Reverse Sneezing... Or Worse? (Update!)

Update from:

http://rukimonster.blogspot.com/2007/09/reverse-sneezing-or-worse.html

So, I ended up taking her to the vet... And the vet said that Ruki has mild pneumonia. Her "reverse sneezing" is actually just coughing, and her licking up in her mouth was her licking up phlegm. Then her coughs would get so violent, they'd make her regurgitate. (Not "vomit"--vomiting comes from the stomach, regurgitating comes from other causes. Well-noted, Dr. Vet.) They confirmed this with x-rays.

So they gave us Clavamox--she just got off Clavamox for her pyoderma!--and the vet made some suggestions that have so far proved brilliant:

Raise Ruki's food and water bowls off the ground, about chin-height.

The thing is that bulldog's throats and airways are so short, that straining down and wolfing down food can mess with their breathing.

So I took an old Amazon.com shipping box, wrapped it in a plastic bag, and put her food and water up there. And amazingly she doesn't choke any more when she gobbles up her food! And she hasn't puked from coughing since! (But that could be just because she's getting better.)

I have to get her a new bowl since she eats with such gusto she knocks food and water all over the place--right now, I just hold the bowl while she eats. But this is great.

Now, the next step, is to look into changing her food and see if some day I can get her to actually *chew* her food!

Also, here's a link to a Yahoo! Answers post that gives some insight into too fast eating and the risk of bloat:

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070329080847AAFNk1I