Why do dogs start Coughing and Gagging? Most Common Reasons

When your dogs display signs of coughing and gagging, it’s natural to feel worried. Is it indicative of a serious issue, or did your dog simply ingest something the wrong way? To provide clarity in this situation, we will study the seven most prevalent reasons behind your dog’s coughing and gagging and outline when it’s appropriate to seek veterinary attention.
If you have a dog who tends to drink and eat too quickly, you could hear an immediate gag or cough afterwards. Although this type of dog coughing or gagging can initially be disconcerting, most dogs typically return to their normal state shortly after the incident.
But what if your dog’s coughing appears unrelated to these common causes? What if the coughing and gagging seem to happen without an apparent trigger? We will explore these scenarios in detail, but before delving into that, let’s examine the factors that can lead to a dog coughing or gagging in the first place.

The reason behind dogs coughing or gagging

Like in other mammals, your dog’s ability to cough is a normal defensive mechanism. Dog coughing is very helpful in expelling foreign things such as water, saliva, and food from the airways of the body. Or it may happen due to the irritation of the respiratory tract.
In the back of your dog’s throat, two passages lead towards the oesophagus and trachea. Food items will go to the stomach through the oesophagus and air passes through the trachea to get into the lungs. So the body must keep everything, besides air, away from the trachea. Otherwise, it will cause an immediate response from the airways in the form of sudden dog coughing or gagging.

Is my dog coughing and gagging or vomiting?

Usually, different reasons can cause a dog to cough, gagging or vomiting. To understand what is happening to your dog, it is important to explain the symptoms better when talking to a vet. So let’s discuss the differences between coughing, gagging and vomiting.

Dogs coughing signs

A coughing dog is more likely to have short, stroking sounds that involve chest movements. It may also have a bit of saliva or clear fluid flying out of its mouth during coughing. Coughing can also be dry sometimes. On other occasions coughing will bring the mucous, which the dog either spits out or swallows again.

Dogs gagging signs

When gagging, your dog will wide open its mouth and make a hacking sound. The dog may not be able to bring anything out or it may expel a little mucous, saliva or white foamy substance. Dogs gagging mostly tends to be accompanied by coughing.

Dogs vomiting signs

If a dog is suffering from nausea, it may be salivating profusely and licking its lips. During vomiting a dog generally has abdominal muscle contractions that accompany the retching sound. Shortly after food contents from the stomach, range from clear fluid to yellow-coloured food particles. Sometimes foamy liquid also comes out from the stomach, indicating the presence of bile in the stomach.

7 reasons for a dog coughing and gagging

Now you know how to differentiate between coughing and gagging from vomiting. We will discuss the 7 most common causes of dogs coughing and gagging. Remember this list isn’t final, however, we will cover all the major common issues of the respiratory tract that can cause coughing and gagging in your dog.

1. Laryngeal paralysis in dogs

The opening and closing of vocal folds of the larynx can prevent any food particles from entering the airways. Sometimes nerve, which is responsible for the start of vocal folds during breathing, doesn’t work properly. This issue causes the vocal folds to remain closed during breathing and won’t allow proper airflow through the trachea.
As a result, dogs may have harsh and loud breathing from a partially closed trachea. Since the larynx isn’t doing its job very well, the affected dogs can also develop aspiratory pneumonia and frequent coughing and the gaging is inevitable.

2. Tracheal collapse in dogs

The trachea also known as windpipe is the biggest tube of airways in your dog’s body. Inhaled air carries to the lungs through the trachea. With ageing in dogs, cartilaginous rings present in the trachea, become flattened. This will cause a narrowing of the space inside the trachea which will cause hindrance in smooth airflow. This tracheal collapse can cause gagging or honking coughing in dogs, in severe cases, it can lead to respiratory distress.
All dogs are susceptible to tracheal collapse conditions, but it is more prevalent in older dogs and small breeds of dogs. Weight management is an essential factor in the treatment of tracheal collapse in dogs. However, in severe cases surgery is necessary.

3. Chronic bronchitis in dogs

Also known as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Sometimes dogs have been suffering from a persistent cough that lasts longer than months but doesn’t seem to have any distinguishable cause. In this type of case, Chronic bronchitis in dogs can be the answer. In this disease, severe infections, trauma, allergens or other health issues can cause inflammation of the lungs.
Over time, chronic bronchitis in dogs becomes worse which makes it more difficult for your dog to excrete the foreign material from the airways. Your vet would like to rule out other severe lung infections such as cancer before confirming the COPD. After diagnosis, your vet can prescribe coughing suppressants, bronchodilators and steroids with weight management therapy for your dogs.

4. Heart disease in dogs

In a healthy dog, the heart pumps sufficient blood in all parts of the body, carrying oxygen via RBCs (Red blood cells). However during heart disease in dogs, insufficient pumping of blood towards the body can lead to the accumulation of body fluids in the abdominal or chest cavity. When the fluid goes inside the lung tissue, it will cause coughing as the body is trying to expel this fluid.
Heart diseases in dogs range from dilated cardiomyopathy to heartworm in dogs. These diseases ultimately cause heart enlargement in dogs. This bigger heart will push the trachea upward and compress the bronchi, which leads to more severe coughing. Dogs suffering from heart disease need medicine that can help the heart to pump more intensely.

5. Infections

Upper respiratory infections are one of the most common causes of coughing in dogs, especially in puppies. Foreign agents such as viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites can invade the respiratory tract of dogs. These foreign invaders activate the immune system of the animal which in response causes inflammation of the respiratory tract.
Bacteria such as Bordetella bronchiseptica (cause of Kennel cough) can cause inflammation of the upper respiratory tract in dogs. Canine influenza is a viral disease which also causes inflammation of the upper respiratory tract in dogs with symptoms of coughing and gagging.
Dogs suffering from respiratory infections may need antibiotics, antifungals and steroids (if necessary). Your vet can do some tests to check the presence of lungworm and prescribe a dewormer if needed.

6. Lung cancer

We can define cancer as the uncontrolled and abnormal replication of cells in simple terms. Sometimes this growth shows in the form of a single isolated tumour, named a benign tumour. On the other hand, some cancers can be widespread and affect different parts of the body, called malignant tumours.
Dogs can be affected by lung cancer i.e. cancer caused by lung tissues such as pulmonary carcinoma. However, more cases of lung cancer in dogs are caused by other malignant tumours developed in different parts of the body such as mammary cancer and osteosarcoma in dogs, that metastasise to the lungs.
General symptoms of lung cancer in dogs are lethargy, weight loss, lack of appetite and persistent cough. Treatment varies according to the type of cancer.

7. Allergies

Upper respiratory allergies in dogs are very common in humans. Dogs can also be affected by allergens. A dog can have an acute allergic reaction to a specific medication, vaccination, food or insect bites. Anaphylaxis in dogs is a severe allergic reaction that can cause a fatal inability to breathe. If your dog is suffering from respiratory distress or has a sudden onset of vomiting and nausea with diarrhoea, these are signs of anaphylactic shock. So contact your vet as soon as possible.
Mild allergies in dogs can be treated with antihistaminic drugs and other anti-allergy medications in dogs. It is also important to avoid allergens to a possible extent. Dogs suffering from anaphylaxis or severe allergic reactions may need steroids with supportive therapy, or even be hospitalized until symptoms resolve.
Also Read: The Best Dog Breeds For Women

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