Chris passed away August 1, 2008

[bgdavis]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Natalie,

Do keep us informed as to what they find. Have all of our paws crossed that Chris is just stressed due to the spring pollen.

Bonnie and Crissy

[Ricksma]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Natalie, Sending you the most positive thoughts...hoping it's not Chris' heart function...let us know how it goes.

Love and hugs, Teresa

[Dollydog]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Hi Natalie,
Hope it's just the season giving Chris his problems...will be checking back tomorrow to see how he makes out at the vet. Take care,
Jo-Ann & Lady

PS And a belated HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Chris....what a fantastic job your family has done taking care of you!!

[Kiska'smom]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Hi Natalie,

I'm sure that today will be full of worry; but I'm praying that Chris will bounce right back! Hopefully, you are right about the allergy season. Sorry to hear that your kitty is on meds, too. Mine absolutely out-the-door hates her pills. She can tongue-flick them five feet away!!! Then I say bad words while I crawl around on the floor searching for the darn thing! I'll be anxiously awaiting your report about Chris from the vet. I'm keeping everything crossed for you!

Luv,

Jeanne and Kiska

[Brandy mom]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Just checking for an update on Chris. Our thought are with you today.

Dawn and the girls

[k9diabetes]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

We got his ECG, quickie abdom. ultrasound for fluids there, and x-rays. No sign of fluid anywhere, which is good.

But his heart rate remains very high and erratic.

He was getting stressed during the ECG - was in the back and I wasn't with him because they had a difficult dental going on.

His heart started contracting so quickly that there wasn't time for the chambers to fill. So they brought him back out to me to give him time to relax and then they did the rest of the work with him in a quiet examining room and he did better. But his heart rate was fluctuating between 170 and 220 when I watched the monitor on the ECG. Lots of supraventricular tachycardia and atrial fibrillation...

I'm going to take the ECG strip and the x-rays to the cardiologist tomorrow so she can look at them and then she may want to do some tests of her own. I'm not sure what more can be done for him treatment-wise. For now, I'm glad we don't have to give Lasix.

He seems fragile and like he just doesn't feel well. His blood sugar's good - it was 129 while at the vet and 85 when we got home.... I'm sure he's pretty tired from all the anxiety at the vet's office for two hours.

I'm worried and also resigned that there's not much more that can be done for him. It's a miracle he's upright now.

So I'm not sure where we are at with Chris yet. Hope to learn more tomorrow or the next day, after the cardiologist reviews his tests.

It dawned on me this morning how Gus (the cat) could have injured his leg. Gus is too dumb and stubborn to get out of blind Chris' way and I'm constantly jumping in to move one of them before the blind dog steps on the dumb cat!! I'll bet Chris stepped on Gus when I wasn't home. That would explain the sudden acute problem with Gus' back leg.

Fortunately, Gus laps up the Metacam just fine when mixed with kitty gravy. Saw a lady at the vet today who I saw there yesterday too. She was there getting assistance to get the pills into her cat...

Natalie

[BestBuddy]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Hi Natalie,
I know what you mean about fragile! Buddy looks like a strong gust of wind would knock him over. I hope Chris can overcome this latest problem and then you and I can have "our boys" for a good while longer.
Jenny & Buddy

[bgdavis]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Natalie,

I'm sure that the rapid heart rate is causing Chris to be very tired. Hope the specialist can find some way of relieving the condition.

Bonnie and Crissy

[Dollydog]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Hi Natalie,
Hope the cardiologist has some answers for you tomorrow. And I bet Chris is very happy to be at home tonight. Lady just has a heart murmur but 2 hours at the vet's would be h--l for her, especially if she was away from me for a long time.
Sleep well and will check back tomorrow,
Jo-Ann & Lady

[johanna]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Natale... I'm so sorry i'm so late to read this and post !!!!
I haven't been around too much this past week... I didn't know Chris was even sick.... I'm so sorry to here this.... I know he'll be just fine.... he always seams to pull through every time ....
Chris ... sending healing thoughts......

[Denise]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

I'm sorry to read that Chris is having another problem. I'm sure he IS tired. No meds to slow down heart rate? Or would that just make it so he wouldn't get enough oxygen?

Would oxygen help? I can see him toting an oxygen tank along side him on his walks.

Bogie is looking more frail, he's lost a couple pound but he isn't acting frail. Reba doesn't look frail, just old!

Saying prayers for Chris. I hope he's with you a lot longer!

Denise

[k9diabetes]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

I talked to the cardiologist tonight. She says his heart looks no worse than before, possibly even a little smaller, and his ECG was a faster rate but not signficantly different from the previous ones in terms of his rhythm. She also said his lungs actually looked a bit clearer than before.

There is some kind of a nodule in the x-ray on the top of the heart and neither the vet nor the cardiologist is sure what it is. A radiologist is going to review the x-ray tomorrow.

He last had a chest x-ray just a couple of months ago and it wasn't there and it seems like they don't think it's cancer. Could even be some normal anatomy like a blood vessel in cross-section... But if the radiologist thinks otherwise, Chris will need an ultrasound to see if there are nodules anywhere else.

The cardiologist's general opinion is that something is bothering Chris, especially given his panting, seeming uncomfortable, and lack of energetic appetite lately. And that he's responding to whatever is bothering him with tachycardia. We have seen this happen before. He was tachycardic the night he was diagnosed with diabetes too. Under stress, his heart rate goes up.

So the question is what is bothering him.

She'd like us to do bloodwork, which I'll see if I can get tomorrow. And I may arrange for an ultrasound even if the radiologist isn't concerned about the thing on the x-ray. An ultrasound is a little expensive but I feel better having looked so I've always been glad I did it. I agree, something's bothering him. And good news or bad, I want to know what it is.

He's a little perkier today but still reluctant to eat and panting often.

I was supposed to be on jury duty tomorrow, now have been postponed to Friday. So I'll see if I can get bloodwork done tomorrow. If they postpone me again, I'm going back to them to get an exemption. I agreed to do it only because they promised I could schedule it and arrange to have my husband here to cover Chris' injections. Fortunately, my husband doesn't work Fridays. They allow being a person's caretaker as an exemption and I explained to them that I'm a dog's caretaker. They pushed back that it would be 1 day, 2 at most. If not, I'll fight it.

Still worried,

Natalie

[k9diabetes]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Denise,

Ha! Our posts crossed... Yeah, I can see him wheeling along his oxygen tank!!

Do you remember the whole incident with Pat from the other board whose little dog was attacked by a larger dog out on a walk?

She beat the attacking dog back with HER oxygen tank!! We were dealing with the killer pit bull next door at the time and, with carrying a baseball bat as a weapon being illegal in CA, I was thinking about getting an oxygen tank for protection!! LOL

Chris is so sensitive to meds that we try not to add anything unless absolutely necessary. The cardiologist thinks the rate will come down if we can get him feeling better. Last spring one night his heart rate, for no apparent reason, was almost 300. We took him to the ER. Fortunately it was down to 170 by the time we got there. I have no idea why it jumped up that night. My concern now is that he's stayed at a high rate for a week or more.

She thought the increase in rate might be compensation from failure. But with no fluid and the heart looking no worse, she feels it's a symptom of another problem.

Plus his color has been good. He doesn't seem to be deprived of oxygen.

He was down to about 160 this morning. Will check his heart rate again tonight.

Natalie

[Denise]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Yes, I remember Pat and that story! I'd forgotten though about Chris being so sensitive to meds.

Have you ever used Cornell's signs of illness page?

I use it anytime something is going on with one of mine. Oncea friend had a sick cat and the vets couldn't figure out what it was. I used this site and went through all the possible dx'es for her symtoms and told her it was lupus. A few weeks later they finally figured it out too.

http://www.vet.cornell.edu/consultan...-G311-U041-S81

How is Gus's leg??

Cats can appear to be so dumb sometimes when they choose places to lay down. If I'm in the kitchen you can bet there are at least 2 right behind me just waiting to be stepped on.

Denise

[Ricksma]

Re: Chris - Turned 14 March 25, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Natalie, Just wanted to add my thoughts and prayers that everything is going to be worked out with Chris...I know he is stressed, and so are you. I know you will post as soon as you find out anything, but till then, I just wanted you to know that we are thinking of you. Good luck!

Love and hugs, Teresa and Ricky