# Breathing problems with chihuahuas



## jmp24 (Nov 25, 2007)

Hello. I have a chihuahua foster dog who has some issues, very very submissive and sad, we believe there was some abuse in his original home. He isn't mean or aggressive, just depressed and a little anxious. I think there is hope, though, after only one week he has shown some improvement in his demeanor.

My question for all you who have more experience than I with these sweet little dogs is about the heavy breathing/wheezing/snorting thing. This dog does it almost constantly, especially when he is nervous or startled, and even wakes in the middle of the night doing it. The vet said that this was common for the breed and that some do it more than others, and that possibly it will calm down some as he gets more secure and happy. I just feel he is doing it way too much. Does anyone else's chi have this problem and if so, is it something I should worry about?
Thanks - 
Jen


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## Yoshismom (Jul 6, 2005)

Welcome to the board!

It is what most call reverse sneezing and it is common but usually not constant. IMO he is probably just very nervous still adjusting to a new situation and it may calm as he calms. If it continues after you feel he is relaxing then I might would get a 2nd opinion to make sure there are no underlying health issues causing it. I usually touch my boys nose so they will lick it and this tends to help. There are other things that work for other members that I am sure they will share with you

I would love to see pictures of your boy


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## feistypup6 (Dec 12, 2005)

Not to worry Jen, but my question to Michelle would be "how do you tell the difference between reverse sneeze and collapsing trachea? Is it easy for an amature to tell the difference?


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## Pauline Leland (Oct 9, 2006)

Did the vet hear your dog wheeze? If so, I wouldn't worry. Boop makes that noise when she's excited, all choked up, lol. I get her to breathe through her mouth and it stops. As Michelle said, he should improve as he gets more relaxed.

If the vet hasn't heard the dog, then maybe it's worth a check.


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## Yoshismom (Jul 6, 2005)

feistypup6 said:


> Not to worry Jen, but my question to Michelle would be "how do you tell the difference between reverse sneeze and collapsing trachea? Is it easy for an amature to tell the difference?


I myself have never heard a collapsed trachea or that of one collapsing and have no idea what it would sound like? Quite frankly amateur or not I am not sure of how easy it would be to differentiate but since she did state that he had been checked by a vet and the vet did not see an alarm in it and said it was normal then I would think it is safe to say that it is reverse sneezing. Surely a vet would know the difference. But like I stated above after the Chi has relaxed in his environment and it persists in being so frequent then I would definately seek another professional opinion


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## Jen (Sep 13, 2005)

welcome :wave:

woody reverse sneezes much more than teddy does. it usually happens whenever he is excited.

this link has some helpful info...

Reverse Sneezing


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## jmp24 (Nov 25, 2007)

Hi all - thanks for the advice and the link. I myself did not take him to the vet, the woman who runs the rescue group did. I have suspicions that this dog is not 100% healthy, but he needs to be in a safe environment for a while for me to be able to tell what is a health problem and what is just his nerves. He also needs a full work up at the vet, which I know he has not had, and I have spoken to the rescue lady about that. He is severely underweight, only 6.5 lbs when he should weight 11 or 12.
He has been eating real good the past week, in fact right now he is a turkey eating machine! (no, I am not giving him too much, no matter how much he begs!)
Of course in the short time I have had him, I have fallen madly in love with him and am probably going to keep him.

I tried to post a few photos, but the system is telling me they are "over my quota" - in size I guess? I shrunk them down to the smallest I could without ruining them and I still can't get them through. I will work on it more this afternoon, working for a few hrs this morning.

Thanks again!
Jen


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## Katie (Apr 9, 2005)

Most of us here use photobucket.com for our pictures. Here's a good tutorial to if you want to try it out http://www.chihuahua-people.com/showthread.php?t=20707

When I got Daisy about 5 months ago, the breeder who I bought her from told me she was perfectly healthy and vet checked but when I got her she was snoring soo badly at night and always panting like she couldn't breathe well. And her nose was really dried out so the day after we got her we took her to the vet who put her on 2 medicines, one for an ear infection and the other for some upper respiratory issues. I think going to the vet yourself is a good idea so you know what really has been done


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## sullysmum (Mar 6, 2004)

When our girls do the reverse sneeze thing we rub their throats very gently or just hold their mouth gently so they breath through their noses, they usually stop within a very short while. Has your rescues heart been checked as Sully also has the heart murmur cough which she is on medication for.


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## Yoshismom (Jul 6, 2005)

When you mentioned what the vet had said above I just assumed that you had personally taken him. I agree if you yourself have not already taken him to the vet then it is a good idea to go ahead and do so For him and your peace of mind


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## jmp24 (Nov 25, 2007)

I don't know how many pics I can post at once, so bear with me! Also, he is hard to get photos of because he won't make eye contact with me...yet.


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## jmp24 (Nov 25, 2007)

Here are two more, let me know if I am doing this wrong.


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## jmp24 (Nov 25, 2007)

Is this a moderated forum?


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## jmp24 (Nov 25, 2007)

Well, I don't know what is going on, I just went thru the hassle of posting pictures at least 5 times from my photobucket account, and they only show up right after I click on post quick reply. When I close the page and come back they are gone. Unless this is moderated - and I really can't see why it would be - then I don't know what is going on. I'd love to hang around but it is so annoying when this stuff happens.....and I don't think its me, I belong to other forums with the same setup as this one....


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## Jen (Sep 13, 2005)

jmp24 said:


> Is this a moderated forum?


yes it is 

New Members' Posting Delay

when you post your pics just copy the IMG code assigned to it at photobucket and then your pics will show :wink:

you can post 12 images, which include smilies, per post.


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## sullysmum (Mar 6, 2004)

He is lovely, but poor sad little boy!


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## Jen (Sep 13, 2005)

jmp24 said:


> Well, I don't know what is going on, I just went thru the hassle of posting pictures at least 5 times from my photobucket account, and they only show up right after I click on post quick reply. When I close the page and come back they are gone. Unless this is moderated - and I really can't see why it would be - then I don't know what is going on. I'd love to hang around but it is so annoying when this stuff happens.....and I don't think its me, I belong to other forums with the same setup as this one....


we moderate new member's first 5 posts because of the type, porn, and amount of spam this forum gets. not all spammers post links as their first post but instead post pictures which can be very graphic :wink:


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## Alisha (Mar 11, 2005)

I realize the posting delay can be a hassle but if you were to stay around & become a regular member you would appreciate why we moderate those first few posts.Sorry we can't make everyone happy but our first priority is to our active members we do not want them to see anything disturbing. We also have some young members & we don't want them to be subjected to anything bad 

Your foster baby is adorable Thank you taking care of him :wink:


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## freedomchis (Jul 28, 2007)

aww hes looks adorable but very sad hopefully you can make him all better please
people who dont look after dogs make me sooooooooo mad


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## Yoshismom (Jul 6, 2005)

Awwww! He is very sweet bless his heart that he will not look at you yet...that just breaks my heart for him:-( He has been through so much:-(


I hope you stick around I will not join any message boards that are not moderated...I really appreciate them


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## jmp24 (Nov 25, 2007)

Ahhh, I see. Well, as long as it is only until I have proven myself not to be a pornographer or, even worse, selling something, then I can live with it. I just couldn't figure out what was going on, I kept going back in to see if my photo posting worked and every post kept disappearing on me!! Sorry to get so annoyed, I get very frustrated, especially because my computer skills aren't so great.

Yes, Oobi is a little sweetie, and he has shown some improvement in his demeanor since comimg here to stay with me. It will take some work, but I think he is going to be fine. I am glad I have someplace to come and ask questions. My boyfriend has 3 chihuahuas, a long haired, a teacup, and one he rescued from the pound who has some Jack Russell in him, so he is somewhat chihuahua literate and is helping me some but you know how guys are, they don't get into every little detail like we girls do!

Anyway, chances are real good I will be keeping Oobi, I just can't bear to think of him being happy and feeling safe here and then handing him over to someone else, he has been thru too much already. And of course I have fallen madly in love with him, but that is beside the point right now, I just want to do what is best for him. Tomorrow we go shopping at PetSmart for a new sweater, he came with the striped red one, but I think he needs something more fashionable....plus the red one I think is made for the female dog body, it covers up his little wee wee ( saying wee wee isn't considered pornography, is it? ) which is not practical during walks. I have my eye on a fisherman cable knit turtleneck in blue that I saw on the PetSmart web site.
Maybe a new collar too.

Also, this is strange, but he doesn't play with toys....I am not sure he was ever given any. I gave him a little rawhide chewy stick and it took him 3 days to even look at it, now he is chewing on it (they are safe, right?) So I was thinking about looking for some little squeaky toys.

Jen


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## Pauline Leland (Oct 9, 2006)

He looks very handsome, sweet and sad. I think much of his sad look is from his 'eyebrows'. I noticed the black chi in Jen's siggie looked mournful compared to the white chi, and these had different facial markings. But not looking at you is way too subservient for such a saucy dog as a chihuahua. I can empathize with your feelings on keeping him.

He must have had a rough life if he won't play and won't chew on a chewie. Or he's still heartbroken at loosing his original home. Do dogs do that or am I anthropomorphizing?


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## Alisha (Mar 11, 2005)

Poco doesn't play with toys either he had plently just never liked them  

I'm glad you're keeping the little fella  Oh we don't say teacup around here it's like a bad word  And no saying wee wee isn't bad :lol:

Pauline anthropomorphizing  huh never heard that word before :lol:


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## [email protected] (May 10, 2004)

reverse sneezing is incredibly common in chihuahuas and for the most part is entirley harmless. Roo does it when he drinks too quickly or gets a bit too giddy. I have found the best thing to do is to try and keep them calm and gently place 2 fingers over his nostrils to make him breathe through his nose. This makes it stop. On the other hand, i hvae never heard Minnie or Elmo do it.


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## jmp24 (Nov 25, 2007)

So why is teacup a bad word? I would like to know more about them, what I have read is that they are breeding "accidents", not an actual breed.

I think anthropomorphasizing is when you attribute human feelings to animals. It is hard to say though with dogs, being that they are a species so closely aligned with humans, almost like soul mates in a sense. And I do think they grieve for their losses. In fact, I would bet on it. Even if my Oobi came from a bad home where he was not given the love he deserved, it was still his home and all he knew. From there he went to a shelter, a frightening experience for any dog, and then to the rescue - another big change, but he loved the rescue lady and her teenage daughter - but the reason she couldn't keep him with her is that she has too many animals, cats dogs puppies, and young kids, her home is just too chaotic and Oobi was a nervous wreck, she thought he needed a more peaceful environment to heal his little soul....so he gets ripped out of there and brought to me. This poor little guy has every right to feel depressed.

One thing that makes me kinda sad - he seems to like children. The first time I saw him wag his tail was when my 5 yr old neice came to see him. I know for sure there were kids in his original home and I bet they were the only ones who gave him any lovin'. I bet they miss him too. 

What I will NEVER understand is how anyone could look at his little face and then drive to a shelter and plop him down on the counter and say we don't want him anymore. How could anyone do that to any animal??? What did they tell the kids? I wish I could let those kids know that he is safe and happy. 

Oh well, if I keep dwelling on the sad state of abandoned animals in our world, I will be curled up under a blanket next to Oobi for the rest of the day!

Btw, he did chew on his rawhide strip while I was gone yesterday for several hours, but I gave it to him 3 days ago! I guess some dogs just don't like toys, but I will try anyway.

Thanks gembabes for the tip on the reverse sneezing, he seems to be doing it a little less as the days go by, but still does it alot. I will try the fingers on his nose trick.


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## Alisha (Mar 11, 2005)

Because Chis are in the toy group there isn't a need to call littler ones another name. Breeders who us these terms are just trying to get more money for them. They're breeding tiny chis to other tiny chis which has deadly consequences. I have 2 smaller chis but they were just born small. These breeders who say they sell teacups can't gaurantee how big they'll be full grown.Anyone who really loved the breed would never try to make tinier ones especially while using a tiny bitch to do so.


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## Yoshismom (Jul 6, 2005)

You are such a good soul to have taken this sweet boy in It may be that it just takes some time for him to adjust and trust, he may end up playing with those toys after all;-) I see so many Chi's in the rescues around here and people in the papers breeding them all of the time and cant even spell Chihuahua correctly (it pops up chiwawa) alot around here:-( I also see in the paper where they are being traded off like merchandise for other breeds or even for lawnmowers or guns....so sad:-( 

We would love to see pics of your boy friends chis as well We love pics around here


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## jmp24 (Nov 25, 2007)

Yes, I have read that the tiny chi's sometimes die having puppies. I wasn't aware that it was a problem.

Before I got Oobi, I noticed alot of chihuahuas on the pet forum at Craigslist - it seemed like everyone was selling one, most of them NOT puppies. I even posted that I was looking for one and then got depressed at all the responses. There are so many people out there trying to get rid of their dogs, I would take them all if I could. So sad.

I have some pics of my friends chihuahuas, I have to get them on photobucket first, no time right now, I am in the middle of writing a term paper on Bubonic Plague. Busy Busy. Oobi is having a good day, btw. It is not too cold today and when I let him out he is tearing around the yard, running for joy! Of course he runs himself right into a hacking wheezing sneezing fit, but he gets over it and runs some more! Too cute!


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## sullysmum (Mar 6, 2004)

Its always the way, far too many chihuahuas in Usa and not enough in the UK.


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## BellaLina's Mom (Mar 16, 2007)

Your chi is sweet and adorable. Kudos to you for wanting to give him a forever home.


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## jmp24 (Nov 25, 2007)

Well, Oobi does seem better everyday but today not so good. He has thrown up a few times and seems a little under the weather. I am all paranoid because I gave him a greenie yesterday...

I do believe he has gained a little weight though. Nothing substantial, he just seems to have filled out some.


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## jmp24 (Nov 25, 2007)

Poor Oobi, today I got some upsetting news on the phone and when I hung up I was crying and explaining things to my sister in law, and Oobi did not like seeing me upset one bit - he started barking and howling and trying to climb up my leg, he was very worked up about it. Which helped me to calm down, actually.


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## Jangles021204 (Sep 20, 2006)

Aww, he is adorable, and he sounds so sweet!!


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## lostlolli (Nov 20, 2007)

he is such a cute lil pup...i think there is a lot of hope...just give him lots of love!!!!


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## DB-N-Whiskey (Nov 7, 2006)

My little guy does the reverse sneezing, and I have been a bit worried lately, since he seems to be doing it a little more. But, it is still only when he is excited. Like if he is playing, and gets to rowdy, or whatever. This is pretty normal as far as I know. 
BUT, if I were you I would personally take him to a vet you trust for another look over, especially if you think you'll keep him for good. Like others have said, for you own peace of mind.


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