Laryngeal Paralysis

[Guest DanTheMan]

For awhile now I have know that something is not right with my grey, Dylan. It started a few years ago when he had this occasional hack/cough that we called his "old man cough". Then probably about a year ago his bark changed. It's very quiet and raspy now. He also pants a lot when none of the other dogs are panting and he appears to be miserable when it's warm, panting and restless. He also seems to have a hard time taking a breath in when he's excited and barking at something with the other dogs. I've asked three different vets about these changes since I first noticed the cough and all of them told me it's just his age (he'll turn 13 in June). Then I was at a meet and greet and I was telling a lady about him and she said her grey had the same symptoms and her vet said it was caused by the larynx hardening. I went online and found laryngeal paralysis and Dylan seems to fit almost all of the symtoms for it. I also found that it can be surgically corrected with an immediate relief of symtoms. I was just wondering if anyone else has seen this and what they did. Thanks.

[Guest MnMDogs]

Mork had LP tieback 3 years ago at age 11 and a half. We just lost him to something totally unrelated 2 weeks ago, and if your Dylan is otherwise healthy, I would do the surgery in a heartbeat. Mork did have immediate relief and it gave him 3 more years of a happy and good life.

 

He never had any complications even immediately post op, or in the past 3 years...meaning no aspiration pneumonia. The only change we made was adding water to his kibble. He coughed a bit when he ate, but never aspirated, and like I said (and you mentioned) the relief was instant. I believe dogs are usually kept overnight after surgery but Mork was very very anxious at the vet, so he was discharged home that evening. Those first few hours were rough since we couldn't allow him to drink and he was obviously very thirsty, but it was well worth it to see the huge improvement

 

Actually, there was one side effect, he could no longer bark. But he learned that a loud air bark, with foot stomping got our attention!!!

 

Where are you located? I'd suggest discussing with your vet (and confirming diagnosis), and scheduling an appointment with a specialist to get him assessed.

[Guest DanTheMan]

I live in Danville, PA (central PA). I just discovered this condition yesterday so I've made an appointment at the vet for this coming week. I'm a little upset about this because I've known for years that something wasn't right but none of the vets I took him to even mentioned this as a possiblity. I really hate being told they're just old. I printed off a research article I found with a lot of great information on this condition that I'm going to bring with us.

[Guest MnMDogs]

Good luck, and please keep us posted. We were positive we would never do surgery on Mork (he's seemed old since I got him), but then he had a really bad incident on a warm January day after a walk. I wish I'd done it sooner. Hoping for the best for you and your boy.

 

I can't remember if my vet mentioned it or I brought it to her attention. But I think I had heard about it a lot on this board in the previous years. There are several success stories on here.

Edited February 23, 2014 by MnMDogs

[ZoomDoggy]

I had the unilateral tieback surgery done on a senior hound I had years ago. I only wish I had done it sooner. Sadly she died a few weeks later, of unrelated causes.

 

One risk of the surgery is possible aspiration pneumonia. Because the larynx is no longer able to fully close once it is surgically tied open, there is a risk that the dog can inhale foreign matter or liquids, particularly if the dog vomits. This is a very serious concern, and can lead to death.

If the dog is not prone to vomiting, the reward versus risk for the surgery will be worthwhile.

 

Please do find a specialist who has experience with this specific surgery. A regular vet, as you have experienced now, will not fully understand what is required. Even my own very greyhound-savvy vet was unwilling to do the surgery without an experienced surgical specialist from the University present.

[Time4ANap]

Given the experience you've had with local vets, you might consider a consult with the diagnostic clinics at either Penn State Vet Med in State College, or U Penn Vet Med in Philly. I've always heard great things about both of them.

 

Good luck. Hope you can get some relief for Dylan.

[3greytjoys]

We currently have two Greyhounds with laryngeal paralysis (LP is a nerve-related, progressive disease). One hound already had early LP symptoms at time of adoption at 6 years old, both hounds are 12 years old now. I believe LP is much more common in many dog breeds than is recognized, or diagnosed. Tie-back surgery is a good option for many dogs; however, our hounds were not candidates (due to other health issues), so we are VERY careful with their life management.

 

Highlights below (helpful for other readers) include two helpful links.

 

Signs of Laryngeal Paralysis (per MSU, link below):

• Increased noisy breathing from throat (stridor), sometimes called “roaring”, most noticeable when panting.
• Distressed breathing, especially in hot weather, humidity, and when excited or stressed.
• Unable to exercise as much, may sit down or even collapse.
• Bark change / hoarse bark (in about half the cases).
• When severe, the gums may become pale or blue colored.
• Throat-clearing, or hacking, or coughing.
• Gagging with or without regurgitation (may or may not be associated with drinking/eating).
• Hind-end weakness and an unsteady gait.
• Loss of muscle mass.

If a Greyhound shows any of the symptoms above, please alert a veterinarian re: Laryngeal Paralysis. Board certified surgeon is often recommended for tie-back surgery.

Important Tips to Help Manage Laryngeal Paralysis:

 

- Ensure hound's home is kept cool, and remains a calm, stress-free environment.

- Limit dog's excessive activity (e.g., avoid running).

- Avoid walking dog in warm temperatures. (Early morning is coolest time of day.)

- Moisten dry kibble with a little water before serving.

- Be careful to not overfeed dog. (Healthy pet Greyhound weight is being able to see the last two ribs.)

- Leash walk an LP dog with a harness instead of a collar (to eliminate pressure on the dog's larynx).

- Stop using collars. (Please be EXTRA careful to keep Greyhound from getting loose by mistake. Ensure Greyhound gets microchipped since this means dog has no I.D. collar. Keep microchip records updated with current contact info.)

 

 

A couple of good links:

http://www.acvim.org/PetOwners/AnimalEducation/FactSheets/Neurology/LaryngealParalysis.aspx

http://cvm.msu.edu/hospital/clinical-research/golpp-study-group/living-with-golpp

Edited February 23, 2014 by 3greytjoys

[Guest Georgiajed]

Our senior grey ' Beau' just had tie back surgery last week. We are trying to put some weight back on him, as he lost about 7 - 8 pounds in the last two months. He is recovering nicely, and his rear legs are gaining strength again. He is now back on the couch again after 6 weeks.

 

Does anyone have suggestions about food & diet - post surgery. Beau ate very little for several days, and is just getting an appetite back.

 

Post surgery, we stayed away from his diet of (dry) TOTW with water, and went to the canned (wet) variety. It did not agree with him. We are now feeding him a diet of roast chicken, turkey, or canned salmon with rice or possibly (farro?)

 

Any and all suggestion for diet post surgery are welcome.

 

Jed

[brandimom]

My first gh in 1996 was diagnosed too late. My vet thought it was allergies. Long story short if I could go back I would have considered having the tie back done. Sarah, the gh, died a horrible death due to LP and it will live with me the rest of my life. We were driving back from California from seeing a vet for something else (and that is the vet that told me that day that she had LP) and headed home to Nevada. Sarah was so stressed out from the vet appt and was panting so hard she was having a horrible time trying to breathe. She was gasping for air and my only thought was to try and get her to ER ASAP. It was too late by the time we got to ER. They iced her and trying to give her life back. They said she had something similar to a heat stroke. 2 days at ER we said goodbye. So would I do the tie back I WOULD

[3greytjoys]

Georgiajed, welcome to GT. Please consider starting a new topic for your post-surgical food question regarding Beau. That way more GTers will see your question to respond in a new thread.

 

Also, if interested, there is an all breed group for LP dog owners. Many of the members' dogs have been through successful tie-back surgery, and have experience about post-surgical options. https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/lp/info

 

Whatever you decide to feed during recovery, please run it by your vet to ensure it's safe for your Greyhound's recent tie-back needs. It's my understanding that certain foods that can be shaped into balls (shaped like meatballs) work well, but my hounds have not had tie-back surgery. If you feed any human foods, please do not add any spices -- garlic, onion etc. are toxic to dogs.

 

 

Other readers: This is an old thread. The OP's hound, Dylan did have tie-back surgery but experienced complications. Most sadly, Dylan did not survive.

[seeh2o]

I have no experience with this, but did some research for a friend. For those hounds who are not good candidates for surgery there was a medication mentioned here on GT, Doxipen. You may want to look into that and give it a try if there are contraindications for the tieback surgery like his age or other medical conditions.

[galgrey]

My second greyhound, Keno,had laryngeal paralysis. I suspected it from the symptoms I read online, but my vet said he'd never seen or heard of it in a greyhound and felt it was allergies and treated it as such. I'm not sure it was related to the LP, but about a year later he had started having intermittent lameness and fever and enlarged lymph nodes. He was tested for TBD and lymphoma, both negative. Then at 2:00 am on New Year's Day 2007 he couldn't breathe and I rushed him to the emergency vet. I thought he was going to die before I got him there. It was horrible. He was sedated and intubated just in time to save his life. They confirmed he had bilateral LP and unspecified neurological issues. He was a few weeks short of 13. When they removed the tube, he couldn't breathe and became very distressed, so I made the decision to let him go.

 

I'm sorry to hear you've gotten this diagnosis, but many dogs live normal lives after a tie back. Sending good thoughts your way. Oh, and I would definitely get a surgical consult from a vet experienced with the tie back surgery.

[wendell]

If you are in Danville you might want to think about taking your pup over to State College to be seen.

[galgrey]

Georgiajed, welcome to GT. Please consider starting a new topic for your post-surgical food question regarding Beau. That way more GTers will see your question to respond in a new thread.

 

Also, if interested, there is an all breed group for LP dog owners. Many of the members' dogs have been through successful tie-back surgery, and have experience about post-surgical options. https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/lp/info

 

Whatever you decide to feed during recovery, please run it by your vet to ensure it's safe for your Greyhound's recent tie-back needs. It's my understanding that certain foods that can be shaped into balls (shaped like meatballs) work well, but my hounds have not had tie-back surgery. If you feed any human foods, please do not add any spices -- garlic, onion etc. are toxic to dogs.

 

 

Other readers: This is an old thread. The OP's hound, Dylan did have tie-back surgery but experienced complications. Most sadly, Dylan did not survive.