[Jane R]

I forgot to add that at times my dog would also stop in the middle of eating and start hacking like something was stuck in her throat. So that was another thing the Barium/GI Study ruled out. Because it showed that her food was flowing normally thru to her digestive tract. Eating too fast for her system could have been the cause. Also I was thinking maybe her digestive process is on the slower side maybe…

[Jane R]

UPDATE to my post from 3/3/21: My dog’s licking, gulping episodes. hacking, along with tummy noises have pretty much completely stopped. Over the last 5 months, she has had a couple of episodes that lasted a couple of minutes. At that point I would let her go outside as it’s better to let her eat grass than what she can find indoors. Otherwise she’s been doing great!

So along with trial and error, and results from GI/barium study…The KEY things that has helped her are: 1. feeding her 3 small meals a day (versus 2 larger ones before); 2. no more essential oils, scented candles, scented laundry detergent, etc. 3. strict diet of her dog food (Fromm’s dry Duck mixed with a spoon or two of Purina ONE SmartBlend Tender Cuts in Gravy Chicken & Brown Rice or Purina ONE SmartBlend Tender Cuts in Gravy Lamb & Brown Rice as they are low in fat content), plain cooked chicken breast, Old Mother Hubbard dog biscuits treats, or dry dog biscuit for treats.

I had a barium/GI study done on her at the vet’s and was able to rule out any issues with how her food traveled from mouth through her GI tract…everything was normal. So that’s when I tried the three things listed above and it has been key to stopping the licking, gulping, etc, episodes.

What I’ve learned that can trigger her episodes are numerous things: eating too much at once, eating too fast, any food with higher fat content including all oil related supplements (fish oil, coconut oil, etc), fragrances. I’m also leery of any supplements for her at this point.

Bland is BEST; LESS is more. It took alot of trial and error, online research, vet visits, trying acid reflux medications, and reading all the helpful posts here too. When she has to take antibiotics from the vet, they can upset her tummy so he puts her on a pre-biotic he has at his office along with the antibiotic and it works great!

[Jane R]

I’m so glad I found this about dogs with gulping, licking episodes! THANK YOU all for sharing your experiences, suggestions, etc. I have a basset beagle mix that’s 6 years old. I got her when she was 4. She has sensitive stomach and mild anxiety.
She started doing the licking the floor, gulping, sometimes hacking/coughing sound like something is stuck in her neck or her throat is itchy (?), and wanting to frantically go outside to eat grass. I tried Pepcid, famotidine from the vet. Didn’t help. Took her to see another vet and showed him a video clip of her frantically licking the floor and not responding to me or anything else except to go outside to look for grass. Sometimes she would throw up, but that was rare. This vet suggested she might be having focal seizure especially since Pepcid didn’t help which led him to rule out acid reflux. He gave me xanax as he said the focal seizure can be caused by anxiety (which she does have mild anxiety). Well that didn’t work or help either. So I’m back to square one and have written down some things she does related to these licking the floor episodes (which can last anywhere from 10 minutes to 45 minutes; and go on and off for a day or two before subsiding) and wanting to go out to eat grass. I noticed that she licks the top of her paws and her chest area almost on a daily basis. She will also periodically make gulping and licking sounds, at various times of the day or night. The last time she had a licking episode, she eventually threw up, I noticed alot of hair in it. So I am wondering if she gets small hairballs from her “grooming” herself (I googled symptoms of hairballs) ? Or is it post nasal drip as she does have allergies?
I have tried Benadryl in case it could be post nasal drip. It helps a little but could be only because it makes her sleepy? I can’t give her more than one in 24 hours and more than maybe three days in a row as it makes her sick/vomit.
So yesterday I asked a friend who does cat rescue what she uses for hairballs and she said laxatone. Then I ordered some indoor grass that dogs/cats can eat and laxatone (a lubricant), from chewy.com for my dog. If her issues are related to hairballs, this should help.
I just found this forum today and saw the suggestions for slipppery elm…I’ll give that a try too if the laxatone doesn’t help. Plus try changing the protein source in her food.

Thank you all again so much for sharing your experiences and what you have done to try to get to the bottom of these episodes with your dogs. I also especially appreciate those who had tests done, scoping, x-rays, etc. and still no answers. This is all very frustrating for sure!

Also wanted to mention that fragrances from candles, essential oils, perfumes, would make my other dog do the gulping/swallowing and she would want to go outside, so I don’t ever use those anymore. And she has never had an episode since.

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