Dog has lost her voice

Question
Hi,  I have a Treeing Walker Coondog that it going on 3 yrs old.  A little
over a year ago she lost her voice and I took her to the Vet. 3 times and
after about a month and a half she got her voice back.  They had her on
Antibotics and Steroids.  Did a Biopcie and did not find the cause of the
problem.  Did not hunt her during this period.  She finally got her voice
back and did not have any problems with her until just this wk.  Lost it
again.  Coondogs need their voice.  She is a Good Coondog and I need help
tring to fix the problem.

Thank You ,
Roger

Answer
Hi Rodger,

You didn't say if your dog is having any problems breathing or with coughing - especially after running for extended periods of time. Usually steroids are given for conditions such as bronchitis.

There are a number of diseases that can cause inflammation of the vocal folds and affect the character or loss of the bark. Additionally, abnormal growths or problems with the neuromuscular system can be cause loss of voice. There is a rare cancer that is often mistaken for bronchitis and laryngitis.

Setting up a cool-mist humidifier near where your dog spends a lot of time, and avoid air conditioning can help your dog.

I know you've already been to your vet with this problem. I'd suggest taking your dog back to be examined again, because the symptoms have returned. It may be significant to the doctor and mean a whole other course of treatment. X-rays may be used to look for tumors or foreign bodies this time. Laryngoscopy or bronchoscopy under anesthesia may be appropriate to visualize affected structures.

You may want to consider taking your dog to a teaching veterinary hospital (if there's one anywhere near you.) They can offer a higher level of sophisticated care than what your local vet may be able to offer.

In the meantime until you can get your dog in to see a doctor, it probably would be best not to run your dog, or give her cause to bark as it will cause additional trauma.

I wish I could have been a bigger help. Best of luck,

Patti