Playing fetch is a fun pastime until the ball gets caught in your pup's throat. Try this life-saving hack!
????Pups love to play fetch. Whether it's with a frisbee, rope, or a ball, dogs are all in. However, in some cases, your pup can play a little too exuberantly and get the ball lodged in their throat. The sound of your dog gagging can get any pet owner's heart racing.
However, there is a dog choking on a ball hack that will help you dislodge an obstruction from your pup's airways if you cannot get to the vet in time.
Dog Choking On Ball? Remember This Removal Hack
@dogtor_huston Go to https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=8871225 for creators! Lost a patient choking on a ball so had to share.
There is nothing scarier than when your dog has a foreign object lodged in its throat, especially when it is sitting just above its trachea. Getting the ball out of your dog's throat before they pass out is imperative. If your dog is making choking sounds, you can try to do the Heimlich maneuver of your small dog or medium-size dog, but it may be a little difficult for a larger or older dog.
Choking on a ball can be life-threatening, but this DVM posted a method for getting a ball out of your dog's windpipe before it's too late. Shawna Huston shared this method on her TikTok page, dogtor_huston.
If your dog is having difficulty breathing and you cannot get the blockage out of your dog's mouth, take the following steps:
- Flip your dog on their back
- Push the ball in a J shape movement
- The ball will come up out of their throat
- Grab the ball out of your dog's mouth
Using this dog choking on a ball hack can definitely come in handy if you live far away from the vet or emergency vet.
Common Causes Of Dog's Choking
RELATED: Hard Time Brushing Your Dog's Teeth? Try This Hack!
Dogs can choke on many different things, not just small balls. For example, if your dog eats too quickly, they can choke on their dog food. Also, dogs can get things stuck in their esophagus like acorns, sticks, rope toys, and bones. Make sure you have the correct size ball for your pup too!
Signs Your Dog Is Choking
If your dog is making gagging sounds that are reminiscent of a goose honk, they may have something stuck in their throat. Some other signs of choking are things like:
- Pawing
- Retching
- Trouble breathing
- ?Passing out
If your pup is showing any of these signs, you will want to get into their mouths to see if there is any obstruction. If you cannot see anything, get them to the vet as soon as possible.
Other Reasons for Coughing
If your pup sounds like they need to cough up a hairball, they may not be choking. Instead, they may have a respiratory infection like chronic bronchitis, which tends to cause a hacking cough.
Bordetella or kennel cough may be another reason why your dog's coughing. Infectious tracheobronchitis can be a viral or bacterial infection that dogs can get especially if they are around others and have not had their vaccination yet.
Reverse sneezing, heartworm, heart disease, distemper, and a collapsing trachea can all cause persistent coughing in your pup and are fairly serious.
A persistent cough can be a sign that there is something not right with your dog's health; you should take them to the vet to get checked immediately. Some dog breeds are far more susceptible to infection than others. So if your dog coughs, has a runny nose, and sounds like a goose, take them to a vet for a proper diagnosis. The vet may need to take an x-ray or do blood work to see exactly what is going on with your pup's respiratory tract.
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