My 3 year old dog doesnt seem to be able to digest adult dog food!

[surfer-dude!]

I have a 3 year old westie who is very active and healthy but she seems to choke and wheeze when we give her any brand of dog food that is not puppy food, it is not that she eats fast as she eats slow and chews each piece of food, but she starts wheezing after a few pieces as though shes going to cough it back up, she has done this ever since we started to put her on the pedigree adult small dog food, when she was old enough but she has always strugled to eat it, and recently she has been wheezing for longer if we have had to give her the small dog food (when we run out of puppy, as this is what our other dog is fed on) Any sugestions as to why she does this?? , she also does this with most dog treats we give her. Any suggestions??? thanks.

[lankeela]

I would definitely get her checked by the vet.
Could be something or nothing but its better to know.

Only thing I have experienced like this is a condition called megaesophagus, where there is a difficulty swallowing food as there is a flap that does not open and close properly and does not allow the food down into the stomach.

[benjiesmum]

You don't say whether or not you are giving her a dry food to eat (like Complete). If you are you may be giving her the wrong sized pieces. There is small-bite dry food for small dogs. My Golden Retriever has large chunk adult food which' looking at, would be rather too large for a small dog to eat. Check the label - it may be just that!

[fergujan]

I agree with the other answer - my mum has a chihuahua who suffered from a similar problem and it was something to do with the dogs soft pallette and a flap of skin at the back of the throat. The vet checked it out, did a minor op and now she is absolutely fine and eats all the time!!

[kaylamay]

could also be allergies