Collapsing trachea

Fakediamond

Looking for advice on collapsing trachea.

My 5 year old terrier has just been diagnosed. He’s just finished two courses of antibiotics and steroids and hasn’t coughed for a week. An X-ray confirmed tracheal collapse but he probably had an underlying infection as well.

Vet has prescribed a preventative inhaler to avoid recurrence of the cough. Now apart from the nightmare of delivering the inhaler dose, I hate to think of him being on corticosteroids twice a day for life as he’s so young.

I’ve read old threads here and have taken on board the advice re weight loss, harness and luposan supplements (vet doesn’t think chondritin will help).

Regarding gentle exercise, I don’t think my terrier can be confined to this as he’s very active and we’re lucky enough that he can run free where we live, but I will see how it goes.

Can anyone advise on how their pets are getting on with this diagnosis?

DBB

You can realistically only deliver an inhaler to a dog via a "spacer"....seems odd that your vet expects you to deliver it directly... Did he?!
I bought a spacer for my Westie several years ago at a ridiculous price because it's a dog one... I've since learned that a paediatric spacer will do the job just as well! They're not expensive and can be bought in a chemists... You may need a prescription from your vet for it though. No harm asking though!
So, you teach the dog in increasing time increments to allow you place the face mask over his mouth and nostrils... This isn't too difficult to do, using treats.
At the other end of the spacer, you give the required number of puffs on the inhaler, which delivers the spray into the spacer, and the dog can breathe it in at his leisure.
Here's a link to a site, simply to show you the pic that shows the set-up for a child ...
http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/conditions/allergy-and-asthma/a6114/how-to-use-your-spacer-device/

Scroll down through this site to see the spacer being used on a Yorkie
http://www.marvistavet.com/chronic-bronchitis-canine.pml

As for giving him steroids, when steroids are delivered via an inhaler, their systemic effect is hugely more limited than if you were feeding them in tablet form. Plus, the med gets straight to where it needs to be, and brings immediate relief. So, in the big scheme of things, giving your dog steroids via the inhaler is relatively pretty safe. Your vet may also prescribe a bronchodilatory inhaler at some point.

VonVix

DBB wrote: »

You can realistically only deliver an inhaler to a dog via a "spacer"....seems odd that your vet expects you to deliver it directly!

Interesting, I have always wondered about this. I have delivered an inhaler to 3 different dogs over the years, none of which ever had a spacer provided.

DBB

VonVix wrote: »

Interesting, I have always wondered about this. I have delivered an inhaler to 3 different dogs over the years, none of which ever had a spacer provided.

Really?! Fair play!
I'm not sure how you can deliver the proper dose in nebulised form without the spacer though?

Fakediamond

Not directly, but via a cutoff from a mineral bottle! Inhaler at the cap end and cut bottle over his face! He’s not impressed, I’d say it’s akin to putting a bridle on a wild horse! I might have to invest in a proper spacer.

So do you think it’s ok to keep him on the inhaler long-term? I can’t find info anywhere on this method.

DBB

You see, you're going to lose a lot of the medication if you spray it using a plastic bottle.. A lot of it will end up on his fur, or just leaking.
The spacer allows you to place a fairly discrete nose mask right over the nostrils and mouth, without making him feel too trapped or weirded out. In addition, there's a little valve built into it that allows you to "see" that the dog is actually breathing in the meds as required.
My Westie was a little bugger, but I started out by showing him the mask, and as he sniffed it out of curiosity, I marked the moment with a "yes!", then gave him a treat. With more repetitions, he had to touch the mask with his nose before he got the "yes!" and treat, then he had to keep his nose in the mask for a second before he got the "yes!" and treat, until he'd happily keep his snuzz in the mask for some time.
As it happens, because the inhaler delivers instant relief, for the dog, the use of the spacer becomes reinforcing in itself. Within a few weeks of using it, I only had to treat him once in a blue moon.

If you scroll down the link I gave you with the Yorkie, you'll see a bit of a blurb on the advantages to using a spacer and inhaler, rather than oral meds. You may find more info on here if you delve in... https://www.breatheazy.co.uk/product/dogs/aerodawg-small/
I found primary research when I bought the spacer, so the info is out there!

DBB

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1748-5827.2006.00028.x/full

Fakediamond

It was the vet who suggested the bottle method, I have no problem getting a spacer and I’ll try to introduce it slowly. He’s fine at the moment, no honking.

I couldn’t find info on using an inhaler for collapsing trachea, but the research is out there from what you’re saying DBB?

tk123

An AeroChamber is what you want - get it from amazon or one of the pharmacy websites in the uk (use parcel wizard etc) though because they’re half the price compared to here!

VonVix

DBB wrote: »

Really?! Fair play!
I'm not sure how you can deliver the proper dose in nebulised form without the spacer though?

All the dogs involved have been very... jowly in hindsight (Newfie and two CKC) so I don't know if that makes any difference. But I was always supplied with just the inhaler, nothing else.

3dogs

my eldest terrier has a collapsing trachea and last year went through a very bad phase with it. She's 9.5 now and so long as I keep her fit and don't use a collar she is fine.

we have avoided an inhaler so far but it is on the cards so I have been clicker training her to put her a nose into a yogurt pot and I will progress that slowly.

the collapsing trachea sounds awful