Why Is My Dog Breathing Fast?

What Is a Normal Breathing Rate for a Dog?

Most healthy dogs breathe fewer than 30 times a minute while asleep or resting quietly, and often in the teens.^3,11,16 A sleeping rate that stays above 30 is worth a call to your vet.^3,11 Some cardiology services use 35 as the cut-off for dogs already being treated for heart disease.^20,21 What matters most is a change from your own dog's normal.^19,21

How to Count Your Dog's Breathing Rate

• Count while your dog is asleep or resting calmly, not panting, and not dreaming or twitching.^20,3,22
• Each rise and fall of the chest counts as one breath.^20,3
• Count for a full 60 seconds, or for 30 seconds and double it. Shorter counts make small mistakes bigger.^20,3
• Write it down. Counting once a day for about a week shows your dog's normal range.³
• One high reading can come from dreaming, heat or stress, so count again later. Readings that stay high, or rise steadily, are the ones that matter.²³

Fast Breathing, Panting or Labored Breathing?

Panting is open-mouthed breathing that helps dogs cool down. Normal panting settles with rest, water and shade.^2,1 See dog panting.

Fast breathing is a higher number of breaths per minute. On its own, in a dog who is resting and otherwise well, a rate that stays above 30 on repeat counts is a reason to call your vet.^3,11

Labored breathing means breathing is hard work. Look for an outstretched neck, elbows held away from the chest, an open mouth at rest, flared nostrils, a belly that pushes with each breath, restlessness, and reluctance to lie down. Labored breathing is an emergency.^10,5,4,9 Noisy breathing while awake, such as snoring-type sounds or a harsh sound on breathing in, points to the nose, throat or windpipe.^10,4

Why Is My Dog Breathing Fast?

• Normal reasons: exercise, heat, excitement and stress.^3,2
• Pain: fast or unusual breathing, or panting for no clear reason.^24,2
• Fever.⁶ See dog fever.
• Heatstroke: heavy panting, drooling, gum color changes and collapse. Flat-faced, older, overweight and thick-coated dogs, and dogs with airway or heart disease, are at higher risk. Heatstroke is an emergency: start cooling and go to the vet (see below).^12,13
• Heart failure: fluid builds up in the lungs, causing faster breathing, coughing and tiring easily. This is why vets ask owners of dogs with heart disease to count sleeping breaths.^25,3 See congestive heart failure in dogs.
• Pneumonia: fast or labored breathing, a deep cough, fever and tiredness.²⁶
• Lung tumors, which are usually cancer that has spread from elsewhere.²⁷
• Fluid or blood in the chest, which causes rapid, shallow breathing.²⁸
• Airway problems: brachycephalic airway syndrome in flat-faced breeds, laryngeal paralysis in older large dogs, and a collapsing windpipe in small breeds. Heat, exercise and excitement make these worse, and collar pressure can worsen a collapsing windpipe, so a harness is a better choice.^29,30,31
• Anemia, a low red blood cell count, which also causes pale gums and weakness.⁷
• Cushing's disease and steroid medicines, which can cause panting even at rest.^32,33,34
• Rat poison: anticoagulant rat poisons can cause bleeding into the chest 3 to 7 days after a dog eats them.^8,15
• Body-wide illness, such as diabetic ketoacidosis or kidney failure, which makes the body breathe faster to correct its chemistry.^35,5

Why Is My Dog Breathing Fast While Sleeping?

Dogs can breathe faster for a short time while dreaming, often with twitching paws or eyelids. This is normal.^23,36 Fast breathing that continues during calm, deep sleep, or a sleeping rate that is regularly above 30 a minute, is not normal and needs a vet check, especially in an older dog or a dog with a heart murmur.^3,11 See heart murmurs in dogs.

What to Do if Your Dog Is Breathing Fast

• Keep your dog calm, quiet and cool, because stress makes breathing worse.^9,14
• If your dog is struggling to breathe or has white, blue, gray or purple gums, don't stop to count: go now and phone ahead so the clinic is ready. Otherwise, count the breathing rate, check the gum color and call your vet.^9,3
• Don't put a muzzle on a dog who is struggling to breathe.^37,12
• Keep your dog as still as possible on the way, and carry small dogs in a well-ventilated carrier.^37,14
• For suspected heatstroke, move your dog to shade, wet the body with cool, not ice-cold, water, use a fan or the car's air conditioning, and drive to the vet.^12,13,14

What Your Vet Will Do

A dog in breathing distress is usually given oxygen first, often in an oxygen cage, and handled as little as possible until stable.^10,28 Vets may use a quick ultrasound of the chest, which can be done while the dog is on oxygen, then chest X-rays once the dog is stable.^38,39,28 If fluid is found in the chest, draining it with a needle can make breathing easier right away.²⁸ Further treatment depends on the cause.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is my dog breathing fast while resting?

Pain, fever, heat, heart or lung disease and anemia are common causes. Count the breaths and call your vet if the rate stays above 30.

How many breaths per minute is normal for a sleeping dog?

Usually fewer than 30, and often in the teens.

Is it normal for a dog to breathe fast while sleeping?

Briefly, during dreams, yes. Fast breathing during calm, deep sleep needs a vet check.

When is fast breathing an emergency?

When your dog is struggling to breathe, has white, blue, gray or purple gums, collapses, or breathes with an open mouth at rest.

Why is my dog breathing heavy?

After exercise or on a warm day, panting is normal if it settles quickly with rest, water and shade. Heavy breathing that doesn't settle, or comes with drooling, wobbliness or collapse, can mean heatstroke and is an emergency. Heavy breathing at rest can also mean pain, fever, or heart or lung disease.