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95 results for “blocked nose”
Why Is Your Dog Gasping or Breathing Rapidly?
Occasional rapid breathing or gasping is normal after exercise or in heat and settles quickly. But it can also signal disease: respiratory infection, a blocked esophagus, tracheal stenosis, or heart problems. If it is frequent or lasts long, see a veterinarian. Prevent issues by keeping air fresh, grooming and deworming regularly, avoiding smoke and strong odors, and scheduling routine checkups.
Why Dogs Get Tear Stains and Dirty Fur Around the Eyes
Dog eyes connect to the nose, so when the nasolacrimal duct is blocked or swollen by inflammation, tears cannot drain or evaporate and spill out. Tear stains form when tears and other eye discharge sit uncleaned on the fur and oxidize into dark marks - most visible on light-colored coats. Causes split into innate (flat-faced breeds like Pugs, Bulldogs, Exotic and Persian cats have tight ducts), disease (ear infection, entropion, dacryoadenitis, conjunctivitis), and habits (salty food, overlong fur poking the eye). Clean gently with a boric-acid cotton ball or cool water from the inner corner outward, then apply eye drops; genetic stains need patient, regular care.
How to Tell If Your Cat or Dog Has Glaucoma
Glaucoma is a common eye disease in cats and dogs where blocked fluid drainage raises eye pressure, damages the optic nerve, and can end in blindness. It always comes with high eye pressure. Signs include a cloudy or enlarged eye, a fixed dilated pupil, vision loss, redness, and head pressing. Diagnosis uses eye-pressure and fundus exams, and treatment ranges from pressure-lowering drugs to, in severe pain, removal of the eye.
Why Your Cat Snores at Night
A cat's purr is linked to benefits like stress relief, lower blood pressure, better breathing, and muscle relaxation. But snoring, like in people, usually comes from blocked airways in the nose, throat, or tongue base; relaxed muscles during non-REM sleep vibrate soft tissue. Loud, on-and-off snoring can also signal polyps or tumors.
Dealing with Cat Tear Stains
Tear overflow (epiphora) happens when tears overproduce or the nasolacrimal duct blocks, spilling onto the fur. The reddish-brown stain comes from porphyrin—an iron waste in tears that oxidizes in air and sunlight. Common causes: too much salt (human food, salty kibble), 'heat', ear infections that stimulate tearing, duct blockage, entropion (inward lashes), dacryoadenitis, and feline herpes (tears plus nasal discharge—watch unvaccinated cats). Genetics play a role too. Cut salty food and see a vet to find the true cause.
What to Do About Kidney Stones in Cats and Dogs
Kidney stones form inside the kidney, common in older cats and dogs and often found during checkups. A stone can drift into the very narrow ureter and block it, trapping urine in the kidney, causing hydronephrosis or nephritis and rapid decline; it can also strain the kidney's internal structures and lead to failure. Surgery exists but usually does more harm than good. The good news: struvite stones can often be dissolved with diet or medication once the type is identified by a urine test.
What medicine helps my dog’s tear stains heal faster?
Tear stains have different causes — blocked tear ducts, conjunctivitis, keratitis — so there is no single 'pill' that fixes them. Massage the tear glands, use an eye-care gel, and for inflammation use pet-specific antibiotic eye drops or ointment; the exact treatment depends on the diagnosed cause.
Why Are My Cat’s Eyes Always Wet?
Constant wetness at a cat's eye corners is usually harmless tear pooling—after waking, mild dust, or the narrow tear ducts of flat-faced breeds like Exotics and Persians. But it can also signal conjunctivitis, keratitis, a blocked tear duct, or irritating fur. Yellow-green pus, swelling, or sneezing with poor appetite means a vet visit. Start with gentle cleaning and a few days of observation.
Black Dots on Your Cat’s Skin: Folliculitis, or ‘Black Chin’ and ‘Stud Tail’
Black dots on a cat's skin are usually the early sign of folliculitis, like blackheads, driven by excess sebum, blocked follicles, and bacterial infection. On the chin it is called black chin, and on the tail stud tail or oily tail, both managed with gentle localized cleaning and diet adjustments.
How do I treat a puppy with tearing eyes?
A puppy's tearing eyes can come from infection, a foreign object, a blocked tear duct, a breed trait, or ingrown eyelashes. Flat-faced breeds like the Pekingese and Shih Tzu are prone to epiphora and tear stains — just wipe discharge often. Rinse with saline or a pet eye wash; if it persists, see a vet.