My Shih Tzu has heartworms, trouble breathing, and won't eat.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Besides being due to heartworms, coughing can be a sign of many conditions such as pneumonia, bronchitis, heart disease, among many other possibilities. I recommend that you have Scooby evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. Likely diagnostics to be performed include thoracic radiographs and bloodwork. Treatment would be dependent on findings. Good luck and have a good night!

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Your dog appears to be young (under a year) from what I can tell based on the pictures and information you provided. The most likely diseases are as follows: 1. Parvo, a virus that primarily attacks the immune system and intestines of dogs and is very lethal if left without supportive care. 2. Intestinal parasites which can cause intestinal blockage and even anemia (depletion of red blood cells). 3. Other viruses with varying severities. This is not an exhaustive list, just the most common things for a puppy. They will all lead to dehydration and other secondary issues which can all be severe enough to cause death. Whatever the underlying disease, he looks very ill and needs attention from a veterinarian immediately. I would recommend taking him to your nearest emergency veterinary hospital as soon as possible. I hope this helps and your dog gets better!

Any change in breathing warrants a trip to the vet for a recheck. While it’s possible that there’s nothing wrong, you could also be noticing the beginning of a complication of heartworm treatment. Pulmonary thromboembolism can occur when dying worms become lodged in the small blood vessels of the lungs. Your vet might want to take a chest x-ray.

I'm sorry Aria has heartworms! The fact that she is lethargic and has a decrease in appetite is concerning, and this can be due to the sudden death of a large number of worms from the treatment. When a dog becomes lethargic as well as has a significant decrease in appetite, it's recommended to have them seen by a vet right away. I would take her into an ER vet clinic; if there isn't one in your area, there will be a vet on call for emergencies. The information to reach that vet is found on a clinic's answering machine or website. She needs to be checked out by a vet to make sure everything is ok. I hope this helps and that she feels better soon!

These signs are compatible with the heartworm infection which can cause dyspnoea and respiratory signs. I would strongly advice to contact your local veterinarian as these signs might be compatible with respiratory/cardiovascular complications during heartworm treatment.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Coughing can be a sign of many conditions such as pneumonia, bronchitis, heart disease, among many other possibilities. Loss of appetite can be observed with many conditions such as gastroenteritis, dietary indiscretion, kidney disease, pancreatitis, among many other possibilities. I recommend that you have Hooch evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. Likely diagnostics to be performed include thoracic radiographs, abdominal ultrasound and bloodwork. Treatment would be dependent on findings. Good luck and have a good day!

hThanks for visiting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Heartworm treatment can be rough on your pets body. This involves injections given by your vet on 3 separate occasionas. The main concern after the treatment is creating a pulmonary embolism, or clot in the airway, which lead s to shortness of breath, lethargy, and inappetance. A bloated abdomen cannot be determined in this postiion and often requires a physical examination. A bloated abdomen from a heart condition if often not seen unless the heart is very far gone. This would have been likely detected in the work-up for your fur baby to determine if your pet is in congestive heart failure via a chest x-ray. Right sided congestive heart failure is what leads to a bloated abdomen. I hope that this helps and if you still have concerns about your pets health after starting heartworm treatment, then the next best step is a proper physical exam to determine if any heart murmurs exist and potentially repeat x-rays of the chest and abdomen if the physical exam warrants these. Best of luck with your fur baby Ayla moving forward. Take care. : )