We live in a big city with a large vet hospital with specialty care. I would search “specialty veterinary care” and your area to see what turns up.
You can also ask your vet clinic, they will likely know.
I live in a large city too so I was surprised when it didn't find it. I will try googling that instead.
Did your regular vet tell you at a certain point to seek a cardiologist or did you take that step on your own?
My pup with a murmur was a rescue and they’d already connected with a cardiologist prior to adoption so that’s how we ended up seeing one. Wishing y’all the best! 💖
If you haven’t asked your vet this question directly, I would start there. I have an older dog with a heart condition. Not a Cav, but that’s not really relevant to this conversation.
I found my doggy cardiologist by asking my vet for a referral.
If Google isn’t turning up results, trying looking for specialist centers. My dog’s cardiologist practices in a center with other specialists, and cardiology is only one of many.
You’re welcome!
I’m sorry to hear about the diagnosis. I hope it’s not too bad.
For what it’s worth, after a few weeks on medication, my old dude was back to his normal self.
I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you!
Unfortunately, within a month of being on the pimobendan, she progressed to the next stage. She's on 3 different meds now, so I hope it slows down.
It's heartbreaking to watch, but I am resisting the urge to run to the vet 3x a week.
Yeah. It’s tough. Every time my guy has a coughing fit or seems short of breath, I panic a little bit.
I’m sorry you have to go through this with your puppy.
That’s ok. My guy was 14 when he was diagnosed. And, except for some symptoms right before his diagnosis, it appears to have no impact on his life.
He’s on meds now and doing great, all things considered. But, he’s also 14, so we’re looking at the end regardless.
Search for Board Certified Veterinary Cardiologist. Check with large University Veterinary programs. Here is a good start: https://cavalierhealth.org/Cardiologists.htm#UNITED_STATES
Use the free app called Cardalis to monitor her breathing. Watch out for the first signs of coughing.
I'm sorry you and your Cavalier are going through this.
Thank you for the kind words and for the link, I will check it out!
The cough has started, I took her to the vet because of a persistent cough. At the time, I didn't know it was a sign of heart failure.
The resp counting apps are super helpful! I was recording videos for 1 min to count for awhile!
We got yearly heart checks by a standard vet until the murmur got pretty loud. Then scheduled a pet cardiogram to see how large the heart got and then went back every 6 months.
That's how she has been treated before diagnosis. Less than 3 months after her last check-up, she developed a cough that wouldn't go away. They didn't call it a pet cardiogram, I believe she did xrays. Are the two different?
The echo can show the heart valves and whatnot and how things are working in the heart I believe the X-rays can show the structure and any fluid around it not as in depth
Sorry full name was echo cardiogram. That showed the 4 chambers were Mitral value had moderate regurgitation and another chamber had slight. Also showed the heart value thickness from inefficiencies. Out vet told of us of a few local doctors that could check for it and we had to schedule one like 2 months out at they got booked pretty quick.
Purdue University performed heart surgery on our cavalier before we rescued him. We adopted him at 3 months, so surgery happened in advance of that time period. Good luck on your search! 💜
My vet has a traveling cardiologist. He’s from Blue Pearl, I believe, and he comes once a month. Staying on top of echocardiograms to make sure you have the right meds is going to help extend your cavs life to the fullest. My girl has a stage 4 murmur with an enlarged heart. Enlarged heart was diagnosed maybe 4 years ago now and she’s one 3 medications, but she still runs and plays like she always has. I’m very fortunate that hers has progressed very very slowly so far. I want her to live forever.
Nothing much to add except our experience.
Our previous cav was born with the most severe heart murmur and had a rough start in life. The breeder had a rough time too at the time he was born (life event) and wasn’t going to give him to us but we had fallen for him and took him on anyway.
We found a good vet and had yearly visits and monitored his heart. Regular exercise regime, nothing overly difficult. Good food. Keep their weight down.!
The cough will get worse and become a problem at night. Meds can help manage that. You’ll need a diaper if bladder control becomes a problem with those meds…side effect…and more meds can help a bit there too. They’ll feel upset at that mistake so lots of encouragement and snuggles.
The last 2 years he started to really slow down. And in the last 6 months the meds didn’t have the same effect. His heart had gotten larger and was pushing on his airways more. Eventually he started to have times where he was just exhausted. Eating and drinking and going to the bathroom were a real problem. He’d have balance issues. Discolouration of the tongue and gums. (Towards blue means lack of oxygen)
Smother them in love and give them whatever keeps their appetite going.
It’s at this point you have to consider their quality of life. They’re only interested in you and nothing else. That’s painful to watch and it’s when you know it’s time.
He made it to 12.
My go to if possible is to take my dogs to OSU in Eugene when they need a specialist. They have a very good vet program there and have all the specialist you will need. There is a specialty vet clinic much closer to me that has all the options but its much more expensive and I've never had a good experience w them(in fact I've had several really bad experiences w then) so I avoid them when possible. But what I'm trying to get at here is if you do have an university near by w a good vet program it will usually save you a significant amount of money and the care will be just as good if not better than any specialty clinic. Students assist w the medical care to learn but the professors are real vets and are the ones doing the actual diagnosis and treatment.
So sorry you are going through this. I lost my 6 Cavs in a 12 month period, 5 to heart issues. We are lucky enough to live near Boston so we had several choices of cardiologists but your vet should be able to recommend one.
My babies were on 4 meds, twice a day. It helped to extend their lives and they were still pretty active until the end. I feel lucky to have had them into their mid teens. All but one were adopted. I lost my last one last September and I lost the love of my life last August. I cry every day. Make every moment count. I know some will think it's ridiculous but I regret going out some nights or going to a lunch with a friend. I would have had more time with my babies.
Contacting your vet is a good idea, but assuming your pup came from a breeder who does health checks, I would go back to the breeder for a referral since they’ll know the issue intimately and may even treat dogs your pup is related to. That also lets them know of the history of their lines and may help them make decisions about breeding pairs in the future. Even if contacting the breeder isn’t an option, I’d seek out a local, reputable breeder and ask if they have any recommendations. Good luck with your pup! 🧡
The breeder is a couple states away, and i no longer have their contact info, unfortunately. But I know there are local breeders, so I can try that route. Thank you for the advice!
We live in a big city with a large vet hospital with specialty care. I would search “specialty veterinary care” and your area to see what turns up. You can also ask your vet clinic, they will likely know.
I live in a large city too so I was surprised when it didn't find it. I will try googling that instead. Did your regular vet tell you at a certain point to seek a cardiologist or did you take that step on your own?
My pup with a murmur was a rescue and they’d already connected with a cardiologist prior to adoption so that’s how we ended up seeing one. Wishing y’all the best! 💖
I see. Thank you for the kind words and you help!
If you haven’t asked your vet this question directly, I would start there. I have an older dog with a heart condition. Not a Cav, but that’s not really relevant to this conversation. I found my doggy cardiologist by asking my vet for a referral. If Google isn’t turning up results, trying looking for specialist centers. My dog’s cardiologist practices in a center with other specialists, and cardiology is only one of many.
I will ask her for one. Thank you for your help!
You’re welcome! I’m sorry to hear about the diagnosis. I hope it’s not too bad. For what it’s worth, after a few weeks on medication, my old dude was back to his normal self. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you!
Unfortunately, within a month of being on the pimobendan, she progressed to the next stage. She's on 3 different meds now, so I hope it slows down. It's heartbreaking to watch, but I am resisting the urge to run to the vet 3x a week.
Yeah. It’s tough. Every time my guy has a coughing fit or seems short of breath, I panic a little bit. I’m sorry you have to go through this with your puppy.
Exactly what I am doing, too. I'm sorry you are going through this, too. They are such sweet little dogs ❤️
That’s ok. My guy was 14 when he was diagnosed. And, except for some symptoms right before his diagnosis, it appears to have no impact on his life. He’s on meds now and doing great, all things considered. But, he’s also 14, so we’re looking at the end regardless.
Search for Board Certified Veterinary Cardiologist. Check with large University Veterinary programs. Here is a good start: https://cavalierhealth.org/Cardiologists.htm#UNITED_STATES Use the free app called Cardalis to monitor her breathing. Watch out for the first signs of coughing. I'm sorry you and your Cavalier are going through this.
Thank you for the kind words and for the link, I will check it out! The cough has started, I took her to the vet because of a persistent cough. At the time, I didn't know it was a sign of heart failure. The resp counting apps are super helpful! I was recording videos for 1 min to count for awhile!
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We got yearly heart checks by a standard vet until the murmur got pretty loud. Then scheduled a pet cardiogram to see how large the heart got and then went back every 6 months.
That's how she has been treated before diagnosis. Less than 3 months after her last check-up, she developed a cough that wouldn't go away. They didn't call it a pet cardiogram, I believe she did xrays. Are the two different?
The echo can show the heart valves and whatnot and how things are working in the heart I believe the X-rays can show the structure and any fluid around it not as in depth
Okay thank you! Maybe the cardiologist would do something like that.
Sorry full name was echo cardiogram. That showed the 4 chambers were Mitral value had moderate regurgitation and another chamber had slight. Also showed the heart value thickness from inefficiencies. Out vet told of us of a few local doctors that could check for it and we had to schedule one like 2 months out at they got booked pretty quick.
Purdue University performed heart surgery on our cavalier before we rescued him. We adopted him at 3 months, so surgery happened in advance of that time period. Good luck on your search! 💜
My vet has a traveling cardiologist. He’s from Blue Pearl, I believe, and he comes once a month. Staying on top of echocardiograms to make sure you have the right meds is going to help extend your cavs life to the fullest. My girl has a stage 4 murmur with an enlarged heart. Enlarged heart was diagnosed maybe 4 years ago now and she’s one 3 medications, but she still runs and plays like she always has. I’m very fortunate that hers has progressed very very slowly so far. I want her to live forever.
Nothing much to add except our experience. Our previous cav was born with the most severe heart murmur and had a rough start in life. The breeder had a rough time too at the time he was born (life event) and wasn’t going to give him to us but we had fallen for him and took him on anyway. We found a good vet and had yearly visits and monitored his heart. Regular exercise regime, nothing overly difficult. Good food. Keep their weight down.! The cough will get worse and become a problem at night. Meds can help manage that. You’ll need a diaper if bladder control becomes a problem with those meds…side effect…and more meds can help a bit there too. They’ll feel upset at that mistake so lots of encouragement and snuggles. The last 2 years he started to really slow down. And in the last 6 months the meds didn’t have the same effect. His heart had gotten larger and was pushing on his airways more. Eventually he started to have times where he was just exhausted. Eating and drinking and going to the bathroom were a real problem. He’d have balance issues. Discolouration of the tongue and gums. (Towards blue means lack of oxygen) Smother them in love and give them whatever keeps their appetite going. It’s at this point you have to consider their quality of life. They’re only interested in you and nothing else. That’s painful to watch and it’s when you know it’s time. He made it to 12.
Our vet has a connection with Cornell University so we were fortunate there. I don’t know how to help you :(
My go to if possible is to take my dogs to OSU in Eugene when they need a specialist. They have a very good vet program there and have all the specialist you will need. There is a specialty vet clinic much closer to me that has all the options but its much more expensive and I've never had a good experience w them(in fact I've had several really bad experiences w then) so I avoid them when possible. But what I'm trying to get at here is if you do have an university near by w a good vet program it will usually save you a significant amount of money and the care will be just as good if not better than any specialty clinic. Students assist w the medical care to learn but the professors are real vets and are the ones doing the actual diagnosis and treatment.
Thank you I will look I to that!
So sorry you are going through this. I lost my 6 Cavs in a 12 month period, 5 to heart issues. We are lucky enough to live near Boston so we had several choices of cardiologists but your vet should be able to recommend one. My babies were on 4 meds, twice a day. It helped to extend their lives and they were still pretty active until the end. I feel lucky to have had them into their mid teens. All but one were adopted. I lost my last one last September and I lost the love of my life last August. I cry every day. Make every moment count. I know some will think it's ridiculous but I regret going out some nights or going to a lunch with a friend. I would have had more time with my babies.
Contacting your vet is a good idea, but assuming your pup came from a breeder who does health checks, I would go back to the breeder for a referral since they’ll know the issue intimately and may even treat dogs your pup is related to. That also lets them know of the history of their lines and may help them make decisions about breeding pairs in the future. Even if contacting the breeder isn’t an option, I’d seek out a local, reputable breeder and ask if they have any recommendations. Good luck with your pup! 🧡
The breeder is a couple states away, and i no longer have their contact info, unfortunately. But I know there are local breeders, so I can try that route. Thank you for the advice!
What's the point, does anything really help?
I would like to do anything I can to lessen her pain and make her as comfy as possible.
my guy is 10, on lasix and something else. still coughs, still thrilled to eat poop sleep really think anything more than that is pointless
I'm sorry you are going through this too. I'm glad your boy seems to be responding well.