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My old dog has a huffing cough, vomits, and is always tired. What to do?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Jack Russell Terrier | Female | unspayed | 17 years and 11 months old | 15 lbs

Tess is coughing a lot. Very loud huffing cough. Sometimes she vomits but not everytime. She sleeps most of the day and exercise causes the coughing to starr back up. What can we do to help?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA

Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer

Published on June 11th, 2019

Poor Tess! This sounds like quite a severe cough, so I would recommend taking her to the vet for an exam to find out what is causing it. Some common possibilities in an older dog like this would include heart disease, chronic bronchitis, a collapsing trachea, or a respiratory infection of some kind. Your veterinarian can listen to her heart and lungs, and may recommend chest x-rays or other testing if needed to help diagnose the problem and see what kind of treatment is needed.

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