[puppysitter]

I am dogsitting a family friend's shih tzu. I've never owned a dog or pet myself. He's a middle-aged dog who is mostly pretty good, although after some googling I think he may suffer from small dog syndrome. I've been dogsitting him for about three weeks now.

Anyway, I have noticed he has been hacking or retching all day. This morning when he woke up he retched and puked yellow bile. Tonight I noticed him making a hacking/retching sound. He has always snorted when he runs around with toys in his mouth and he always does this huffing "hmph" where he puffs out air. But the retching is new. And when he was running with the ball it sounded almost as if he was gasping for air. He also seems to be drinking more water than usual.

Is he getting sick? His owner forgot to leave me his harness this past week and I've been using a collar. He is a stubborn dog who only wants to walk where he wants and I admittedly was tugging on the collar (which of course didn't work, no matter how much I tried) -- could I have hurt him? My mom fed him some swiss cheese two days ago. We haven't overloaded him with treats, though we give him some every day. We have given him some chicken and beef before. He hasn't had any close contact with other dogs. I can't think of anything else.

[Yogi]

Originally Posted by puppysitter

I am dogsitting a family friend's shih tzu. I've never owned a dog or pet myself. He's a middle-aged dog who is mostly pretty good, although after some googling I think he may suffer from small dog syndrome. I've been dogsitting him for about three weeks now.

Anyway, I have noticed he has been hacking or retching all day. This morning when he woke up he retched and puked yellow bile. Tonight I noticed him making a hacking/retching sound. He has always snorted when he runs around with toys in his mouth and he always does this huffing "hmph" where he puffs out air. But the retching is new. And when he was running with the ball it sounded almost as if he was gasping for air. He also seems to be drinking more water than usual.

Is he getting sick? His owner forgot to leave me his harness this past week and I've been using a collar. He is a stubborn dog who only wants to walk where he wants and I admittedly was tugging on the collar (which of course didn't work, no matter how much I tried) -- could I have hurt him? My mom fed him some swiss cheese two days ago. We haven't overloaded him with treats, though we give him some every day. We have given him some chicken and beef before. He hasn't had any close contact with other dogs. I can't think of anything else.

Did the owner give you permission to give the dog treats? If so, did they not leave some for you? It is never advisable to give dogs things unless you are sure there is no issue. Cows milk ie: even cheese can be an issue for dogs.
Small dogs should never be walked on collar and leash. They require harness to avoid trachea issues which sounds like what is happening now. Excess gagging and hacking.

[puppysitter]

Yes, the owner left me the treats and didn't really say anything about not giving him too much. He's a fussy eater and if he isn't in the mood for a treat or food, he won't eat it. I don't know why my mom gave the dog cheese... her friend had a shih tzu and said they like cheese. I told her she isn't allowed to feed the dog any human food.

I was worried about walking the dog with a collar, but the owner forgot to bring the harness and said it would be fine for the week. She said she has walked the dog with it before, but she is a big pushover and spoils this dog, so I wonder if she ever even pulls on it. I'm sure she goes where he tells her to go. Could me tugging on the collar have really hurt him or damaged him? There was only one outing where I really pulled on it, it was two nights ago. He refused to walk at all but it was late and he needs to go bathroom before bed. (I didn't walk him before bed once and he peed on the floor in the morning before I got up.) So I did try pulling on it but after a a couple minutes of pulling/calling him/waiting for him I gave up and we went inside. Did I hurt him by doing that? Could one instance of pulling collapse his trachea? God, I wouldn't be able to bear it if I hurt the dog. How can I know if it's a trachea problem? Can I help it in anyway?

[Lara's mom]

I'm very sure that you DID NOT cause this problem by pulling on the dogs collar once. Don't even go there. If this dog has a trachea problem, it existed long before you came along.

The yellow stuff the dog threw up is bile. It happens sometimes when a dog has an empty stomach. My dogs occasionally do it first thing in the morning before they've been fed. It isn't anything to be concerned about unless it happens a lot.

[CorkyMax]

I have been having a similar problem with one of my dogs and had copied quite a bit off the net. Here is a link to check on--Be sure and see paragraphs 7-9-12-and 13. I would of copied just a few paragraphs but it wouldn't let me!---------------->

Why Does My Dog Cough? A Simple Question, But the Answer May be Complex

NOTE: Some of these causes might need checking at the vet---I took my dog and he doesn't know for sure what it is but it costs a lot of money--possible x-rays, etc to even try to diagnose---It is a hard thing sometimes to get to the bottom of. I am going to give him a med. from the vet to see if the slight mucus will be dried up--which (if it does dry up) will point to possibly bronchial cough. And in a few more weeks will have him checked for Heartworm Disease----Has to be about 6 months after possible exposure to this for the test to not come back a false negative if it is positive!----Takes 6 months to be sure one way or the other!
The problem 'your' dog may have could very well be from pulling on the leash, esp. in a small dog (as Yogi mentioned.) It is also mentioned in the link I gave above. To me, it sounds like a vet should be consulted because of the breathing problem, etc. you mentioned. Are you able to contact the owner and talk things out?

Here is another link about all the different tests:
Testing for Dogs With a Cough | Common Medical Diagnostic Tests for Dogs | FetchDog