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heart concerns (long, sorry!)

3K views 20 replies 9 participants last post by  m_elyse 
#1 · (Edited)
Hey guys,
I haven't been on here in a while, but over there last week, Roxie has given us quite a scare. I knew you'd be the best people to turn to for advice.

Last week, I took Roxie to the dog park. It was about 77 degrees out and the park is completely shaded. We were there for no more than 15 minutes and she start swaying when she was walking and eventually laid/slumped down. She wouldn't budge. I tried giving her water from my bottle (which she never turns down) and she ignored me. She was unresponsive when I called her name. Heavy breathing coming from her stomach, slight foaming at her mouth. I took her straight to the vet and by the time we got there, she was back to her normal, crazy self. (And keep in mind, we hike 2 miles up and down hills 2 times a month-- all year round).

The vet seemed content that we had narrowly avoided a heat stroke and that she looked good. I wasn't convinced. Last night-- she had the same episode. It was chilly out (hubby and I were wearing sweats) and about 9pm. So definitely not heat. Now I'm convinced something is going on with her heart-- possible a fib?

I'm taking her to the vet later on today, but I'm just looking for some advice or peace of mind. Any input? I really appreciate it!
 
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#2 ·
Well, my husband and I took Roxie to the vet this evening and spent 2 hours there. She had another episode while we were there. Which was her worst one yet.

Long story short, her chest looks like a dog much older than 3. Her heart is enlarged and lungs are cloudy from congestion (caused by her heart backing up blood). Her heart is making 3 sounds instead of 2 and her pulses are weak. We take her back on Friday for an EKG-- she'll get monitored all day. We'll know more when we get the results from that. Until then, she's not allowed to get excited about anything (does this vet understand she's a BOXER!?)

She puked twice on the way home from the vet and once when we got home. Fortunately, she's cuddled on the couch with me now. Please keep this pup in your prayers until we find out more. As you can imagine, all 3 of us have had a stressful evening.
 
#3 ·
I'm so sorry to hear this I have no useful input on the health-related issues, but I would avoid the Dog Park thing! You don't need more problem, see here:
http://www.boxerforums.com/1733353-post1.html

I'm sure there are others that can provide info on your present situation.

Take care.
 
#5 ·
I'm sorry and hope they can make her better soon. Her symptoms are much like my shih tzu had prior to her having congestive heart failure. She would have an episode periodically mostly when we would walk, she would just keep over, I'd carry her home, she was small and so was her walk :)...then she would be fine and the vet noticed her heart being slightly enlarged. She went a few years sometimes nothing other times an episode or 2. In her late year we had her on medication and just backyard potty time. She was 17 when we lost her.
I hope that your boxer will get a diagnosis and that they can treat her too. Meanwhile will keep in prayers.
 
#6 · (Edited)
First of all I am so sorry you are going through this. It is terrifying. It sounds like there is definitely some sort of heart problem. An enlarged heart can be from cardiomyopathy which may have come from an undetected electrical problem with the heart. This enlarged heart can cause congestive heart failure. The following link can explain it better than I ever could:
http://bigheartsfund.org/informatio...lar-cardiomyopathy-arvc-boxer-cardiomyopathy/

Do you know what tests they will be conducting?

I would keep her calm until her appointment and out of the heat.

My Rocco has ARVC and I know first hand how scary this all is. I do not let him play with other dogs because he gets way too worked up.

You have my support during this difficult time.
 
#10 ·
First of all I am so sorry you are going through this. It is terrifying. It sounds like there is definitely some sort of heart problem. An enlarged heart can be from cardiomyopathy which may have come from an undetected electrical problem with the heart. This enlarged heart can cause congestive heart failure. The following link can explain it better than I ever could:
The Big Hearts Fund | Information | Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy (ARVC) "Boxer Cardiomyopathy"

Do you know what tests they will be conducting?

I would keep her calm until her appointment and out of the heat.

My Rocco has ARVC and I know first hand how scary this all is. I do not let him play with other dogs because he gets way too worked up.

You have my support during this difficult time.


Thank you so much for the link. I have heard of this but was trying to avoid googling too much for fear I'd only scare myself. It's good to have a reliable source to get information from.

Yesterday they drew blood. Labs were normal-- as we expected. They had to send out her cortisol levels for testing. They did a chest x-ray to see if her heart looked enlarged. The side view was concerning to the vet. The view from above looked much better to him. Tomorrow she will have a resting EKG. The results are electronic and my vet has no way to read them-- they are sent to a cardiology specialist who will contact him with the results. Once we have those, we will see where to go from there.


Do you mind asking how long Rocco has had this diagnosis? I'm so saddened that Roxie is only 3 years old and already she is dealing with all this. And also so sorry you had to go through all this with him-- it is terrifying for sure.
 
#7 ·
I'm sorry to read of your Roxie's health issues; we recently lost our Roxy from what appears to be a similar heart ailment. She was just over 10 years old, and her final minutes with us sound very similar to what your Roxie experienced at the dog park - fainting/collapse without the willingness or ability to move, heavy breathing followed by short shallow breathing until she passed away with us at her side. I truly hope you and your vet can find a successful treatment and recovery for Roxie.
 
#11 · (Edited)
Yes, my vet did mention the holster. He has no capability to echo her heart in his office-- so we did the chest x-ray. Since her heart was enlarged, we moved to EKG. If the EKG shows a chamber is enlarged-- we will move to the cardiologist (who, as I understood, would most likely give us the holster for testing). Stepping stones in a way.

Thank you for the prayers. This baby could definitely use all she can get.
 
#9 ·
Thank you everyone for the support. Today has been quite unsettling for my husband and I-- I hate letting her out of my sight. I'm fortunate that neither of us had to work and could spend the day watching her. Tomorrow morning she will go for her EKG testing and we will hopefully know more.
 
#12 ·
Rocco has had his diagnosis since he was 2. He had a collapsing episode and we brought him to our vet. We our lucky our vet is a full hospital so he was able to have ekg, echo and then a holter right away. He was on a medication called Soltalol for a couple of years but then it slowed his heart rate down too much and we almost lost him. We are just holtering him twice a year and waiting to see what medication he may need in the future. I do live everyday with a little fear. I don't mean to be forward but if I were you I would push your vet to get you in with the cardiologist. Is there one that can visit his office and do an echo? Only an echo will give you a clear picture of the heart muscle and valves. And ekg will only show electrical abnormalities. I hope your vet can help and put your baby on some meds to help until you can see the cardiologist. Hugs to you and your family. Smooches to your baby.
 
#13 ·
You're not being forward at all. I'm so grateful for all your help! I will definitely push to see the cardiologist as soon as possible while I am there tomorrow. You are so lucky to have all that available at your vet. We absolutely LOVE ours, but his ability to do much in his office is very limited.

I understand where you're coming from living in fear-- I've only dealt with this today really, but I keep wondering how we will live every day worrying. But it's good to know your Rocco is doing well! Your input has been invaluable to us!

I'll post tomorrow after her testing about where we will be going from here.
 
#16 ·
Thank you everyone for your support and advice. Today the consulting cardiologist determined it's most likely cardiomyopathy-- which is what I was expecting but at the same time, scared of. Roxie was started on sotalol for now. The nearest cardiologist is an hour away. My vet sent Roxie's information to them and they will be calling us to schedule Roxie for an echo sometime next week.

My own vet will be doing another EKG in a week to see if the sotalol is effective. We are grateful that Roxie seems to be her normal, happy self and we haven't had any episodes since Wednesday. This is definitely a scary time for us, but your support has honestly helped more than you know!
 
#20 ·
Rocco was on 120 mgs and we wound up cutting it way back. His holter revealed he was having upwards of 2,000 arrhythmias in a 24 hour period!!! However, that much sotalol made him dizzy and lethargic.

Sounds like your vet is being conservative until they know what else is going on with the heart muscle.

Keep us posted!
 
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