Allie Porter Owner of 3 Rescued Cocker Spaniels

Hi - i have a male cocker who is older maybe 12 - we dont know for sure his age b/c he is rescued - he has been coughing like a seal and hacking at the end of the cough for a month - my vet has tried clavamox and prednisone - no luck - temeril or something - no luck - personally i think it may be an allergy so i was going to switch his food otherwise he is happy and a good dog but the cough is annoying to me and him - he seems like he strains to get something out of his throat and nothing comes up when he hacks - he also had xrays it is not a collapsed trach and his lungs and heart are fine. thanks for your help



Hi Allie

If the cough suddenly came, allergy is not that likely. Especially not in his age.

Reading your mail I first thought of collapsed trachea or a heart disease of cause.

X-ray don't show any abnormalities so this might not be that likely as well.


Is he irritated if the vet is palpating his trachea?

Is he normal eating and drinking?

Does he have any problems breathing properly?


Well, from what you have written I would be thinking of:

.....the possibility of him to have inhaled something. Some foreign body stuck in one of his bronchi's this could make him cough.

This might not show up om x ray, but might need an endoscope in the trachea to see it.

I might find this the most important to rule out if the symptoms came suddenly and especially is he find it difficult to inhale (and this I don't know).

Kennel Cough is another possibility, but it should not carry on really for more than tree weeks.


I find it difficult to really give you some good advice as the clinical examination in his case should be very important.


As you said it came suddenly......

So I find this "inhaled theory" most likely - but this is only a guess.


Sometimes a trachitis can be difficult to treat as well or a collapsed trachea might not show up on x-ray every time.

Sometimes a collapsed trachea can make some changes in the EKG. So this is one examination you might could do too.

On the other hand, the coughing use to be very typical - like a Goose!

So, normally the diagnosis is straight forward.

Worms, might not be this cough as "worm cough" is more moist. At least something to consider as well.

So - no I really don't think I can be a any more help here from Sweden - sorry.

Kindly

Per Schonbeck