phlegm

Question
Marjorie,

My english bd pup spit up some phlegm this morning when I brought him outside to pee. He seemed a little congested but when I grabbed his collar to get him down one stair, he coughed it up. Is that normal? I read somewhere that we should keep lemon juice available for their throat so they can't suffocate. Should I have sprayed some down his throat after he spit the phlegm up? I'm assuming his spitting it up made it better but I just want to be sure.
He is 14 weeks old and seems normal. He pee'd and ate breakfast right afterwards. Let me know if this is normal for this breed.

Thanks!
MCH

Answer
First of all, get rid of the collar and get a harness.

Those big balls of fluff that Bulldogs hack up are pretty normal. The lemon squirt will help even after the initial purge. It causes the dog to salivate and move out all the gunk.

This is pretty technical stuff :o)

You might raise his food and water dishes off the floor about 6 inches.  This will help.