Thursday, April 15, 2010
The Reverse Sneeze
The reverse sneeze. That’s the best way to describe it. It happens to Sadie sometimes, mainly when she is laying on her back or if she is overly excited. All of a sudden, it sounds like she is gasping for air. Almost wheezing. It scares the crap out of me. She looks so scared, because she can’t breathe normally. I’ve learned to just try to calm her rather than freak out haha. It does help. It helps her relax, and then they seem to end quicker. But I still don’t understand why this happens. Does it happen to your dog? I’ve told the vet we saw in Boston, and she didn’t seem worried about it. She said it’s common. But it just sounds so horrible! Just wondering if anyone else has seen/heard their dog do the same thing?
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Ein did that for a few weeks, on and off. Seriously, after I posted the video below asking if it was reverse sneezing, he hasn't reverse sneezed since!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.mycorgi.com/video/is-this-reverse-sneezing
I think gently massaging his throat helped make it stop.
Bailey used to do it when she was younger. She hasn't done it in a long time. I guess it is normal and happens to a lot of dogs. We talked to the vet about it too. They were not too concerned about it. Just wanted to make sure it is an occasional thing and not all the time.
ReplyDeleteI read somewhere that if you put your hand over their nose while they do it, it helps them and makes them stop. They will breathe through their mouth instead. I did that whenever Bailey reversed sneezed. Of course only very lightly so not to freak her out. But It helped her, but I don't know if this will work on every dog...
I know exactly what you are talking about Laurie and it is scary; I do the same when Koda does this; try to stay calm and pet him and reassure him. thanks for giving me a name for it
ReplyDeletebetty
OH yes, Gibson has done this. It is very common and really nothing to worry about. We get more stressed about it than the dogs do :) I normally just massage his throat or put my hand over his nose for a few seconds and it stops. I used to freak out about it and it just made it worse. Now, I am used to it and it rarely every happens and when it does it lasts about 5 seconds..
ReplyDeleteMy dog growing up (part chow part shetled sheepdog) used to do that with allergies. I'm not sure that is the case with Sadie, though. But I'm sure the vet is right. Doesn't calm our corgi mom nerves though!
ReplyDeleteFreya does this too! She is especially bad about it when it is cold outside and she comes into a warm house. The vet recommended me to give Freya some Benadryl (because it was supposed to help keep any inflammation down or help if it is due to the allergies.) I also just cover her nose if it is really bad as well as Cloud. It seems to help.
ReplyDeleteRYN: Freya either sleeps on top of me or she will sleep between my legs too...sucks when I try to maneuver into a fetal position. :D
yea, Bailey has done that a few times when he was realy young. I can't recall the last time hes done it. I remember researching it back then, and it doesn't seem to be anything to worry about unless she's doing it all the time!
ReplyDeleteHopefully it doesn't happen again!
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ReplyDeleteLOL! Mum is sorry she is not laughing at you! Me, Dozer, I am the only one in the family who does the reverse sneezing and our vet said it really is nothing to worry about. Alot of times it is allergies or a runny nose. It usually passes quickly and Mum doesn't do anything, she just keeps doing what she was doing and I get it taken care of.
ReplyDeleteSo, here's the funny- Mum takes me to Animal Crackers (our local pet store) and the minute I walk in the door, I start the sneezin'. Mum thinks it might be because they have lots and lots of cats there and I could be allergic. Well, I got so loud everyone stopped talking and looking at me. Then I would stop and have a big cough. I finally hacked up a glob of something revolting and sneezed some more. By this time Mum is practically crying so she won't laugh out loud and look like an insensitive pet owner. The folks at Animal Crackers see this all the time so they are fine with it. They gave me a cookie when I was done.
So as we're leaving some nice lady who was shopping told Mum that she thought it was so nice that someone would adopt disabled dogs. Excuse me? Disabled? I think not! I was sneezing you old bat, that's all!
If I go through a spell when I am sneezing a lot, then I get a Benedryl to dry up my snoozle and it usually takes care of the problem.
But this long diatribe is just to let Sadie know she is not alone, she is not going to die, and it passes. Mum says not to go crackers when it happens because then Sadie will think there is something really wrong. Just give her a pat on the head and try to keep doing something. It will pass. If Sadie is sneezing all the time, then talk to your vet about perhaps allergies and if it is time for a little Benedryl to dry up her snozzle.
Love, Dozer, Dottie and Cooper
Laurie you should video it, b/c I don't think Finn does it but it sure sounds like it's common and we should all be prepared! :) So, she is gasping, kind of? or sucking at air? How fascinating that they treat it with an an allergy medicine and a lot of corgis have it... some common dna thing or something!! I wish there was more about it!! <3
ReplyDeleteLaurie, Chelsea has never done that. I have tried to teach her "calm." I pet her and say "calm, calm," and she seems to know what it means. It helps whenever she is freaking out, too.
ReplyDeleteI hope it gets better! Love the pic!
Hug you, Cheryl
Thanks for the advice, everyone! I'm glad it's pretty common and nothing to worry about. It's just so scary to see! I will just continue to try to calm her down when it happens and hope it becomes more infrequent.
ReplyDeleteSam, I would try to video it, but it comes out of the blue and only lasts a few seconds, so I doubt I'd be able to!
I get reverse sneezies all the time. The Dr lady at the place of disturbidation said that it is normal. But then she stuck needles in me. So maybe she was lying and had to give me shots for it? Mommy doesn't seem very worried about the sneezies though.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ty! I'm glad to know other doggies have the same problem and it's nothing to worry about!
ReplyDelete