A little more than two years ago, Opal, my then 13.5 year old Italian Greyhound was diagnosed with congestive heart failure by my regular vet. She was put on vetmedin and it was all she took for nearly a year. She started coughing again and I decided to take her to a specialist, a veterinary internist who had treated one of my dogs for lymphoma. He did xrays, bloodwork, an ECG and an ultrasound. She had fluid on her lungs and a few irregular heart beats, too. In addition to the vetmedin, he also put her on furosemide (lasix), digoxin, and enalipril. She has only had one bad episode with fluid in her lungs and had to be on oxygen overnight in the past two years. She really is doing great, and the internist told me he thought she was going to be around for a while. She will be 16 in October! I didn't think I would have her this long and I know I wouldn't had I not taken her to the specialist.
Vetmedin, btw, is a fairly new cardiac med for dogs and has been found to be very effective, you might ask about it.
Dayton will be in my thoughts. I know how scary it is to find out your baby has such a serious health problem. With good care by you and the vet, I really think you might have him with you for a long time.
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Kristan
Lizzy's mom |