my dog has bronchitis

Question
my dog jenny is a mix breed she is a overweight doxen and cokerspanial mix she seems to have bronchitis my vet keeps telling me to give her over the counter cough medicine but its not helping her at all and she wont even excersize all she does is when she trys to walk/run she starts coughing plese help me comfort her

                         Alex Age 12

Answer
Hi Alex,

If your dog is overweight, that is really bad thing, and may be making her bronchitis worse.  Because you love your dog, you must do everything you can to keep her healthy, and that means giving her moderate daily exercise.
If you do this, and give your dog a good walk (about 20 minutes) everyday, in a few weeks time you will see her starting to slim down, and probably coughing less too.

Exercise has to be started gradually if she is not used to it because it can irritate her airways.  If she starts to cough while walking, stop walking, and let her finish. Gently massaging her throat  while she is coughing is a good way to help her while she is coughing.

You need to walk your dog on a leash, so that you can control the pace that she's walking at. Use a harness or a head halter such as the "Gentle Leader" rather than a neck collar will help her not put any strain her windpipe.

Changing to a low fat, or "lite" dog food can also help your dog slim down. If you change your dog's food, you have to do it gradually, over a period of 5-7 days. Changing a dog's food too quickly can cause diarrhea.
Follow the feeding guidelines on the bag or can, and don't over feed your dog. Cut back on your dog's between meal snacks, and stop giving your dog any human food she may be getting. This and the daily exercise will really help a lot.

You didn't say which over the counter cough medicine you've been using, or if you've tried more than one kind. If you could find an over the counter cough suppressant that woks for your dog it would actually be better than the some of the medication your vet could prescribe. Corticosteroids (the class of medication often used for bronchitis) are not good for long term use, and can cause very serious side effects.

Has your vet tried any antibiotics? Sometimes they can eliminate the coughing for a long time, or at least control it on a periodic basis.

If the cough suppressant isn't working, you or an older family member,  should talk to your vet about testing for allergies, since they can cause Bronchitis. Your vet can also do tests  or take x-rays or do bloodwork to try to pinpoint your dog's problem, and treat her more effectivly.

Airborne irritants, such as cigarette smoke and dust can cause a dog with Bronchitis to cough. Using a cool air humidifier or vaporizer in the area where your dog spends a lot of time might help her. When you use a humidifier or vaporizer you have to keep it very clean, otherwise it spews bacteria, which won't help your dog.

Keeping your dog's teeth clean would help her cough because diseased teeth and gums are breeding grounds for bacteria. Cleaning your dog's teeth will help eliminate secondary infections. Your vet can show you the correct way to brush your dog's teeth.

Your dog's coughing may never go away completely, but doing the things I've suggested may reduce the number of coughing episodes your dog has during the day.

I hope I've been a help.
Best of luck,

Patti