poodles

Question
I have a 9 month old poodle that has recently started to wheeze very badly that it scares my boyfriend but since i am the primary care giver she does not do it in front of me and only at night. any suggestions?

Answer
Hello Ann Marie,
This could be caused by a couple of things.  Allergies are very prevalent in dogs, they can get them just like people can, and they will cause your dog to wheeze, itch and scratch, and to have a runny nose.  In this case, you can give your dog 1 Benedryl tablet at night to see if this helps stop her wheezing.  You will want to give it at night because it tends to make your dog a bit drowzy.  
The fact that she does it only around your boyfriend makes me think that she could be doing this to get attention from him.  Tell him to ignore her when she does this, rather than give her attention.  I would suggest the Benedryl first just to rule out allergies, but if you find that the Benedryl isn't helping, then by ignoring this behavior, you show her that her wheezing isn't going to get her any attention.  She should stop doing it if she is just doing it to get attention.  

You might check her routine and see if there is anything she is doing at night that she isn't doing during the day.  Does she eat at night rather than during the day (it could be a food allergy), or does your boyfriend wear his favorite PJ's that was washed in a detergent that she is allergic to, or could she be going for a walk at night with your boyfriend and walking in yards that have been sprayed with lawn chemicals?  Try to find something that she could be exposed to in the evening that she may not get exposed to during the day.  

Give the benedryl a try and if you have other questions for me, please feel free to ask me.

Thanks for using AllExperts.com,
Kim