My dog makes funny noises when breathing?

Question

My 35 lb. terrier mix makes this noise that is somewhat halfway between a snort and breathing through a stuffy nose. She has done it for as long as I've had her I think...but it would just be every now and then, but now I've noticed that she is doing it more. Her nose is not runny. She seems to feel ok. It is almost sounds like that nasty sucking back snot to your throat that some people do. haha, except it is much more quiet. She seems to do it while breathing in and it is just a few quick nasal snorting sounds while inhaling. I plan on taking her to the vet if it persists, but I was wondering if anyone has ever experienced this situation with your dog. Oh and one more detail...it almost sounds like the sounds of a boston terrier, french bulldog, boxer, etc., but her muzzle is long and doesn't have that flat smashed in look appearance at all. Thanks!

Update:

Thanks for the reverse sneezing suggestion. It doesn't sound like that. Her sound is much more quiet and just different. We do have a hound dog that does this though, so now i know how I can help him get over that.

Update 2:

Thanks for the suggestions. I still don't think it is a reverse sneeze. She can be sitting their calm and quiet and randomly breathe like that. Although it was worse after she pulled all the way through a 3 mile hike. But it really sounds more nasal than throat.

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

this might be reverse sneezing
if it is, its completely normal- many dogs do this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdPUX8mnFE4
if your dog is doing this
all you have to do is pinch the nose or rub the back of their throat
this should calm her down

Painted Pony · Answer

Certainly sounds like the reverse sneeze which can sound very different from dog to dog.  I have 3 small breed dogs who have this problem and I can tell which one is doing it from another room because they all sound different.

Also, the dog doesn't have to have a short muzzle to perform the reverse sneeze, it's just a little more prevalent on those.

The other possibility is a collapsing trachea.  From time to time, the rings on the trachea actually collapse.  It can start out an an occasional thing, but can increase over time.  I had a little Pom with collapsing trachea.  It is not life threatening, but can become problematic if it becomes constant.  

Your vet should be able to give you a definite diagnosis.

? · Answer

I have a jack russel terrier that sometimes makes similar noises when out on a walk or when she gets too excited. When on a walk it is obvious to me that it is caused by her pulling too hard on the leash, often lunging ahead of me (as I usually just let her run around in the grass outside the condo, but when we go on legitimate walks I use a leash, and she gets ahead of herself wanting to run everywhere). I use to have a lab who would also run into these problems when my parents used a choke-chain for walking her. When we switched to a regular collar and she got better at walking beside me, the problem stopped. 
With my jack russell however, as well as my mom's yorkies, they often start this sort of wheezing (almost like they're having a hard time breathing due to wind pipe constriction) not only on the leash, but also whenever they simply get over excited. My terrier is epileptic (a common problem for her breed) and takes regular medication for it, which has helped calm her down as well (we use phenobarbital as perscribed by the vet).
It could be that she simply gets too excited and has breathing problems due to malformation of the wind pipe, though if it seems like a real issue to her health, and is getting worse or more frequent, I would schedule a vet visit just to be safe.

Anonymous · Answer

You must get him to a vet immediately, sounds like he is not getting enough oxygen. Could be a serious heart problem but only a vet can give an accurate diagnosis.

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My dog makes funny noises when breathing?

4 Answers