Laryngeal Paralysis

Anyone ever have a dog diagnosed with Laryngeal Paralysis, commonly referred to as Lar Par? It's evidently more prone in older, large, sometimes overweight dogs, especially Labs - and my 12 1/2 year old lab was just diagnosed today. The nerves that control the muscles & cartilage that open/close the larynx do not function. He's been breathing hard lately, like he had asthma or similar to when a calf has diphtheria, but not all the time. And he's been harking up more food & water than usual - although he literally inhales his food & "camels up" when he drinks so harking is not uncommon for him. There is a specialized surgery that could possibly be done in Wichita or Kansas City but evidently very expensive & would require meds the rest of his life - my vet was candid & did not recommend it. His suggestions were to keep him cool because heat/humidity exasperate it, limit the amount of water he can drink at one time and not let him over-do it. He's not overweight but losing up to 5 lbs might help.

Soooo, any other suggestions? Or has anyone proceeded with the surgery? Outcomes?

I would leave him be. Try to slow his eating down with the likes of some big round smooth river rocks in his bowl and put it on an elevated platform so gravity helps it go down.

Ken

Thanks, Ken! His bowl is pretty big but thought about switching to a tray & the river rocks would definitely slow things down - assuming he doesn't eat them! And I can easily elevate the tray. But interesting about his water: have a large bucket that my other dog & some of the cats use but Cecil prefers to drink out of the bowl on the floor - may have to elevate that as well.

TCRanch...You might find this helpful...
https://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/h ... ating.aspx

Thanks for the link! Very interesting. I did buy him a slow-feeder today and it actually worked, also have it elevated. He wasn't happy about it but . . . And he's pretty much the poster dog for the section on water except I've never noticed any symptoms of water intoxication/hyponatremin. I'm essentially buying time. In addition to being old he also has arthritis but he's also still very active, loves to play.

Glad you found it useful. Wise vet. Cherish the time you have left and above all, listen when he tells you its time to say god speed. Easier said than done.

As a vet tech for 20 years I've seen a few of these. Our vets recommend having debarking surgery done on them. It removes some of the skin making it easier for the dogs to breathe naturally. Maybe ask your vet about it.

Thanks, aprille. Couldn't find a lot of info online but will ask my vet. The potential for scar tissue essentially negating the surgery is a concern - as is putting him under for surgery in the first place & of course recovery. He is the quintessential Lab!