Tracheal collapse is a permanent, chronic, and progressive disease affecting mostly small-breed dogs.
What Is Tracheal Collapse?
Put simply, tracheal collapse is when a dog’s trachea flattens out causing difficult breathing.
A dog’s trachea is a flexible tube, similar to a vacuum cleaner hose.
The trachea has small cartilage rings that help keep the airway open. The small cartilage rings are C-shaped, the open part of the “C” facing upward.
In tracheal collapse, the C-shaped cartilage weakens and flattens. As the top part of the trachea stretches, the cartilage rings flatten more and more, until eventually, the trachea collapses.
Tracheal collapse most commonly affects small-breed dogs.
Breeds prone to suffer from tracheal collapse are:
- Yorkshire terriers
- Pomeranians
- Poodles
- Chihuahuas
Others at high risk are:
- Middle-aged dogs
- Overweight dogs
- Dogs living in a smoking household
Symptoms of Canine Tracheal Collapse
If your dog displays any of the below symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.
Some symptoms of tracheal collapse are:
- Breathing difficulty
- Coughing when
- Collar is tugged on
- Excited (or turning blue)
- Being picked up
- Exercise intolerance
- Fainting
- Harsh, dry cough
- Wheezing when inhaling
How Is Tracheal Collapse Diagnosed?
Of course, only a veterinarian can diagnose tracheal collapse.
When checking for tracheal collapse, your veterinarian might:
- Do routine bloodwork to check your dog’s overall health
- Take chest x-rays to help with diagnosis, rule out other conditions, and/or check the size of your dog’s heart
- Perform a fluoroscopy to check the condition of your dog’s trachea when breathing in and out
- Perform an endoscopy to view the inside of the airway and take fluid samples for culture and/or analysis.
Western Treatments for Collapsed Tracheal Collapse
Standard veterinary care for canine tracheal collapse includes:
- Losing weight
- Keeping your dog away from smoke
- Keeping your dog away from environmental pollutants and toxins
- Pharmaceuticals to reduce inflammation and airway spasms
- Sedatives to reduce anxiety and coughing
- Surgery in severe cases
Unfortunately, some dogs require high-dose sedatives to break the coughing cycle.
It’s a tough situation because coughing irritates the airway and leads to even more coughing.
In addition, dogs should be kept away from smoke and other environmental pollution (coughing maybe even be stimulated by smoke or other irritants brought in on clothing and hair). Dogs with infections are treated with antibiotics.
The above recommendations often work, especially for dogs with a mild tracheal collapse.
If the disease progresses and your dog doesn’t respond, surgery might be recommended.
How Su Zi Jiang Qi Herbal Formula Helps Canine Tracheal Collapse
Some vets recommend pharmaceuticals to help control tracheal collapse in dogs.
Often, though, holistic veterinarians and pet parents prefer to try something natural first.
Herbs provide a gentle, tonic alternative for many dogs.
Most herbs don’t have side effects.
Su Zi Jiang Qi: Western Philosophy
Su Zi Jiang Qi helps dogs suffering from the following Western diagnoses:
- Asthma
- Chest Pain
- Collapsed Trachea
- Dyspnea
- Excessive salivation
- Shortness of breath
Su Zi Jiang Qi: Eastern Philosophy
Eastern medicine treats a disease’s root cause(s) rather than symptoms.
Accordingly, TCVM veterinarians evaluate canine tracheal collapse differently than Western veterinarians.
TCVM vets look for signs of imbalance.
Su Zi Jiang Qi helps dogs with the following TCVM signs:
- A pale, wet tongue
- A deep, weak or fast pulse
- Qi Stagnation and Excess Damp in the Upper Jiao and Qi/Yang Deficiency in the Lower Jiao
How Su Zi Jiang Qi Works
Su Zi Jiang Qi is a TCVM blend of 10 different Eastern herbs.
The herbs perform synergistically, balancing systems and meridians in the body.
Su Zi Jiang Qi addresses the underlying causes leading to a tracheal collapse in dogs.
The underlying cause of any disease is always an imbalance somewhere in the body.
Su Zi Jiang Qi alleviates your dog’s imbalances while treating the symptoms of canine tracheal collapse.
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, Su Zi Jiang Qi works by:
- Transform phlegm to stop cough
- Strengthen Kidney Yang to relieve asthma
- Descend Qi from the Upper Jiao to the Lower Jiao
What Are the Ingredients in Su Zi Jiang Qi?
The main ingredients in Su Zi Jiang Qi are:
- Ban Xia dries up dampness and transforms phlegm
- Da Zao tonifies Qi and harmonizes
- Dang Gui nourishes and activates Blood
- Gan Cao tonifies Qi and harmonizes
- Gan Jiang warms Kidney and dispels cold
- Hou Po transforms phlegm and stops asthma
- Qian Hu transforms phlegm moves qi
- Rou Gui warms Kidney and dispels cold
- Zi Su Ye dispels Wind-cold and soothes Lung Qi
- Zi Su Zi descends Qi to stop asthma and stop cough
Dr. Huisheng Xie, the founder of the Chi Institute in Reddick, FL, created Jing Tang’s Su Zi Jiang Qi specifically for animals.
Su Zi Jiang Qi comes from Chen Shi Wen’s Imperial Grace Formulary of the Tai Ping Era, written in 1080.
Su Zi Jiang Qi works best when combined with plenty of water, Eastern Food Therapy, and case-appropriate exercise.
Note: Information on this site is for educational purposes only and is not meant to substitute the advice provided by your own veterinarian.
