Y'know, I'd never even heard of "reverse sneezing" until Cassie the Corgi came to live with me. She's about eight or nine now and rarely does it anymore, but when she was younger -- she was about two when she moved in -- she used to have those scary snorking attacks fairly frequently. Over time they went away, and in the past couple of years she hasn't had any of them.

But Ruby the Corgi Pup (about 3 years old now) has them ALL the time. Most of the time there seems to be no visible cause. She can just be standing or laying around and an attack will come on her. Sometimes it seems like MAYBE they MIGHT be caused if she's startled. Also, she no longer goes for a walk with a leash on her collar -- we have a nice harness instead -- because it seemed that straining against the leash would bring it on.

It is hotter than the hubs of Hades here today, and to make things more ridiculous, I swallowed half of a Benadryl to treat a little allergy. Benadryl knocks me into the middle of next week. So come the real heat of the day, I decided it was time for us to take a siesta.

Naps in this house are next to impossible, between the incessant nuisance phone robocalls from phone solicitors and the various other wacky things that go on here in the 'hood, pretty much nonstop. I should've known better. Adding to the uncertainty: this morning I left the Dog Chariot down at Chuck the WonderMechanic's shop to have its alternator fixed or changed out (whichEVER), and stupidly I left my purse in it when he drove me home in one of the functional vehicles on the lot. Since the car will be there overnight, he said he'd bring the suitcase by when he was up in this direction later in the day.

So of course the phone rings the minute I start to doze off. Robocall.

Just almost get back to sleep when BING BONG! Someone at the door.

Both dogs leap up and start to bark themselves berserk. But Ruby, startled, starts on the reverse-sneeze wheezing. She's gagging and gasping but also trying to jump off the bed. They both have to be physically restrained from jumping down -- the bed has one of those inane superthick mattresses (never get talked into buying one of those!) that's so far off the ground that either of them will get hurt if they jump off it.

I lift each pooch down to the floor. Cassie streaks to the front door and Ruby staggers after her, snorking and whorking.

Without my glasses on, I can't see out the front window, but I think it must be Chuck. I want that purse back, so I don't pause to put on a shirt and shorts -- because I don't want him to leave before I can tell him to waitaminit whilst I get dressed. There's a heavy-duty security door in front (you have to live in the 'hood to understand...). It has a perforated metal screen that I don't think anyone can see through, so I crack open the door, keeping my scarred and boobless torso behind the door (I think, anyway) to see this white-haired guy standing out there with a clipboard in hand.

Cassie is having a batsh!t barking frenzy. Ruby is gasping and wheezing and horking and snorking -- she can't bark around her reverse-sneeze attack.

Says the visitor: "You must be the grandma!"

WTF? How can the jerk see through this mesh?

"What?" I say.

"You must be the grandma," he repeats, in the same airheaded patronizing phony-cheery tone.

"Oh for the love of GOD!" I say. "Go AWAY, please!"

Grrrrrrr! If I'd been thinking, I would've said, "Well, no, my son's not interested in women. Are you?" But alas, we always think of these things a day late and a dollar short.

He leaves. I slam the door. Ruby continues to whork and snork. She's having one of the worst attacks ever.

Once the chucklehead is gone, I stroke and soothe and pat Ruby until she calms down and stops the reverse-sneeze spasms. Shortly, she's back to normal.

Poor little dawg.

What is WITH this reverse-sneezing thing and corgis? I've had many pooches in many breeds, most of them with wolfish pointy noses -- including a greyhound that shared the bullet-shaped head and muzzle of a corgi -- and never encountered the phenomenon before. It seems to be a pretty common thing: https://www.welshcorgi-news.ch/Gesundheit/Rev_Sneezing_eng.html 

Have you found that your dogs have outgrown it, as Cassie seems to have done?

Or have you found any specific triggers that might be avoided? Or tricks that might soothe the dog during an attack?