Dog only coughing at night

10 yr old dog, spayed girl, pitbull, UTD on Vax and heartworm and flea prevention. Florida, USA. Hx of elevated liver values. Saturday AM and last night she woke up maybe 2 times coughing. The coughing fit would be about 2 minutes and then go back to sleep. During the day, she's completely normal. E/d fine, playing fine and doesn't cough. Is this concerning she's coughing or should I monitor her? Thanks

Hi - it sounds as though your dog has a nocturnal cough, which can happen to all of us occasionally but, if ongoing, could be related to fluid settling in the lungs, lungworm or heart disease etc. so should be taken seriously and referred to a vet for triage.    Another possibility is kennel-cough, a viral cough that appears suddenly and won't respond to.antibiotics (which treat bacteria - we dont use them to treat these cases anymore) should also be on the list.

Triage is the act of assessing a case, often on the phone, to establish how urgently it needs to be seen.  Your veterinary team ought to do this in order that you have a suitable appointment.  If they are worried that your dog  might have kennel cough, they may have infection advice for you.

Thank you so much for the reply! Since she was completely normal and playful during the day, I was thinking it could be nothing. I went ahead and scheduled her an appt for tomorrow morning to rule out anything scary. I appreciate it!