My 8-year-old dog coughs sometimes and is less active. Should I worry?

Hello. At this age, Shortie needs a good workup by your veterinarian. A cough can be from many causes including inflammation, bronchitis, pneumonia, tumors & heart disease. No appetite can also result from the above, but also from oral infections, liver, kidney or other endocrine diseases. So in order to help him, you need to know what is or is not going on with him. With a proper diagnosis, the appropriate treatment can be started to help Shortie feel much better. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

This could be an upper respiratory infection such as kennel cough , but could also be a sign of heart disease, especially if Chico is an older dog. Another very likely possibility is that Chico has a collapsed trachea. You will need to take Chico to your vet for an exam and x-rays (which will rule out collapsed trachea and lung edema caused by congestive heart failure). Your vet;s exam will also detect any problems with the heart, that may be causing the cough. Please cschedule an appointment with your vet soon.

I recommend bringing him to a veterinarian and having them listen to his chest. This may be respiratory or heart related but having a veterinarian auscultate them is the first step. It may require x-rays to determine what it going on also. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hello and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Yes I would recommend you take Toby into your vet for an exam to make sure he doesn't have a upper respiratory infection and rule out other health issues that could be causing his symptoms. Always a good idea to check in with your vet! Best of luck to you and Toby!

Poor guy. Coughing a small breed older dog can be caused by several things including: underlying heart disease, chronic bronchitis, tracheal collapse, or even neoplasia. The first step here would be to get Dino Diaz seen by your vet and have chest x-rays done to help narrow down the possibilities here. Once we have a proper diagnosis, then proper treatment can be recommended to hopefully reduce or even completely resolve the cough. In most cases though, the cough can only be reduced, which helps the pet become more comfortable and have a better quality of life. Schedule an appt with your vet soon. I hope that Dino Diaz does well moving forward and that his cough improves. Best of luck and take care.

Hi there and thank you for choosing Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Coughing can be an indication of illness related to either the respiratory or cardiovascular systems, or both. Dogs who have been around other dogs who have kennel cough can develop the illness as it is contagious. It is also a self-limiting illness meaning that it will go away on its own in about 2 weeks time. If Angel is experiencing coughing at certain times like at night or during exercise this points more to a problem with the heart. There are of course other things that can cause coughing. While It does not sound as though you need to rush to the vet with Angel, It wouldn't hurt to have her examined by a veterinarian. If you notice the cough worsens, does not appear to be resolving, her behavior changes, she seems to tire quickly after exercise, etc. Angel should be seen by a veterinarian as soon as possible. Hopefully this helps and best of luck to you and Angel.

Hello, thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. There are many, many different reasons that Ozzy could have a cough. I know you are worried so you really need to get him to a vet for an exam. I think you are right to be worried. Here are some possibilities for his symptoms: * collapsing trachea * heart disease (like heart failure) * heartworm disease * kennel cough * asthma * lung worms There are many others but those are the ones I can think of off the top of my head. Please get him into your vet for an exam as soon as you can. Hope this helps. Best wishes.