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Originally Posted by ArmyWife313   Unfortunately, that's what I thought it was at first too. But Lily has reverse sneezing and they are distinctly different sounds.
I did a lot of research on CT when Lily first started making crazy sounds, but Lexi's is definitely the CT sound. It was like forcing a deathly asthmatic to run 10 miles without an inhaler. Or a squealing/oinking pig that wanted to get away or a dry goose honk or a duck call all wrapped up in one.
I know we are going to have to get her an Xray. I'll do that next month. I'm going to watch it for now and make sure she doesn't exert quite as much on our walks.
Thanks! |
An x-ray really is not totally necessary to diagnose a collapsing trachea! Save your money! I had a yorkie for ten years who had a collapsing trachea all of his life. He was around 6 when I got him. Over the years he had a few xrays and each one showed the trachea in different stages...sometimes it is the position I think when they take the x-ray. He had one at Texas A&M prior to major surgery (herniated cervical discs) and they said the trachea was not that bad. I told them that another vet had taken an x-ray and it was very bad. Well....long story short, he almost died after the surgery...could not be extubated and honestly had he not been there, I am sure he would have died. He ended up with a tracheotomy for a few days. It was then that I found out how the trachea can look so different on separate x-rays.
If she only does this when walking with a collar, I would not freak about it. They all should be walked with harnesses anyway. A collar will definitely aggravate the trachea causing the coughing...that is actually how a vet diagnoses one..by putting pressure in the area of the trachea.
Ozzy, my little foster, has a very bad case. For a few weeks he was coughing (honking) almost non-stop. He did not need oxygen, but people who don't know about these things would get very upset when they heard him. I do know it had to be hard on him. I took him to the vet just about every day...and he was seen by a specialist. He was given SO many different meds....three different antibiotics and two different cough medicines. At night I had syringes preloaded with Ace-pro and also torb in case he would get really bad. Finally we found the answer for him! He is now on Lomotil and Theodur and is pretty well controlled....not perfect and even the slightest bit of stress will set him off; but he is not coughing non-stop and he and I FINALLY can sleep through the night.
Since you said this poor girl is thin, then I don't need to tell you about weight...although keep it in mind once she starts to put some weight on. Being overweight is not good for a CT.
Also, it is very important that they be kept cool. I call them air-conditioning pups!
Just try to relax when it happens. Many people get so frightened and want to do anything to stop it. Sometimes it sounds much worse than what it really is.
I have seen people do that surgery and the end result is not good. That surgery is not very successful. There is no way I would subject any of my pups...or my fosters to it!
If she is coughing a lot, ask about the Lomotil. I have a friend who has one with a CT and her vet had not heard of using it. It is in the Pet Therapy book and it does work! She is using it on hers now and her yorkie is doing well! I recently took Ozzy off of the Lomotil for a day and he started right back up...proof positive it is working.
Lomotil is an anti diarrheal for people...it is an older one..and is not the same as Immodium. Lomotil has an opoid in it. The dose for pups is very small and so far, Ozzy has not had a problem with his BMs.