Dog with a cold. Please help

Yesterday I brought my dog to the vet and he has a cold. He is a three year old Jack Russell Terr. Mix and Just was recently neutered. Well the vet said she didnt want to put him on antibiotics until the cold gets really bad. It seems to have gotten worse today, he can hardly breath out of his nose and sleeps most of the day. Any home remidies to clear his nose and make him more comfortable or should I just get the antibiotics. I really am not a fan of giving medicine unless its 100% needed but I seem to be at the end of my rope. He sneezes all the time and does that dog wheeze thing. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
-Dan

 

Maybe you could try suctioning his nose with one of those baby suction-thingies?

 

See, thats what I was thinking but i dont want to hurt the dog at all. Has anyone had any luck with this method?
Thanks
-Dan

 

I was always told that dogs (and animals in general) don't catch colds.....it's a virus only humans can catch. Did the vet really say he has a cold? :-#

 

Maybe the correct term she used was URI, or upper respitory infection. Its equilivent to a cold.
-Dan

 

If he is all stuffed up, you could put him in the bathroom (sit with him, of course) and turn the shower on to steam up the room. That should make it easier to breathe and also loosen everything up. I've never tried it with a dog, but I suspect you would be in for some wet, nasty sneezes!

 

I would monitor that condition very closely and get him back to the Vet if you feel he is not getting better. I believe any respiratory problem could develop into pneumonia. A while back Duke aspirated a bit of water when he got into a spat with another dog in the middle of a lake. The Vet kept him overnight on drip anti-biotics because of a concern that he could develop pneumonia.
We all know every single nuance of our pups so if I were you I'd get him back to the Vet if you sense his symptoms are not getting better.
As you can guess my boys get far better health care that I give to myself.