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A dog enlarged heart is cause for great concern, as it would be with all types of dog heart disease. If you discover an enlarged heart in your dog, then you may opt for a good quality supplement instead of or as well as veterinary prescibed dog heart medicine. Of course, never undertake any alternative course of treatment with first consulting your vet.

What other types of canine heart disease should you be aware of?

When a dog has a heart murmur, it means that there is abnormal blood flow within the dog’s heart. This can be caused by a change in the heart valves and their function, or a number of other potential causes. Dog heart murmur symptoms may be caused by an abnormal communication between the left and right ventricles. There are a number of things that may cause this, as they may be congenital or present from birth, or acquired which means the heart was affected after birth because of age or disease. There are two types of heart murmurs in dogs, benign murmurs which do not concern the health of the dog, and much more serious heart murmurs which may indicate the development of canine congestive heart failure.

Dog heart murmur symptoms often include coughing, poor exercise ability, bluish tinge to the gums or tongue, labored breathing and even fainting. While some of these symptoms can be linked to other health issues, and the symptoms can be similar whether your dog has a benign heart murmur or the more severe forms, you should consult a veterinarian whenever you have a concern about your dog’s health. You can easily miss some of these symptoms, including poor exercise ability and even a bluish tinge to the gums. If you have any suspicion that your dog may be suffering from issues relating to a heart murmur, canine heart disease or the development of canine congestive heart failure, contact a veterinarian without delay for an official diagnosis.

Whatever you do, do not ignore such symptoms. The best way to identify the source and severity of the dog’s heart murmur is to conduct a thorough physical examination by a veterinarian, although sometimes additional testing is required including a heart ultrasound, blood testing, an EKG and chest x-rays. An ultrasound offers a particularly enticing list of benefits as it allows the vet to precisely gauge the extent of any murmur, defining the precise cause of the underlying heart disease in your dog. It is vital that you be able to properly diagnose the cause of your dog’s heart condition because some conditions that cause heart murmurs are treatable, either through surgery or through medication.

If your dog has been diagnosed with canine congestive heart failure, specific types of dog heart medicine may be necessary because although non congenital heart murmurs can sometimes be treated surgically, they are often an underlying symptom of congestive heart failure in dogs. You cannot be sure about which treatment is going to be the right path to proceed with until you have consulted your veterinarian and received advice regarding the health of your dog. You should never leave symptoms like these to chance, because canine congestive heart failure, dog heart murmurs, and other types of dog heart failure and canine heart disease are serious issues.

When you are faced with a serious condition in your dog, it is important that you feel at ease discussing your concerns with your vet. If you do not feel comfortable with a diagnosis from your general veterinarian, consider seeking out an opinion from a veterinary cardiologist or internist, as these specialized veterinarians have special training and expertise in enlarged dog heart problems, and in treating canine congestive heart failure and similar problems.