My dog barked while eating and choked. Should I worry if he's calm?

Good job to stop the choking. If Finn ate his food normally then there is no blockage. He may do a little coughing afterwards as his throat may have become irritated. This will resolve in a few days. Thanks to your quick actions he should be fine. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you get answers to your veterinary questions.

I am so sorry about Zelda’s cough. It is possible a piece of bark has become lodged in her throat, or that the chewing merely inflamed her throat causing a cough. I would monitor her closely for the next few hours, offer her only water and keep her calm. If the cough worsens, she seems in pain or distressed I would take her to the vet immediately. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

It sounds like whatever Chewy had stuck in his throat has passed. Since he is acting normally, keep an eye on him for now. Should that behavior start again or he stops eating, take him into a vet immediately. Best of luck.

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Rosie. Poor girl! If something was stuck in her throat, I would expect she wouldn’t be able to sleep. She would be too uncomfortable. Maybe something was stuck before but may have cleared by now. Since she is sleeping, just keep an eye on her for now. If this behavior continues or she develops other signs such as a loss of appetite or lethargy, have her seen by a vet. Best of luck and happy holidays!

Dogs that have something stuck in the larynx or the trachea will continue to cough, gag and have difficulty breathing. It sounds to me like you took care of the problem and I wouldn’t be concerned as long as Vito is acting normal.

He likely aspirated some food. If it's just one day of hacking, then it's OK to wait and see if it clears in the next day or two. However, we always worry about aspiration pneumonia, which can be more serious. If the hacking persists for more than two days and is not getting better, then it's best to take him to the vet. If your dog has always done this, then I would not be too worried about a condition causing him to gag when eating. However, if this gagging is recent (within the last year), then I would get him checked-out by a vet. I'm particularly concerned about laryngeal paralysis, which can happen in older dogs and cause them to aspirate their food and water. I hope that helps and Anubis gets better soon.

Yikes! I'm so glad you were there to stop this from becoming a much worse situation! His mouth should heal just fine. Offer some soft food as hard food may be a bit painful for the next couple of days, other than that you don't need to change anything. If it hasn't healed well within 4-5 days, take him to the vet. Keep an eye on the other dog as well; while you were able to get them untangled quickly when he was choking, sometimes dogs can develop whats called "non-cardiogenic pulmonary edema" after a choking incident, even a brief one. If he starts to cough, seems to be breathing faster than normally or is labored at all in his breathing, take him to the vet. Oxygen therapy may be needed, these guys usually recover but they do often need to spend some time in an oxygen cage. He very well may be fine and not develop these symptoms at all, but it is something you need to watch out for over the next 12-24 hours. Thank you for asking Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!