[Maximo]

My friend got in touch with me and shared this about her boy. She also said I could share her email address with you if you wanted to talk to her. Private message me if you would like that.

Here is what she wrote:

"He was diagnosed with Lar-Par...short for laryngeal paralysis...very similar symptoms... very uncommon in toy breeds...they are unclear what caused this, but it's not genetic in his case. I only know of one other Yorkie with this, but it can happen with an injury and we suspect whiskey may have damaged his larynx several years ago during a weekend of him coughing continuously...like he had kennel cough....


Whiskey was in full coat and we took him to the vet on that Monday. The vet dug around for ten minutes and finally found the cause...it was several long hairs that he swallowed from the corner of his mouth that was still attached, but so well hidden because they wrapped around a back tooth!



The 5-6 hairs were about 5 inches long and when she pulled it from the corner of his mouth, the end he swallowed was very knotted


The irritation from the hair he couldn't cough back up along with the coughing had caused major inflammation that he had to be treated for (steroids and antibiotics)



Oh, and also around the same time, he ate beads off my flip flops! All these are just suspected causes that could have damaged his larynx. It was initially thought he had a tracheal issues, but further testing proved otherwise and then a routine teeth cleaning finally verified Lar-Par.


If she hasn't done this, I advise her to get a second opinion and possibly have simple x-rays, check for an enlarged heart, and scope if neccessary to make sure the diagnosis is correct.


Oh, please advise her to watch her when she eats. I had a Yorkie with a slight cleft pallet...with him and whiskey, we were advised special diets and be very careful with drinking water... any coughing, excitement, or heat can bring on rapid breathing that will cause inflammation and in a worse case scenario, aspiration...leading to pneumonia. With whiskey, I alternate with Benedryl and Tem-P only when needed (trips and during a crisis) so the meds continue to help him..."