I have the utmost trust in my vets and don't find a need to google to find what is wrong with my pup or to help my vets come up with a diagnosis. I also would honestly not be doing a pulse ox on my pup because to me it is pretty obvious when they are oxygen deprived and my butt is out the door and on my way to the vet if they are. I thought you were talking about doing it just out of curiousity.

As for a diagnosis on this pup....I still think that a specialist is in order...and imho a cardiac one since other things have been ruled out. Syncope is a symptom that warrants finding out the cause.

I am sorry for your loss. Thank you for sharing your experience to help others.

There are those of us on here that, for whatever reasons, have a lot of knowledge about different disease processes, events, etc...some of us have wonderful equipment at our disposal, that can give us additional information.....but we must NEVER forget....all we know, and all we compile as information that may help diagnose, we are NOT vets...even those of us who have been "vet techs"....(I was a vet tech back before they even existed as such, 1965-70)....we are NOT vets and we MUST know our limitations. The more we know, the more knowledge we have, the more careful we have to be about knowing when to stop and take information we have, to VETS. Use you knowledge to recognize when a specialist is needed, as I think it is in this case. With the knowledge I have about what could be causing these symptoms, I would waste NO MORE time Googling, trying to self diagnose and treat, and I would already be at a vet school, seeing specialists, that KNOW what they are doing, they are not digging around looking for all it COULD be, they take the information they can get from exam and tests and they KNOW what is happening, and they CAN DEVELOP A PLAN OF TREATMENT. Please dont let it get to be too late for your baby....

This situation is way too serious to be self diagnosing or self treating

:thumbup::thumbup:

Excellent post!

So sorry to hear of that you poor baby is going through these disturbing symptoms. Hope there is a definitive diagnosis and cure soon.
Stupid me has a question! I have had a Holter monitor myself and wonder how they technically do this test on a hairy and active dog? Do they have remote wireless output or are the data recorded for later analysis?
Also is it really the case that no info can be gleaned from a resting EKG? I have had a few wasted tests if that is so. LOL!
Thank you.

They wear them on their backs...with a shirt over them. Yes, it is recorded just like the human ones. There are cassette ones, but the digital ones are very lightweight and the data is on a flash card. They are similar in size to a cell phone...and the pups are not really bothered by them.

A Holter is better than a 5 minute ECG because it shows what the heart is doing over a 24 hour period. . There is a record kept by the owner and the things noted are compared to the events shown on the read out. There is nothing wrong with doing an ECG...it is a great tool but if you have a pup that is having intermittent problems then often a Holter is needed.

Thank you, I am glad that dogs tolerate the Holter so well. I understand why a Holter vs a snap EKG, but one poster i believe suggested that an EKG was a waste of time.
Thanks again.

I missed that, but no it is not a waste of time!

Oh, I just saw that....I think she meant that if it is an intermittent issue, then ECG is probably not going to show it.

Ekg
 

Even with intermittent issues (such as arrhythmias for example), usually MDs do the simpler test first then the more complex ones? Worth a shot as a first test anyway?
Sorry to temporarily hijack the thread!

I would agree with this. The underlying problem may or may not show on aregular EKG, but it also might.

OK....I guess I make an assumption that a vet would do the ECG first....then perhaps an ultrasound and then the Holter monitor. SO...yes...I was merely commenting on the fact that you asked about what another poster said....I certainly would not assume they would just jump to the Holter monitor first. An intermittent issue might show, yes. Guess I should have let her clarify. haha

OP: Any news on your pup today? Kind of hoping you have spoken to your vet about seeing a cardiologist...

To clarify my other post: Resting EKGs on humans can and often do, show no abnormalities...it is when the patient is "stressed" (ie connected to 12 lead ekg and then either chemically stressed or put on a treadmill and exercised until heart rates reach specific rates and/ or arrhythemias begin to occur)..., that T waves drop or flip, rhythm and rate disturbances become evident. If you have a heart issue that is just beginning, more often than not, a resting EKG will not be able to see any abnormalities, because your heart is not challenged. I was referring to EKGs more on humans, than your pup....For humans and pets, a holter monitor that is worn over several days continously, will catch abnormalities, whereas one shot taken over the span of 3 minutes on a simple EKG, will probably not reveal anything UNLESS damage has already been done, or if your baby happens to pass out right at the time the resting EKG is being one.