Coughing in Dogs
What the sound of a cough tells you: kennel cough, heart disease, collapsing trachea and the signs that mean it is not just a cough.
Is this an emergency?
If coughing comes with laboured breathing, blue or grey gums, or collapse, come in immediately. A cough in an older dog that worsens at night can be heart failure.
A cough is a protective reflex clearing the airway. In dogs the character of the cough, and what comes with it, narrows the cause considerably.
Listen to the cough
Harsh, dry, honking, ending in a retch that owners often describe as something stuck in the throat. Classic kennel cough, and also the sound of a collapsing trachea.
Soft, moist, worse at night and when lying down, in a middle aged or older dog, often a small breed. Suggests heart disease with fluid backing up into the lungs.
Wet and productive, with fever and lethargy. Suggests pneumonia.
A honking goose-like cough, brought on by excitement or pulling on a collar, in a small breed. Suggests tracheal collapse.
Persistent cough in an older dog with weight loss. Needs a mass ruled out.
Kennel cough
Infectious tracheobronchitis, caused by a combination of viruses and bacteria and spread where dogs mix: boarding kennels, daycare, training classes, parks.
Typically a dramatic harsh cough in a dog that is otherwise bright, eating and behaving normally. Most cases resolve in one to three weeks without specific treatment.
It needs seeing if the dog is lethargic, off its food, feverish, or if breathing is affected, since it can progress to pneumonia in puppies, older dogs and those with existing disease.
Vaccination is available and is worth having for dogs that board, attend daycare or mix regularly.
Heart disease
In an older dog, particularly a small breed, a soft cough that is worse at night and after lying down is a common presentation of heart disease.
A useful thing you can do at home: count the sleeping breathing rate. Count the rises of the chest over thirty seconds while the dog is fully asleep and double it. Consistently over 30 per minute warrants a check, and a rising trend often shows before anything else.
Collapsing trachea
Common in small breeds. The cartilage rings of the windpipe soften and flatten. Brought on by excitement, pressure on the neck and heat.
Practical measures: use a harness rather than a collar, keep the dog at a lean weight, avoid heat, and reduce excitement at the door.
What to do at home
Use a harness instead of a collar. Avoid smoke, aerosols and dust. Keep the air humid; ten minutes in a steamy bathroom helps. Rest, and no exercise while coughing. Keep the dog away from other dogs if kennel cough is likely.
Do not give human cough medicine; several contain ingredients that are harmful to dogs.
When to come in
Coughing with laboured breathing, or blue, grey or pale gums. Coughing up blood or froth. Coughing with lethargy, fever or loss of appetite. A cough lasting more than a week. A cough that is worse at night in an older dog. Any collapse. Or a sudden cough after eating, which can mean something inhaled.