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My dog has CHF and fast breathing at night. What can I do at home?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Maltese | Female | spayed | 11 years and 11 months old | 13 lbs

My dog has been diagnosed with chf and is on enalipril, vet Medina and lasix, also hydrocodone prn. What can I do now, at home to help with tachypenea? She is sleeping but resp rate is very high. We’ve been to the er once and to the vet. But need more clear direction For these nighttime episodes.

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Makenzie Kurth, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on February 20th, 2018

I am so sorry to hear about Piper! The most important part: If Piper is gasping, has blue/purple tinged gums, having abdominal effort with each breath, standing with neck extended and unable to rest, or you are in any way worried about her breathing, go IMMEDIATELY to the closest ER. Ok now some more specifics: This really depends on what kind of tachypnea we’re talking about. If she is sleeping with a resp rate of 40 or 50 breaths per minute, yes it’s not ideal (and we maybe need to adjust the furosemide), but this could be new normal for Piper. I’m not necessarily panicking. Is this higher rate just at night or during daytime naps too? However, if Piper is panting with effort and unable to sleep, we need to do something about that more immediately. Please feel free to reach out to me by consultation (link below) if you’d like to discuss Piper’s medications or condition more specifically. I treat many CHF patients in my practice as an emergency veterinarian so I am very familiar with this type of thing. Best of luck to you and Piper!

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Other Answers

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    Answered By John C. Gicking, DVM, DACVECC

    Veterinarian, Board-Certified Emergency/Critical Care Specialist

    Published on

    Keeping a log of you dogs respiratory rate will be the best guide to let you (at home) know if your dog is responding to treatment. In general, the respiratory rate should be less than 60 breaths a minute with minimal to no effort. The only things you can do at home are to give the the medications prescribed as directed will help to relieve the congestion and help her to relax. If her signs are persisting (or worsening) despite giving the medicated as prescribed, she should be seen by a veterinarian again. She may need supplemental oxygen or injections of furosemide to clear pulmonary edema. Some dogs also may have pulmonary hypertension (increased blood pressure in the lungs) that adds to their respiratory distress. This can only be diagnosed with an echocardiogram and may require additional medications to treat it. If you are concerned with her breathing, take her to be seen as soon as possible as it could be life threatening.

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