Dog having trouble breathing

westies4ever

My four year old female westie seems to be struggling a bit to breathe. We went for a walk yesterday evening as usual and she was fine. When we came back she wasnt overly fussed on her dinner but she ate it when I hand fed her - didnt think much of it - she can be a bit of an attention seeker etc.

then last night i noticed her snuffling a but here and there. wasnt overly concerned and put her to bed as usual. this morning there is a marked deterioration. shes snuffling and wheezing and clingy. she ate her breakfast ok. we went to the vet this morning but he was out on a call so there was no-one to see her - will bring her back this evening. when i produced her lead to take her to the vet she got excited (thought she was going walkies) but the exertion made the wheezing and snuffling worse. shes not coughing at all.

i'll definitely bring her back to the vet this evening but i've had to leave her to go to work and im worried - anyone know what it could be? do dogs get the cold?

portgirl123

what part of laois are you from. the reason im asking this is my mas dog and a few of her neighbours dogs the last week have all had this symthons(sp). they have all had them at the vets and have been put on antibiotics. After a few days they are all fine. cant remember what he said it was, but ive been keeping my dogs away.

westies4ever

portarlington - and i have another westie - and they sleep together! im confident its not too serious but a bit worried all the same.

westies4ever

so i was home at lunchtime and she seems a bit better; still 'snuffling' but not as much. she went out for a nosey round the garden and played with her brother and was happy to eat some chicken. i'll see how she is this evening.

portgirl123

westies4ever wrote: »

portarlington - and i have another westie - and they sleep together! im confident its not too serious but a bit worried all the same.

yeah port is where my ma lives. apparently quiet a few dogs have had it round that area. im keeping away for the next while just in case.

westies4ever

portgirl123 wrote: »

yeah port is where my ma lives. apparently quiet a few dogs have had it round that area. im keeping away for the next while just in case.

god thats a strange one - i'll be home in an hour and i'll decide then if we need to go to the vet.

Cutie18Ireland

It could be mild kennel cough as this tends to hang around for a good while which is why it's so contagious. When my bichon had kennel cough we thought it was just a cold but then he had trouble breathing so brought him to the vet.

Treatment is antibiotics, fairly simple to trea most of the time.

However, we had an awful time with it. He just kept getting sicker and sicker even though he was on antibiotics for it. Spent a few nights in the vets, came home couldnt keep anything down back to vets, when the emergency vet figured out he was allergic to the antibiotic. They had been giving him injections of the antibiotic which was why he was getting sicker and sicker. Stopped the injection put him on a general antibiotic instead and he was grand.

westies4ever

Cutie18Ireland wrote: »

It could be mild kennel cough as this tends to hang around for a good while which is why it's so contagious. When my bichon had kennel cough we thought it was just a cold but then he had trouble breathing so brought him to the vet.

Treatment is antibiotics, fairly simple to trea most of the time.

However, we had an awful time with it. He just kept getting sicker and sicker even though he was on antibiotics for it. Spent a few nights in the vets, came home couldnt keep anything down back to vets, when the emergency vet figured out he was allergic to the antibiotic. They had been giving him injections of the antibiotic which was why he was getting sicker and sicker. Stopped the injection put him on a general antibiotic instead and he was grand.

Thanks for sharing your experience. Just back from the vet; he reckons its a mild bronchial/chest infection. her temperature is normal and she isnt coughing. hes put her on antibiotics/anti-inflammatories for five days. he said if it developes into a cough to go back as she'll need to go on stronger antibiotics.

shes in good form this evening, scoffing her dinner as i type. only thing is he reckons her brother will prob pick it up too - hes not showing any symptons so far!

portgirl123

westies4ever wrote: »

Thanks for sharing your experience. Just back from the vet; he reckons its a mild bronchial/chest infection. her temperature is normal and she isnt coughing. hes put her on antibiotics/anti-inflammatories for five days. he said if it developes into a cough to go back as she'll need to go on stronger antibiotics.

shes in good form this evening, scoffing her dinner as i type. only thing is he reckons her brother will prob pick it up too - hes not showing any symptons so far!

hiya,rang my ma last night and that was said was wrong with all their dogs. he said that it was prob going to spread to any dogs they where in contact with. one of her neighbours dogs did develope a cough and like u said is been treated with stronger meds. All the dogs are under quaranteen now. hopefully it will pass soon.

westies4ever

hopefully - my other dog isnt showing any symptoms so far. i asked the vet should i seperate them but he said no real need, if he shows symptoms just to come back and get the same medication for him; he said its not serious at all and should pass in a few days. shes in fine form today if a little wheezy and is eating well so i'm just going to keep her in over the weekend and keep her warm.