Cough and wheezing

[elizabeth gumme]

I was recently presented with the gift of a miniature pinscher. He was found at the pound but is, however, pedigree. He was chipped and the pound read the chip and discovered he was originally at a pet store. The pound found that the pet store was no longer in business - obviously, the new owner had not changed the name on the chip and for some sorry, unknown, reason, this poor lovely little one year old found its way into the pound but was fortunately discovered by my nieces who gifted me with the dog. She paid $300 for it at the pound. (When given the paperwork from the pound, she had inadvertently left the receipt with the papers.)

My niece named him Rufus and shortly after Rufus came to live with me, he developed a cough. I took him to a local vet and was told it was kennel cough. The vet prescribed an antibiotic, which I administered, and initially it appeared to be helping. However, approximately three or four days after the medication had been stopped, he began coughing and wheezing again.

I called my niece and told her the problem and she suggested we take Rufus to her vet. My niece's vet examined him, together with the initial vet's prescribed medication, and agreed it was kennel cough, however, the initial dosage was for a dog weighing 1 to 3 pounds. Rufus weighs 8/9 pounds. The second vet prescribed the exact same antibiotic, however, a stronger dosage. I have been administering the medication to Rufus for approximately 3 to 4 weeks now and at times he seems improved and then he will revert to a dry, hacking cough and wheezing.

Has anybody out there had this problem? If so, please help me!

Thank you,

Elizabeth

[GSDNewbie]

have they done a heart worm test on this dog?