
- Dry, scratchy cough
- Persistent dry hacking that lasts several days, or longer
- Dry hacking that worsens
- High-pitched coughing
- Non-productive coughing
- Deep, honking sound when coughing
- Gagging or retching after hacking
- Throat spasms
- Hacking after exercise, eating or drinking
- Fever
- Lethargy
- Loss of appetite
- Difficulty breathing
- Kennel cough, or infectious tracheobronchitis – This is the most common cause behind dry hacking in dogs. Contracted in public areas such as kennels, animal shelters, dog parks, vet clinics, and groomers, kennel cough is an upper respiratory infection that can be caused by various viruses and bacteria, though the primary source is usually Bordetella.
- Tracheal collapse, or tracheal chondromalacia – Seen more frequently in toy and small breeds like Pomeranians, Pugs and Chihuahuas, and obese dogs, this condition causes the windpipe to be soft and floppy. Repeated dry and spasmodic hacking can accompany a honking sound like a goose, and worsens when dogs pull on their leash.
- Chronic bronchitis, or COPD – This inflammation of the airway creates a dry, hacking cough that exacerbates with excitement and exercise, and affects breathing. A lifelong condition, COPD worsens over time and can cause tracheobronchial collapse.
- Tonsillitis – Part of the lymphatic system, the tonsils hang down in the back of the throat and can become inflamed, generally due to another disorder such as continuous vomiting, infection, cleft palate or persistent coughing. A short cough can follow periods of gagging with this condition, along with difficulty swallowing.
- Heartworm – This parasitic infection transmitted by mosquitoes may cause persistent coughing, along with weight loss, lethargy and a swollen abdomen.
- Foreign object – A foreign object lodged in the throat can inhibit proper breathing and swallowing, and produce a gagging or violent cough.
- Reverse sneezing – Many small dogs and brachycephalic breeds can make a coughing or hacking sound that is actually a reverse sneeze. Triggered by mites, allergies or an irritant that causes the throat to spasm, air is inhaled rapidly through the nose instead of expelled out.
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