I was just reading sprout's topic on their poorly dog, and this comes at a time my dog seems to be having problems as well. I have a french bulldog that's about five or six years old, and just yesterday he started acting strange. He was trembling and shaking really bad, and I was worried at first. But then I figured it was just a behavior he developed. He would only do it if me or my wife was watching, and he would do it really really bad if my wife was watching. He had received a scare in the yard a couple nights ago while he was doing he business, and my wife coddled him a bit while he was all nervous. So we figured "oh, he's just realized he gets alot of love and attention when he shakes, so he's just doing it so we will give him attention." The fact that my wife could walk out of the room and he would just stop, and then as soon as she stepped in he would just start trembling almost violently really confirmed it. So after reading a bit up on it, we decided we would just ignore him when he's shaking, and love on him when he's not to break him of the habit.
But then this morning he started acting even wierder. He has a bed in a little kennel in our spare bedroom he sleeps in every night (it's open, he does it voluntarily) but he was sleeping in the laundry room next to our bedroom on a towel. He's been bed ridden all day, and didn't eat his breakfast. He's not vomiting, or having any bathroom troubles but he's just been incredibly lethargic, and he still shaking like crazy whenever we are around. When he gets nervous (like at the vet's office) he pants even if it's not hot at all, and when my wife and I put him in our bed this morning to just chill out he started panting like crazy like he was really nervous, and he's done that a couple times today.
I really can't figure out if he's sick, or if he's just having some emotional issue. We called our vet and they said it might be seperation anxiety, and to just keep an eye on him. But he's never had any problems with us leaving him at home before, but before my wife went to work today he just about had a nervous breakdown. She had her shoes on, and was getting her keys and he just starting panting really heavy and shaking real bad and then whining, which he NEVER whines. It was pitiful, and kind of scary but he seems so distraught. I have no idea what's wrong with him, but he won't eat and he hasn't gotten out of bed all day except when I picked him up and took him outside to go to the bathroom. Which he did, and then came back inside and went back to bed.
He's always been well behaved, and never pees in the house, or tears things up when we're gone (aside from an occasional sock or tissue), and I really don't know if he's ill, or distressed for some reason, but I'm really worried about the little guy. Sorry, I'm just venting because I'm worried about him. Has anybody ever had a dog with the same problem?