Hacking

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Please bear in mind when reading topics pertaining to health issues, that most of these questions were answered by helpful Maltese owners with no formal education in veterinary medicine. When in doubt seek a professionals advise.

Archived Message

Hacking
by Avid, Cindy and Brittney

ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
I know about not letting our babies near aeresols and the like because of their small and sensitve nasal areas which cause them to choke and hack easily. But the other day Brittney surprised and kind of scared us. My wife came home from work and like always, Brittney got excited. Only this time she had a bad hacking/coughing fit. Almost like a backward sneeze. This was the first time this happened to us in the 6 mos or so we have had her. Any thoughts guys?

DISCUSSION:

Casper does this all the time his daddy or mommy comes home. The vet says that it's normal because of their small passages. I just try to calm him by soothe talking and it works after a few aaugh okay ssshhh and petting him. He also gets a woody when excited.
Lysette

I've got the same problem except mine also vomits. Two Vets. have called this reverse sneezing caused by allergies. While Benadryl seems to help these episodes last up to an hour. I would take their word for it except the vomiting is all foam and can happen 3 or 4 times during one of hs episodes. Any ideas?
Randal

My little Pete (2 yrs old) has the same problem when he gets excited. I can talk to him and calm him down and he is fine. I have heard that it has to do with the lenght of their snout. Good Luck.
Annie

Our Maltese junior is almost five months old and does something similar when he gets excited--it's almost like he's wheezing and it really worried us the first two or three times it happened. But when we ran into our breeder and described this to her, she said it was not unusual to Maltese and not to be alarmed. Junior still does it once in awhile, but when we let him cool his jets for awhile he's fine.
Joe Everson

My Hercules also has a problem with hacking, he usually does it when he gets excited or when he goes outside, my vet says it could be because his passages are so very small, or it may be allergies. Either way, it doesn't seem to affect him very much, he calms down as soon as he is picked up or petted.
Jennifer Stacy

My Tasha also would hack, the vet said it was in the trachea{spelling?} I guess these small doggies all have this problem. Had to put her down, she was almost 16yrs. old so the hacking was not a factor.
Dottie

Our vet said that this is caused by muscles in the trachea. When they get excited, it causes the walls of the trachea to collapse, and then they start wheezing, etc. She said that the worst thing that can happen is that they may pass out, but if they do, the walls will relax, and then they will be fine. When Mackenzie gets too excited, we just pick her up, and calm her down, and that usually does it pretty quickly. She is two and a half, and has never gotten to the point where she loses consciousness.
Eric

Hacking I would also be curious if anyone elses dog sometimes caughs up foam? Mika has done this a few times and the vet said not to worry. Jackie and Mika
Jackie F.

Hacking My little Charlie experiences the wheezing fits on occasions. My breeder gave me a good trick for this: Put a finger on each nostrils this will of course block the airway and it forces the dog to breath through his mouth, within a few seconds normal breathing starts again. I know it sounds weird and you might feel uncomfortable doing it, but it does work. You have to be very calm when you proceed with the above instructions to make your dog feel comfortable with this. My mom also does this with her bichon frise.
Caroline D.

Our two year old has had the hacking and vomiting foam problem as well. It must be a common problem amoung the Maltese breed. It does not seem to affect his overall health.
Jennifer