Donovan's heart...

Henrie Lee said:
Thank you everyone for your kindness. It means so much to me. I'm glad to hear that there is hope for him to live a happy life for at least a little while longer. I'm anxious for him to get on the right medication(s) to slow the progression of heart disease. My vet friend said his heart murmur sounds like it's at a 3. His regular vet didn't specify, but I admittedly forgot to ask because I've been in shock. I forgot to mention in my original post that his x-rays were looked at by the vet, but they also sent them out to a radiologist for a more thorough look. We haven't heard back from them yet. They said we should be hearing from them tomorrow, so I'm hoping for the best.
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Any news to share?
... inquiring minds need to know!
 
Henrie Lee said:
I don't know if I've ever posted before. If I have, it's been a long time. My sweet boy Donovan is turning 11 this Friday. A week ago I noticed his breathing and heart rate seemed abnormal when he crawled under the blankets and snuggled up to me. My friend (a shelter vet) that we're staying with checked his heart and said he has a heart murmur.

I made an appointment with his vet for the very next day. It was so hard not being able to go into the vet's office with him because of covid precautions. They took x-rays and ran bloodwork. His bloodwork was normal, but his heart is enlarged. So far there is no sign of fluid in his lungs. He's still running around, playing, and happily eating his food. They suggested an echocardiogram, but we can't get him in until a month from now. I'm so worried about him...

Donovan was my first soulmate, my first heart dog. I've had him since I was 18 years old. I brought him home as a tiny puppy a little less than a year after my mom passed away. He helped me so much with the process of grieving the loss of my mother. He has been there for me through so much in my life now. I wouldn't have made it this far without him and his sister-friend, Reese. Words cannot describe how much I love them, and how much they mean to me. But I know that so many of you understand.

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.
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❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
 
Henrie Lee said:
Hi everyone, I'm testing to see if this post works before I write a longer one with more details...I wrote 2 separate posts, only for both of them to disappear for some reason. Has this ever happened to anyone else?
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I've had issues when composing a longer post that something happens and it disappears before I finished it. I started actually writing longer posts elsewhere and then copying and pasting the text so all I had to do was hit post and then it was there.
since you haven't posted many times, your posts still go through moderator approval- haven't seen any other posts by you to get approved so they never made it to that stage.
 
Ok, I will try another update now.
His x-rays didn't show any obvious signs of heart failure. Donovan was supposed to have his echocardiogram on January 7th, but they had to cancel last minute due to a covid exposure. They weren't able to reschedule him until February 25th :/ meanwhile, our vet friend (the one who officially discovered the heart murmur) has put him on Vetmedin (Pimobendan) as of a few days ago.

I think it's too soon to tell if there's any kind of difference after starting the medication. But I did notice that we went for a car ride last night, and he didn't seem to be as nervous this time. He absolutely loved car rides for most of his life, until the last year or two. I don't fully understand why, but lately I've wondered if it might have something to do with his heart. It could simply be a coincidence, but I thought it was interesting either way.

Otherwise, he has been acting somewhat normally. He still very much enjoys his food. He loves to run around in the snow. He's been coughing throughout the day for a few months now.
He hasn't been as playful or as cuddly as he normally would be. But he did get into a fight with his dog sister last week, who is 1.5x his size and still has most of her teeth. He had to wear an inflatable cone around his neck for several days to prevent him from scratching his ear (where she injured him). Poor thing has been going through a lot lately! :(
I'm keeping an eye on him though, and hoping for the best.
 
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