Hi - my 13 year black lab was has just been diagnosed with bilateral laryngeal paralysis by our vet, during an endoscopic investigation, surgery is not an option. She has been having 1 episode a day of gasping for breath for around 5 days, prior to that it was only raspy breath after a lot of running up hills. She also has bilateral back leg weakness and rigidity but can weight bear and mobilise. She is on medication now to help open the airway and seems a little better today. I wondered if anyone else had experience of this and what worked or didn't work. Many thanks.
Our first Lab, Ginger was diagnosed with Laryngeal Paralysis at 14 and our vet did suggest surgery (at a specialist). At first I did not want to do the surgery because of her age, but though she was diabetic, she was otherwise healthy. We did have the surgery and she came through just fine, with a short recovery. She made it to 16 and the only down side to the surgery was that she could not bark.
What kind of early symptoms did you see? My pup has been making weird breathing noises but it is only when laying down with head down. Not when standing or walking.
Ah spotted this on your other thread. Just like to add, if your vet didn't think there was a problem...and didn't see this first hand, a quick video of the symptoms when they occur really helps.
Ginger was short of breath and made a wheezing noise. I think you would notice it more with exercise than when quiet. If your pup is not sort of breath when walking or running then LP is probably not an issue. I was worried about the surgery and the after affects, but it was definetly worth it, even at 14. After the surgery there is some concern about aspirating food and liquids, but Ginger never seemed to have any problem.
I believe that is what caused one of our labs to be put down. The vet could hear her breathe over the phone. He had just seen her and gave her some steroid pills. I was furious, we took her back to the vet. He knew what was wrong but tried not to have to put her down because he knew how close my wife was to her. That was a noble gesture, but we had to drive back and have her put to sleep. He knew there was nothing that could be done for that condition, except ending her suffering. We had a talk, just him and I. I told him I appreciated what he tried to do but in the future just be honest with us. If he feels more comfortable telling me, that is fine, but we expect honesty above all else. We have had no further problems with him.
Our lab had it. The vet put her to sleep. This was some years ago, but at that time nothing could be done for it
