I only ask that you run the tests.
Many vets only go by what you say and look no further.
The tests are not overly expensive and “5 years” is of little or no bearing.
Both low thyroid and tick borne diseases can take years to fully manifest.
Thyroid is almost always a slow progression and Lyme, particularly, can “hide” in the bone marrow and spleen and show no symptoms until some other issue kicks it into action.
Could be the stress of age, a change of weather, lousy food or just a bad day.
I would never argue for neutering because it’s been proven that neutering exacerbates fear aggression exponentially by removing the testosterone that gave the dog the little courage it had, to start with.
A mildly aggressive dog can become a constantly terrified fear biter.
Contrary to peta-pushed propaganda, neutering has little or no positive effect on “aggression” and the verified health risks of removing a vital part of an animal’s endocrine *system* are not worth it.
“But, even my wife can’t touch his legs or feet, or do anything to annoy him or he will instantly grab at her hands.”
My parents had a Chow who was a “real badass”.
He’d nail anyone who touched him, so naturally, I did a thorough touch exam.
I told him to take him to a vet, ASAP.
His back was out of whack and his knees were totally shot. All his “badassery” was him reacting to the agony of just being alive, let alone being touched.
He was given an NSAID for the pain he’d endured for years and lived the rest of his life as the sweetest dog ever.
Why anyone would not give their dog the benefit of the doubt and at least *check* is beyond me.
I appreciate the advice, but I've had a thorough workup done on the dog once he matured. He's not in any discomfort. He's quite active, and requires a great deal of exercise and will drive you nuts until you give it to him. His actions seem to be just part of his nature, as with other pit bulls I've encountered. He's been this way ever since he was almost three.