Nothing seems to throw new dog parents into a state of panic quite like their dog’s first episode of reverse sneezing. This common respiratory event sounds so dramatic and alarming while it’s happening that many people believe their dog to be choking, suffocating, even having a seizure.
The truth is, reverse sneezing (also known as “pharyngeal gag reflex”) is usually completely harmless. Unlike regular sneezing, where air is pushed out forcefully through the nose, reverse sneezing causes air to be sucked very rapidly into the dog’s nose, causing a loud honking noise that sounds something like a deranged, gagging sea lion.
These episodes can last anywhere from a few seconds to several minutes. However, once it’s over, the dog breathes completely normally again and generally acts as if nothing ever happened.
What Causes Reverse Sneezing?

Reverse sneezing is caused by a spasm of the soft palate, the fleshy area at the back of the throat that’s responsible for closing off the airway and nasal passages so that food doesn’t make its way into the nasal cavity while the dog is eating. When this spasm happens, it temporarily narrows the airway, making it more difficult for the dog to take in air through his nose.
Reverse sneezing can be triggered by anything that irritates the throat, such as:
- Pollen or dust
- Cigarette smoke
- Perfumes or environmental irritants like household chemicals or cleaning supplies
- Air fresheners or scented candles
- Post-nasal drip
- A collar that’s too tight
- Very dry air
- Excitement/barking
- Pulling on a leash
- Eating or drinking too quickly
- A sudden change in temperature (such as going outside in very cold weather)
- Anything the dog swallows that becomes stuck in the throat
- Viral infections
- Nasal mites
Certain dogs are more prone to episodes of reverse sneezing than others. Toy and small breeds seem to be the most affected, perhaps due to their smaller windpipes. Brachycephalic breeds with flat faces such as Pugs, Boxers, Boston Terriers, Shih Tzus, and Bulldogs are also more susceptible due to the fact that their longer soft palates have a tendency to periodically get sucked into their throats. However, any dog can experience an episode of reverse sneezing.
What Reverse Sneezing Looks (And Sounds) Like
A dog who is reverse sneezing will usually stand very still with his elbows spread wide apart and his head extended out in front of him. As he tries to take in air, his eyes will bulge slightly, his sides will heave, his lips may suck in, and he’ll begin making a loud snorting, honking sound. It’s this sound that often causes dog parents to panic and rush to the emergency room, only to have the dog completely back to normal by the time they arrive.
Below is a short video of a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel reverse sneezing:
How Do You Treat Reverse Sneezing?
The simple answer is, you don’t. Although reverse sneezing can look scary and uncomfortable, in most cases it’s not harmful, doesn’t cause any ill effects, and stops on its own once the dog is able to exhale through his nose.
If your dog experiences an attack of reverse sneezing, there are some things you can try to help shorten the episode. Some of these tricks may work for some dogs but not for others, so you can experiment with what works best for your dog:
- Gently massage your dog’s throat.
- Place your hand over your dog’s nostrils for 2-3 seconds, then remove your hand. This usually causes dogs to swallow, which can help stop the spasm.
- Gently blow into your dog’s nostrils.
- If the episode doesn’t stop quickly, and you trust that you won’t lose a finger, you can try putting your hand in your dog’s mouth and pressing gently on the tongue to help open the mouth wider.
If your dog is prone to reverse sneezing, you may want to consider using a harness instead of a traditional neck collar, which places more pressure on the throat. You can also add moisture to the air in your home by using a vaporizer.
If your dog’s reverse sneezing becomes more frequent, or episodes become longer, talk with your veterinarian to rule out other more serious issues such as a collapsing trachea, an object stuck in the throat or windpipe, polyps in the nasal cavity, kennel cough, nasal mites, or a respiratory infection. And if your dog has any type of nasal discharge or wheezing, don’t wait – call your veterinarian.
A Liveable Condition
Most dogs will have at least one episode of reverse sneezing during their lifetime, and for many dogs, intermittent reverse sneezing attacks (just like regular sneezes) are simply part of life. If your dog reverse sneezes, it’s important to remain calm during these events so that your dog doesn’t get anxious, and remember that the occasional episode is relatively harmless and will eventually stop on its own.
If you suspect that your dog is reverse sneezing, but aren’t sure, try to catch the episode on video and play it for your vet so that he or she can figure out what’s happening – whether it’s truly reverse sneezing, or whether it could be something else.
Does your dog have attacks of reverse sneezing? If so, have you found anything that seems to help? Please share your story with us in the comments below!
This scared the heck out of me the first time it happened to my dog. It also terrified my dog, leaving her shaking and whimpering once it was over. We ran to the vet and of course were told it was totally normal and nothing to worry about. The vet suggested grabbing my phone and video taping the reverse sneezing if it happened again. That way I could send it in to my vet just to double check that nothing was wrong and wouldn’t have to make a vet visit for no reason.
Awww, your poor girl! I hope after that first time it wasn’t quite as scary for her. Although I can certainly see how it would be since they can’t take in much air while it’s happening! And we think hiccups are annoying… :-/
I have a 6 year old female Shih Tzu, when she does this it scares me terribly. sometimes it is mild but she has had some severe episodes, a couple in particular she almost stopped breathing, I picked her up opened her mouth and blew in her mouth, other times I just pick her up and rub her throat and talk softly to her. She also chokes on food an water. Now she wears a harness when we walk . Thank you so much for this article it helps to understand the issue of reverse sneezing.
You’re very welcome, I’m so glad it was helpful! Harnesses are really great for dogs with throat and breathing issues.
I have two chi mix dogs and they both reverse sneeze. The chi/pug seems to have more that my chi/ Russell mix does. But the chi/Russell mixes is more severe. I find with him putting my finger over his nose seems to help the most.
That’s interesting that the Chi/Russell has more severe episodes.. I would’ve thought that a Pug mix would have worse ones since Pugs have flatter faces!
I have two Pomeranians and one is more prone to reverse sneezing than the other. Charli is my shadow so when it starts I normally stop what I’m doing and wait quietly, so she doesn’t panic and try and follow me. Her main triggers are exercise and cold air, but she a had a virus a few months back, and everytime she moved it would trigger a reverse sneeze. Just coming down a flight of stairs would mean stopping 2 or 3 times. I ended up carrying her around the house for 3 days!!
I had a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel who was also triggered by cold air. I lived in Ohio at the time (where winters can be brutal), and whenever a reverse sneezing episode would start, he would always look at me, so annoyed, like “Mom. Seriously.” I always felt so bad for him, but sometimes I couldn’t help but smile at his expression!
Poor Charli, I would have carried her, too! Hope she’s feeling much better!
My beagle use to do it, I would cover her nostrils to force her to breath out of her mouth. Now she does it on her own
That’s great she learned how to do that on her own!
Both my Cavaliers do this. I hold their heads down gently and it soon stops
My Cavalier reverse sneezed too…he could be SO loud. It’s very interesting to hear about all the different techniques that can help!
My ShihTzu did this often. I would gently rub throat if that didnt work I would gently stand her on her hind legs a raise front legs in air. Worked like a charm most times.
I wonder if standing her on her hind legs and raising her front legs maybe also helped get more air into her lungs…? Great suggestion!
I use the “standing up” technique too! Sometimes I would just pick them up and let them set their heads above my shoulder. As they were comforted by my holding them, they would relax more, resulting in the end of the attack.
That and gently speaking in a soft, calm voice during the episode. I’ve only had a very few episodes that lasted more than a second or two after using these techniques. Standing them up with ‘raised arms’ expands their diaphragm and helps to relax their breathing passageways. It also distracts them from the attack itself so that they automatically begin breathing normally on their own.
My shih tzu/poodle mix does this every so often, usually when he gets excited about something. Luckily his previous owners told us about it when we got him, otherwise we probably would have been freaked out when it first happened!
It really can be scary if you’ve never heard it before… especially if the dog’s first episode happens in the middle of the night!
I am so glad I found this article – my deaf whippet/collie cross reverse sneezes but up to now I didn’t know what it was. It leaves him trembling but I give him lots of reassurance and he recovers well. I will try the tips to see if they help shorten the episodes. Thank you for the article.
Thank you, Tess! I hope you’re able to find something that works for him… there are also some great tips from readers in the comments that may be helpful. Thanks for reading! 🙂
We have 2 beagles and both of them do this often during dry and windy times.
I can see why, I’m sure the dry air combined with the airborne particles kicked up by the wind can be irritating to their throats – I know it always is to mine!
Thank you for the article, my Rotti cross does this and it scared me senseless. Now I know what it is. It only lasts a few seconds but I thought he was having trouble breathing. I was going to take him to the vet. From one relieved mom!
Thank you, so glad it helped! 🙂
I have a toy poodle that does it whenever she gets excited which is quite often. I pick her up and this usually calms her down and it stops. 🙂
Yep, excitement is one of the biggest triggers, especially in smaller dogs.
Excitement is usually when mine have an episode.
I have 2 king charles spaniels who also have reverse sneezing. Excitement or pulling on the leash through excitement usually is the trigger. I rub their throats and then cover their nostrils for a few seconds till they open their mouths to breathe usually helps them. The first time it happened it was scary for them and me but they are used to it now.
I used to rub my Cavalier’s throat too, and that seemed to help. I was trying anything and everything just to see what would work! Sometimes blowing gently into his nose would stop it too.
My Lab has also done it once in a while. It has been scary to watch because I didn’t know what was happening, but it never last very long, and he seems okay afterwards. Now I also know what he is dealing with. Thank you. Next time it will be less scary.
Glad it was helpful, thank you Eva! 🙂
My Weimaraner does this occasionally , my instinct has been to gently massage her throat. It seemed to happen when temperature was high in the house. Thanks for the article , it was very informative
Glad it was helpful, thank you Dean!
My lab does this once in awhile , usually after eating. I massage her throat area and that shortens the duration. Thank you for the info….I thought she ‘ caught’ my asthma! Lol.
Hi Cheryl, that’s so funny! 😀 It’s probably a very good thing our dogs don’t catch things from us, especially our human stress-related issues like migraine headaches and anxiety attacks!
I have 2 Shih Tzu’s who do this…. thankfully, not often, as it terrifies the younger one (5 yrs) to pieces. Not long after my older one started this, I was lucky enough to read an article similar to this one. I use the throat rub and talk softly to calm them. Interesting to know what other methods work. Thanks for the additional info. Great article.
Thanks so much for reading, Pam! 🙂
When I get sick to where my tonsils and soft palet swell up, I experience something close to what reverse sneezing is. When my dog did if the first time. I immediately understood what was going on and let her run get course of sneezing.
Oh, that does not sound like fun. 🙁 But at least you can certainly empathize with your dog!
One of my dogs had Myasthenia Gravis and Mega Oesophagus and that left him with regular bouts of reverse sneezing. I have found the best way to end an episode is to gently place my hand over the top of his snout leaving his nostrils clear and slowly lower the head. The sneezing stops almost instantly.
Hi Sylvia, thank you so much for the tip! I have great admiration for you, I know those are not easy conditions to treat and require a great deal of dedicated care.
My chihuahua started with the reverse sneezing but they progressed. She would have them so severe that she would be cyanotic and go limp. I was lucky enough to be able to video some of her episodes . I was referred to the vet school in NC where she was diagnosed with a collapsed trachea. Now just have to decide on treatment option. Yes she does scare me to pieces but I try to remain calm .
Oh, that is so scary! 🙁 Yes, collapsing trachea can be a frustrating condition to manage. Unlike reverse sneezing, it can be quite serious since the condition can lead to swelling in the trachea that can cause the airway to become obstructed (which sounds like what happened to your little one). If she’s being treated at the vet school, you are going to get excellent advice on treatment options, so hopefully she will be feeling better very soon!
I took my Jack Russell to the vets with this and a video and they said it was collapsible trachea, small dogs being prone to this. They said if it gets worse steroids are often used and in severe cases an operation to strengthen the trachea can be performed. I stroke my dogs throat and get him to swallow and this usually stops it.
Hi Kitty! You make a very important point about distinguishing between reverse sneezing and collapsing trachea. Although reverse sneezing is relatively harmless, collapsing trachea can be much more serious, so it’s wonderful that you videotaped your dog’s episode and took him to the vet to make sure. Now he can get treatment to manage his coughing episodes so that his trachea doesn’t become more and more irritated. I’m so glad you had him checked out…thank you for reading and for sharing your story!
My Cavalier King Charles does this when he’s excited. I just place my index finger across his nostrils and gently tilt his head down and after a few seconds he opens his mouth and it stops.
Based on everyone’s comments, tilting the head down seems to work well for a lot of people. I never tried this with my Cavalier, I wish I would have known about that technique back in the day!
My Chi-Rat terr mic does it. He can have small to severe episodes. I have always picked him up and rubbed his throat and taped softly to him. But ill try some of these suggestions next time he does it. It is scary but now i dont get as scared just calmly help.
Being calm is really helpful, since dogs (and most other animals) are so good at picking up on our anxiety. When we’re concerned and acting stressed, they figure there must be something really terrible happening that they should be worried about!
Since your little guy has severe episodes, have you ever videotaped one of his episodes and showed it to your vet? Sometimes reverse sneezing can be confused with collapsing trachea, which is a more serious condition, so it might be worth checking out just to be sure. Hopefully it’s just the sneezing, though… the smaller the dog, the more common the reverse sneezing. 🙂 Thanks so much for commenting!
I have a daux cross and he makes this noise – I didn’t know what it was till I saw this post . However I have always cupped my hand gently over his nose for a second or two and he stops straightaway.
My foxy had his first reverse sneezing episode when we were on a car transport ferry – it terrified us both but when I realised I couldn’t do anything to help, I started videoing. When we got to the vet, it had stopped but he said it was reverse sneezing and totally fine. The video of my foxy is now used by my vet to show other owners when they are describing the same thing.
I’m not sure what triggered that first episode but he regularly reverse sneezes when he’s drunk water too fast.
Being able to video can be so helpful in cases like this…a picture (with audio) really is worth a thousand words. 🙂
Both of my Italian Greyhounds do this. I usually rub the throat or offer a treat. That seems to stop it.
I have a toy American Eskimo. She’s 3 years old now and she had reverse sneezing more the first year. Now it’s maybe 2-3 times a year. When it happens I usually give her a small treat to eat to stop it.
My Havapoo Woody does this. It is very scary and seems like it could be an asthma attack! I have found that the fibres from soft toys getting in his throat set it off so now he doesn’t get them – I just give him un stuffed toys and he has improved. Also he is much better since I changed his collar for a harness. If I pick him up, massage his throat gently and blow in his nostrils it soon passes. Great article. Thanks.
Thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed it! That would make sense about the fibers irritating Woody’s throat…and since those fibers are material, I wonder if there might also be an allergy to the material itself which could be contributing to the reverse sneezing? Either way, it’s good that you found a way to improve it!
My dog does this quite frequently, but I can stop it almost immediately by placing my fingers on his nostrils for a few seconds. Works like a charm!
I have 3 corgis. Two of the has had this issue. one gets it about once a month especially after getting excited. What has worked for me was holding the dog vertical while small amount of blowing in the nose. I have tried the throat massage sometimes it works. I’m very interested in trying the head tilted down with the index finger over the nose. Thank you for the article.
Thank you Mary, I’m glad you enjoyed it! It’s really fascinating to hear all the different stories about what works for people with their dogs. It reminds me of all the cures out there for human hiccups…it’s nice having multiple options to try!
My Staffordshire Bull Terrier/Jack Russel cross (She looks like a small staffie with the head of a Jack Russel) reverse sneezes almost daily. It’s really weird. Her collar isn’t tight or anything. Could this just be a quirk of her crossbreed?
Oh. And don’t worry about my username.
My 3 year old Bolognese does this when I come home from being away a couple of hours. He gets so excited, turning in circles then the reverse sneeze starts. Doesn’t happen every time and passes on its own