health, and was returned to the rescue in February 2005. SOS Beagle Rescue does not accept dogs into the rescue with a bite history, but since Sam was adopted from SOS, the rescue needed to take him back. It was decided that he would be assessed in a long term foster home to see whether or not he was adoptable. This is the picture of Sam the first day he was with me. Meet Fat Hobbit:
I was very cautious bringing Sam into my home - even just overnight. I had a somewhat aggressive dog already (Rosie), and a young, active pup (Pippin), so we kept our distance from Sam. He seemed so sweet and loving - I couldn't believe he was an "aggressive" dog, but you can't tell these things just by looking at a dog. Sam was overweight when he came back to rescue (thus the nickname Fat Hobbit), so we had him evaluated by our veterinarian, and ruled out any overt medical cause for the reported aggression (e.g., a thyroid problem). I had Sam for about 5 days, saw no noticeable aggression, and passed him off to his long term foster home for assessment and evaluation. I thought that would be the end of my role in Sam's life.
In 5 days in his long term foster home, Sam managed to bite his foster mom twice. He was deemed "unadoptable" and was going to be euthanized. The rescue could not risk the liability of Sam biting anyone else. What bothered many of us, though, is that this all seemed so out of character for Sammy. Better yet, no one - not even the adoptive family - wanted Sam destroyed. Everyone felt that "Sam doesn't know what he's doing," "He does it while he's sleeping," "He cowers afterwards," etc. Huh?
When Susan O'Brien and Harriet (NY and NJ Directors at the time, but now formerly of SOS Beagle Rescue) indicated that they did not agree with the euthanasia decision for Sam, and I did not see any aggression in my home, I asked if I could please have Sam back for a 3 week trial period. I have a calm home, can insure everyone's safety, and have a background in applied behavior analysis. I felt I could objectively look at what was going on, and I would take data and make comparisons of the environments in which Sam had been. That 3 week trial resulted in a change of diet to all natural food and treats, observations of the incidents, assurance that Sam ALWAYS slept by himself, slow assessments of conscious aggression, online research, etc. I DID witness these biting episodes after about a week or so, but I felt strongly that this was not a behavioral issue. I honestly didn't know WHAT was going on (maybe neuorological?), so I started my research.
To tell you the end of the story first, Sam has been diagnosed with a parasomnia (sleep disorder) known as REM Behavior Disorder (RBD), was deemed unadoptable by the rescue (so I adopted him in June 2005), has been with me ever since, and has never bitten anyone (but does have "episodes" about 1-2 times per week). I love him dearly.
So what are these incidents like? Well, once Sam gets into a deep sleep (at least 15-20 minutes into sleeping) - and is sleeping with Rapid Eye Movement (REM-sleep), he will often VERY QUICKLY, growl, whip his head around, and snap. He will do this whether someone is near him or not. If Sam happens to be sleeping next to someone, they will sadly be bitten. Remember, though, that he is still sleeping during this!! The snap itself wakes him up, and then he usually cries, like he knows he has just done something wrong. Sam only wakes up AFTER I call his name, touch him, or he makes contact with something when he bites. He does not have control over the biting. It is as if he is acting out his dreams, but he is dreaming. Sometimes he'll fall asleep on the futon behind me when I am in my office, and I'll hear him viciously snarling (seemingly at nothing!?). I turn around to look, and his eyes are often slightly open (but moving side to side), and he is clearly asleep and dreaming. If I call his name or touch him, he blinks his eyes, wakes up, looks at me with that sweet face, and goes back to sleep. You can approach Sam while he's sleeping, hug him, etc. You can wake him up at any time, and he sleepily just looks at you and drifts back off to sleep - this is not a behavioral/conscious reaction to sounds or touch. He will do this alone in his crate in the middle of the night. It is only when he is sound asleep and DREAMING that he is a danger to anyone, and even then, it's as if he has to go through his own internal "cycle?" to have an incident escalate.
So, how did we arrive at this diagnosis?
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Medical causes ruled out by Bay Street Animal Hospital
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Observations of Sammy
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Assurance that Sam slept in a crate, or at least 5 feet away from someone
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Collection of data on Sam's diet, activity, "incidents," etc.
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Online research and correspondence with k9aggression.com, canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com, canine-epilepsy.com
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Consultation with my experienced rescue friends from SOS and BONES
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Consultation with veterinary behaviorists including Dr. Amy Marder at the Animal Rescue League of Boston
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A behavioral cause of Sam's incidents were ruled out. This is primarily because he is NOT AWAKE when he has them!!
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Discovery of research on canine sleep disorders by Dr. Adrian Morrison* at the Laboratory for Study of the Brain in Sleep at the University of Pennsylvania, School of Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Neurological Sciences
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Correspondence with Dr. Adrian Morrison who assisted me with much information, and discussions with his colleagues, including the co-discovers of human RBD, Dr. Mark Mahowald and Dr. Carlos Schenck
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Consultation with my own veterinarian, Dr. Aimee Mischel
*Dr. Morrison was so wonderful in writing to me, sending me information, and in passing on information to his colleagues. While he was able to get the neurologists at UPenn to agree to examine and diagnose Sam, the cost would have been too much for our rescue to handle. Just the MRI alone cost $1400 - add in a $100 examination, $100 EEG, $170 for bloodwork, $100 per night hospitalization charge, etc., and well, for a nonprofit organization (SOS Beagle Rescue), we just couldn't afford that. I attempted to find other neurologists who could work with us for a reduced charge, and no one was willing to do so. Honestly, who wants to help an "aggressive" dog? I would have paid for it myself, but I was still paying off veterinary debt from Bailey, and sadly couldn't also afford to pay for Sam's bills.
Fortunately, there IS a treatment for REM-Sleep Behavior Disorder, and my own veterinarian was comfortable enough with all of the information and research to prescribe it for Sam. He has been prescribed Clonazepam, an anticonvulsant medication. After all of the research, I actually ended up declining the medication at this time for the following reasons:
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This medication does NOT cure REM Behavior Disorder. It decreases the intensity and frequency of the incidents. I certainly want this for Sam, BUT:
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Sam would still always need to sleep by himself, and I would still always need to be aware of Sam's sleeping quarters.
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Sam would need to be on this medication for the rest of his life. Since he was only 2.5 years old when he was diagnosed, I was uncomfortable with lifetime medication. This may be a ridiculous concern, but after the medication side effect which ended Bailey's life, I am overly cautious with medicating my beagles.
I do not rule out the possibility of some day giving Sam the medication. I have the script for the medication, and if the incidents increase in intensity or frequency, I will definitely begin the medication for him. At this time, though, Sam's incidents are managed environmentally. He averages 1-2 incidents per week, but sleeps in his crate at night, and I make sure he is at least 3 feet away from others when sleeping. So far, so good. :)
Sam is one of the sweetest, dopiest dogs I have ever had. He makes me laugh every day. He is quite a funny little dog. Aside from his sleeping problems, he is very lovable. He loves children - including my young nieces (currently 18 months and 4 years). He is afraid of thunder and lightening, and sits out on the balcony and howls while I use the vacuum cleaner. He has quite a deep "Arrroooooo!" He follows me everywhere I go and I call him my "velcro dog."
Sam has the patience of a saint...he even tolerates evil beagle Pippin. Fortunately, I caught this situation before Sam was asleep for too long, but as you can see, Sam does not have a (behavioral) territorial sleeping problem. Pippin dragged his own bed ON TOP of Sam and his bed...lol...
Maybe he was putting up his own barrier in case Sam had an incident. ;)
Sam has managed to creep his way into my family, has made friends with my own pack, and accepts the continuous cycle of foster dogs that come and go through my home. He has his permanent spot in my heart, and will always be my little Fat Hobbit...Samwise.
Updates:
Fall 2005: Sam continues to live with me, and thrive in my home. I was contacted by Dr. Carlos Schenck (co-discoverer of human RBD), and attended his presentation to the New Jersey Sleep Society on parasomnias. He asked me to present Sam's case to his audience, and I was honored to do so. I presented the information on this website, as well as video footage of Sam's sweet waking personality, and some of his brief RBD episodes. Dr. Schenck asked if I would be willing to share this information with him for an upcoming book on parasomnias. Sam's case will be presented in a chapter about pets with RBD. I am excited to work with Dr. Schenck in this endeavor, and look forward to sharing Sam's case with others. To learn more about parasomnias, please visit Dr. Shenck's website.
I stopped volunteering with SOS Beagle Rescue in December 2005.
March 2006: I helped co-found a new beagle rescue on the East Coast - Cascade Beagle Rescue East!
May 2006: I was made aware of some issues that have developed in two of Sam's puppies (from the litter that was born in the care of SOS Beagle Rescue when Sam was first brought into rescue). Starting at the age of 1 year, one of his female puppies is described as having the same RBD symptoms as Sam. One of his male puppies has suffered from "strange" growling episodes while sleeping, and has had a seizure. It is more than coincidence that these issues have arisen, as there appears to be a clear genetic/hereditary link to some sort of neurological issue. THIS IS MANAGEABLE, THOUGH!!
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| Waiting for Santa...December 2006... | ||||||||||||||||
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April 2007: Dr. Schenck's book is out, and so is Sam's story. :) See pages 259-263 in the book, Sleep: The Mysteries, The Problems, and The Solutions by Carlos H. Schenck, M.D. |
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Summer 2009: For the past year and a
half, I have observed changes in Sam's eyes, and witnessed a seizure
on New Year's Eve 2008. I was wondering what was happening to
Sam. I began to notice increased waking aggression with Sam
when he was around other dogs. This was so out of character
for him, but Sam seemed to be having vision problems. In the summer
of 2009, Dr. Mischel referred Sam to
Dr. Michael J. Ringle at
Red Bank
Veterinary Hospital for an ophthalmology consult. I got
the bad news that Sam had cataracts in both eyes, was completely
blind in his left eye, and would lose the rest of his vision in his
right eye over the coming year. This explained, in my mind,
some of the waking aggression I was seeing with Sam...he was scared
and confused, and just could not see what the other dogs were doing.
The cost for cataract removal is extremely expensive (~$3,000). BUT, Dr. Ringle indicated that Sam was a good candidate for the surgery - especially given his young age (7 years). Not having the money for Sam's surgery, I had to do a lot of soul searching, and I waited a good month or so before making up my mind about what to do. Over the Summer of 2009, though, I saw behaviors in Sam that just made me want to cry - and they were directly related to his confusion and fear as he continued to lose his vision. Many dogs adjust to vision loss. After all, they rely on scent and sound much more than vision, but for Sam, it didn't seem to matter. His sleep incidents went on for much longer periods of time and seemed to increase in intensity. I honestly think it was because when he woke up, he was not receiving any visual stimuli telling him that he was awake, so the aggression continued while he was awake. Once he heard my voice, he would calm down, but this was heart wrenching to watch. After going through the summer like this, I finally decided to take out a loan and schedule Sam's surgery. I have to say that Sam's appearance post-surgery was difficult to see:
October 2009: I cannot say enough about Dr. Ringle. Sam had cataract removal and artificial lens replacement surgery in late August at Red Bank Veterinary Hospital, and it has been an amazing experience. The post-op care is intense, and I could only manage it thanks to some vacation time from work, and a dedicated schedule once back at work. To see the change in Sam has made it all worthwhile. He is the happy little hound that came into my home almost 5 years ago. His vision has been restored, and to date, there are no complications from the surgery.
June 2010: Sam continues to go for his routine follow-ups with Dr. Ringle, and his vision is amazing. The waking aggression I had seen last summer is GONE, and his sleep incidents are back to their normal intensity and duration. Recently, in fact, they seem to be even less intense. Sam continues to get eyedrops in both eyes once per day, but it is expected that after Sam's follow-up in August, that Dr. Ringle will be fading them back to every other day, every few days, and eventually none at all. For a younger dog with no other serious health issues, this surgery has been one of the best decisions I could have made for Sam. A lot goes into whether or not surgery is a good option - the dog's temperament and personality, how they are handling vision loss, the owner's ability to provide the post-op care, and most importantly, an owner's ability to afford this surgery! It is not something that can be possible for everyone, but if it IS possible, go for it! :) |
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