Canine Wheezing

NekopanNekopan
edited August 2008 in Food, Nutrition, & Health
To make a long story short (I can elaborate if it's any more helpful), my boyfriend's dad and his wife are backyard breeders. The pups from their first litter are now approximately 5 months old. I've been waiting for health issues to arise, and now I'm thinking they have. One of the pups breathes really fast and wheezily when resting. Could this be a sign of asthma or an allergy? Am I over-analyzing this?

Comments

  • SangmortSangmort
    edited August 2008
    That's awful! I'll let the more experienced members comment on the issue since I know little of canine abnormalities resulting from poor breeding.

    Out of curiosity, what breed are they destroying / breeding? :(~
  • tsukitsunetsukitsune
    edited August 2008
    "In most animals who have breathing problems you may notice:

    * Wheezing similar to Asthma

    * Breathlessness such as gasping or panting for breathe

    * Panting excessively after exercise or after running up/down the stairs

    * Laying down and taking deep breathes similar to panting and possibly accompanied with a fast heart beat.

    * Hacking/nasty cough after exercise.

    If you notice any of the above, then you must see your Vet. A lot of breathing problems in puppies are harmless and usually due to a build up on catarrh or a chest infection. But as your dog is a puppy, his/her immune system will be a lot weaker than adult dogs and because of this a minor infection or viral infection can become severe and take its toll on your puppy.

    Normal color of dogs GUMS are pink or a light pinkish color. You can see your dogs Gums by lifting up the side of his mouth by his teeth, and looking above the teeth. If this is ever any other color beside pink, such as blue, purple, yellow or a grey/white then contact your Veterinarian immediately.

    The above symptoms I mentioned are obvious symptoms and not all dogs show obvious symptoms unless something is seriously wrong or when they require immediate Veterinarian attention. If you have a gut instinct that something is not right with your puppy then please take him to your Vet for a thorough check over. "

    *source: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_can_you_tell_if_your_puppy_has_a_breathing_problem
  • NekopanNekopan
    edited November -1
    They're Australian Cattle Dogs. The sire of the litter had seizures about two years ago, and spent a lengthy amount of time at the vet. The dam is the dumbest dog I've ever met (and that's being kind, I seriously think she has brain damage of some sort), and was bred during her first heat, 6 months old. They weren't aiming at breeding her so early, but made no effort to separate them. The whole thing saddens me - especially since it's so close to me and no amount of explanation or pleading would convince them to change their minds.
  • SangmortSangmort
    edited August 2008
    Oh, wow, that's really horrible :\ What does your boyfriend say about this? Maybe he could talk them into not doing it again?

    They really are a nice-looking breed. It must really suck to have someone so close to you doing that.~
  • NekopanNekopan
    edited November -1
    I really, really hope they won't be doing it again - they've had a pretty bad experience, as most first time BYBs do. Nothing horrific, but it's been terribly expensive, and they've had a difficult time selling the pups. A month ago, they still had five out of the seven. Now they have three. They mentioned getting the female spayed, so it doesn't happen again, but I'm worried that they'll wait too long and she'll go into heat again - or worse, the female pup they still have goes into her first heat and gets bred by her father or brothers.

    As for my boyfriend convincing them, there's no chance. He hasn't lived at home for two years or so, and they didn't really listen to him while he did live with them. He's there dogsitting right now, as they went on vacation. That's how this pup's wheezing was mentioned to me.
  • kwyldkwyld
    edited August 2008
    That's disturbing. I feel very bad for these dogs. The puppies will probably have seizure disorders when they grow up, epilepsy is a big problem in cattle dogs and is genetic. I wonder if the female has had some type of seizure disorder as well to cause her to be dull mentally. I hope you can convince them to stop breeding now to spare lots of heartbreak down the road. Any wheezing or breathing difficulties should be addressed by a vet.
  • TeamLaikaTeamLaika
    edited November -1
    Asthma and allergy are unlikely in a young dog as you describe.
    The puppy in question may have been born with a congenital heart defect and that is responsible for the poor respiratory function. Should definitely be examined by a veterinarian to see if the doctor can hear a heart murmur or see heart enlargement on x-ray. Infectious (viral, fungal, or bacterial) are also possible, but I would think they would be accompanied by a cough and nasal discharge. Regardless...it doesn't sound good.

    FYI: OFA currently has an Australian Cattle Dog health survey that has been developed in cooperation with the ACD health education and welfare board.
    http://offa.org/acdsurvey.html
  • kektikekti
    edited November -1
    ahh roxy has a heart murmur, tiny one but its there. -_-;
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