# Gagging



## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

The last several days Miikka has been gagging. She’s not doing it a lot but enough to make me take notice – maybe 2-3 times a day. It’s almost like she has something stuck in her throat. She’ll start making a coughing-like noise and then look like she’s going to throw something up- like she’s gagging. 

She has been blowing her coat – started within the last few days. I wonder if she has fur stuck in her throat or something. She’s been drinking water ok so I would think if she did have something stuck it would have washed down by now, though. What else could it be? :thinking:


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## Whiteshepherds (Aug 21, 2010)

Could be a lot of things. 
Has she been with other dogs lately? Could be the beginning of kennel cough.


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## Elaine (Sep 10, 2006)

Sounds like kennel cough to me too. Call your vet and keep her away from other dogs.


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

Elaine said:


> Sounds like kennel cough to me too. Call your vet and keep her away from other dogs.


Oh, no. I’m actually dog sitting right now! I don’t know how she could have gotten kennel cough as she rarely goes any where. I don’t take her to the dog park or anyplace like that. Is kennel cough easily transmitted? We do run in to other dogs out on walks. Could she have picked up the bug this way? 

I should add..the dog I have been dog sitting is not sick with KC.


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

I goggled kennel cough and although it sounds similar to what Miikka is currently experiencing, I just don’t know how she could have gotten it. Plus, she has had a bordatella vaccine. So, I don’t think its kennel cough.


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## Runswithdogs (May 8, 2010)

Eek! How are her energy levels, appetite, etc? Regen had her bordatella vac. as well, but she did get a similar-sounding cough once over the summer that lasted 2-3 days. David described it the exact same way- like she was choking or about to throw up. Her energy was a little down for the 2-3 days as well- but when we called the vet, they said it could be allergies since she had been vaccinated for kennel cough. It went away by the time she actually saw the vet but when they checked her out, everything looked fine. This was back in July sometime.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

The bordatella vax does not guarantee they won't catch a respiritory virus-in fact some dogs get a mild case from the vaccination!
I would start vitamin C if you haven't got her on it already, it will help support the immune system.


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## Zoeys mom (Jan 23, 2010)

Sounds like KC to me. I just went through this with my lab who was also vaccinated. The vaccination itself only protects against a few strains and in actuality KC is equivalent to our human cold. There are thousands of strains and it is highly contagious and easy to transmit. I gave my lab a few days before taking him in because he was eating and drinking normally and otherwise just fine. However, if it persists or gets worse you should probably take her in for some antibiotics to be safe


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

Runswithdogs said:


> Eek! How are her energy levels, appetite, etc? Regen had her bordatella vac. as well, but she did get a similar-sounding cough once over the summer that lasted 2-3 days. David described it the exact same way- like she was choking or about to throw up. Her energy was a little down for the 2-3 days as well- but when we called the vet, they said it could be allergies since she had been vaccinated for kennel cough. It went away by the time she actually saw the vet but when they checked her out, everything looked fine. This was back in July sometime.


Other than this gagging, she is absolutely fine! Today, Regen was more subdued than Miikka was! So whatever it is, it’s not slowing her down any. 

When she first started this gagging, I wondered if she had a bone stuck in her throat but if that were the case she’d be gagging constantly and not just occasionally. It’s been going on for about 3-4 days now. I have no idea why she’s doing it. I suppose it could be allergies.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

It isn't a reverse sneeze? I had a foster that did this, it freaked him out when he did it so I'd just calmly pet him til the episode was over. I'm sure it was some type of respiratory bug that caused it.
After having him in my home for a few weeks he quit, better diet and supplements helped, I'm sure.


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

onyx'girl said:


> It isn't a reverse sneeze? I had a foster that did this, it freaked him out when he did it so I'd just calmly pet him til the episode was over. I'm sure it was some type of respiratory bug that caused it.
> After having him in my home for a few weeks he quit, better diet and supplements helped, I'm sure.


Nope, it's not a reverse sneeze. She's sort of cough's then followed up with an open-mouth gag. The cough sort of sounds like a whooping crane - hack, hack, gag....well, it's hard to describe. The first time DH heard it he look at me and said "What in the H*** is that noise" I told him it was Mikka. He said she needs to go to the vet. I should probably call tomorrow.

I do have her on Ester-C, 1 tablet per day. Can she take more than that?


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

she can have up to 2000mg of C a day, EsterC has calcium added so isn't recommended for young pups in larger doses. As Mikka is almost a yr? she can probably do the larger dose, just split it between meals.


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## Elaine (Sep 10, 2006)

Your dog is showing classic mild kennel cough and, yes, it is very contagious. You could have tracked it in on your shoes, clothes, or she could have picked it up on a walk. Call the vet tomorrow and be sure to tell the owner of the dog you are dogsitting and keep her away from other dogs.


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## Runswithdogs (May 8, 2010)

^Regen is the dog that she is petsitting.  Hopefully she doesn't come down with kennel cough. 
If it *is* kennel cough that Miikka has, when we brought Regen in for the same thing in July, the vet told us that there wasn't anything to do except wait it out (like a cold).


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

Ok, I will take her in tomorrow. Is there a test they can do to verify that it is KC?


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

Runswithdogs said:


> ^Regen is the dog that she is petsitting.  Hopefully she doesn't come down with kennel cough.
> If it *is* kennel cough that Miikka has, when we brought Regen in for the same thing in July, the vet told us that there wasn't anything to do except wait it out (like a cold).


I'll take Miikka in tomorrow and let you know ASAP what I find out.


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## Runswithdogs (May 8, 2010)

Keep me posted...hope it isn't anything serious. 
I hope Regen doesn't come down with it because she'll have to face her separation anxiety fears head on if she can't be around other dogs! Double Ester-C doses for both pups!


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

Runswithdogs said:


> Keep me posted...hope it isn't anything serious.
> I hope Regen doesn't come down with it because she'll have to face her separation anxiety fears head on if she can't be around other dogs! Double Ester-C doses for both pups!


Well, one positive is that Buddy does not have any type of cough at all. So, considering how contagious KC is, you’d think Buddy would have it too, by now. 

Yes double up on the Ester-C!


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## Elaine (Sep 10, 2006)

Your vet may not have you come in at all depending on what's going on with your dog as they don't want your contagious dog in the clinic if they don't have to. There is no test for this, they just go by the symptoms. 

This is an extremely contagious disease, like the common cold, yet there are dogs that can be directly exposed and still not come down with it. One of my dogs got this a couple of years ago and as I had two other dogs of my own and a big trial coming up, the vet put my dog on cough suppressant and antibiotics so he could rest better, decrease his airway irritation, and deal with any secondary infection. Neither of my other dogs got it and my dog got better very quickly. On the other hand, you bring in one infected dog to a dog show or to dog school, and most of the dogs in the place come down sick.


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

Vet does not think Miikka has kennel cough. She thinks it might be similar to seasonal allergies (like hay fever) and its phlegm in her throat. Anyone ever hear of dogs getting hay fever???? :shrug:

Anyway, at this point it’s all guess and/or “let’s keep an eye on it.” I paid $75 for that??? Good grief!


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## Moonlight (Aug 13, 2010)

Yes, I've heard of dogs having hay fever. Not much else about it but yes, I've heard of it especially during this time of year. It's when my allergies are the worst too.


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## cassadee7 (Nov 26, 2009)

My dog has a cough like that but his is congestive heart failure. I do not know but I would assume your dog is too young to have that?? Just thought I'd mention it in case. Hope she gets better soon!


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

cassadee7 said:


> My dog has a cough like that but his is congestive heart failure. I do not know but I would assume your dog is too young to have that?? Just thought I'd mention it in case. Hope she gets better soon!


Oh gosh, sorry to hear about your pup!  Hope he'll be OK! Miikka is not a year old yet - well, she'll be 1-year old in a few weeks - so I dont think it's heart failure. I did google "hay fever in dogs" and yes, there is such a thing! Who knew? 

Anyway, Miikkas eyes have been a little weepy (eye-boogers as DH calls it) for the last several weeks. I really didn't think too much of it. But I think because of her weepy eyes the vet thinks its allergies more so than kennel cough.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Goopy eyes and the cough can still be a virus. The foster I wrote of before had that goop from the shelter, all the dogs have it. It was about 48 hours before both Kacie and Onyx also had conjuntivitis(it wasn't allergies)...that is just as contagious as kennel cough. I had to put Onyx on antibiotics as she got an ulcer on her eye.
What are you feeding Mikka?


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## Samba (Apr 23, 2001)

My foster has allergies and she has the gacky gag thing from it. She has to get her antihistamines regularly.

Though similar to KC in some ways, I found it did not progress to any kind of kennel cough. But, without the antihistamine doses we get the mucous gacks going on.


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

onyx'girl said:


> Goopy eyes and the cough can still be a virus. The foster I wrote of before had that goop from the shelter, all the dogs have it. It was about 48 hours before both Kacie and Onyx also had conjuntivitis(it wasn't allergies)...that is just as contagious as kennel cough. I had to put Onyx on antibiotics as she got an ulcer on her eye.
> What are you feeding Mikka?


Miikka is on a raw diet. Mostly boneless chicken meat, turkey necks, and green tripe (stinky). She also get a dehydrated veggie mix (small amount) that I mix up with warm water. I add the chicken, etc. to the veggie mix. Are you thinking its a food allerygy and not a seasonal type of thing? 

Also, my vet does not know I feed raw. When Miikka was a puppy the vet and I had a big to-do about the raw diet. She is VERY opposed to it. I know I need to find a vet more supportive of raw food but this place is SO close....I could literally walk there. Plus, they have a 24-hour emergency room which is very comforting to have so close by.


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

I think the allergy DX is WRONG!! 

Now I’m pretty sure Miikka DOES have KC. Why? Well, today the vet tried to emulate the gagging Miikka has been doing. She was feeling around and pushing on areas of Miikka’s neck. Nothing. She could not get Miikka to gag, at all. She told me that if the dog has KC you can get them to “cough” by pushing on a certain part of their neck. However, it was not working on Miikka. 

Well, tonight on our walk every time Miikka pulled on the leash, so her collar tighten up around her neck, she’d start gagging. Every time. I use a retractable leash. In the past, she has pulled it as tight as possible (lots and lots of times, in fact) and she’s never gagged before. I purposely let her pull so I could see if she would gag. Sure enough, she would. Every single time. Perhaps the vet wasn't pushing hard enough to emulate the gag (?)...I dunno. But I think I need to go back to the vet.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

I wouldn't worry about the vet diagnosis. 
It is just a virus that has to work its way out. Limit the walks, and exercise for now treat her as if she has a respiratory virus(which she does) and it will just have to run its course. 
It won't hurt to call the vet, but a visit will just subject the clinic to the virus and won't help her to get over it.

Up the C ~ the diet you are feeding is about the best you can do for her, it has to work its way out is all.


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## Zoeys mom (Jan 23, 2010)

I would call the vet actually. KC can turn into pneumonia quickly in young and senior dogs. An antibiotic will prevent a secondary infection such as pneumonia while the virus takes it's course. KC can last 3-4 weeks which is plenty of time for a bacterial infection to sprout- better safe than sorry. My lab also didn't gag when the vet felt around his throat but the minute I leashed him to take him out he began his hacking again,lol So she handed over the prescription and a cough suppressant which worked really well on him. I believe the suppressant was quite similar to robitussin for dogs


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

I'll call first thing tomorrow morning. If the vet wants to write a prescription, hopefully she wont make me come in again. I dont know why she would...but who knows.


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

Well crap. They want me to come back in. I have a 3:00 appointment. Apparently, she wants to “check a couple of things.” What things? Why weren’t those “things” check yesterday? Hmm, weird. 

They are not going to charge for another office visit, though. So I guess that’s one positive. I'll update when we get home from the vet.


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## Runswithdogs (May 8, 2010)

At least they didn't charge for another visit! How strange that they wouldn't have "checked" her as if she had kennel cough yesterday. Hope Miikka is okay. Does she cough during the night, too?
Ms. Regen has been very sleepy today, but that might be because she had a very exciting walk this a.m.


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

Ok, they diagnosed kennel cough. At today’s visit, Miikka coughed up a storm. I have absolutely NO idea how she could have gotten this! 

They wanted to take a chest x-ray to rule out any thing else but I decided against it, at this time. If she does not improve quickly, I’ll go back for the x-ray.

She prescribed two meds. One is amoxicillin the other is hydrocodone (for cough). Both are in pill form.


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## Zoeys mom (Jan 23, 2010)

KC will take awhile to clear but it does come on fast. My lab went from coughing every now and then to all the time in 2 days. I declined the chest x-ray as well cause even if it turned into pneumonia the antibiotics will help clear that. My lab coughed for two weeks after meds though not as bad as he did before taking him to the vet for medicine. Glad you got some drugs for her she'll be feeling well soon


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

Runswithdogs said:


> At least they didn't charge for another visit! *They actually did end up charging me for the visit...said I must have misunderstood :angryfire: Todays visit was $175.00!*  How strange that they wouldn't have "checked" her as if she had kennel cough yesterday. Hope Miikka is okay. Does she cough during the night, too? *She coughs a little bit but she mostly sleeps pretty well. *
> Ms. Regen has been very sleepy today, but that might be because she had a very exciting walk this a.m. *What exciting walk? What happened?*


What did Regen do today?


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Wow, I would have protested the second charge for the visit! You went in yesterday, trusting the vet would do the right thing....what the H? 
I hope Mikka is feeling better as I type. :fingerscrossed:


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

onyx'girl said:


> Wow, I would have protested the second charge for the visit! You went in yesterday, trusting the vet would do the right thing....what the H?
> I hope Mikka is feeling better as I type. :fingerscrossed:


I know, I know. I will protest it! There were 4, yes 4, emergencies taking place while I was checking out...good grief! So, I didn’t want to be the cause of some animal not getting their treatment fast enough because I’m there arguing about money!! LOL I know the vet will call me in a day or two and ask how Miikka is doing....she always has in the past when there has been an issue going on. I’ll talk to her about it then. Thanks for the good wishes!


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## Runswithdogs (May 8, 2010)

$175?!? That is ridiculous, especially when she should have been more thorough yesterday! 
Regen and I did a training walk this morning and encountered no less than 5 yappy little dogs OFF LEASH when we were walking the perimeter of the park. She did great, but it was exhausting for her to keep herself contained. As for daycare, I requested to shorten my day today at my internship and she did a 1/2 day at Camp Bow Wow. She fell sound asleep on the way home today and she's been conked out ever since! I think she missed her more "chill" day with her buddy Miikka. Keeping my fingers crossed that I don't hear any coughing from her...her MasterCard is maxxed out!:laugh::crazy:


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

Am a little late to the thread but I had a young foster with kennel cough. He got it from the vacc they gave him at the pound. I gave him vitamin C, some immune boosting herbs and a homeopathic remedy for coughing. It ran its course in less than a week and my 13 yo dog (who slept next to my foster) did not come down with it. It's really not a big deal for a dog with a healthy immune system and antibiotics aren't necessary unless it turns into something else. I'm of the opinion that antibiotics can be more harmful than helpful if prescribed when not really necessary.


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## Zoeys mom (Jan 23, 2010)

When my lab had KC my vet was certain Zoe would get it. They drink out of the same bowl, eat each others food if I'm not watching, lick each other, sleep together, and pretty much swap germs all day However, to my absolute shock somehow she did not so maybe you'll get lucky. It was around $200 to treat though that was with my lab's annual HW test included


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

*More Kennel cough questions….*

First, is there anything I need to do with Miikkas toys? i.e. wash them? toss them? Some of her toys might be pretty hard to wash so will I need to just throw those ones away? 

Miikka is a real stinker when it comes to giving her pills. No matter what we use to mask the pill, she’ll eat whatever it is and then spit out the pill. The hydrocodone pill is very small so that one is not an issue; it’s the antibiotic that’s the problem. Can the antibiotic be crushed and mixed in with wet food? Anyone know? It is in pill form; not a capsule. We’ve had to shove the pill down her throat but she clearly does not like that (I don’t like doing that to her either!) and of course then she’ll start coughing. BTW, Miikka does not like peanut butter so we have been using meat and/or cheese – still not working.

Regarding the hydrocodne they gave her for the cough; has anyone ever had their dog on this drug? I’m wondering if it causes hyperness? Last night, after only one pill, Miikka was bouncing off the walls. I’d say this lasted for about 2 hours after she took the pill. She settled down fine at bedtime but boy she was really hyper for a while there. I just gave her the morning dose so we’ll see if it happens again.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

I would put the pill as far back in the mouth and then gently blow on her snout, it will cause her to swallow.
Don't know about the drug, never have given that.


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## Miikkas mom (Dec 21, 2009)

onyx'girl said:


> I would put the pill as far back in the mouth and then gently blow on her snout, it will cause her to swallow.


Seriously? I've never heard of that trick before. I'll give it a try next dose!! Thanks for the tip! :thumbup:


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## Quinnsmom (Dec 27, 2008)

Miikkas mom said:


> , Miikka does not like peanut butter so we have been using meat and/or cheese – still not working.


Will she eat Cheez Whiz? If she enjoys that or cream cheese she might snarf it down quickly enough to miss the pill. I give a couple of tastes first to get my boy revved up then slip the loaded pill into him - always works. You could crush the abx pill into Cheez Whiz also if she would be sure to eat all of it.


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