Dog coughing, gagging, and vomiting.

Wonderful! Thanks for sharing the tip!

My little precious GIZMO is starting the same thing.
The vet told us that he is just starting in showing signs of "A HEART MURMUR"
I cannot stand the very thought! He is our little baby.
He is almost 10 now and the doctor says when they get of that age, it will start.
I wanted to tell you this but if you love this pet a lot then just keep trusting God for their healing.
He is a PeekAPom

Gizmo also has terrible allergies. He said the sounds MAYBE could be this but he doesn't think so.
I hope you receive a "GOOD REPORT"- Please let us know.

Blessings!

Coughing can be a symptom associated with congestive heart failure, and heart murmurs will also begin to develop, as well as enlarged heart chambers. You can usually diagnose these issues with x-rays and echocardiograms. Echos will also help determine how severe the murmur is. The reasons for coughing can include fluid in the lung or an enlarged heart chamber pushing up on the internal structures of the respiratory system.

However, there is good news because CHF is a treatable condition and does not mean immediate death. However, if she does have the beginnings of CHF, she must be put on medications to help control the symptoms and to make the heart pump more effectively. Vets will also often give a diuretic to help rid the body of extra fluid that accumulates due to poor activity of the heart. There are also drugs that improve the effectiveness of the heart in beating.

Ask your vet to run some diagnostics and see if any of these medications may work for you. Furosemide is a diuretic commonly used and pimobendan is a newer drug that is excellent for dogs with CHF. These drugs will have to be monitored though and may need to be increased over time.

I am a certified veterinary technician and I work at an emergency clinic.
Now that intro is out of the way, coughing can have soooo many causes. I have gotten quite good at imitating the various ones with the owners (is it this one? No? OK this one?)
I wouldn't go straight to congestive heart failure on this one. How old is your dog? Is he known for eating odd things (he is a lab)? Your theory that he may have gotten something stuck sounds logical and if he is not acting distressed, its ok to take the wait and see approach. If there is any change in his respiratory effort, gum color (should be nice bubble gum pink unless he has black gums) or if he seems in anyway not like himself, then it is time for the emergency clinic.
To the person whose dog seemed affected by the wood floor cleaner, did your vet do xrays or any other diagnostics? CHF can be managed.

Christyleigh said:

I am a certified veterinary technician and I work at an emergency clinic.
Now that intro is out of the way, coughing can have soooo many causes. I have gotten quite good at imitating the various ones with the owners (is it this one? No? OK this one?)
I wouldn't go straight to congestive heart failure on this one. How old is your dog? Is he known for eating odd things (he is a lab)? Your theory that he may have gotten something stuck sounds logical and if he is not acting distressed, its ok to take the wait and see approach. If there is any change in his respiratory effort, gum color (should be nice bubble gum pink unless he has black gums) or if he seems in anyway not like himself, then it is time for the emergency clinic.
To the person whose dog seemed affected by the wood floor cleaner, did your vet do xrays or any other diagnostics? CHF can be managed.

Click to expand...

The original post is a very, very old one, but my response was for the most recent poster in regards to Gizmo who was diagnosed with a heart murmur.