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puppy with collapsing trachea Just wondering if anyone out there has experience with a puppy having tracheal collapse? Lexi (8 months) may or may not have it. She has been coughing after drinking water since I got her at 3 months old. The vet said it could be collapsing trachea or just coughing related to drinking water fast. The cough is usually just 1-3 coughs, but a few times recently it has been 4-6 coughs in a row. This has me really worried. I have read a lot online about older dogs having it, but cant really find anything about it starting as a puppy. She is so young, and if she is already showing signs, I am worried about what will happen as she gets older. |
bumping my own post....really hope someone out there has some advise and experience with this. |
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Thanks, but I know it's not reverse sneeze. I've already showed a video of the cough to the vet and ruled out reverse sneeze. She said it sounds tracheal, but we will wait to see if it progresses since it is usually just a couple coughs and only after drinking. I definitely sounds like a goose honking most of the time. I'm just worried that if it's starting so young and progresses that the outcome will not be good. |
Oh sorry to hear. There are many members here who have been through this and will hopefully offer more informed advice. I do know you should not use a collar and use no choke harness but you may all ready be aware of this. Best wishes to you and your puppy. I will ask for others to check out your thread. |
Have your vet refer you out to have a flouroscopy done. That will show whether it is CT or not! http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/dog-ca...cheal-collapse From the link: How is tracheal collapse diagnosed? A honking cough in a toy-breed dog is highly suggestive of collapsing trachea, but a definitive diagnosis may require additional tests. Radiographs may reveal an obviously collapsed trachea, although not always. Fluoroscopy, which allows visualization of the trachea as the dog inhales and exhales, may be necessary to confirm the diagnosis. Fluoroscopy is available only at universities and referral centers. |
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No, she has not. She did check her windpipe and was able to get Lexi to cough, but she said it was not very easy. So, I think that along with the fact that she only does it after drink and for a short amount of time, she would like to wait on testing. She did say there are some dogs that do just cough after drinking. My neighbor's 12 year old dog has been coughing after drinking since a puppy and never progressed into anything more. The vet did say that if the coughing fits get longer or if she starts to do it other times of the day to bring her back in. I think then we would go to the next step of testing. I guess what I would like to know is how fast does something like this progress? And if she is starting to show signs so young, what is the likely hood she will be able to live a long life? I have read a lot online and heard a lot of stories of pups living long lives and some not so long, but all of these stories are from dogs that start showing signs later in life. |
One more question.... is this something I should tell the breeder about? I know it is genetic, but since it usually doesn't start until later in life, there is no way to know a dog has it until after they are already done breeding. But not sure if I should since I'm not 100% sure it actually is CT. |
If you don't want to test to find out for sure, I am not sure the breeder can say much. I suppose you can mention it, but not sure what he/she will say about it. Maybe guess about what it is?? There is a way to tell and no one should breed a dog that is suspected of any such issues. No one can tell you anything about progression without an accurate diagnosis. |
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Thanks for all the info. I've been reading a little about fluoroscopy. If Lexi has CT and it is so mild right now, not sure how well it would show up on a test, but I will ask the vet about it. I actually have to take Lexi in tomorrow to get a tooth removed, but that's a whole other story! I will discuss that test when I see her tomorrow. |
First you have to have the vet do the tests to determine it is indeed collapsed trachea. Coughing could also be caused by kennel cough. a respiratory infection, reverse sneezing or heart problems. If she does indeed have CT the only thing you can do is protect the trachea AND hope it doesnt worsen. I have heard there is a stint surgery they can do but its not very successful buut you can talk this over with your vet after you have a firm diagnosis |
CT can be medically managed in many cases and it does not necessarily progress. I have had pups live long lives with CT and others not so long. I personally would not do the stent surgery....if it is successful, it is short lived from what I have heard. Also, it is only recommended in the very bad cases. The first line of treatment is medical and avoiding things that exacerbate symptomes. |
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Thank you. I know there is no way to know for sure what will or will not come from this, and it's the not knowing that I hate. All I can do is love her no matter what and do what I can to help her. I just have to hope for the best! |
Have you researched elongated soft palette? It's usually found in pugs and breeds with short snouts but I had a Yorkie with it. |
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I have been doing some research on it after reading your post, but can't really find examples of what the cough may sound like. Lexi does sometimes make sounds when sleeping, but not sure if it's really snoring or not, which is a sign. What other symptoms did your pup have? I will also ask the vet about this tomorrow too. She did say she would look as far down her throat as she could when putting the tube in her. Not sure if this is something you can easily see. |
I feel your pain. As you know Sammie has the same cough. Sometimes after he drinks but sometimes when he is just playing. I worry to if he is showing signs at 6 months will it progress fast and he will be gone by 3 years old!! I did have a dog with CT. She lived to be 12. She would have the little cough at a young age and them by 8 she was fainting from it. At 12 had to be put down. But The Vet never diagnosed her with CT so I never treated it. If I treated it she could of lived longer. Just now I am realizing that she had CT. The vet told me she was not fainting she was having seizures but I beg to differ. I hope your puppy and my puppy don't have CT and if they do it will not progress and stay the same. I have done a lot of research myself and some people say there dogs has never progressed and some said they have so I guess only time will tell with our puppies. |
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It just sucks not knowing for sure. I have watched soooo many videos of any type of dog cough imaginable and I still cant tell for sure what it sounds like. The reverse sneeze is pretty distinctive in my opinion, but CT is different. In all the CT videos I've watched it seems like no 2 coughs sound exactly the same. Some sound high pitched, some low, some more like a honk, some not. It also sounded like Kennel cough, but I know for sure it's not that. This elongated soft palate thing is new to me, but I cant really find much on it as far as the sounds the pup makes besides snoring. I guess only time will tell, and we just have to hope for the best. |
Personally I would wait till there are definite signs, sometimes the cure can be worse then the disease. Every pup I've ever had has coughed after rough play or excitement or just hair or whatever from licking or chewing on rag toy at least once in a while. You should be careful around Yorkies neck anyway, just like you need to be careful with their bones as they are small critters and somewhat delicate. I play rough with Ginger as she's almost 7 lbs now and I worked up to it slow to build her muscle mass, she coughs once in a while but to me its normal after 10 minutes of growling and barking. Now if she went around coughing and honking with no cause I could think of I would worry till I found a reason. |
Sammie went to play with my mother in laws dog yesterday and she has a dashaund. He is 6 and when we where there he coughed after drinking and then after playing with Sammie. She said he always does that and she does not have collapse trachea as far as she knows. |
Thanks Windwalker that makes sense. |
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Thank you. Even my vet said to wait since right now it is not happening all the time and is not effecting her in any way. But if it starts to get worse, I will get it checked again. I love YorkieTalk, but I think it has made me a more paranoid person. I hear about all these bad things that can happen and every little thing I see with Lexi I automatically think the worse! It's like being sick and googling symptoms I might have and seeing a list of possible things ranging from nothing major to you could die tomorrow, lol. |
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