Grey With Stuffy Nose & Sneezing

[brindlebaby]

Hi All,

 

Our grey Ava has been getting a stuffed up nose with discharge often and has a lot of sneezing (really bad when she wakes up). This has been happening off and on since at least late last year.

 

She finished her last round of antibiotics on April 12 and the stuffed up nose (with all this gunk) and sneezing are back and so she started another round of antibiotics yesterday (April 24). The antibiotics she is on are Cefpodoxime 200mg. for 10 days.

 

She wears a muzzle with stool guard when she goes out in the yard and sticks the nose piece in any poop that she finds. She started sticking the muzzle in poop sometime last year.

 

I was thinking that the muzzle and poop may be giving her a nasal infection?? I'm going to try and keep the yard squeaky clean and go outside with her every time and watch her like a hawk so she can go outside without a muzzle.

 

Maybe the muzzle/poop and the sneezing/stuffy nose are completely unrelated.

 

Just looking for answers as I'm tired of her being on antibiotics and suffering with this. I don't think it's a seasonal allergy thing either as it started when it was cold/snowy.

 

Any suggestions or advice, anyone had a grey with a chronic stuffed up nose?

 

Thanks,

 

Kim

[MaryJane]

Did they do a culture on the discharge? If not, that would be the first step as the antibiotics might not have been the best to use. Also, there could be a chance that the antibiotic use should be continued for a longer period.

 

Watching her outside sounds like a good idea, also, did you put duct tape over the muzzle front piece so that even if she shoves the muzzle in the poo, it won't go in?

[brindlebaby]

No they didn't do a culture, she hasn't seen her vet (I don't think) since she had her dental and I think that was in January or early February. I think I will call today and if the vet is in, maybe I can run her by. I will try the tape though... I just want her to be able to breath (with the tape).

 

Thanks MaryJane!

 

 

ETA... I think maybe the vet had talked about doing that late last year.... but she wanted to see if it went away after Ava got her dental, which kept being delayed because at first we needed to order Amicar and then because she had some seizures in January.

Edited April 25, 2014 by brindlebaby

[Sambuca]

Bring in a fecal sample. The normal test looks for nasal worms. I know that they caused lots of sneezing and reverse sneezing on a foster of mine

[3greytjoys]

Please ask your vet to consider testing for "nasal mites" also. After we had no success from antibiotics, allergy medications, and waiting through different weather seasons, I finally diagnosed nasal mites in one of our Greyhounds. (Our local vets were not used to seeing nasal mites in our area.)

 

I found her diagnosis by typing her symptoms (in link below), and the treatment listed was 100% successful in our hound's case. She has not had any more sneezing episodes in 6 years:

http://www.merckmanuals.com/vet/respiratory_system/respiratory_diseases_of_small_animals/canine_nasal_mites.html?qt=nasal mites&alt=sh

 

Hope you and your vet find a diagnosis and treatment for your hound's sneezing. Our girl was miserable before her treatment.

[brindlebaby]

I talked to the vet this morning... since Ava has been on antibiotics her nose is pretty much clear now. I'm going to pick up a culture kit and once she's off the antibiotics and the snotty nose comes back, I'll get a culture. She told me that when Ava was under for her dental she x-rayed that area and probed and found nothing there. It may be she needs a different antibiotic. I did mention about the nasal mites and she said she's never seen them, but it's a possiblity. First thing is we'll get the culture results and then go from there.

 

Thanks everyone for your help!

 

Kim & Ava (breathing freely again)