Why does my dog cough, gag, or act like something's stuck on leash?

It sounds like your dog may have a collapsing trachea causing the cough. It would be a good idea to use a harness instead of a collar. Your vet can also prescribe medications to help if the condition persists or becomes more frequent. A bronchodilator and cough suppressant may help.

Poor girl. Unfortunately there are no home remedies for an undetermined underlying cause for a cough. Coughing in itself can be caused by tracheal collapse, underlying heart condition, respiratory infection (kennel cough), etc. In order for you to treat her, we will need to find out the underlying cause. It sounds like she likely may have a kennel cough condition. Tracheal trauma is possible since you mentioned she was fine before trying out a new harness on her; however, most harnesses fit lower on the chest, which don't rub on the throat at all. Give her the rest of the day to see if things improve. You can also offer her a small amount of honey mixed with water, which can help reduce some inflammation in her throat. Continue to give her free access of water and keep her activity level to a minimum. If she is still coughing by tomorrow, then its best to take her in to your vet for a complete physical exam to hopefully narrow down some causes for this cough, so that it can be treated appropriately. I hope that Coco feels better soon! Best wishes and take care.

That's the first thing to try, a harness is usually solving this type of problem in dogs that are pulling to hard, the collar presses on the trachea and it causes breathing problems and coughing. if this is not the reason for this symptom then the harness will not help and you can see it pretty much immediately, in that case my advise would be to take her to the vet in order to get that checked ASAP.

It's pretty rare that dogs actually get something stuck in the back of the throat. More likely her throat is irritated, or she has an infection like kennel cough. If the cough continues I'd recommend seeing your veterinarian: while it's difficult to see the very back of a dog's throat without sedation, your vet can help determine what is causing the cough.

Hazel could have tracheal irritation from the collar or prong collar. Some dogs have more sensitive tracheas than others and some dogs have genetically smaller or collapsing tracheas that are predisposed to problems. However, I would also be concerned Hazel may have picked up a bacterial or viral infection that is causing her to cough. I would recommend taking her in to your vet to have them evaluate her lungs and throat to see if she needs any medication or potentially switch her to a harness instead of a collar.

There are quite a few things that can cause a cough like this. Some common possibilities would include allergies, chronic bronchitis, a collapsing trachea, or heart disease. If the cough has been going on for a while, I would recommend discussing options for further work-up with your vet to help determine what is causing it. Diagnostic testing such as general blood work (a CBC and chemistry panel), chest x-rays, and heartworm testing would all be helpful, if these tests haven't been done already.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It is possible that this is all related to Rose pulling a lot in the leash which ultimately could have resulted in some degree of tracheitis. This usually improves on its own relatively quickly. If this does not resolve in the next 3-5 days, have her evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment. At that point, if nothing else is wrong, they may choose to start her on an anti-inflammatory medication. Good luck and have a great day!