Saturday, November 3, 2012

Gulping- Can Anyone Help??

So, we have been dealing on and off with a new issue.  About a month ago I posted how grateful I was (and still am) that we got through a night where Murray seemed to struggle with a piece of Milk bone in his throat.  Well, that same choking type reaction happened again a couple times this past week, and it wasn't related to having just eaten.  It's made me a bit nervous and I have spoken to my vet and done tons of research.  I believe it's an ailment (I call it an ailment because I'm not sure what else to call it) people have dubbed "gulping".  It doesn't involve gulping food or water, but instead it's a rapid swallowing and gulping of air.  As it gets underway, it turns into gulping grass outside.  It seems to be relieved through the grass ingestion, calming him down through gently petting and many times a loud burp.  In all my research, I have learned many people have this issue with their dogs, and it's gone undiagnosed.  The three main thoughts about a cause are that it could be a seizure type behavior (this one I least expect personally, but who knows!?), an allergy to something (likely a food item or ingredient), a reaction to stress and anxiety, or some form of acid reflux.  Murray is definitely an allergy prone dog.  He always has ongoing skin allergies we work around, he's allergic to sulfur in shampoos and medications and now perhaps something else unknown.  Our vet also placed him on an acid reducer and other medications for a short time last year, after a bout with sickness, and an x-ray showed inflammation in his stomach.  He recovered well, but we have always suspected there is an issue with acid since he tends to vomit bile when his stomach is completely empty....  And, Murray IS a sensitive dog who can stress easily.  So, I have a triple threat!  Oiy Vey, he sounds like a hott mess!  LOL  My vet definitely thinks this gulping is digestion related based on the grass eating.  They have asked me to record the gulping when it happens...which is sure to show me being a nervous wreck instead of anything of value!  So far, thankfully we have not had another extended episode, so no recordings yet, just quick bouts.  I am discouraged reading online how none of the dogs with this same issue have been able to be diagnosed by a vet, so I assume it may be no different with my vet :(  I will link a couple videos I found online of dogs doing this gulping action.  While the dogs in the videos looks fairly calm, Murray, and many others I read about, panic a bit during these episodes.  I am uncertain what is causing the panic, but it certainly then panics me.  We have been using Pepcid to help with acid this week, and I have taken him off of the veggies I had been feeding as a mix into his dry food the past month.  My thoughts were that the veggies cause a lot of gas, and along with the gulping, I could hear his stomach churning last night, so veggies are out and a good grain free wet food is in.  We have also started him on some plain, fat free yogurt for some "good" bacteria.  I would LOVE any words of wisdom from anyone out there that may know something about this.  Also, I have eliminated "tracheal collapse" as a possibility right now, as he really does not exhibit any other symptoms for that.





17 comments:

  1. Oh, Murray! I'm so sorry that you have an icky ailment! :-( Domeek and I have never had experiences with "gulping", but we used to have a foster that did "reverse sneezing" which is also an allergy related issue! Our foster also used to panic when having an episode, but if you calmly stroked the side of his neck and back it seemed to help calm him down. Perhaps you could try a couple of strokes/pets with Murray?! Hopefully your episodes will be far and few between though! Licks my friend!!

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  2. Yes, if I remain calm (tough for me haha) and rub his back and sides, it seems to calm him down and things get better. I looked up reverse sneezing too...it just looks different than the gulping to me...but maybe. Thanks!

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  3. One of the group of blogging airedales had an issue like this recently. I think what they did was soak the food for a longer amount of time than they had been, although you don't think it is an eating issue, maybe it does have to do with digestion as a whole?

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    1. I am friends with Wyatt and Ruby (new friends)...perhaps one of them?

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  4. Sorry, we can't help. We were going to suggest the same as Finn, because we know that Airedale. Hope it gets sorted soon, it's very worrying.

    xXXOOO Daisy, Bella & Roxy

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  5. We think that it was Molly of Mitch and Molly who used to lick the air a lot. Once they started wetting her food, it seemed to stop. Wish we had a better solution for you.

    Woos - Phantom, Thunder, Ciara, and Lightning

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  6. Can't help you, other then LOTS OF LOVIN during the gulping. Wonder if it starts off with stomach issues, then he panic's! We feel bad for Murray!!!

    Your Worried Furiends
    Susie & Bites

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  7. I've not heard of this, but I admire you for sticking with your research and trying to find a solution to Murray's problems--All our paws are crossed that one is found that helps!!

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  8. So glad you shared that! A couple weeks ago, I had something like that in the middle of the night except that mine had this scary sound like I was choking. But I haven't had this since
    Cotton

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  9. Whisky does this gulping thing every once in a while. I can't pin point to what triggers it as it happens rarely. She does end most of it with a burp then she's fine. I've never really thought much of it since it doesn't seem to affect her very much.

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  10. We have never heard of the condition but we hope Blogville can help you out. Love to Murray and we hope he is OK. Have a super episode free Sunday.
    Best wishes Molly

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  11. Never heard of that, but I hope you find someone who can help you with it. Hailey and Zaphod's Lady

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  12. We wish we had some words of wisdom to share...but we don't :-( We hope you do find some answers though & Murray starts feeling better soon xxx

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  13. We have no wisdom to offer, just shared concern.

    Your Pals,

    Murphy & Stanley

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  14. That would really freak me out. I have no thoughts for you on this, but I will send some warm wishes your way that someone finds a way to help Murray.

    Actually I do have a suggestion. Have you thought about keeping a journal? Keep track of what he's eating and what he's done right before he has the spasm. Then you might be able to pinpoint something.

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  15. Freddie actually does this gulping thing too! He will then start licking at the floor and door jambs. I don't know if that's because they are cool or what. He also throws up bile if his stomach is empty so I always try to make sure he has small snacks. I did cut back the carrots I was giving him and I now soak his food with boiling water before giving it to him. He too has allergies so maybe it is all allergy related. I hope you can figure things out with Murray and he can feel better. Maybe he just panics because it scares him too. Poor guy!

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