ok people, i'm gonna post this with as much info as i can, then go to bed, and hope for some input before we go to the vet tomorrow as far as what i should ask him. here goes..

got pup at 8 wks (air shipped, but no discernable problems on arrival). took to vet @ 10 wks for socialization, weigh-in (17 lbs), worming.

3 days later, started a slight, dry cough. this progressed over the next 2 wks to a more phlegmy, sinusy cough. at 12 wks., to vet, boosted vax, KC intranasal, vet said to take drag-line off in house, could be causing irritation to larynyx (sp?), therefore cough.

of course, only after did it occur to me that when his drag-line was "stopped", it pulled backward, putting pressure on the TOP of his neck--not his windpipe/larynyx <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

so, this week, after mowing the grass, and doing puppy tracking pads in the mowed grass, his sinus is much more pronounced--he snorts, coughs, gags (but never stops "zuch"-ing). tonight we did pads in unmowed grass. he snorted, etc., just as much, but did a better job of finding the bait.

the last 3 evenings have been perfect for pads: no wind (a miracle here), low humidity, damp grass/dirt. and, i bait with the first 1/3 of his supper, so he's hungry.... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

thoughts?? i will check it in the a.m. before we run over to the vet--so any help is really appreciated!

giving this a bump--the vet was called out to an emergency calving yesterday, so didn't see him.

any ideas out there?

Ann, did the pup get a bordetella vac at the ten week mark? Or just at 12 weeks? I'm seeing more and more dogs become symptomatic after receiving a KC vac, the last three dogs I fostered all had the same wheezy, hacking cough that lasted about a week or so before it ran it's course.

laura--thank god SOMEONE responded. he got bordetella at 8 and 12 wks.
however, the cough started at just past 10 wks, and has resolved itself, BUT, the sinus-snot stuff (am i a poet or what? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />, started at approx. 11 wks, and has stayed with him. now, i didn't do tracking pads all weekend (too wet), or today, but yesterday after a good walk, he snorted trying to clear a lot of snot (sounded like a lot anyway).

is it possible that he has grass allergies to the point that it affects his sinuses....no, that can't be it. he was snorting/coughing before the grass greened up, and before we mowed... plus, he's not showing any other "itchiness"..

well, that's why i'm here, asking for input <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

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.....the sinus-snot stuff (am i a poet or what? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />, started at approx. 11 wks, and has stayed with him. .....

I just did a web search and found several possibilities, including sinusitis, sinus infection, and accumulation of mucus in the sinus cavities due to head injury. And Bob Scott told me once that dental damage could cause a sinus infection, which of course makes sense -- I had never thought of it, though.

A foreign body could also cause the symptoms you are describing. One of my Dobes got a nasty infection after "plowing" through some dried mown grass after a ball. Several days later he started with the snotty nose. After a week on abx with little improvement, he was sedated, and the vet flushed several pieces of grass out from way up in his nose. Cleared right up after that.

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A foreign body could also cause the symptoms you are describing. One of my Dobes got a nasty infection after "plowing" through some dried mown grass after a ball. Several days later he started with the snotty nose. After a week on abx with little improvement, he was sedated, and the vet flushed several pieces of grass out from way up in his nose. Cleared right up after that.

Oh, I don't know how I forgot that! I had a dog years ago who had a runny nose for two or three days, and when I took her to the the vet she saw (with a light) a tiny piece of a foxtail up there..........not the whole thing or even the whole little pointy offshoot -- just a piece, maybe 1/16th of an inch long.

And if I remember correctly, she didn't even have to put her under to remove it. I think she gave her Valium.

Now you have a list to ask the vet about, Anne. I hope it's something minor and easily fixed.

connie, i was hoping you'd do a search. but he has no tooth issues, no head injury issues, no fever (which doesn't rule out sinusitis--i've had this before <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />--he just has SNOT!

but there has to be a cause..it's just a matter of 2 things: 1) if it's environmental or 2)if it's physical.

keeps my life interesting! he's such a smart pup though, i don't want to miss any developmental windows because of my own mental shortcomings!

oh well--i'll at least have a GORGEOUS GSD, even if he can't smell anything cause he's got a snout full of snot <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

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.... he has no tooth issues, no head injury issues, no fever (which doesn't rule out sinusitis--i've had this before <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />--he just has SNOT!.....but there has to be a cause..it's just a matter of 2 things: 1) if it's environmental or 2)if it's physical. .....

Well, I think I'd have the vet peer up there, because if there is a foreign object, and it is causing a lot of mucus, and it hasn't worked its way out in the mucus at this point, I'd be worried about an infection ahead.

Also, a head injury could have happened w/o your seeing it, maybe.....?

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=9719732&dopt=Abstract

I second that suggestion, a vet can scope him without putting him under to check his sinuses. Check his ears too, ear problems can lead to nose issues.
Something else to help pinpoint the problem, what color is the discharge? Clear, yellow, green, clear is usually allergies or general irritation, colors are usually infection (and talking about this makes me realize that I know waaay to much about bodily fluids and discharges <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />.