It can be quite alarming to witness your dog suddenly making strange snorting sounds, especially if you’ve never encountered it before. This phenomenon, known as reverse sneezing, might seem serious, but fortunately, it’s usually less concerning than it sounds.
Reverse sneezing is a respiratory reflex primarily observed in dogs, and less commonly in cats. Understanding why dogs reverse sneeze and what you can do to help them is crucial for any dog owner. Let’s delve into the details of reverse dog sneezing and how to manage it.
What is Reverse Sneezing in Dogs?
Reverse sneezing, also referred to as paroxysmal respiration or an inward sneeze, is a sudden, involuntary respiratory response. It occurs when a dog’s soft palate, the fleshy area at the back of the roof of the mouth that separates the nasal passage from the oral cavity, becomes irritated.
This irritation triggers a spasm in the muscles of the soft palate. This spasm leads to a temporary narrowing of the trachea, or windpipe. As the dog instinctively extends their neck and expands their chest to breathe, the constricted trachea makes it challenging to inhale normally. Consequently, the dog repeatedly attempts to draw air in forcefully through their nose, resulting in the characteristic snorting or honking sound of a reverse sneeze.
Think of it as the opposite of a regular sneeze. While a normal sneeze is the body’s way of expelling irritants outwards through the nose and mouth, a reverse sneeze is an attempt to inhale and clear an irritant from the back of the nasal passages or throat.
What Causes Reverse Sneezing in Dogs?
Dogs primarily reverse sneeze as a natural mechanism to expel irritants from the soft palate or throat region. This is analogous to how a regular sneeze helps to clear irritants from the nasal passages. Essentially, anything that can irritate the soft palate can potentially trigger a reverse sneezing episode. Common culprits include environmental irritants such as a blade of grass, pollen, dust, or even household dust mites.
It’s important to note that while occasional reverse sneezing is usually normal, if your dog experiences frequent episodes, a veterinary consultation is recommended. Identifying the underlying trigger becomes crucial for developing effective long-term management strategies.
Several other factors can contribute to soft palate irritation and subsequently lead to reverse sneezing in dogs. These include:
- Allergies: Just like humans, dogs can suffer from allergies, both seasonal and environmental. Allergens can irritate the soft palate and trigger reverse sneezing.
- Household Products: Strong scents from perfumes, cleaning products, and air fresheners can be irritating to a dog’s respiratory system and induce reverse sneezing.
- Leash Pulling (Collar): Pressure on the neck from pulling on a leash attached to a collar can sometimes irritate the throat area and trigger a reverse sneezing episode.
- Overexcitement: Intense excitement or anxiety can sometimes lead to rapid breathing and irritation of the upper airways, potentially causing reverse sneezing.
- Exercise Intolerance: In some cases, reverse sneezing might occur after or during exercise, possibly due to increased respiratory effort or inhaled irritants during physical activity.
- Foreign Objects in the Throat: The presence of a foreign body lodged in the throat, or even a growth or mass in the area, can irritate the soft palate and cause reverse sneezing.
- Nasal Mites: These tiny parasites can infest the nasal passages and cause irritation, leading to reverse sneezing and other respiratory symptoms.
- Elongated Soft Palate: Certain dog breeds, particularly brachycephalic breeds (those with short noses like Bulldogs and Pugs), are predisposed to having an elongated soft palate. This anatomical feature can increase the likelihood of reverse sneezing.
- Eating or Drinking: Sometimes, eating or drinking too quickly can cause irritation or the entry of food particles into the nasal passage, triggering reverse sneezing.
What Does Dog Reverse Sneezing Sound Like?
The sound of reverse sneezing in dogs is quite distinctive. It’s often described as the dog “inhaling their sneezes,” hence the term “reverse sneezing.” The sound is typically loud and snorting, and it can sometimes resemble a goose honking or even be mistaken for choking.
Because the sound can be concerning and sometimes confused with more serious conditions, it’s helpful to familiarize yourself with what reverse sneezing sounds like.
If you are able to, capturing a video of a reverse sneezing episode can be incredibly beneficial when consulting with your veterinarian. Visual and auditory evidence can greatly assist in accurate diagnosis. Importantly, if there’s any doubt or concern that your dog might be choking, immediate veterinary attention is crucial. Choking is a life-threatening emergency, and differentiating it from reverse sneezing is vital.
How to Help a Dog Stop Reverse Sneezing
The good news is that most reverse sneezing episodes are short-lived, typically resolving on their own within less than a minute. Often, no intervention is needed, and the episode will pass without any assistance.
However, if you wish to try and help your dog during a reverse sneezing episode, there are a few gentle techniques that some pet owners find helpful. One common suggestion is to gently blow air into your dog’s face for a few seconds. This action can encourage the dog to swallow, which in turn can help to stop the spasm in the soft palate and resolve the reverse sneezing. Another technique some find effective is gently massaging the dog’s throat. This might also help to alleviate the muscle spasm.
It’s reassuring to remember that even without intervention, reverse sneezing episodes are self-limiting and will subside naturally.
When to Consult a Veterinarian for Reverse Sneezing in Dogs
If your dog experiences a reverse sneezing episode for the very first time, it’s always prudent to consult with your veterinarian. This is primarily to ensure that what you witnessed was indeed reverse sneezing and not a symptom of a more serious underlying condition, such as a collapsed trachea. A collapsed trachea can produce a cough that sounds somewhat similar to reverse sneezing, but requires veterinary attention.
For isolated, short-lived episodes where your dog quickly returns to normal behavior and exhibits no other concerning symptoms like difficulty breathing or weakness, it’s generally acceptable to simply mention the episode during your dog’s next routine veterinary checkup.
However, it is crucial to seek prompt veterinary care if your dog experiences frequent, recurring reverse sneezing episodes. This pattern suggests that there might be an underlying cause that needs to be identified and addressed. Determining the root cause is essential for managing the condition effectively and ensuring your dog’s respiratory health.
Diagnosing Reverse Sneezing in Dogs by Veterinarians
When you bring your dog to the veterinarian for reverse sneezing, the veterinarian will begin by gathering information about your dog’s history and the episodes. They will likely ask questions about potential exposure to respiratory irritants, any history of allergies, and the possibility of foreign object ingestion.
If you were able to capture a video of a reverse sneezing episode, this will be extremely valuable for the veterinarian in confirming the diagnosis. Dogs often do not exhibit the behavior in the stressful environment of a veterinary clinic, so video evidence can be very helpful.
The veterinarian will also perform a thorough physical examination. This will include assessing your dog’s heart and lung sounds and checking for any other respiratory signs, such as nasal discharge or increased respiratory rate or effort.
To establish a baseline health evaluation and rule out other potential issues, the veterinarian may recommend routine blood tests, including a complete blood count (CBC), serum blood chemistry, and urinalysis.
In some cases, further diagnostic tests may be necessary to rule out other conditions that can mimic reverse sneezing or cause similar snorting noises. These conditions include:
- Collapsed Trachea: As mentioned earlier, this condition can have a similar cough-like sound.
- Nasal Tumors or Polyps: Growths in the nasal passages can cause obstruction and respiratory distress.
- Nasal Foreign Body: An object lodged in the nasal passages can cause irritation and breathing difficulties.
- Upper Respiratory Tract Infection (URTI): Infections can cause inflammation and nasal congestion.
- Inflammation (Rhinitis): Inflammation of the nasal passages can lead to various respiratory symptoms.
To investigate these possibilities, diagnostic procedures might include chest X-rays, a sedated oral and nasal examination, and potentially rhinoscopy. Rhinoscopy involves inserting a small camera into the nasal cavity to directly visualize the nasal passages and identify any abnormalities.
Treatment Options for Reverse Sneezing in Dogs
In most instances, reverse sneezing is considered a benign condition that does not require specific medication or treatment, especially if it occurs infrequently.
However, in cases where reverse sneezing is frequent or severe, or when an underlying cause is identified, veterinary intervention may be necessary. Treatment will then focus on addressing the underlying cause or providing symptomatic relief.
For example, if allergies are determined to be the trigger for reverse sneezing episodes, the veterinarian might prescribe antihistamines, such as cetirizine, or corticosteroids like prednisone to manage the allergic response and reduce inflammation.
In the less common scenario where nasal mites are diagnosed, the veterinarian will prescribe an anti-parasitic medication to eliminate the mites. Common medications used for this purpose include ivermectin or milbemycin oxime.
If pet owners are aware of specific allergens or irritants that seem to trigger reverse sneezing in their dog, the best approach is to minimize the dog’s exposure to these triggers. For instance, avoiding the use of strong household chemicals or air fresheners in the dog’s environment can be beneficial.
It’s important to reiterate that if your dog is experiencing frequent reverse sneezing episodes, a veterinary consultation is recommended to identify any underlying triggers and establish appropriate long-term management strategies.
FAQ:
How long do episodes of reverse sneezing last?
Typically, bouts of reverse sneezing in dogs are brief, usually lasting for approximately 30 seconds or less, although they might feel considerably longer to a concerned owner. Importantly, dogs typically behave completely normally both before and immediately after a reverse sneezing episode.
WRITTEN BY
Shelby Loos, DVM
Veterinarian
Dr. Shelby Loos is a 2017 graduate from the University of Florida with a certificate in aquatic animal medicine. After completing a year…
