Sometimes pet parents will start to see behavior in their dog that look and seem like behavior problems, but really aren't. If you have a dog that is getting older and you start to see some problems and inconsistencies with his behavior, it could all be due to his age.

With age comes ailments, and with ailments come changes in personality and demeanor. So your dog's developing physical problems can actually cause behavioral problems. For example, a large majority of dogs will develop some kind of arthritis, somewhere on their body, as they get older. Arthritis causes great pain, which in turn makes your pup grouchy and testy. Chronic pain can also make your dog seem distracted, lethargic and possibly act out aggressively for no reason.

Your dog might also be less likely to respond to commands for a couple reasons. It might just hurt too much to move into a different position, and/or he can't even hear or see you ask him to perform the command. He also might not remember what the commands mean, so therefore can't respond to them.

Your dog's "personal space" needs will also increase, because they don't want to risk being stepped on or disturbed in another way. So a dog who might have loved to play with other dogs in the past, might show teeth or some other form of aggression if another dog, or a person, gets too close for comfort.

Dogs can also develop dementia which affects his reasoning and recognition abilities, among other things. This will naturally make him impatient, aggressive and grouchy.

Losing sight and hearing will also be frustrating and distressing for your dog, so expect some mood changes with those physical changes.

There also might be something more serious going on, such as cancer, that could be causing mood and personality changes in your dog. Your veterinarian would know what tests to run to find out exactly what health issues were causing your dogs behavioral issues. Your veterinarian will be also be able to tell if your dog is suffering from dementia, on top of any other health issues that might be causing problems. He will also be able to tell about how much pain he is in, which will help you make the proper accommodations and changes in your house and schedule in order to make your dog as comfortable as possible.

As with anything unusual or difficult your dog might be experiencing or going through, you should show patience, compassion and understanding for your pup. Although he might not be able to express it, he will definitely be grateful for it.