11 Year old with laryngeal paralysis?

[igneous]

After reading the forums for a while it kind of sounds like my 11 Year Old Female Yellow Lab might have laryngeal paralysis.

She's had some throat issues develop for the past couple years, and I always wondered if it was from her collar or something. If she pulled hard on her previous collar she'd gag and cough a bit for a few seconds and then move on, so we moved on to a harness and that has helped a bit.

For the past 6 months the gagging comes and goes throughout the day, but oddly it seemed correlated with her needing to go to the bathroom. She is always home with people so she never seem to go more than a few hours without going out to pee unless it's night. But it seemed like if she needed to poop it would make her uncomfortable and gag inside, so we'd take her out and she would go, and the gagging would go away again.

Now its getting worse where she gags a bit during the day, but at night she can't go more than 2-5 hours without gagging and we take her out to see if she needs to relieve herself. Sometimes she does and sometimes no, so this "method" doesnt seem to be helping much. I noticed people saying their rear strength goes downhill as it gets worse, and this is definitely happening as well. Shes kinda strong during the day, but as the day goes on she gets weaker.

It's tough to watch because in her prime she would do 4-8 miles of walking/hiking a day through various members of the family. She'll be 12 in a few months, and that procedure doesnt seem to be the way to go at this point. We have her on carprofen daily and that seems to help her pain a bit. I saw others mention Doxepin and Benedryl, I definitely can't give her Benedryl as that made her crazy when she was young. Any suggestions for making her more comfortable would be great. Thanks!

[barry581]

Welcome. I've never dealt with LP but know several people who have. It does seem from what you are describing it does sound like LP. I would say a trip to the vet is your best bet for finding out what you are dealing with, and potential treatment options.

Watching them get old is indeed hard. I've gone through it many times, more than I care to think about sometimes. Enjoy everyday at this age, they are a gift.

[Black Labbies]

Hi and welcome.
Good that your girl is now in a harness, collars are really not good for any dog at any age. What's her name?

We went through possible LP with Ursa past September (also almost 12 yo). After vet check and throat and chest xrays, we still weren't sure her coughing/gagging was due to LP. We put her on some natural supplements/meds as per her vet, and Ursa improved a little. Then we started noticing she would cough more from a treat we ate and shared with her. We stopped this and now Ursa hardly coughs. It's still possible that Ursa has a mild case of LP, we won't know unless we do further, more invasive tests. Ursa did not lose strength in her hind legs, in fact, she still out runs our 2 yo Lab.

I agree, your first action should be a vet check with your girl. All the best!

[igneous]

Hi and welcome.
Good that your girl is now in a harness, collars are really not good for any dog at any age. What's her name?

We went through possible LP with Ursa, also almost 12 yo. After vet check and throat and chest xrays, we still weren't sure her coughing/gagging was due to LP. We put her on some natural supplements/meds as per her vet, and Ursa improved a little. Then we started noticing she would cough more from a treat we ate and shared with her. We stopped this and now Ursa hardly coughs. It's still possible that Ursa has a mild case of LP, we won't know unless we do further, more invasive tests. Ursa did not lose strength in her hind legs, in fact, she still out runs our 2 yo Lab.

I agree, you're first action should be a vet check with your girl. All the best!

Thanks, her name is Cody. A vet visit is definitely going to be scheduled, probably next week. We took her there when this issue was first starting and they said it might be some kind of acid reflux, so we put her on prilosec and that doesnt seem to do much. Also at first they werent sure if it was some kind of kennel cough, but it wasnt. And she doesnt have a lot of close interaction with other dogs, so something like that was unlikely anyway.

We've cut back on the snacks and human food(besides some steamed veggies), as she was putting on a few pounds over the years as her activity levels slowed down. She probably didnt lose much weight, but she seems to not be gaining any these days.
Ive been giving her Nutramax Dasuquin with MSM Joint Health Supplement treats for a while now but they dont seem to be helping too much.

[Black Labbies]

Hi Cody . When will Cody turn 12 yo? Ursa will turn 12 on March 10th.

Good on another vet visit.

It's not that all human foods are bad for our pets (in moderation), but the snack that Ursa is now allergic to, namely the cheesies in Party Mix, was bad for her.

So, our vet suggested we give Ursa echinacea 2X per day - every 12 'waking' hours. Also Nin Jiom herbal cough syrup 2X per day - this is really good for KC - we and our dogs use it and love the taste. Both of these helped to ease Ursa's throat and cough. We also gave her a natural anti-histamine called Boiron Histaminum hydrochloicum 30CH - must be given as directed.

Please keep us posted on how Cody is doing.

[igneous]

Hi Cody . When will Cody turn 12 yo? Ursa will turn 12 on March 10th.

Good on another vet visit.

It's not that all human foods are bad for our pets (in moderation), but the snack that Ursa is now allergic to, namely the cheesies in Party Mix, was bad for her.

So, our vet suggested we give Ursa echinacea 2X per day - every 12 'waking' hours. Also Nin Jiom herbal cough syrup 2X per day - this is really good for KC - we and our dogs use it and love the taste. Both of these helped to ease Ursa's throat and cough. We also gave her a natural anti-histamine called Boiron Histaminum hydrochloicum 30CH - must be given as directed.

Please keep us posted on how Cody is doing.

Thanks for those recommendations, it definitely will make me think of things she eats that could lead to inflammation. We've tried to cut back on the snacks but it needs to be constant with labs being endlessly hungry. Cautiously curious about anti-histamine options, Benadryl scared us when she initially took it when she was younger.

One thing I'm curious from others who have dealt with LP, if you noticed any correlation between the choke/gagging and the dog being uncomfortable or needing to go to the bathroom. As the condition seems to get worse, the correlation doesnt always seem to coincide with this. But, when she relives herself and comes back inside it seems to go away for a while. So I'm just not totally sure if getting up and moving around is helping, or if the bowel discomfort makes her throat worse. Its hard to say.

[Black Labbies]

Hi again.

Ursa was first diagnosed with bronchitis (from the xrays), then after our cheesie discovery, she was diagnosed with allergy bronchitis. Her cough was hoarse and raw and her gagging like she was trying to spit up mucous. Her vet used the stethoscope to narrow the cough to her neck/throat area, right where the LP lives, so it was not a definite diagnosis at first. As I mentioned, she could still have a mild case of LP. Since September's vet visits, Ursa has improved.

Right, Labs are food lovers and are food driven. As for the homeopathic Histaminum hydrochloicum 30CH, there are no known side-effects or unpleasant reactions. It's very safe when given as directed. I use it for my allergies as well.

As for Cody's bathroom urges, I'd have your vet check her for an UTI or any bowel/anal issues (please not, right). Maybe the force of her gagging puts added pressure on the bladder/bowel, hence causing the need to go. Hopefully someone with this experience chimes in.

From Cody's picture, she's a pretty girl! When's her 12th birthday?

[igneous]

Hi again.

Ursa was first diagnosed with bronchitis (from the xrays), then after our cheesie discovery, she was diagnosed with allergy bronchitis. Her cough was hoarse and raw and her gagging like she was trying to spit up mucous. Her vet used the stethoscope to narrow the cough to her neck/throat area, right where the LP lives, so it was not a definite diagnosis at first. As I mentioned, she could still have a mild case of LP. Since September's vet visits, Ursa has improved.

Right, Labs are food lovers and are food driven. As for the homeopathic Histaminum hydrochloicum 30CH, there are no known side-effects or unpleasant reactions. It's very safe when given as directed. I use it for my allergies as well.

As for Cody's bathroom urges, I'd have your vet check her for an UTI or any bowel/anal issues (please not, right). Maybe the force of her gagging puts added pressure on the bladder/bowel, hence causing the need to go. Hopefully someone with this experience chimes in.

From Cody's picture, she's a pretty girl! When's her 12th birthday?

Its either late april or may, we tend to celebrate when the mood strikes.

She's always had some stomach issues. We found a sensitive stomach food from regal when she was young and that helped a ton. Her bathroom urges aren't really any different than they've always been, she's always been an active poo-er. Some days she will go as many as 4-5 times. At this point I think maybe she's set into patterns that have been established for over a decade, but it's definitely all something that the vet will hear.

After much reading, it's easy to diagnose LP based on some symptoms, but I'm not going to jump to conclusions. It's hard not to obsess though. Thanks for all of your help

[Black Labbies]

Since Cody has had chronic, stomach/GI problems, this brings new light to her other problems. Has she ever been on a good pre and/or probiotic long-term? Our vet sells one, so I imagine other vets would also.

It is hard to not worry about our senior fur-families, but taking Cody to your vet would hopefully answer more of your questions.

[igneous]

Since Cody has had chronic, stomach/GI problems, this brings new light to her other problems. Has she ever been on a good pre and/or probiotic long-term? Our vet sells one, so I imagine other vets would also.

It is hard to not worry about our senior fur-families, but taking Cody to your vet would hopefully answer more of your questions.

shes been on a Pro-Pectalin Digestive Health and Probiotic Oral Paste for Dogs a couple times in the past couple years when she had temporary stomach issues, but nothing full time.