Why Is My Puppy Breathing Fast: 7 Vet-Explained Reasons

As a new puppy parent, you may find yourself worrying over every little thing your fur baby does – including how fast they are breathing. Puppies do breathe more rapidly than adult dogs, but there are times when a high respiratory rate can be a red flag that something is wrong. In this article, we‘ll explore the many reasons puppies breathe fast, how to know what‘s normal, and when it‘s time to seek veterinary care.

What is a Normal Puppy Respiratory Rate?
First, it‘s important to establish a baseline for what is considered a normal breathing rate in puppies. At rest, puppies typically take 15-40 breaths per minute. You can calculate your puppy‘s respiratory rate by counting how many breaths they take in 30 seconds and multiplying that number by two. Each breath is counted when the chest rises (inhale) and falls (exhale).

Of course, it‘s very normal for that rate to be much higher in certain circumstances:

Panting to Regulate Temperature
Unlike humans, dogs and puppies don‘t sweat through their skin. Instead, they primarily regulate temperature by panting. Moisture evaporates from the tongue, nasal passages and lungs, cooling them down. It‘s very normal for puppies to pant after playing, exercising, or when it‘s hot outside. This allows heat to dissipate from the body. Most puppies will breathe normally again within a few minutes once they‘ve had a chance to rest and cool down.

However, difficulty cooling down and prolonged rapid breathing could be a sign of heat stroke, especially on very hot days. Flat-faced brachycephalic breeds like Pugs, Pekingese, French Bulldogs and English Bulldogs are particularly prone to overheating. Additional signs of heat stroke include thick ropey saliva, dark red gums, glazed eyes, vomiting, diarrhea, and staggering. Heat stroke is a medical emergency – if suspected, immediately move your puppy to a cooler area and call your vet. On the way there, you can put a cool wet towel over your puppy‘s body to start safely lowering their temperature.

Excitement and Stress
Have you noticed your puppy breathing fast when you come home, when meeting new people or dogs, or during playtime? Just like us, our puppies can get excited or stressed in highly stimulating situations. In these cases, rapid breathing is a normal physiological response. It should resolve itself within a few minutes as your puppy starts to relax. Other signs of a happy, excited puppy include a wagging tail, alert ears, and "play bows."

In contrast, an anxious puppy may exhibit a tucked tail, pinned back ears, crouching, trembling, whining, yawning, or lip licking along with fast breathing. If your puppy seems stressed or afraid, calmly remove them from the situation and allow them to decompress in a quiet space. Over time, if your puppy seems anxious more often than not, consult your vet. They can recommend strategies and/or anti-anxiety aids to help your puppy cope with stressful situations.

Health Issues That Can Cause Fast Breathing
Sometimes, rapid breathing is a symptom of an underlying health problem. Puppies are especially vulnerable to certain illnesses and conditions:

Respiratory Infections
Puppies can experience breathing difficulties due to respiratory infections like kennel cough, pneumonia, and bronchitis. These infections cause inflammation and narrowing of the airways, leading to rapid, sometimes labored breathing. Additional symptoms may include nasal discharge, coughing, lethargy, and fever. While many respiratory infections are viral and will resolve on their own with supportive care, others are caused by bacteria and may require antibiotics. If you suspect your puppy has more than a mild cold, a vet visit is in order. Severe untreated respiratory infections can progress to potentially life-threatening pneumonia.

The best way to prevent respiratory infections is to adhere to the puppy vaccine schedule recommended by your veterinarian. Vaccines for Bordetella (kennel cough), distemper, adenovirus, and parainfluenza are highly effective at protecting puppies against the most common and serious respiratory pathogens. Also avoid exposing your puppy to unknown dogs until they have completed their vaccination series.

Heart Problems
Congenital heart defects are abnormalities of the heart that are present at birth. While rare, some puppies are born with holes between heart chambers, malformed valves, and other structural issues that impair cardiac function. These defects can place extra strain on the heart and lungs, causing rapid breathing along with other symptoms like lethargy, exercise intolerance, and stunted growth. Many puppies with mild defects show no symptoms at first until it is picked up as a heart murmur at a routine vet check. More severe cases may go into congestive heart failure early in life without surgical correction.

Your vet can perform chest x-rays and an echocardiogram to visualize any congenital heart defects. Depending on the defect, medications may help manage the condition and surgery may be recommended. Catching any problems early, before the puppy has finished growing, generally leads to the best prognosis.

Pain
Puppies are notoriously good at hiding when they are hurting. Fast breathing or panting is often an early, subtle sign that your puppy is painful. This could be due to an injury, foreign body ingestion, bloat, or other illness causing discomfort. A painful puppy may also whimper, yelp when touched, limp, have a decreased appetite, or seem depressed.

Never give your puppy human pain medications, as many are toxic to dogs. If you think your puppy is hurting, take them to the vet right away for an evaluation and dog-safe pain relief.

Anemia
Anemia is a low red blood cell count. Red blood cells are responsible for transporting oxygen to the tissues of the body. When they are low, the heart and lungs have to work harder to supply enough oxygen. This can manifest as rapid breathing as well as pale gums, lethargy, weakness, and collapse.

In puppies, anemia can occur due to blood loss from injuries, fleas, ticks and intestinal parasites, autoimmune disease that destroys red blood cells, or toxin ingestion. Your vet can perform a complete blood count to check for anemia and may recommend blood transfusions, iron supplementation, and treatment for any underlying causes.

Neurologic Problems
Rarely, neurological issues like brain inflammation or seizure disorders could lead to abnormal breathing in puppies. Other signs would likely be present as well, such as disorientation, tremors, loss of coordination, and collapse. This is more likely to occur in a puppy that is already known to have a neurological condition. Fast breathing would be an indication to get your puppy to the vet or closest emergency clinic immediately.

Flat-Faced Breeds and Breathing Issues
Brachycephalic breeds like French Bulldogs, Pugs, Shih-Tzus, and Boxers have facial anatomy that predisposes them to breathing difficulties. These pups have narrowed nostrils, elongated soft palates, and compressed nasal passages that restrict airflow. Because of this, you may notice your flat-faced puppy breathing fast more often than other puppies. As long as the rapid respiration resolves when your puppy is at rest, it should not be cause for alarm. However, if fast breathing worsens with age and is accompanied by snorting, snoring, coughing and gagging, be sure to discuss it with your vet. Severe brachycephalic airway syndrome may require surgery to open the airways.

When to Go to the Vet
In general, if fast breathing is the only symptom your puppy is showing and it resolves within a few minutes, it is probably nothing to worry about. But if the rapid breathing seems extreme, worsens, or doesn‘t subside – or if your puppy has pale gums, extreme lethargy, blue-tinged gums, coughing, vomiting, diarrhea or collapse – it‘s time to go to the vet ASAP.

Many causes of abnormal breathing in puppies can progress quickly, so prompt vet care is always advisable. The vet can perform a full physical exam along with tests like bloodwork, x-rays and/or ultrasound to get to the bottom of why your puppy is breathing fast. Proper diagnosis leads to proper treatment to help get your cute little speedster feeling better as soon as possible.