Shih Tzu with CHF blowing nose bubbles: Is it related? What to do?

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. In Shih Tzus, their breathing is noisy to begin with so sometimes it can be difficult to know if it is a normal sound or abnormal. If there is nasal discharge and eye discharge, it is likely an upper respiratory infection. If the sound is new but there is no nasal discharge or eye discharge, it may be allergies or may be something else. If this is a new sound then I would recommend having a veterinarian take a look at Chania so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps!

I am afraid that is not normal. Considering that Snoopy is almost 16 years old my first thought here is that he needs his heart examined by your veterinarian. There is a condition almost every old dog gets, some worse than others, called endocardiosis. THis is a condition where the lips of the heart valves develop little nodules which then keeps the valves from closing properly and then the oxygenated blood is not effectively pumped into the rest of the body. This makes for a weak heart action and causes pulmonary edema, ie fluid in the lungs. The fluid in the lungs make breathing a chore (therefore a high respiration rate), and causes a moist cough when the dog is resting. Your dog also will not have as much energy as usual and slows down significantly. This can be significantly improved by giving diuretics and a heart medication that improved the output of the heart. Of course it is also possible that he has kennel cough or another respiratory condition. So I suggest you make an appointment with your veterinarian for an exam soon.

Given the fact that her large is slightly enlarged, I thing a cardiologist specialist ultrasound test would make more sense at this point (and will be cheaper as well) as I am not convinced the problem doesn't come from the heart yet.

Poor guy. It is possible he has a bit of an upper respiratory infection. I would recommend getting him seen by your vet for something like this, because he will need the vet to listen to his lung and heart sounds for any abnormalities and clues as to what is going on internally. He may also need x-rays of his chest if there is severe congestion heard in his chest. I do hope that your fur baby Bobby is able to get this sorted out soon! Best wishes and take care.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It is very common for Shih tzus to have small nasal openings. Sometimes they grow as the puppy grows and sometimes they need cosmetic surgery to open the nostrils. This typically causes a lot of sneezing. I would worry the coughing could be something else, like Kennel Cough. I recommend discussing this with Coco's vet so they can see the size of her nose and listen to her lungs. Good luck and kisses to your new baby!

Poor girl. She is a cutie. Her nares do look quite small and this can certainly cause breathing issues constantly but gasping in her sleep is a bit exaggerated and definitely worth a look. The vet needs to make sure she isn’t developing an upper airway infection and also make sure that she isn’t developing some kind of heart issue. I hope that your pet Bella does well moving forward. Best wishes and take care.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I am so sorry to hear about Bizou! Unfortunately, if he is in congestive heart failure, the only treatment is the lasix pill (furosemide). Depending on how severe his condition is, he may not survive without hospitalization with oxygen and injectible lasix. Your vet may have a strong suspicion of this if Bizou has a heart murmur and many crackles in the lungs (we can hear with the stethoscope). However, even that is not enough to definitively diagnose it. I have seen a couple dogs I was sure were in heart failure and when I took the x-rays, it turned out to be pneumonia or cancer. If you can at all afford it, go for the xrays so you at least know what you are dealing with - if it's cancer instead of heart failure, that may change your approach. If it is heart failure, it will give a clue as to how serious. If you can't afford the x-rays, treat for whatever the vet thinks is most likely. If heart failure is it, the most commonly prescribed medications are furosemide, enalapril, and pimobendan (though there are others). Finally, if he is still struggling for air, his tongue/gums are any color other than bright pink, or the vet thinks it is serious enough to require oxygen, and you cannot pay for treatment, I would strongly consider euthanasia. Dying by gasping and struggling for air while drowning in your own fluids is a horrible way to go - I've seen it several times. Please feel free to reach out to me via consultation if you'd like to to have a more detailed conversation with you. Best wishes to you and Bizou.