My puppy has harsh coughing attacks when sleeping. What's wrong?

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. In a young dog like him, something like kennel cough needs to be considered. I recommend that you have Kingsley 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. If it is kennel cough often times it resolves with supportive care including antibiotics. Good luck and have a good night!

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.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Dory! There are a few things that come to mind for causes of Dory's symptoms: the more common reason is kennel cough, which is a tracheal cough from bacterial or viral infections. The cough is "goose honk" like and is worse at night and with activity. The dog usually eats and drinks. The cough can trigger the gag reflex which causes the dog to make a gagging sound and motion that sometimes is productive. Dogs can get kennel cough from boarding, grooming, doggie day care, dog parks, playing with other dogs or even from us if we were around a coughing dog. The other possibility is she ate something that irritated her esophagus like a raw hide. I would have her seen by your Vet Wednesday. Most vets treat kennel cough with antibiotics and anti-cough medication. It usually resolves with in 2 weeks. I wish you and Dory the best!

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Poochie. Poor girl. There could be a couple of things going on with her causing this cough. It could be a respiratory infection, it could be a collapsing trachea, it could be kennel cough, or it could be something more serious like heart disease. I'd have her seen by a vet in the morning for this problem. The vet can diagnose what is causing it, and can treat her. I hope this helps!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Kennel cough is an upper respiratory infection which sometimes can even affect the lower respitatory system or lungs. It is sometimes due to bacterial or viral infections. This is a relatively common disease in puppies especially if not vaccinated. It is contagious and usually dogs get it from other affected dogs. Coughing can of course happen due to other pulmonary conditions like pneumonia for example. I recommend that you have Naja evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. They may take thoracic radiographs and may prescribe antibiotics. Good luck and have a good day!

The most likely diagnosis is kennel cough; they can contract this even if they have been vaccinated for it. I suggest you get him to your vet for an exam (not an emergency). Kennel cough can progress into a pneumonia especially in these little guys so you should start treatment before it gets worse. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It sounds like Achilles may have a respiratory infection called kennel cough (or tracheobronchitis). It is like a cold with a cough humans get and causes a tickle in the throat and dry heaving type behavior. I recommend taking him to a vet for a confirmation. They may need to take a xray of his chest to make sure its not pneumonia or something stuck in his throat. If it is kennel cough, he needs medications to prevent pneumonia and to help his cough. Good luck and kisses to Achilles!