Frenchieboy Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 My wifes 3 year old patterdale terrier started to cough early this morning, it was a "reaching/gagging" sort of a cough and loud enough to wake me up even with the bedroom door shut - Roxy sleeps in the hall. She has never shown any signs of coughing before but had a few more coughing bouts since it started this morning. As stated the cough is more of a "reaching come gagging" type of cough sounding like she might have a fur ball or something similar stuck in her throat or gut and is trying to bring it up, but when she has these coughing bouts nothing at all comes up. On exercising her this morning I saw that she was eating rather a lot of grass. I know that dogs eat grass as medicine and this is a sign that something is not quite right but this is something that Roxy has never done before. Her temperature "feels" nornal (including around her stomach) and she doesn't seem to be experiencing any discomfort when i lightly press on or stroke her stomach and apart from this horrid sounding cough she is acting fairly normally except for the fact that she is not quite as bouncy as normal. Apart from keeping an eye on her and taking her to the vet if it gets any worse is there anything I ought to do or look for. Just a foot note - When I took her out this morning her motions looked perfectly normal. I don't know if this might have any baring on things but we have the builders in at the moment and the entire flat is getting covered in clouds of very fine dust! Any thoughts guys? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave1087 Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 It's sounds like kennel cough to me all my 5 dogs have just had it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kes Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 Morning Pete - any debris of something she has been eating overnight? I am very inclined to say its something she has eaten but which is nothing serious from what you describe - I would let her eat grass. In this situation it seems to me to indicate higher than normal acidity and the dog eats grass to expel stomach acid and also maybe contents. Its only if something is stuck that its worrying - if she is still gagging etc after 5/6 hours it would be a vet job for me. When dogs sense high acidity in their stomachs they sometimes gag/retch - I would consider some milk and see how that goes as it will reduce the acidity and maybe solve the problem ot give you a better idea? All the best to your wif eand tell her its unlikely to be a problem IMHO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave1087 Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 Kennel Cough Have a look at this and see if your dog is doing the same thinks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenchieboy Posted October 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 "The Boss" has just arisen and I have told her the situation. One thing that she mentioned is that I bought Roxy one of these rope toys to play with. By all accounts Roxy ragged it and then destroyed it, ripping it apart in a matter of a couple of minutes. We are wondering if this could be somethiong to do with the situation. The photo shows what she did to the rope toy in just 2 minutes after getting bored of throwing it about the house. Looking at it I guess that Roxy could have got a bit of the thread/chord from it in her mouth and stuck her throat/stomach. I wonder if I should take it back to Tescos and tell them it fall apart and ask for a refund? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenchieboy Posted October 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 Kennel Cough Have a look at this and see if your dog is doing the same thinks Just watched the video Dave and I have to say "Yes, this is something very similar to what Roxy is doing"! Is it possible for a dog to contact and catch kennel cough without even being in contact with other dogs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oscarsdad Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 (edited) "The Boss" has just arisen and I have told her the situation. One thing that she mentioned is that I bought Roxy one of these rope toys to play with. By all accounts Roxy ragged it and then destroyed it, ripping it apart in a matter of a couple of minutes. We are wondering if this could be somethiong to do with the situation. The photo shows what she did to the rope toy in just 2 minutes after getting bored of throwing it about the house. Looking at it I guess that Roxy could have got a bit of the thread/chord from it in her mouth and stuck her throat/stomach. I wonder if I should take it back to Tescos and tell them it fall apart and ask for a refund? I don't there are any toys that are terrier proof...mine destroys anything, including all the ones that claim to be tough. I doubt that the soft rope from that would be causing continued coughing - if it was stuck then drinking or wretching would almost certainly dislodge it. One thing to check, which I suspect it isn't, is "false sneezing" when the "valve" for want if a better word between the wind pipe and the food pipe flips over the wrong way and the dog makes wrenching noises. I learnt a great tip to stop this pretty much instantly by blocking their nose with your fingers flat against it and the dogs reaction to this flips the valve back to where it should be. I hope you get it sorted soon, as I put on here on Friday night, having a poorly dog is horrible. Anthony We posted at the same time, if it's kennel cough then a vet trip required. Edited October 27, 2013 by oscarsdad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave1087 Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 Yes it can travel 3/4 of a mile it's a airborne virus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archie-fox Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 Vets... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hogey Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 Both my borders have had kennel cough. Would suggest vet in the morning as its easily treatable . Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean Richo Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 Frenchieboy try not to worry to much terriers are a lot tougher than you think. The time to worry is when they won't get up for a walk if you have took him out and he's moving about fine and he is eating am sure he will be fine. I have got two five year old terriers they eat grass every day when out on walks most terriers do it doesn't mean anything is wrong it's just a natural activity that they do. Probably just having an off day keep an eye on him and if it continues get him the vet tomorrow don't panic tho the dog will be fine my terriers do exactly the same sometimes I think it's just things get stuck in back of throat and they try and clear it could be fluff or a hair etc sometimes they cough and it makes them wretch try not to worry terriers are as tough as old boots Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenchieboy Posted October 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 The general consensus of opinion seems about right to me. It does seem to be the onset of kennel cough which should be easily treatable with antibiotics but it still wouldn't hurt to get her checked by the vet - Even if for nothing more than peace of mind - So it's off to the vet tomorrow! Thanks for the advice guys, I never realised that kennel cough was an airbourne virus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustJon Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 Can have yearly vaccines for kennel cough Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 If it is kennel cough then keep her away from other dogs until she's clear - the vet will be able to advise on timescales. Also let the vet know before you go that it may be kennel cough as they'll probably not want to you in the waiting room with her My boy had the type that antibuotics is no good for - he was on child doses of benelyn (sp) to ease the discomfort in his throat. He loved it and queued up when he saw the bottle come out Hope she's OK soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 Odds are by Monday the dog will be showing an improvement. Anti biotics do nothing other than help out with other issues that can rise in older and weaker dogs. Benylin can help the worst stage but it usually doesn't last long, as said its highly contagious call the vets first before going and keep the dog away from all others for 10 days or so Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave1087 Posted October 27, 2013 Report Share Posted October 27, 2013 Odds are by Monday the dog will be showing an improvement. Anti biotics do nothing other than help out with other issues that can rise in older and weaker dogs. Benylin can help the worst stage but it usually doesn't last long, as said its highly contagious call the vets first before going and keep the dog away from all others for 10 days or so +1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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