A question for dog experts

[Roon]

My Grandparents had an 18-year old shnauzer that they have had since she was a puppy. Recently they went up to their cabin in the Rocky Mountains and the dog dissapeared within fifteen minutes of their arrival. This dog has been to this cabin hundreds of times. I would like to think that the dog wandered off to die on her own. Has anyone ever heard of this? Are old dogs known to do this?

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

1. More likely than not nailed by a larger critter

Cats go away to die. Dogs are den animals and stay close by to die. Their masters are part of their packs.

[Roon]

4. Yeah, no one is saying that out loud

But that is what some people think, couger or cyote. The only reason I don't think that is what happened is because there are tons of other little dogs up there and they were fine.

[Catchawave]

2. Oh, how sad....

At her age, could be dementia and she got lost?

[Roon]

6. She couldn't hear

and her eyesight wasn't all that great, but she still had her wits. She didn't get lost, I just know it..

[unblock]

3. don't know about dogs, but one of my cats just did this

at least, i presume she went off to die. her sister has just developed kidney problems, so it would not surprise me if it just got to the one that ran off first.

18 years they've never ventured more than 15 feet from the house, you gotta think something odd was up....

[undeterred]

5. I have heard that animals do that, although I've never seen it.

But an older dog can also get confused and anxious, even in surroundings you'd think would be familiar. She might have wandered off and not remembered the way back.

[Roon]

7. see my above post

[hfojvt]

8. we had an old dog

He was so old and non-spry that we started to not chain him up when we took him outside. Although once I saw him shuffling across the street in front of the house, moving at a snail's pace. Another time he vanished, and I got on my bike for a frantic search and found him several blocks away with really no intention of going home. Dogs do love to explore and at his age and energy level I wonder if he would have been able to find his way back or have the energy to get back, but he did live for several years after that before my parents finally had him put down.
This was a dog that we got because he followed my brother and I home from the library (with only a little encouragement, and at the start we tried to ditch him). So I was thinking that his wandering off would be like an episode of the Twilight Zone - he would become young again on his journey and be found by a couple of kids and get a new family. They would run an ad, like we did when we found him, only we would not answer because we would be looking for an old dog.
Do-do-do-do, do-do-do-do.