Pugs will often snore very loudly  and when hot, breathe very loudly.  Pugs can be hot even in an air conditioned temperature that feels comfortable to humans.   I often keep a box fan on the floor for my Pugs to lay near even though my house feels cold to me.  Pug puppies may breathe rapidly during sleep.  Wheezing is often a sign of respiratory problems or a heart murmure.  Many Pugs inhale water when drinking and then a while later they may "goose honk".  Any serious wheezing problems or breathing difficulties associated with runny eyes, coughing or lethargy should be diagnosed by a vet.  Just remember that it is normal for Pugs to breathe loudly. It is normal for them to snore loudly and to even sound raspy (not to be confused with wheezing of the chest)  This page used to be much more complete, but after a hard drive crash, it is very basic.Below is all that I recovered: 

Collapsed Trachea- A birth defect to where the cartilage rings in the Pugs windpipe collapses.  If your Pug has an odd, hoarse sounding cough, with abnormal respiratory sounds then you can suspect Collapsed Trachea.  Your Pug should stay lean with this defect and should be monitored extra closely during surgery. Anytime there is an abnormal breathing problem, a Pug should never be left unattended while recovering from a surgical procedure.

Elongated Palate- Elongated palate is a birth defect. Because the opening to your Pug's voice box rather small, an elongated palate can block part of it. This would result in the Pug having difficulty breathing. This problem will show up when the Pug is either excited or exerting himself somewhat, such as going on a quick paced walk. What happens is as he tries to breath and he needs more air, he will try to breathe in oxygen at a rate that may cause him to hyperventilate and possibly pass out. This can be corrected with surgery.

The problem with an undetected Elongated Palate can be a fatal oversight for your Pug. If a Pug has this defect and yet it is not noticeable to your vet and your Pug has never been examined for it, then when you take him in to be neutered, this can pose a problem for you Pug during surgery. While he is put under, his breathing becomes shallow. The Palate may cover the voice box so much that he can not generate enough air into his lungs and stop breathing. This is not uncommon. Surgery can correct this problem.

Kennel cough is a respiratory infection that is airborn and very contagious.    A dry, harsh cough is generally a sign.    Kennel cough can be more serious in for Pugs because of their narrow airways.  Your vet may put her on Antibiotics and a child cough suppressant. Intra nasal vaccines once a year help prevent KC.   Bronchitis may occur if not properly  treated. With rest and proper care, your Pug should recover in about 2 weeks. 

Dialogue between two Pug dog Mailing List members  titled “Goose Honking”

     I need some help with my 1 year old spayed fawn Pug. On Monday she started making a honking noise when she would get excited and run around. It would come and go and when she would honk, she would become subdued. She is eating and acting normally otherwise. I took her to my vet on Wednesday and we got  her to make the noise for him, but he doesn't think that it is elongated palate because he said that she would be making the noise all of the time. He said to wait it out and see if it gets better on its own. I like him as a vet, but I have the feeling that he doesn't deal with Pugs very much.  I believe that she also has allergies, she licks her front paws, her eyes water and her nose runs. Any ideas on what is going on with my pug would be greatly appreciated . Thanks      Colette and Summer

My vet calls this sound "goose honking". In all 4 of my Pugs, whenever they have had this, it's been the result of an upper respiratory infection. It has never been constant, always intermittent, and mostly when they ran around and got too excited or whatever. In these Puggies, if they are 100% well, there has never been any goose honking, however active they may be. But, by process of elimination, I was able to narrow down the occurrence of these URI's. the honking would generally start within 4-6 days of me bathing them. I was not being careful enough with getting water in their faces as  was rinsing their heads; water would drip down the face. Instead of these Pugs blowing it out their noses, they would suck it down. So, essentially, they were getting water into their lungs. now when I bathe, I am SO VERY CAREFUL about the faces. I use only a damp rag with shampoo first, then rinse with a damp rag. There is never any water dripping down. I was just never used to bathing dogs without snouts. Of course, I beat myself up over it for months. But, now, there is never any honking. One of my adopted  rescues has elongated palate, and on occasion if she gets crazy mad worked up, she will stop herself and cough and choke out some air. She is above average intelligence, (but of course), so she calms herself down voluntarily. Vet has usually prescribed clavamox, which works great. Hope this helps. Toni and Troop Boca in so Florida

Stenotic Nares- This is a birth defect that is commonly found in breeds with short noses.  Their nasal cartilage is softer than it is suppose to be.  A Pug afflicted with this will have very narrow nostrils, which cave inward when he inhales and prevent him from drawing in a sufficient amount of air.  They will consequently have frothy whitish nasal discharge and the will breathe through their mouth.  This can also be corrected by surgery.  

Reverse Sneezing- Due to the Pugs short nose, he is sometimes forced to inhale his air. This in turn may cause a loud hack or snorting noise that repeats itself.    The Pug may hunch up as well.  Occasionally, you might recall your Pug just had a drink of water shortly before this attack occurred or got somewhat excited over something. Maybe there was pressure on his collar that caused his Pharynx to become agitated.  There is no treatment for this, however, if you notice your Pugger doing this often, take him in to your Vet to rule out other Pug problems, such as Elongated Palette.

From Laura Silverman, Sadie and Pugpug:

        “When we humans get a little phlegm, we can clear our throats, but they honk. It will usually go away by itself after less than a minute, but if it goes on, they can pass out due to lack of air. I keep a squeeze bottle of lemon juice on hand and squirt a few drops in their mouth. It cuts the phlegm right away. Sadie doesn't like the taste and gets a rather stunned expression on her face, but at least she can breathe again.”

Concerned Pug Lover- I live in Mexico City and have the most wonderful male pug called ET - he will be 3 in December - my problem is that he has had one breathing problem after another lately and we just do not know what to do to help him - we were recommended a flu vaccine, which he had and it seems to have made it worse - he has been filled with so much medication I am scared to give him any more.

Pugman.com- I need to know what you mean as breathing problem? Can you describe it? On my web page, under the "Health" button, on the side menu bar is a button called "Breathing difficulties".... check that page out and see if it describes anything you see as familiar....Pugs always breathe funny...snore and have gagging sounds....like choking sometimes daily...sometimes they get respitory problems and it takes antibiotics to clear it up. Check out the web page and email me with exact details about his breathing....what does it sound like, how often, does he have fever, is he lethargic, is he eating okay ect... In the meantime, it is imperative that he stays warm and dry. He must be kept indoors. Pugs are indoor dogs only. They don't tolerate weather very well.

Concerned Pug Lover- Thank you for your prompt reply - basically the situation is that ET keeps getting what could be described as tonsil problems with a cold but then they seem to become complicated with lung problems and the last one was particularly bad to the point where he was coughing up blood - he becomes very congested, has a really hard time laying down and,therefore, sleeps sitting up, pants non stops with any extra moving around but doesn't really show any other signs - he is really spunky and keeps at it even when he's ill. He is under constant medical care, which is another very worrying point since he was checked on Monday last week

and Wednesday he was really sick - the time before it all started with a really bad cough and when medicated he collapsed twice - so as you can see I am really worried about him - either doctors here have no idea how to handle these problems or he has some kind of chronic problem and we don't seem to be getting to the bottom of it.

Pugman.com- It sounds to me like ET has a very bad lung infection such as Pneumonia because dogs with Pneumonia characteristically sit with their heads up instead of lying down because this allows for greater expansion of the chest. When they lay down their chest cavity is restricted further and this interferes with their air exchange, so they avoid laying down. Does he have fever, does his ears feel warm or hot to the touch? If so, give him one buffered aspirin every 4 hours. Give him warm water to drink with non-flavored Pedialyte. He needs lots and lots of water. Every chance you get, run the shower with all hot water until the bathroom is full of steam. Sit in the bathroom with him with the door closed until the steam runs out. If you can, put about a Tablespoon of honey in his mouth. This will soothe his very irritated throat as he swallows it. Typically Pneumonia can be treated with aggressive antibiotic treatment but the correct antibiotic must be used and a vet will usually get a phlegm culture from the animal to determine what the best antibiotic is to use on that particular case of Pneumonia or any type of lung infection. In the meantime, keep him comfortable. Pneumonia can be fatal in a short amount of time (a month or less) if not vigorously treated. If that’s what ET has you may need to keep him on a powerful antibiotic for an entire month. I don't think ten days will be enough.

Concerned Pug Lover- Thank you very much for your very valuable help - ET did finally have an x-ray and yes he did have pneumonia - I will take your e-mail to the two vets now seeing him and ask them to please re-think their medication so that this time they totally get rid of this - I will also ask for a culture in order to be sure they are giving him the right antibiotics and keep him humidified us much as possible - honey is a great idea and he likes that - I will let you know how he gets on.

Pugman.com I am so glad ET has been properly diagnosed! Also, if the vet gives you ten days worth of antibiotics (which is typical) and if you give them to him and he improves while on them and then a day or so afterward, if he shows any signs at all of the infection returning, take him in again for your vet to re-supply his medicine. As I said before, it can sometimes take a very long time for their body to completely heal.

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