dog has had cough many years. getting worse. vet will charge £600 to find cause. any cheap ideas for it go go?

Question

quite healthy and bright

Answer 1

if you loved your dog you would take the dog to the vet and pay. if you cant afford that, go to different vets

Answer 2

If it was possible to cure such things for cheap, vets would go out of business. The only reasons they charge such prices is a) it costs them a lot in time, drugs and equipment and b) they're the only ones that can do it.

If you're not happy with your current vet, find a different one. That is fine, a client should be with a vet they trust. Coughs can have many different causes. Standard practice is to treat with antibiotics and cough medicine, this would cure/help the body to fight off many infections, including kennel cough. If this approach does not work, there is obviously something more serious going on that requires closer investigation - and that is going to be expensive.

Your dog could have allergies, heart trouble, lungworm, heartworm, soft palate trouble, a bacterial or viral infection, a tumour or a collapsing trachea. There are probably more possible causes that I can't think of right now. Go to a vet to find out which!

Chalice

EDIT: If you're on certain types of benefit in Britain, the PDSA can help you if money's a problem. Otherwise just phone around vets and ask what their consult fees are - the cheapest one is likely to have the cheapest prices, but you won't find extensive investigation cheap - or on the internet!!

Answer 3

Coughing can be a sign of many health problems, if he has been doing it for years it could be a heart problem. I suggest that you get a vet who knows what they are doing, it shouldn't cost £600 to check the dog's heart with a Stethoscope.

Answer 4

Get the dog insured...after 2 weeks go to a different vet and claim on insurance

Answer 5

Sounds a lot of money. Heart disease causes dogs to cough & so does lung worm. I would try Panacur liquid wormer & follow the instructions for lung worm.You have to worm them every day for 3 days at the rate of 1ml per 2kg bodyweight.Worth a try to eradicate the possibility of lung worm.

Answer 6

one tip I've learnt breeding dogs for twelve years is how to avoid unnecessary vet bills. use cough medicine from your local chemist. cavonia worked well on my dogs that caught kennel cough. before all the tree huggers start moaning one dog caught it from the vets!! then passed it on to my other dogs! people say you should not use human medicines on animals but why not when they test them on animals! maybe its the vets saying it! and no i am not just a bakyard breeder!!!!

Answer 7

>>>Tigger is a very energetic happy dog with so much personality, but I know a piece of that dissappears<<< Having had several dogs neutered at various ages, I have never noticed a change in their personality, so don't worry about that aspect of it. The only reason his energy level might decline is simply because he's growing up and settling down.

Answer 8

Have you tried a teaspoon of cod liveroil daily- my friend swears it stops her dog coughing- lve got to admit- he does seem a lot better since hes been taking it. Also make sure he does not go in his bed- wet or damp- dry him first. hope that helps lv Jo xx

Answer 9

maybe if u took it in when it first had the cough it wudnt be so much money?!

if ur dog has a cough for 'many years' you dont just ignore it!!

just pay the money your dog deserves it

Answer 10

Contact ASPCA, sometimes they can find grants for pet owners that can't afford the treatments. They would rather you contact them then a neighbor.