HACKING

Question
Hi, my baby shitzu has been hacking like wanting to clear his throat since yesterday and don't know what it is.  What should I give him or do without taking him to the vet?

Answer
Your shih tzu could have swallowed something that he is trying to bring back up, but chances are that he has one of the many versions of kennel cough.

One of my dogs brought this back from shows in Des Moines, Iowa, early in September, and a friend of mine said that his brought it back (to Texas) from shows in Kansas City about that same time. Interestingly enough (to me, anyway), this version of KC didn't spread through all my dogs, just some of the younger ones, so I suspect that it is a version that we had about six or so years ago.

You could take your dog to the vet to confirm that kennel cough is indeed the problem rather than something else, but there isn't a lot that can be done about it other than wait it out. It is a most annoying disease more than anything else because of the coughing, but it should be over in a few days. Just watch him to make sure that a secondary bacterial infection doesn't set in; if conditions worsen, get him into the vet ASAP.

Make sure that he has no contact with other dogs as KC is highly contagious.

Karen