Our pets are part of our family, so when they fall ill, it’s a devastating loss. According to Cardiac Care for Pets (CVCA), nearly 8 million dogs suffer from heart disease. That is 10-percent of the dogs in the United States. The source also notes that a dog’s risk for heart disease increases with age. Up to 75-percent of senior dogs have some kind of heart condition.
Some heart conditions are treatable, but no matter what the heart condition is, the most important thing is early detection and treatment. To better protect your pet, get informed on everything there is to know about heart disease in dogs, including the signs, causes, and treatment options…
Types of Heart Disease
Valvular Disease
The most common type of valvular disease in dogs are mitral valve issues. The mitral valve is located between the heart’s left atrium and left ventricle, explains VCA Animal Hospitals. It’s essentially a flap of tissue that acts as a door between chambers of the heart. They prevent blood from flowing backward through the heart. If they aren’t working properly, then the blood doesn’t flow as it should through the body.
According to VCA Animal Hospitals, 80-percent of heart disease is a result of mitral valve insufficiency. It’s more common in small dogs than large breeds. It’s usually detected by a heart murmur which is “produced by the turbulence created when some of the blood goes backward through the leaking mitral valve into the left atrium,” writes the source.