Why is my senior dog coughing, congested, lethargic, and stumbling?

These are alarming symptoms indeed. For an older dog with coughing and lethargy, my top suspicions would be: heart disease, heartworm disease (if he is not current on heartworm prevention) primary lung cancer, pneumonia or a heart based tumor. He is at risk for all of these based on his breed. I would highly recommend taking him in to your vet for bloodwork analysis and chest radiographs to properly diagnose him based on the many possible causes stated above. Poor guy. He sounds very unstable for now and the quicker you can get him in to a vet the better. I hope that this is something you can treat for, but the odds of it being something major are high in an older large breed dog. I send you all my best in getting Casper well again. Take care and best wishes.

Hi, and thanks for your question. This sign could be compatible with an upper respiratory tract inflammation/infection or possibly to a rhinitis (inflammatory, allergic, infective). A clinical examination at your local veterinarian is essential to confirm these clinical suspicions and treat appropriately. Antibiotics may be needed. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

This sign could be compatible with an upper respiratory tract inflammation/infection or possibly to a chronic rhinitis (inflammatory, allergic, infective). A clinical examination at your local veterinarian is essential to confirm these clinical suspicions and treat appropriately. Antibiotics may be needed. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

Hi. It sounds like he is having respiratory signs. This could be from many things such as....upper respiratory infection, cardiac disease, primary respiratory disease, cancers, or other infectious causes. With his age, he needs a full exam, labs, and chest x-rays. If he is in respiratory distress, you will want to go to the ER.

Poor Cherry! I'm sorry to hear that she's having this problem. There are many things that could cause coughing and difficulty breathing along with congestion in the lungs - some common possibilities would include heart disease, pneumonia, or even cancer. It would help to have more information about what your vet found during her physical exam (such as whether she has a heart murmur or not), as well as some additional diagnostic tests such as blood work, an echocardiogram, etc. to help diagnose the problem. Treatment and prognosis will depend on what the underlying problem is, so without this information, it isn't really possible to tell you whether she will be okay or not, or what you can do to help her. I would recommend calling your veterinarian to ask for some additional clarification on what they believe is wrong with her. If they aren't sure, or if they don't have any additional suggestions for how to proceed from here, you can get a second opinion from another local vet or request referral to an internal medicine specialist for further work-up.

Hi, and thanks for your question. This sign could be compatible with a respiratory tract inflammation/infection (inflammatory, allergic, infective). A clinical examination at your local veterinarian is essential to confirm these clinical suspicions and treat appropriately. Antibiotics may be needed, in these cases a broad spectrum antibiotic (like amoxicillin and clavulanic acid) is commonly used first. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

Tiny Tim is a little old man and just like in people old dogs can get congestive heart failure. Having fluid in his chest, coughing at night while sleeping, exercise intolerance can certainly point towards such a congestive condition. Of course he could also have contracted an upper respiratory infection or inhaled a foreign body that is now stuck somewhere in the upper airways. You should take Tiny Tim to your veterinarian for a geriatric exam. A respiratory infection is usually treated with antibiotics and sometimes anti-inflammatories, A foreign body needs to be found and removed, and if a heart condition is diagnosed, he will be prescribed diuretics and medication to help the heart do its job more effectively. Your vet will want to do blood tests and an x-ray of the chest.