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My dog frequently has fits of a deep kennel sounding cough followed by a yack / gag. Like he’s throwing up but nothing comes up- is this a sign of a collapsed trachea?
Updated On January 7th, 2024
Pet's info: Dog | Goldendoodle | Male | neutered | 3 years and 10 months old | 25 lbs
Answered By Dr. Elizabeth 118
Veterinarian
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Hello! I hate to hear that Iggy has this happening to him. Coughing can have many causes. In general, the most common are all allergies, kennel cough, or poor air quality (and often it can be even a combination of these). A collapsing trachea can cause a deep cough. It is often described as a goose, honking cough. Some people will also describe a condition, known as a reverse sneeze as a cough. You likely could go online and find several videos of pets who have these conditions and could see what they sound like. YouTube has many videos of pets exhibiting the types of conditions. If this is infectious, in an otherwise healthy pet, they can often clear the infection without a vet visit. There are some things you can do at home to aid in the recovery: Avoid any strenuous activity and vocalization. Panting, barking, and vocalization will cause further irritation to the trachea, and this will cause more coughing…. Which will cause more irritation. Keep your pup indoors. Only go outside to potty and then back inside. Keep the air filters changed on the recommended routine schedules in your house, and you may consider adding an additional HEPA air filter. Make the drinking water and food room temperature. Retailers do sell herbal remedies that can help to soothe the cough for dogs. Honey can also help. Run a humidifier in the room Iggy hangs out in the most. Do not add any essential oils. Avoid contact with other dogs for one week after the coughing ends in case it’s contagious. Have Iggy examined if you see: A significant decrease in eating or drinking. Significant lethargy. Coughing to the point of vomiting. Coughing so frequently, it is not allowing proper rest or sleep. Discharge from the nose or eyes that is green or yellow and last three days or more. Coughing up blood or any pink tinged fluid. Worsening cough. A cough not improving after one week or lasting longer than two weeks. Any significant deviation from normal in any form. I hope this helps, and that Iggy recovers quickly! Sincerely, Dr. Elizabeth
6Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Other Answers
Answered By Dr. Elizabeth
Veterinarian
Hello again! I thought this would be helpful. I found several videos with reverse sneezing. I did not find any videos on a brief search with a more “classical “trachea collapse cough. Here’s a reverse sneeze: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXBug9S5juY&pp=ygUScmV2ZXJzZSBzbmVlemUgZG9n I did find many informative videos, though about tracheal collapse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCMXpKh-kuc&pp=ygUcY29sbGFwc2luZyB0cmFjaGVhIGRvZyBzb3VuZA%3D%3D I hope this helps to provide some direction, and that everything gets figured out quickly! Sincerely, Dr. Elizabeth
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
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