My 4-5 month old Rottweiler pup gets the hiccups just about everyday, normally in the evening and especially after a walk or play. Is this normal? What causes this?
I've asked other people and on other forums and was told that it was normal, but nobody knew why a pup would hiccup quite so much.
It's hard for me to be comfortable with my pup having a normal episode of hiccups for no apparent reason. I've had puppies in the past that rarely hiccuped, even German Shepherd mixes that did grow to be rather large (perhaps not as heavy as a Rottweiler, but large nonetheless). Smaller breeds of dogs that I raised up rarely hiccuped, and never on a daily basis.
My 15 month old GSD got the hiccups very often when he was younger, and he gets them occasionally now. I don't think it's anything to be worried about, and can be a great source of entertainment
Amber Morgan Webboard User Reg: 10-18-2006
Posts: 1849
Loc: St. Louis, MO
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My pup got the hiccups all the time, too, and still does occassionally.
There is some thinking that, in puppies, the phrenic nerve (the nerve that controls the esophagus) is not fully developed or functional yet. That would make sense as it's much more common in pups and they tend to grow out of it. But no one really knows for sure.
It's generally harmless and usually funny. We keep telling Carbon to drink from the opposite side of the water bowl.
Natalya Zahn Webboard User Reg: 12-22-2006
Posts: 1824
Loc: Cambridge, MA
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I've never known a puppy that didn't hiccup regularly.
In regards to Amber's post about the phrenic nerve, here's an explanation I found:
"Hiccups in puppies most often are a normal, harmless occurrence. Usually the pup outgrows them by the time he is around 6 months old. They’re often associated with eating or drinking, possibly because when the stomach is distended with food, it presses against the diaphragm, where the phrenic nerve (the major nerve controlling the hiccup reflex) is located." (from urbanhound.com)
If that phrenic nerve is still developing, it may be more sensitive to stresses, like pressure from a full belly, causing a hiccup reaction.
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Hiccups
#138193 - 04/14/2007 08:25 PM 
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