With the onset of autumn cold weather, not only a person begins to suffer from colds. Snot in a dog is far from a rare occurrence, even novice dog handlers know about it. However, it may indicate many deviations in the body of the animal. To understand why a dog has a runny nose and how to treat it, you need to know the causes and related symptoms of this phenomenon.
Causes of a Runny Nose in a Dog
You can confidently start your pet’s runny nose treatment if one of the following reasons has affected the dog:
- Allergic reactions. In this case, the discharge from the dog’s nose is not thick, without color.
- If the dog has narrow nostrils, then a runny nose is just a phenomenon inherent in this breed. Therefore, if you are the owner of a pug, bulldog, Pekingese or griffin, then you have nothing to worry about.
- If foreign bodies get into the nose, then the dog rubs it with its paws, then the discharge may be mixed with blood.
- If the animal breathed in smoke or hot air, then the dog's snot will pass very quickly.
- Viral infections can also cause rhinitis in a dog.
- Like a person, a dog can become cold, causing it to run a runny nose.
These reasons are quite common. Treatment of each of them must be carried out comprehensively. You cannot apply the same methodology to all reasons. If in doubt, rhinitis has begun in the animal or the problem is due to another factor, then study the symptoms of a runny nose in a dog.
Symptoms of rhinitis in a dog
If the dog has snot flowing, then you need to pay attention to the concomitant symptoms of this phenomenon. It often happens that it is impossible to detect rhinitis, since there is no discharge from the animal’s nose as such. Then pay attention to the following symptoms:
- The dog is breathing heavily or sniffing.
- The pet breathes with his mouth, shortness of breath appears when running.
- Cracks are visible on the nasal mucosa.
- The dog loses weight.
It is usually not difficult to identify a runny nose in a dog. Your task is to correctly determine the cause of rhinitis, because treatment depends on it.
If you are not sure that the animal was correctly diagnosed, it is best to consult a veterinarian. If you treat the animal in the wrong ways, you risk not only not achieving the desired result, but also exacerbating the situation, provoking a number of complications.
How to treat runny nose caused by superficial factors
If you probably know that the dog’s snot is provoked by an allergic reaction, a foreign body or rhinitis, then getting rid of the pathology will not be difficult. So, treatment methods include:
- If an allergic reaction occurs, the cause must be eliminated. The allergen may be dust, the presence of other animals, an insect bite, the material from which the food bowl is made, some types of food, plants.
- If a foreign object is stuck in the dog’s nose, it is necessary to help the pet remove it. If you cannot do this in a natural way, contact your veterinarian for help.
- If the dog has green snot that smells unpleasant, then most likely the cause is a viral infection. In this case, you can not prescribe treatment yourself, you must take the pet to the veterinarian.
If the cause of discharge from the nose is anatomical defects, then the treatment takes on a different character.
How to treat anatomical disorders
Problems with the structure of the nasal region of the animal are rarely the cause of the common cold. However, you should know about such facts:
- If the animal does not have an opening between the nasal cavity and mouth, then you will see transparent discharge. Without surgical intervention, this problem cannot be solved.
- If the animal snores at night and breathes heavily with its nose, then perhaps it has an elongated soft palate. Such a defect is also eliminated operatively.
- If the dog has narrowed nostrils, then there is nothing surprising in the discharge from the nose. You can solve this problem with surgery, but this is not a mandatory procedure.
If the dog has serious illnesses, then the discharge from the nose becomes purulent. They need to pay special attention.
Dog snot: what to do with purulent discharge
If you see that a dog purulent, mucous and thick formations of green or yellow color stand out from the nose of the dog, the animal urgently needs to be taken to the veterinarian. The reasons for such phenomena may be:
- Plague. This name often inspires horror in people, and in this case it is justified. From 30 to 100% of puppies die during the first 3 months of life if they have a plague. You should worry if the dog begins to be afraid of the light, hide in the dark, at the same time she begins to have diarrhea. A cough may also develop, and the animal may wheeze. A particularly dangerous symptom is red pimples on the animal’s stomach . To diagnose the disease, it is necessary to take a sample of the discharge from the animal’s nose and take it to the laboratory. After confirming the presence of pathology, the doctor will prescribe the appropriate treatment.
- Adenovirus. This disease is accompanied by sneezing and coughing. If the dog has red eyes, then most likely you were not mistaken with the diagnosis. Remember that this pathology is very contagious, so you should not immediately take your pet to the veterinarian. It is better to call a specialist at home. The veterinarian will quickly determine the presence of the disease and prescribe treatment.
Remember that with purulent discharge from the nose, you must immediately send the pet to a specialist, since one of the above pathologies may well manifest itself in the dog.
Dog snot : how to treat correctly. Expert Advice
Experienced veterinarians claim that the runny nose in an animal can be determined by the nature of the snot. It is worthwhile to raise a panic and go to the hospital only with the appearance of concomitant symptoms and copious purulent discharge.
The best advice from experts is that you must constantly monitor the behavior and health status of the pet. No disease goes unnoticed. In observant owners, dogs rarely get sick, and any pathology is quickly eliminated.