My dog Charlie....Medical?????

[lurky]

My Brittany charlie has a bad murmur

He is a solid 5 on the scale of 1-6 according to the vet. The only thing i am aware of is that he may cough as fluid builds up around the heart.
I dont know what to expect, and i want to be aware of what is about to happen here.
If any BYCers know about this heart stuff, could you please educate me on it? Charlie was diagnosed in Sept of 07 with this and it was between 4 and 5 then. Now, like i stated its a 5.
He coughed a few times the other night and i have a feeling its time for things to become a problem. He does not even know he is sick and he is happy and his tail never stops wagging. Even when he sleeps he wags his tail sometimes

Charlie is 11. I know there are members with some vet experience and Nurses too.........

 

[KellyHM]

Do you have him on meds? Sounds like he needs them if he's coughing. There are lots of "good drugs" for heart failure. I had a chihuahua w/ congestive heart failure. He had a 6/6 murmur and lived with it for 2 years. We had to keep upping the doses of meds when he would start to decline and then he'd go back to normal. He was happy until the day he "crashed." He just basically couldn't even lift his head anymore...his heart just couldn't pump enough blood and we had him put down. Good luck with your guy!

 

[texasgirl]

There are some amazing CHF (congestive heart failure) drugs. I'm surprised they haven't put him on something already if he is that bad.
Vetmedin is a relatively new drug and it is being called a "wonderdrug" by many many doctors. I've seen it practically work miracles on multiple dogs in the past year. It is awesome stuff.
If your doc doesn't think he needs meds yet, at least get a second opinion, even if your doc is right, it's a good piece of mind to hear it from another doctor too.

 

[lurky]

We were not offered meds for him. I think they need to do a bunch of tests to know whats causing his problems to know how to treat it. At least thats what i was under the impression.
The cost was very high and it did not make sense to spend that much money($1000.00) when he was close to 12 yrs old. I think i will call my vet and ask about meds though, just to be sure since you said that. Thanks for sharing your experience with your dog, and thank you both for the info. I will be sure to call tomorrow.

 

[KellyHM]

They can give him drugs for CHF without knowing the cause. It won't treat the underlying cause, but will help him to live longer with the condition. Has he been tested for heartworm? That's a pretty cheap test and one of the only "curable" causes of CHF.

 

[mainchick]

A lot of vets use lasix for fluid it helps relieve the built up. If he starts coughing more, you need to get him medicated to help relieve the pressure around his heart. He can live quite awhile with a murmur. i would suspect that he could live to be 15 or so if you keep him healthy and happy! good luck.

 

[lurky]

Quote:
Yes he had it done last Aug or sept. I remember because they do a lyme test at the same time and he tested positive for lyme exposure. He had no symptoms, but treated him anyway to be safe. Poor charlie has had seizures all his life and has tumors the size of a football in his neck. And now this.........but you would never know it. He is such a happy dog. I appreciate all the help. He is a special guy