Just had a talk with our neighbor, who have an elderly (14yrs) dog named
Tess.  I was letting her know that Tess has been whining and crying and
almost howling a lot when they're not home (she didn't used to).  She's
been sounding terribly distressed, but I thought maybe she was getting
senile and developing a greater problem with separation anxiety or
something; I know little about dogs in general, or elderly ones in
particular.

Well, in talking to her, I discovered that:

The poor dog whimpers and whines nearly constantly when they're home;
She's off her feed;
She's throwing up more than normal
She recently was taken to the vet for a lump on her back (but she didn't
say what the diagnosis was).

Her reason for not taking Tess to the vet?  She's afraid they'd not be
bringing her home!

So she'd rather have the dog at home, in pain, then take the chance that
she might be so sick she needs to be put to sleep?  Now, though I
understand that it'd be hard on their two girls, it still strikes me as
a bit selfish, though of course I didn't say that.

I did strongly suggest they bring her to the vet ASAP, that it could
easily be something cureable, or at least treatable with painkillers.

They're nice people (though the husband's a bit strange), and I hope
they'll do the right thing.  At least I've done what I could; I've been
feeling horrible for the poor thing, carrying on.

Ok, so I've got that off my chest.  Thanks for listening!

jmc