Hello,
My dog has a cough that is caused from acute bronchitis. What would you suggest? Thanks - Mac
Hello Mac,
Bronchitis cough often stays around for a long time, even when the actual illness is in the acute form and has healed within a few days. Often a nebulizer (steam machine) is a great relief but on a home basis without such a machine in the house, you may help the dog quite a bit by bringing it into the bathroom when you have a shower - the hot steam does assist the dry cough and acts like a home-made nebulizer.
If your dog is very active you may need to give him or her a chew bone or a kong while in the bathroom to assist in keeping him calm and benefiting from the steam. Other than that, just keep the dog warm and snug with fresh, dry bedding and the cough should clear up. If you want to help even further your vet clinic should be able to sell you a cough mixture for post-bronchial cough - you shouldn't need to take the dog in as it has obviously been seen by a vet when it had the bronchitis, but you will need to know (approximately) the weight of your dog as dosage will depend on the dog's size.
If you prefer naturopathic or homoeopathic remedies I would recommend you do a web search for your nearest practitioner and contact the one of your choice. They do have many helpful and non-toxic medications for lingering cough. - Ed
