Normally, your dog is experiencing other things.

"My dog ​​is choking!" I often get these crazy calls. Sometimes at two o'clock in the morning. Or on a sunny Sunday afternoon, I wear a bathing suit and sit in the backyard reading a book. A man ran over from the side of my house holding a big Labrador and eagerly shouted: "My dog ​​is choking!" One morning last month, I received another such case. Urgent message from the answering service. A client reported that her golden retriever slippers were choked on by the squeaking noise of a dog toy. Anyone who owns a dog knows what she is talking about-those stuffed animal dog toys have an air-filled plastic ball inside that makes a squeaking noise when the dog squeezes it. I know that my dog ​​Quina will not stop chewing on such a toy until she takes out its internal organs and kills the squeak. Slippers must have done the same to her toys.

I need to consider two possibilities. Maybe the slippers tried to swallow the squeak and vomited because it got stuck in her esophagus, the tube that connects her mouth to her stomach. Or is the scream stuck in a way that blocks her windpipe-the "windpipe" that carries air to the lungs? This is where we have to talk about semantics. The standard definition of suffocation is when a person or animal "severely have difficulty breathing due to a constricted or blocked throat or lack of air." Suffocation in the true sense is rare in dogs. 

If the slippers just swallowed the squeak, and it kept digging into her stomach, she might not show any signs that might be misunderstood as suffocation by the owner. Any time a dog eats a large inedible object, there is a risk of intestinal blockage. The good news is that although this problem must be resolved quickly, it is almost never a life-threatening acute emergency. Some materials can facilitate passage by using lubricating laxatives and keeping the animal well hydrated by subcutaneous or intravenous infusion. Objects that are too large to pass can be removed surgically, but there is almost always time to plan when and where such operations will be performed. Over the years, I have removed large rocks, ribs, socks, fish hooks, tampons, car seat trims, super balls, and various other objects from the stomach or intestines of animals.  

However, occasionally a foreign body is swallowed, but it does not go into the stomach all the time, but stays in the esophagus. In horses, this is actually a frequent occurrence, and equestrian enthusiasts call it "suffocation" for short. Of course the horse seemed to be suffocating. He may look very anxious, crane his neck, coughing, sneezing and gagging repeatedly. But these horses can breathe very well. Food stays in the esophagus, not the trachea. Choking usually occurs when the horse eats too fast, chews insufficiently, or swallows large items such as apples or corn on the cob. If left untreated, it can cause dehydration, pneumonia, and permanent damage to the esophagus. I haven't done any equestrian work for many years, but I believe it will still be treated with sedatives or muscle relaxants, and if necessary, nasogastric tubes will be used to lubricate and flush the materials. If the squeak is stuck in the esophagus of the Slippers, like a horse being "suffocated" by an apple, she'd better leave the island directly to find an expert, who can try to retrieve it with a fiber optic endoscope. But what if the squeaking really blocked her airway?  

Although very rare, it sometimes happens that an over-eager dog pushes a ball or other similar object too far when catching the ball, blocking the trachea. These animals will really suffocate and will die quickly due to lack of air. You can try the modified Heimlich maneuver, but this is not very effective for dogs. If the dog is conscious, try to remove the object with tweezers. If you lose consciousness, you can carefully try finger swipes. (Never put your hand into the mouth of a conscious dog, because you may be seriously injured.) I recently learned about a new, safer, and more effective emergency treatment that can suffocate the dog unconsciously. Take out an object such as a ball from the throat-External Extraction Technology (XXT). This is not something you should try at home, but if you want to learn about it, there is an interesting training video at youtube.com/watch?v=ABDnuvbREX4 and a video of an actual dog saved on youtube by a professional veterinarian. com/watch?v=j-OPuDVl-jM. 

I never need to use such an operation, but I am on high alert and ready to try it when necessary. Knowing that time is important, I immediately called the client and the adrenaline soared. false alarm. It turns out that the slippers bit the toy the day before. The owner was worried because she couldn't find a squeak, and because Ruby had been coughing and vomiting yesterday. She was getting better that morning, but her mother wanted us to check her just to make sure.

"My dog ​​is choking!" More than half of the time, the dog in question either had infectious tracheobronchitis, commonly called kennel cough, or had a condition called "reverse sneezing." These animals did not suffocate. They are coughing and sneezing. false alarm. During the physical examination, the slippers breathe smoothly. She eagerly ate snacks, and there was no evidence of esophageal obstruction. We recommend that her owner continue to observe the slippers and call back if there are any changes. Oh, the dog that was taken to my backyard on a sunny Sunday summer? He just stuck a stick on his mouth, frightened. I used a pair of hemostatic forceps to pull out the stick. He didn't choke. 

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