Coughing

 Dumb question--I'm guessing you've already checked to see that he doesn't have anything in his throat?  A piece of rawhide or something?

Best of luck--let us know how he is, please!

There can be a ton of reasons for a cough -- As GraniasBard says it could be something obstructing the throat, it can be congestion in the sinuses/lungs or it can even actually be heart-related.

So I'm really glad you're going to the vet -- it's not a good thing to 'guess' about.

Well, I think I figured it out...I found, on the floor, under the table, a broken bottle of dried chives. I checked his throat with the flashlight and yup. Little peices of chives stuck on the sides. So, gave him some kibble and the coughing seems to have stopped.

Geesh. Seriously. They couldn't have even tasted good going down.

Thanks for the feedback!

I know onions are bad for dogs...what about chives?  Anyone know?

(And I just realized that I apparently never introduced myself on the boards!  I'm Wendy. :))
 

 I believe chives are related to onions... I'd call the vet immediately to be sure he didn't ingest enough to be poisonous since they are the exact ssame family...They may ask you to induce vomitting. If you see this message and your vet is closed, I'd call the nearest e-vet for advice, IF they are poisonous and he did injest enough this can't wait til tomorrow.

Chives are an allium but that shouldn't be a huge problem.  The big deal with onions generally is that they inhibit the body's ability to assimilate calcium OVER TIME.  It's not a one time ingestion usually -- it's often something people give 'often' or a dog may try to get into the garden repeatedly. 

There was a really really old-timey old folk remedy for "worms" that called for feeding onions (and *only* onions -- it was a fast way to KILL the dog).  It did NOT work -- but that's where the whole onion thing got such a scarey reputation.  They are NOT good for dogs and should not ever be part of a dog's regular diet. 

But for a one time thing it shouldn't be a problem. 

 http://www.vetmedpub.com/vetmed/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=174478

Um, I never ever disagree with Callie, but the way it was explained to me, a one time large dose of an allium can cause serious consequence, beyond calcium absortion, check out this article from vetmet. Generally it can take a large chunk of onion but it can actually cause hemolytic anemia! Sorry Callie... not trying to be a nudge.

Editted to add.. the only reason I know this is b/c when I brought snickers to the specialists three weeks ago, a chihauhua was diagnosed with onion toxicosis. 

Just a quick follow up. I don't think he ate very many of the chives, maybe a teaspoon or two, and he's 80lbs. The emergency vet wasn't worried when I called. In any case, Jeddie's fine and no worse for the wear. And all of the spices have been moved, once again, to a higher spot in the kitchen.

Thanks for the help.