Heart problems in cats - your experience

[Anne]

Heart problems in cats is the topic of our next article.

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• Anne
• Mar 11, 2013

I'm looking for your experience with feline heart disease. How was it diagnosed, what were the symptoms your Kitty showed, how was it treated etc. Everything and anything which you feel may be related, please do share it in this thread. Also, if you could please also share pictures of the cats that would be great!

Thanks so much!

 

[AbbysMom]

In 2009 during an annual exam the vet detected a rather strong heart murmur in my mother's cat, Roxie and made the recommendation that Roxie see a feline cardiologist and get an ultrasound to find out what we were dealing with. My mother did not want to spend the money on the specialist or the test and declined. On Christmas Eve 2011 Roxie went into congestive heart failure, lying on the floor and gasping for breath. We rushed her to the ER vet where they immediately started to treat her. She was given oxygen and an X-ray was taken, which showed fluid in the lungs. She was given a diuretic and high blood pressure medication. The vet suspected HCM, but a ultrasound would have to be done to confirm. She was kept overnight for observation.

We followed up with the feline cardiologist and the ultrasound confirmed HCM and the vet told my mother she could live a month or a year. It's been over a year now and Roxie had a follow up with the cardiologist in January. The latest ultrasound showed minimal change in her heart although there was a slight amount of fluid. The diuretic was increased to three times a day.

This has been difficult on my mother. She is extremely attached to Roxie, as it is just the two of them in the house, but she also feels like she is living with a ticking time bomb. Roxie could have a blood clot or go into congestive heart failure again at any time. Roxie is impossible for my mother to pill and she gives her the medication in her food. Roxie has had more off days lately where she isn't eating well and does not want the food with the medication in it. HCM is very stressful for the owner.

 

[queenofcats81]

My baby boy Ollie was diagnosed with an enlarged heart in June of 2007. He was only 4 years old. But anyway before he was diagnosed with that, he had been hacking a lot. I thought it was a hair ball at first but he never would cough up one. He just kept hacking and then he started hacking up fluids. This got me super worried so I rushed him to the vet. His tongue and mouth was turning blue. So my vet saw him immediately. He checked him out and determined he was in cardiac arrest at that moment. So he had to give Ollie and big shot of adrenaline to his heart because his heart was giving out. It helped because his heart started back up and running. So the vet determined he needed to stay a few days in the hospital to take x rays and such. 3 days passed by and I was constantly worried too death! Then my vet called finally and told me to come and pick Ollie up, that he was getting much better! I was so relieved. I get to my vet office and my vet showed me his x-rays and showed me Ollie's enlarged heart. It was a sad moment because he was telling me that cats with this condition don't live long. He also told me that they had to put Ollie in a oxygen tank and had to put tubes in his lungs to drain all the fluid build up. It was heart breaking to hear all of this. My vet prescribed him a medication that helps keep his heart from working too hard and to keep the fluid from building up in his lungs. He has to stay on it for the rest of his life is what he told me. Well today is March 12, 2013 and my baby boy Ollie is still with me. He will be 10 in May!

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• queenofcats81
• Mar 12, 2013

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• queenofcats81
• Mar 12, 2013

 

[Anne]

Thank you for sharing, and welcome to TCS Queenofcats81  

 

[queenofcats81]

Thank you very much!
 

 

[kmd]

In March of 2010 our nine year old tuxedo cat Elmo was diagnosed with a grade 1 heart murmur - so little cause for concern. We were told to come back a year later for follow up. By March of 2011 Elmo was having problems with appetite and lack of energy. We took him to the vet and she immediately diagnosed him with fluid in the cavity and thought possible congestive heart failure. Local vet scheduled an appointment a few days away with cardiologist. At the appointment, the cardiologist said she was shocked with the diagnosis, but he indeed had congestive heart failure. He was put on several medications to control fluids and was medicated twice a day. We had problems in the early days getting him to take so much medication twice a day. What finally worked for us was putting all of the pills in a clear digestable capsule and using a pill popper to put at the back of the throat. The cardiologist didn't give us a prognosis - but another vet we know socially did - and he said 6 months was about what we could expect, maybe a year or little more.

We went along all summer and he was doing fairly well. I had heard an animal vets vet say that if you are dealing with a terminal illness, to make a list of the pet's three favorite things to do, perhaps a particular toy, an activity they like, or a specific treat - any of these things could qualify. As the vet said, "when they are no longer interested in these things - it may be time to consider bringing them in..."

Elmo had a great week at Thanksgiving 2011. He looked like he had lost some weight (he needed too) and was eating and talking a lot. The vet had told us to expect, " a big rally before the crash...". He went from being slightly lethargic on a Saturday to barely moving and not eating on a Sunday. By Monday morning, it was evident the medicine was no longer doing its work. We were using some pain medication by this time, but that gave us concern because he was having to take it on a empty stomach. He looked bloated and just sat and stared. It was evident the fluid was taking over and the meds couldn't hold it off any longer.

He was euthanized on Monday afternoon and the next day was the worst day of my life. I spent days second guessing and wondering if we should have done more.

The local vet wrote me a sweet note that basically said that if he had been brought in for treatment, they probably could have kept him alive at the hospital for 3 days or so, but we wouldn't have had the time we had with him that Monday...

(I would also like to mention that having pet health insurance is a great help in a tragic situation like this. The cardiologist bill was $2200 in 2011, his limit for heart related problems that year was $2500.00, so deciding whether to treat or not was an easy answer as difficult as this situation can be...)

As Willie Morris said in "My Dog Skip"...

"And I thought about him EVERY DAY..."

 

[three cat night]

Probably my most beloved cat had a heart murmur and was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy , I was told this when he was about 6 months and told he would be lucky to make it to two or three years. Well we were to give him lasix, a heart med, and a vitamin supplement twice daily. He was such a sweet boy he really didn't protest much about taking the medication. His name was ZANDER and he was all white long hair with a little smudge of gray on his head, wish I could figure out how to include some pictures here. He was such a buddy and learned ALOT of tricks, also was more active than my other cats, and it scared me when he'd play hard and then breathe really hard. The miracle was the fact I had him until he was seven. Over his lifetime I had him evaluated ALOT to monitor his heart, and it
Did get bigger and bigger , around the time he turned seven, the vet said his heart was really enlarged and soon he would not be able to get his breath. It happened on Christmas eve, and it was terrifying to see him panting and drooling looking up at me as if to say help me. I rushed him to the hospital and they got him to be able to breathe and kept him there for 2 days, and said I could take him home, and to expect this would happen again fairly soon, only worse. That following week was so precious , he acted normal except tired, and I declined every holiday plan I had to be with him. On New years day,
The choaking and foaming at the mouth started, we drove like hell to get him to the hospital, I held him in the back seat of the car and tried to sing to him (he always loved that, my husband wrote several songs for him over the years). I was crying and singing and my husband was driving like a maniac.
When we got there, the vet said we could leave him for a few days and he may respond well like the week before. We realized this would continue and the vet very kindly suggested we put him to sleep as his condition was obviously worsening , and these episodes inhibited his breathing. I know that is painful and Terrifying for him to go through. Well we had to decide and while I held him close and my husband and I were just sobbing as he went to sleep. I have never been so devastated over the loss of my baby even though I had experience with my other pets being euthanized , this just ripped my heart out. It has taken years to get over, I am crying now as I ptype this. I have a cat named Ollie and he is eight yrs, a few months ago while in for teeth cleaning andd check up the ( new vet). Told me he has a scale 1 heart murmur, and not to worry. As KMD said she was given this ( scale 1) diagnosis regarding her cat named Elmo. I have to say I am very worried about his heart and considering taking him to a specialist cardiologist even though my vet thinks it's nothing to worry about. Heart conditions are very difficult to deal with , I can only hope my Ollie will have many yrs ahead and to everyone that has posted , KMR ,so sorry for your loss, and queenofcats81, I hope the best for your Ollie,. And to Abbysmom's cat too.

 

[drbobcat]

I had to euthanize my darling cat about 2 1/2 years ago when she suffered an aortic thromboembolism, a blood clot in the aorta.  The aorta in a cat feeds directly into the back legs, so rear leg pain and paralysis often occurs.  I was surprised to hear that this illness is common in cats, especially in those with cardiomyopathy.  My cat suddenly started screaming and then dragging her rear legs.  She had not been diagnosed with any heart problems.  I took her to emergency (happened on a Sunday naturally), and even with massive morphine, she was still in pain.  I was told that they could do an extensive examination (about $2,000) and treat her with Heparin to reduce the clot.  Unfortunately, these clots are likely to reappear within six months.  The next morning she was still in horrible pain, and the vet recommended euthanasia.  I would have spent almost anything to cure her, but prospects were very dim.  It is very difficult to anticipate these clots, even in cats diagnosed with cardiomyopathy.  It has been suggested that cats with heart disease be given regular does of warfarin or a relatively new drug called plavix.  Here's a good article on the subject:  http://www.manhattancats.com/Articles/Arterial_Thromboembolism.html  
 

 

[sweet sally2]

Our dear Flaco was born with an irregular heart beat, but 14 years on, he is still fine.  The vet told us because he always has had it, that it is less of a worry.  We keep an eye on him, but there are no other signs of heart problems and he gets a clear bill of health each year from the vet.  My mom had the same problem (I sometimes wonder if he is not her reincarnation). 

 

[cbuehner]

My 16 year old kitty Jade was diagnoised with a heart murmur at 3 years old! At the time they didnt know if it was anything that would cause her problems in the future or not but at the time it was severe enough to treat. When she was 14 years old I came home from work to find her vomiting up nothing but foam amd breathing hard. I rushed her to the vet and they told me she had suffered a kitty version of a heart attack! She was in intensive care for a few days for close monitoring but after that I brought her back home with a medication called Furosemide. She takes this 2 times a day and has never had another complecation. She is just shy of her 16th birthday and is still going strong! Vet has said the the murmur has not gone away but with continue treatment she is doing fine!

 

[Zandalee]

My baby boy Ollie was diagnosed with an enlarged heart in June of 2007. He was only 4 years old. But anyway before he was diagnosed with that, he had been hacking a lot. I thought it was a hair ball at first but he never would cough up one. He just kept hacking and then he started hacking up fluids. This got me super worried so I rushed him to the vet. His tongue and mouth was turning blue. So my vet saw him immediately. He checked him out and determined he was in cardiac arrest at that moment. So he had to give Ollie and big shot of adrenaline to his heart because his heart was giving out. It helped because his heart started back up and running. So the vet determined he needed to stay a few days in the hospital to take x rays and such. 3 days passed by and I was constantly worried too death! Then my vet called finally and told me to come and pick Ollie up, that he was getting much better! I was so relieved. I get to my vet office and my vet showed me his x-rays and showed me Ollie's enlarged heart. It was a sad moment because he was telling me that cats with this condition don't live long. He also told me that they had to put Ollie in a oxygen tank and had to put tubes in his lungs to drain all the fluid build up. It was heart breaking to hear all of this. My vet prescribed him a medication that helps keep his heart from working too hard and to keep the fluid from building up in his lungs. He has to stay on it for the rest of his life is what he told me. Well today is March 12, 2013 and my baby boy Ollie is still with me. He will be 10 in May!

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• queenofcats81
• Mar 12, 2013

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• queenofcats81
• Mar 12, 2013

Could you please tell us the meds he is on and supplements? Mine is on lasix and Benazepril.