My dog honks like a goose and hacks when excited. Is it serious?

There are a few different reasons pets can make the sound. It could be related to a collapsing trachea, fluid in the lungs or laryngeal paralysis. Try to record a video of the coughing and then have your pup examined by the veterinarian. The doctor may recommend radiographs after the physical exam and watching the video. I hope this helps.

Goose honking tells me that she is coughing. There are a few different things that can cause a cough. With puppies, it's more likely to be an infection or parasite causing this. It's best to take her to the vet for an exam. They will be able to narrow-down the cause of this and can likely provide treatment that will stop the cough. I hope that helps and Marquessa gets better soon.

Some cases of reverse sneezing in dogs are related to allergies. You may want to discuss using an anti-histamine with your vet. If you think there is a possibility that it isn't a reverse sneeze, I would discuss with your vet possible causes of a honking cough. There are several things that could cause this, including collapsing trachea, heart disease, and lung disease. X-rays may be able to diagnose some of these conditions. Here is an article on reverse sneezing: https://www.petcoach.co/article/reverse-sneezing-in-dogs/

Yes, it could be tracheal collapse, although this condition is more common in smaller breeds, it could also be a chronic condition such as a heart disease or a lung disease, you should take her to the vet in order to get it checked.

Hi and thanks for your request. Goose honking cough/respiratory sound usually is due to a tracheal cough, often due to a tracheal collapse, even if uncommon in Staffies. These signs must be strictly monitored and if occur again they should be checked by your local veterinarian. Usually episodes of tracheal collapse are not fatal but if the anxiety and continued collapse or flattening of the trachea associated with an acute event of struggling to breath seems to increase the swelling around the trachea, and yes, these dogs can occasionally have their entire airway swell shut and be unable to breath. The important thing to remember if you have a dog with tracheal collapse is that you should take them in for treatment as soon as you notice distress - the longer the distress persists, the more difficult it is to reverse.

Based on Zuko's age, it can be a variety of things causing the honking and gagging. Usually a honking cough and gag is trademark for "kennel cough complex" a combination viral and bacterial, upper respiratory infection that dogs can get from socializing with other dogs. This can happen at any age. Other things to think about in a 16 year old dog, would be laryngeal paralysis, which occurs when the muscles of the larynx become paralyzed and the area doesn't remain open as it should. Sometimes it can cause a coughing and hacking when the dog gets excited. It can also sometimes cause the airway to become obstructed. It would be best for Zuko to see his veterinarian and have an examination. The vet can see if Zuko needs any medications for the coughing or even some antibiotics if he has an upper respiratory infection. He can also make sure nothing serious is going on, like a lower respiratory infection, a heart condition, or something cancerous that can occur in an elderly dog. If any of those things are suspected, the vet may recommend Xrays and even lab-work to evaluate Zuko. Best of luck!

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. A honking sounding cough with some gagging is a very typical sign of a condition called collapsing trachea. This is condition of the airway where it collapses down when they try to breath. This would be unrelated to the rake incident, but the rake incident might have stressed Gizmo to the point of an attack or episode where this collapsing trachea has become evident. It usually only flares up when they are stressed or breathing heavy. Another possible cause is kennel cough, once again unrelated to the rake incident but the stress could have caused a flare-up. This causes a hacking cough that is persistent. The other option is that the CPR episode caused trauma or inflammation to the airway or neck. Either way, the best thing to do would be to have a check up with a vet to see if some of these other underlying diseases are present, so you can treat (in terms of kennel cough or irritation of the trachea), or prevent future episodes (in terms of kennel cough). If the coughing has improved, the best thing to do in the mean-time would be to keep Gizmo quiet, comfortable, and rested, and avoid any activities where he would get excited or stressed. If he is still having trouble breathing please go to a vet right away as these episodes can spiral quickly and end up with a blocked airway all together, which can be fatal. Best of luck with Gizmo, I hope his coughing has calmed down and he feels better.