Why is my Shih Tzu gagging, struggling to breathe with throat phlegm?

Hi there and thank you for your post! From your description, it sounds as though Winston may be fighting a respiratory infection that may be getting much more severe. Especially if the neck is now becoming extended, this means that Winston is struggling to breath quite a bit. I would suggest you get him seen by a vet sooner rather than later. It is possible that he will need antibiotic therapy and hospitalization if his breathing is worsening. Bringing him into the bathroom with the hot water running so he breathes in the steam may help with his breathing. I would strongly encourage you to get him seen by a licensed vet though for appropriate treatment. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns! I hope Winston improves!

I eould take Smokie to the vet to have this checked out. It may be absoloutely nothing but I thonk it would be best to have a vet carefully check him in case he has infection or inflammation in his throat or chest. Also the vet can have a look in his mouth to make sure there are no growths or causes of discomfort.

She may have a scratch or swelling in the throat. It could be infection of the throat / trachea. Small breed dogs, like Shih-tzu or Yorkie suffer from tracheal collapse which can produce gagging and loud coughing. I would recommend you to take your dog to your vets to establish diagnosis and to get treatment.

It sounds as Schafer is suffering from a gastrointestinal condition, possibly an infection. it could also be due to ingestion of a foreign body material. i would recommend taking him to the vet the first chance you get, he will need to be checked first, if the vet thinks it's a simple gastrointestinal infection he will need an anti vomiting injection, antibiotics and a special food for a few days in order to get better.

Poor Abby! The most common cause of coughing like this is an upper respiratory infection such as kennel cough, although other problems are also possible - including bronchitis, heart disease, or allergies. You can try giving her a spoonful of honey to help soothe her throat, or bringing her into the bathroom with you with the door closed while you take a hot shower - the steam and humidity often help to soothe coughing and relieve symptoms like this. If the cough has not improved by tomorrow morning, I would recommend having Abby examined by a vet. He/she can listen to her heart and lungs to make sure the problem isn't serious, and prescribe antibiotics and cough suppressants if needed to treat the infection and make her more comfortable.

I am afraid that is not normal. Considering that Snoopy is almost 16 years old my first thought here is that he needs his heart examined by your veterinarian. There is a condition almost every old dog gets, some worse than others, called endocardiosis. THis is a condition where the lips of the heart valves develop little nodules which then keeps the valves from closing properly and then the oxygenated blood is not effectively pumped into the rest of the body. This makes for a weak heart action and causes pulmonary edema, ie fluid in the lungs. The fluid in the lungs make breathing a chore (therefore a high respiration rate), and causes a moist cough when the dog is resting. Your dog also will not have as much energy as usual and slows down significantly. This can be significantly improved by giving diuretics and a heart medication that improved the output of the heart. Of course it is also possible that he has kennel cough or another respiratory condition. So I suggest you make an appointment with your veterinarian for an exam soon.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It is very common for Shih tzus to have small nasal openings. Sometimes they grow as the puppy grows and sometimes they need cosmetic surgery to open the nostrils. This typically causes a lot of sneezing. I would worry the coughing could be something else, like Kennel Cough. I recommend discussing this with Coco's vet so they can see the size of her nose and listen to her lungs. Good luck and kisses to your new baby!