My dog is breathing hard, making a noise. Can I help at home?

Hi and thanks for posting! If Hunter is having some breathing trouble, I would recommend he see a veterinarian ASAP for exam. Your veterinarian will listen to his lungs and heart and may take an x-ray to help determine the cause so he can get the most appropriate treatment. I hope this helps and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

He needs to be examined by a veterinarian right away. Your vet can take an x-ray of his chest to evaluate his lungs and airway. He could have pneumonia, asthma, heart disease, or fluids in his chest. Please call your vet immediately and schedule an appointment.

This can be a number of respiratory issues including laryngeal paralysis, laryngeal obstruction, or just a benign condition called reverse sneezing, where it appears he is struggling to breathe but it is actually a tickling of the larynx and completely harmless. See this video for an example of reverse sneezing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IszRBYxsGI The event has to be seen to give you a better idea of if this is something to worry about or not. I would recommend recording the next episode on your phone and then showing the video to your vet for advise on what to do. If at any point your pet's tongue turns blue or he passes out or if you feel that he is in respiratory distress, then I encourage you to go to an ER vet.

If he truly has something caught in his trachea then this is an emergency. I would highly encourage you to have him evaluated by a veterinarian immediately. Other causes of Cough and snoring type behavior include upper respiratory infection such as kennel cough, tracheal collapse in small breed dogs, And even heart disease. The veterinarian will likely recommend a chest x-ray to help determine the diagnosis and best treatment plan. Best of luck and I hope Chucho improves soon. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

Oh dear, poor Totie! Changes in breathing and restlessness are concerning signs, particularly in a relatively young puppy. These signs could indicate congenital heart disease, infectious diseases, pneumonia, among a variety of other conditions. At this point, I recommend urgently taking Totie to her vet for an exam. She may also need to have chest x-rays performed to try to get to the bottom of this issue so that the best course of treatment can be started. I hope that all goes well!

This could be something like kennel cough or a collapsed trachea. It could also be a severe respiratory infection. You cannot share videos on the forum, but if you request a consult, you can share one there. I recommend having Tito seen by a vet for this problem.

I would Holiday examined by a vet, as it's not normal for a dog to breathe heavy without exercise. It could be a tick borne disease, but it could also be a respiratory illness, heartworm disease, or heart disease among other causes that are leading to her symptoms. The vet can do a physical exam, blood tests, a urinalysis, and x-rays to diagnose what is causing his symptoms, and can treat accordingly.