Check to see if your dog is coughing. Initially, if your dog is capable of coughing, wait a few moments to see if your dog can manage to cough up the obstruction on their own.

• Only wait for this possibility if your dog seems to be able to breathe well.
• If your dog is also wheezing, struggling, or gasping for breath, call your vet immediately.

Check for signs of choking. Dogs may show several telling behaviors if they aren’t able to breathe. When trying to determine if your dog is choking, begin by first attempting to calm them — the more panicked the dog becomes, the greater their demand for oxygen and the worse the situation. Signs that a dog is choking include:^[1]

• Gagging or drooling excessively — this is one of the most obvious ways to tell if your dog is choking. If they are drooling heavily and unable to swallow, choking is more likely.
• Unable to swallow
• Standing in the “air hunger position” with their head and neck held low and in a straight line
• Acting unusually agitated or frantic, pawing at their mouth, and whimpering
• Coughing forcefully, wheezing, or gasping for breath
• Having grey or blue gums
• Having a visible object in the back of their throat
• Displaying exaggerated chest movements
• Collapsing
• Losing consciousness

Encourage your dog to swallow. This is a useful strategy to help you determine if your dog is truly choking.

• You can do so by offering your dog a treat, gently rubbing their throat, or by pinching their nostrils together. If your dog eats a treat, then they are not choking.
• Once the dog swallows, if the sound stops, they aren’t choking.

Look inside the dog’s mouth. By visually checking the dog’s mouth, you can find out if an object is obstructing its airway and act accordingly.

• Gently open its mouth by squeezing its upper lip inwards over the big molars at the back of the mouth. At the same time, apply downward pressure on the point of its jaw to further open the mouth.
• Look as far back towards its throat as possible — it helps to have a flashlight and someone else to hold the dog for this. You are looking for any obstructions such as a piece of bone or a stick.
• Restrain a larger dog before opening its mouth wide. Do this by grabbing the scruff of hair between the ears and holding the dog’s head steady.^[2]
• If you can see something in the throat, try to grip it with pliers and remove it. Take extreme care not to accidentally force the object further back.

Call the vet. If your dog is choking, showing signs of choking, or indeed having breathing difficulties, always phone your vet for advice. The exception to this rule is if your dog has completely collapsed or has lost consciousness. In that instance, begin administering what first-aid you can.

• You may be talked through first aid procedures while waiting for emergency help and likely you will be asked to bring your pet in immediately.
• If you cannot reach your vet, look for emergency 24-hour veterinarians. Their number will usually be in the phone book, or you can call a local animal welfare or rescue agency for details. Emergency vets or animal hospitals are usually available in major towns and cities.
• Your local emergency number will be able to give you the ASPCA or the Humane Society emergency number. They will have an emergency vet to give you help on the phone.

Seek out someone else to help. Whether you take your dog to the vet or try to administer first-aid, it’s best to have another person present to help you.

• If you need to drive your pet to an emergency vet, it is best to have one person with the dog to help immediately if the situation worsens.
• If the vet has you try to dislodge the object yourself, it’s advisable to do so with someone else’s help.

Rule out other causes. Because you can do more harm than good by executing certain maneuvers on a dog that doesn’t need them, it is important to be as certain as possible that the dog is actually choking and in danger, rather than merely appearing to choke. The following are conditions that may cause a dog to behave similarly to a dog that’s choking.

• A Long Soft Palate: A common anatomical quirk found in many dogs is having a tongue and a soft palate that are too big for their mouth. This is especially common in brachycephalic dogs (those with shortened noses and baby-like faces) such as the Pug, Pekingese, Lhasa Apso, and Shih Tzu, though it also occurs in small breeds such as the Poodle, West Highland White Terrier, Dachshund, Spitz, and Pomeranian. The result is that when the dog breathes in sharply, it physically sucks the end of the soft palate into the entrance of the windpipe. This temporarily narrows or blocks the windpipe, and the dog makes a series of dramatic snorting or gasping sounds, as if choking. This is only a temporary crisis because when the dog swallows, the soft palate flips away from the windpipe and the dog can breathe again. If you’re unsure, give the dog food or a treat. If it takes and swallows the food, it isn’t choking.
• Kennel Cough: Kennel cough is an infection that causes the airway to become sore, inflamed, and irritable. Even the simple act of breathing in cool air can tickle the throat and trigger coughing episodes. This cough can be dramatic and is commonly mistaken for the dog having something stuck in its throat. Again, check to see if the dog is able to swallow by offering it something to eat. If it can swallow, it is extremely unlikely the dog is choking. Do, however, contact your vet to see if he or she would recommend an examination for the kennel cough.
• Heart Disease: An enlarged heart pressing on the airways or a heart in failure can sometimes mimic choking. The dog may breathe in a distressed manner, cough, and may even have blue-tinged gums. This condition is harder to differentiate from choking, but in general the signs are slow to develop, with the dog becoming less energetic and more lethargic for a day or two beforehand. Choking, on the other hand, is far more common in active, inquisitive dogs and comes on suddenly.