My 10-week-old maltipoo puppy is gagging. When should I worry?

Yes, puppies can cough for many reasons and a common cause is kennel cough. if the coughing continues beyond 24 hours, if you notice a significant worsening or if he seems to have trouble swallowing or appears in distress, have Rex examined. Best of luck.

Puppies are notorious for swallowing anything that crosses their path. They don't have hands, so they explore everything with their mouths. He may have swallowed something that is stuck, there may even be a piece of string looped around the base of his tongue. Hopefully your vet did a thorough oral examination, including lifting the tongue in order to see underneath. This area is very hard to see and string can hide there very easily. It could be a long human hair that is bothering him. If you find string, thread or hair in his mouth that goes down his throat, DO NOT PULL IT. Same goes for any you may see as he tries to defecate. NEVER pull on any linear foreign body. It could be looped around some soft tissue out of sight and you will cause more damage. Any stringlike material caught around the tongue should be cut with a pair of safety scissors and allowed to go on down. If this happens, let your vet know what is going on and if he develops any other symptoms, such as vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, loss of appetite, get him back in to see your vet right away.

It sounds like Maximus may have a respiratory infection such as kennel cough, which often causes coughing and gagging without anything coming up. Or, he could be feeling nauseous and trying to vomit - if his stomach is empty, sometimes this gagging can be non-productive. If he is acting normal otherwise and this problem just started today, you can try withholding food for the rest of the day and offering a small amount of plain boiled chicken and rice this evening to help settle his stomach. If this doesn't help, or if he continues to have repeated episodes of coughing or gagging throughout the day, then I would recommend having him examined by a vet - he/she can determine whether Maximus has a respiratory infection or a stomach problem and get him started on appropriate medication to treat it.

Poor Max. Coughing and gagging could be due to a number of things, but most concerning in a young puppy is contagious disease such as "kennel cough" or even pneumonia. Diarrhea may be due to intestinal parasites, a diet change, or stress. Monitor him closely over the weekend. If he stops eating, acts lethargic, the cough progresses, or he develops a fever (99.5 - 102.5 F is normal in dogs), then take him to an emergency vet right away.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Chance. I recommend that he sees a veterinarian. If he is having abdominal contractions, this usually indicates vomiting. Regurgitation can also happen where the food passively slips up. In this case, there are not abdominal contractions and the puppy seems surprised when it happens. Finally, if a puppy has a respiratory tract infection, coughing can bring up a white foamy material or sometimes food if he gags. The veterinarian will examine him and determine which of these scenarios are occurring and how best to treat him. I hope this information helps!

I'm sorry your dog is having this issue. Kennel cough is typically a dry, almost "honking" cough that can produce a white foamy/mucus substance- they can cough so hard it causes a gag reflex. It usually starts at one time of day and then gets worse and more frequent. Do you have other dogs in your home or neighbor dogs that play with your dog? If so, are they gagging or coughing? Kennel cough is very contagious thus can spread to other dogs in close contact. If you are noticing this, I would contact your vet so they can determine if your dog needs an antibiotic. Some other possibilities for what you are noticing are other respiratory infections, allergies and/or a reverse sneeze or there may be something stuck in your dogs throat (like a grass seed or part of a rawhide chew). Also, some dogs can simply drink too fast especially when it's very hot- this can cause some water to go down "the wrong pipe" and then a gag response. If your dog continues to gag or, especially if the gag becomes more frequent or severe, I would take him back to your vet. Your vet can listen to your dog's lungs for sounds of infection and may want to take a chest X-ray as a next step in working this up. I hope your dog feels better soon!

That is somewhat unusual to see persistent gagging. You may check with your veterinarian to ask if they have checked his soft palate. Elongation in the soft palate can cause gagging. Allergies causing irritation to the throat can also cause gagging. Esophageal abnormalities are very uncommon but they can also present as gagging. I recommend to call your veterinarian and ask what diagnostics have been done and what else may be indicated. Best of luck.