Dog panting heavily or breathing fast
Panting is the main way dogs cool down, so heavy panting after exercise, play or on a warm day is usually normal and eases once your dog rests somewhere cool. Panting that starts at rest or at night, keeps going without a clear reason, or comes with restlessness can point to pain, stress, heat or an illness, and older and flat-faced dogs are more at risk. Struggling to breathe, blue, purple or pale gums, suddenly noisy breathing, collapse, a swollen belly with retching, or heavy panting after time in the heat needs a vet now.
General health information, not a diagnosis. If you are worried about your pet, contact a vet.
How urgent is it?
Go down the list and stop at the first row that matches your pet.
See a vet now
- Struggling to breathe: the chest or belly works hard with each breath, or your dog can’t lie down, keeps sitting up, or stands with the neck stretched out and the legs apart
- Blue, purple or pale gums or tongue
- Strained breathing, noisy or raspy breathing that is new or sudden, or breathing that suddenly gets worse after excitement, stress, exercise or heat
- Collapsed, very weak, confused or has had a seizure, or the face suddenly swells or hives appear, for example after a sting
- Heavy panting after time in the heat, in a warm car or after exercise on a warm day, especially with drooling, bright red gums, vomiting, diarrhea or weakness
- A swollen belly with retching or trying to vomit while little or nothing comes up
- Panting while resting together with pacing, restlessness, getting up and lying down again, crying out or not being able to get comfortable
- Keeps breathing fast or hard while resting in a cool room and it doesn’t settle, for example more than 40 breaths a minute
- May have eaten something toxic, such as chocolate, or has had a fall or an accident or been hit by a car, even if your dog seems fine
See a vet within 24 hours
- When you count breaths during sleep, the rate is regularly above 35 a minute, or has gone up by 20 to 30 percent or more over three days in a row, while your dog otherwise seems comfortable
- Over weeks or months, an older or large dog pants more and its breathing gradually sounds louder or raspier, the bark has changed, it tires quickly on walks or in warm weather, or it coughs or gags
- Has been panting more than usual for weeks, together with drinking and peeing more, a bigger appetite, a pot belly or thinning hair, often in a middle-aged or older dog
- A flat-faced dog (such as a pug, French bulldog or bulldog) seems to stop breathing for a few seconds while asleep, or its breathing during sleep is often very loud and uneven
Watch at home
- A flat-faced dog (such as a pug, French bulldog or bulldog) snores or snorts, tires easily or pants heavily even in mild warmth: keep it cool and book a regular appointment to have the airway checked
- Pants, paces or trembles during fireworks, thunderstorms or other scary events and settles once it is over: give it a safe space and talk to your vet before the next event
- Pants after exercise, play or on a warm day, and it eases once your dog rests somewhere cool, with normal gum color, energy and behavior
Not sure which row fits?
Describe your pet’s symptoms and get a free urgency check in about a minute.
Check my pet’s symptomsCommon causes
| Cause | What you may notice | Usual urgency |
|---|---|---|
| Cooling down after exercise or heat | Panting during or after activity or on warm days that eases with rest in a cool place | Watch |
| Fear, stress or anxiety | Panting with trembling, pacing, drooling or hiding, for example during fireworks or storms | Watch |
| Pain | Panting even while resting, restlessness, getting up and down, a tense or grimacing face | Now |
| Flat-faced airway problems (BOAS) | Snoring, snorting, noisy breathing, tiring quickly and struggling in the heat; pugs, French bulldogs and bulldogs | Within 24 h |
| Laryngeal paralysis | Raspy breathing, more panting, a changed bark, poor tolerance of heat and exercise; most common in older, large-breed dogs such as Labradors | Within 24 h |
| Hormonal disease (Cushing’s disease) | Panting with more drinking and peeing, a bigger appetite, a pot belly and hair loss; middle-aged to older dogs | Within 24 h |
| Heart or lung disease | Fast breathing at rest or during sleep, coughing, labored breathing, trouble lying flat | Now |
| Heatstroke | Heavy panting, drooling, red gums, vomiting or diarrhea after heat or exercise, then weakness, confusion or collapse | Now |
| Bloat or stomach twisting (GDV) | Swollen belly, retching with nothing coming up, restlessness, drooling; more common in large, deep-chested breeds | Now |
| Poisoning | Restlessness, fast breathing, vomiting or tremors after eating something toxic such as chocolate | Now |
What you can do at home
- Move your dog to a cool, shaded, well-ventilated place with a fan or air conditioning, let it rest, and offer small sips of fresh water without forcing it.
- If heatstroke is possible, start cooling at once: pour cool (not ice-cold) water over the head, belly, armpits and feet, and keep the air moving with a fan or air conditioning. Call a vet and keep cooling on the way, for example in front of the car’s air conditioning.
- To count the breathing rate, wait until your dog is asleep or resting calmly in a comfortable room. Count breaths for 15 seconds (in and out counts as one) and multiply by four. Do this on a few calm days to learn your dog’s usual number.
- If fireworks or storms set off the panting, give your dog a familiar, cozy safe space and stay home with it if you can.
- On warm days, walk early in the morning or in the evening, keep exercise short, carry water and make sure there is shade. Take extra care with flat-faced, overweight, older and thick-coated dogs.
What not to do
- Do not use ice, ice-cold water or rubbing alcohol to cool your dog, and do not cover it with wet towels. These can slow cooling.
- Do not force your dog to drink.
- Do not give human medicines, including pain relievers, unless a vet tells you to.
- Do not skip the vet after possible heatstroke, even if your dog seems to recover. Damage to organs may not show right away.
- Do not leave your dog in a parked car, and avoid hard exercise in hot or humid weather. In a large UK study, about three in four heat-related illness cases with a known cause followed exercise, and about one in twenty followed time in a car.
- If your dog has noisy breathing, do not walk it on a neck collar that presses on the throat. Use a harness instead.
What to tell the vet
- When the panting started, what your dog was doing (resting, sleeping, exercising, in the heat) and how long it has lasted
- The breathing count at rest or during sleep, and your dog’s usual count if you know it
- Gum and tongue color, any noise when breathing, and any collapse
- Other changes: drinking, peeing, appetite, belly size, coat, coughing, bark, energy
- Anything your dog may have eaten, any fall or accident, and any recent time in the heat
Questions owners ask
Why is my dog panting so much?
Panting is how dogs cool down, so a lot of panting after a walk, play or on a warm day is usually normal and slows once your dog rests somewhere cool. Fear and stress, such as fireworks or storms, can also cause panting. Heavy panting at rest that does not ease, or panting with restlessness, hard or noisy breathing, or pale or blue gums, can point to pain, heatstroke or an illness and needs a vet now.
Why is my dog panting at night?
First check that the room is not too warm. Panting while resting, together with pacing, restlessness or getting up and down, can be a sign of pain. Panting more than usual over weeks, with drinking and peeing more, a bigger appetite or a pot belly, is seen with Cushing’s disease, a hormonal condition of middle-aged and older dogs. Fast breathing during sleep can also be linked to heart disease, so counting the sleeping breathing rate helps your vet. If your dog is struggling to breathe, see a vet now.
Why is my dog panting for no reason?
If there is no heat or exercise behind it, look for other clues. Pain, fear, hormonal disease, airway problems and heart or lung disease can all cause panting at rest. Panting at rest together with restlessness, hard or noisy breathing, or pale or blue gums needs a vet now. If your dog otherwise seems comfortable, count the breathing rate during sleep and call your vet if it stays above 35 a minute.
How fast should a dog breathe at rest?
Veterinary guidance gives about 15 to 30 breaths a minute at rest, and below 30 to 35 a minute during sleep, as normal. Count while your dog sleeps in a comfortable room: count breaths for 15 seconds and multiply by four. A sleeping rate that stays above 35, or rises by 20 to 30 percent over three days in a row, is a reason to call your vet. Fast breathing that keeps going above 40 a minute at rest, or breathing that looks hard, is a reason to go now.
Is heavy panting a sign of heatstroke in dogs?
It can be. Heavy panting, drooling, red gums, vomiting or diarrhea after heat or exercise are early signs, and weakness, confusion, collapse or seizures mean it is getting worse. Start cooling right away with cool, not ice-cold, water and moving air, and get to a vet while you keep cooling. In a UK study of 879 heat-related illness cases with a known trigger, 652 followed exercise and 46 followed time in a car, and flat-faced breeds had higher odds of all three main types (after exercise, in hot weather and in cars).
Related symptoms
Sources
- When to Go to the ER, Cornell Richard P. Riney Canine Health Center
- Recognizing Respiratory Distress in Pets, American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA)
- At-Home Monitoring of Pets with Heart Disease, University of Missouri Veterinary Health Center
- Heat Stroke in Dogs, VCA Animal Hospitals
- Heatstroke: A Medical Emergency, Cornell Richard P. Riney Canine Health Center
- Heatstroke in Dogs and Cats (Fact File), Royal Veterinary College, University of London
- Dogs Don’t Die Just in Hot Cars: Exertional Heat-Related Illness (Heatstroke) Is a Greater Threat to UK Dogs, Animals (Basel), 2020
- BOAS: Recognition and Diagnosis, University of Cambridge Department of Veterinary Medicine
- Laryngeal Paralysis, Cornell Richard P. Riney Canine Health Center
- How Do I Know if My Dog Is in Pain?, VCA Animal Hospitals
- Disorders of the Pituitary Gland in Dogs (Pet Owner Version), Merck Veterinary Manual
- Introduction to Lung and Airway Disorders of Dogs (Pet Owner Version), Merck Veterinary Manual
- Gastric Dilation and Volvulus in Small Animals, Merck Veterinary Manual
- Chocolate Toxicosis in Animals, Merck Veterinary Manual
- Fear of Fireworks and Thunderstorms, Cornell Richard P. Riney Canine Health Center
- Don’t Give Over-the-Counter Medications to Your Pet, University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine
Last reviewed October 25, 2026