# lillo has an enlarged heart



## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

we've just come home from the vets. lillo had a mini seizure last night so we went to see if we could find out what was wrong. he had an ecg and he has an enlarged heart on both sides, which means it doesnt beat fast enough. so when he wakes up suddenly from sleeping (this has happened twice now) his heart cant cope. theres nothing we can do, as the vet said its best not to go on meds as they have bad side affects and he's too small for a pace maker. we are really sad. we adore him so much. the breeder said the life expectancy of a dog with this condition is between 7-12 years. does anyone else have this problem? also i saw a post once from someone who said when their dog sleeps had seizures - whoever it was maybe you should have an ecg as the simptoms sounded similar.


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## Alisha (Mar 11, 2005)

Poor little baby ((hugs)) to you both


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## stefanie_farrell (Jan 11, 2005)

Angela
Im so gutted and sorry to hear lillo's condition. I know how much you love lillo and i know how much me and roo love him. 7-12 years is still a good life. Angela Im sooooooooooooooooo sorry- you wanna chat- ring me?

 :wave:


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

thanks im still hoping the vets wrong. im going to take him to italy to see what they say - they have the best vets in the world in bologns where were moving to. i'll make sure he has the best treatment there is


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

stefanie_farrell said:


> Angela
> Im so gutted and sorry to hear lillo's condition. I know how much you love lillo and i know how much me and roo love him. 7-12 years is still a good life. Angela Im sooooooooooooooooo sorry- you wanna chat- ring me?
> 
> :wave:


thanks stef, he's so healthy and its only happened twice so im hoping it will not be a problem. the vet was really positive so im staying hopeful. his hernia went aay so lets all prey this ont affect him either


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## MyTank (Sep 8, 2005)

I wish you both the best of luck! I hope everything is ok and I'm sure everything will be alright. Stay positive though!


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## lecohen (Feb 13, 2005)

Awww...sorry to hear this doll...i wish you both all the best xxx


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## BonnieChi (Aug 12, 2005)

i had a yorkie that had an enlarged heart...as a result of this condition she developed congestive heart failure (which i guess basically causes fluid to build up in the lungs). she was on lasik for the fluid in her lungs, and another med called enacard for her heart. She did really well on these for awhile, but she was already 11 when she was diagnosed. Is your vet sure there are no meds that can help? maybe get a second opinion? my yorkie suffered no side effects from these meds, and her quality of life improved drastically on them. she was little too, only about 4 pounds.


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## Ms_P (Apr 25, 2004)

Soooo sorry to hear this. Best of luck to you both. I hope you have good luck in Italy with the vets there. Maybe they have something that can help him. He'll be in my prayers.


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## P-Nut (Dec 1, 2004)

Your poor little guy!!! Just keep a close eye on him. I know this may sound bad, but 7-12 years is better than something happening now, right??? Enjoy him and his presence in your life... I know that you are probably crushed and heartbroken and worried (as I would be as well)... just focus on making his life as fun and happy as possible! Who knows... maybe there will be some advancements and this problem can be corrected!


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

thanks everyone,im hoping as its been very mild his 'spells',(seeming really tired and unresponsive for a few minutes) that it wont be a regular thing and it wont affct him.the vet said he should do everything as normal and getting excited and being active in the day is good for him.its just when he's sleeping and his heartrate slows down he shouldnt be woken suddenly as his heart cant speed up so fast.im just praying everything will turn out ok. but to see him he's absolutely fine. so unless the wierd 'spells' become regular/frequent then theres no problem. lets all pray for my lil boy


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## Angelab (Nov 26, 2005)

Ohh so sorry about Lillo, but it's good news that your Dr. is being positive with his recommendations.


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## Jen (Sep 13, 2005)

My first chi Oreo had an enlarged heart. He couldn't run around like a mad man anymore but other than that he was good. He was put on heart medications to help his heart function better. I think it is good to get a second opinion.


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## ~Kari's*4*Chis~ (Sep 7, 2004)

I am so sorry to hear this. I hope everything works out for Lillo. I hope that the vet in Italy can help!!


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## chihuahua-lady (Apr 13, 2005)

awwwww poor lillo bless him i hope he is ok angela and that you do find something to help him cope wth them i think lillo soooo deserves loadsa cuddles at the mmet lol


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## xx-nathalie-xx (Jan 10, 2005)

omg i feel so sorry for you guys , i hope it all turns out for the best , sometimes it doesn't have to be such a big problem for a good life and i hope that's the case with you guys xx


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

thanks everyone. i know all the rest of the people whos dogs have this developed it later in life. i think lillo was born with it, so i hope its less serious this way. id really like to know more about it so i think i'll take him to another vet before we go to italy to find out more. does anyone know a really really good vet in yhe uk? Vik maybe you do from all the breeders youve met? i dont mind travelling. ive heard theres one specialised in chis called Fiona something...has anyone heard of her? i have her number so i think ill give her a call.


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## chihuahua-lady (Apr 13, 2005)

its real hard finding a good vet experianced in this breedim gonna see what my new one is like today he has been recomended to me by litrally tons and tons of people all from the toy breeds saying that he is brill with super small dogs and really gentle with them and everyone has said that he explains everything to you in detail etc he is located in ruislip its like 15 mins from heathrow but i have to say he sounds brill soooo many people have recomended him if its any help i have his number


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

chihuahua-lady said:


> its real hard finding a good vet experianced in this breedim gonna see what my new one is like today he has been recomended to me by litrally tons and tons of people all from the toy breeds saying that he is brill with super small dogs and really gentle with them and everyone has said that he explains everything to you in detail etc he is located in ruislip its like 15 mins from heathrow but i have to say he sounds brill soooo many people have recomended him if its any help i have his number


you go today and let me know how he is.if you dont mind tell him i was told yesterday lillo has an enlarged heart from doing only an ecg and see what he says. thanks Vic and good luck with your lil one xxx


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## Vala (Jul 8, 2004)

I soo sorry to hear that..best wishes and lots of hugs to both of you. Like Stef said..7-12 is still a good life. :wink: Love each other lots..and hopefully that vet is wrong. :wink:


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

yeah im hoping hes wrong. im getting him referred to a cardio specilist so then i'll know exactly whats wrong and how serious it is.


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## Sam (Oct 19, 2005)

that was me who said my dog had fits in her sleep. I went to the vet and he said it just sounded like dreaming as she woke up when I called her or touched her. Sorry to hear about your dog


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## AEROMarley1983 (Sep 12, 2005)

Make sure you keep him at a good weight and maintain a healthy diet for him. That's what our docs tell us to do when we have cardiovascular issues. I hope everything turns out to be fine for you. Don't take this wrong, but a big heart means a lot of love.  I'll be thinking about ya and checkin' up on this post.


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## Jayne (Jul 8, 2005)

sorry to hear about Lillo 

{{{ hugs }}}


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## Auggies Mom (Jun 9, 2004)

I am so sorry to hear about Lillo. I hope the specialist can give you better news about something to help.  You will just have to love her even more and hopefully she will do very well :wink:


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

Sam said:


> that was me who said my dog had fits in her sleep. I went to the vet and he said it just sounded like dreaming as she woke up when I called her or touched her. Sorry to hear about your dog


glad to hear it was nothing, hopefuly its nothing serious with lillo. hopefuly the specialist will be able to tell me more.


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

AEROMarley1983 said:


> Make sure you keep him at a good weight and maintain a healthy diet for him. That's what our docs tell us to do when we have cardiovascular issues. I hope everything turns out to be fine for you. Don't take this wrong, but a big heart means a lot of love.  I'll be thinking about ya and checkin' up on this post.


thank you, well thats one way of looking at it guess! he does give me loads of love.


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## KB (Apr 13, 2004)

I am very sorry to hear that.........hopefully it will never get that bad. My thoughts are with you and your baby


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## Angelab (Nov 26, 2005)

Good luck with the specialist and do keep this thread going so we can keep up to date on Lillo :wave:


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

ok lillo's in with another vet as i wanted a second opinion. so far news is good, this vet thinks he has a normal heart rate at 100 beats per min, and he thinks theres nothing wrong with his heart. he's having an exray, ultrasound and a blood test as we speak. i'll know the verdict in less than half an hour so please everyone keep everything crossed for us! i'll write as soon as i know anything xxx


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## chihuahua-lady (Apr 13, 2005)

am sitting here crossing everything angela hope all goes well


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## AEROMarley1983 (Sep 12, 2005)

*holds breath*


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## *Monster's Mum* (Aug 22, 2005)

Hey, just read this post...hope its not that serious...fingers crossed for you.


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

ok back from vet, but the vet wont speak to me till 4.30 when he has time-can you believe that after charging me £400 for this?! not a message nothing. and he knows how worried i am. i insisted on picking lillo up and letting him come round from his premed at home. he's a bit dopey but fine. i'll let you all know the verdict t 4.30. i guess they say no news is good news!!


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## lecohen (Feb 13, 2005)

Oh babe...hope he will be ok xxx


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## chihuahua-lady (Apr 13, 2005)

any news???


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## stefanie_farrell (Jan 11, 2005)

any news? :wave:


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

make me wait or what?!?! he just called about 15 mins ago!

i just got the test results from the ultrasound and the xray and it
seems that lillos heart is normal. the vet said that toy breeds do
have slightly bigger hearts for thier body size than other dogs, and
that lillos is within the standard.he said we'll need to do another
xray and ultrasound in 6 months to check, and if its the same size then
theres definately nothing wrong with his heart.

i have to wait until monday for the blood test results which will check
on many things including blood sugar.

i feel though that i havent really been told anything though, it seems
a bit of a wishy washy answer? do toy breeds have bigger hearts?


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## lacedolphin (Nov 20, 2005)

I dont know about the size thing, but what a relief!!! Glad all is OK for now! :wave:


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## stefanie_farrell (Jan 11, 2005)

awwwwwwwww angela... ur such a gd chi mum for getting him checked properly... thats better news then i imagened... i thought you would b told of medication... but a chance of him not having it... thats great, huh?


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## lecohen (Feb 13, 2005)

Ya...sure sounds better, you are a fab chi mum as Stef said, good on you...

Hope there is more good news to come.

xxxx


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

thanks everyone, i do feel very relieved i just wish the vet hadn't said a 'but'. im happy that he thinks his hearts probably fine im going to check it in italy in a couple of months to be on the safe side.god that vet on monday made me worried sick. this vet said it looks fine and the funny 'spell' could've been anything-chemicals in the house (like floor cleaner), sugar in the blood...pretty much anything. hopefully he wont have any more funny spells to worry his mummy- then all will be fine!!! he's still zombied out from the anasthetic - he didn't even sniff the lamb chop i made him for a special treat (poor thing deserves lots of treats now!)


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## chihuahua-lady (Apr 13, 2005)

awww glad its good news hun you had me worried there


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## *Monster's Mum* (Aug 22, 2005)

Glad its good news


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## stefanie_farrell (Jan 11, 2005)

glad to hear that angela...
he'll get his appetite back soon!  :wave:


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## angela_markovic (Jun 4, 2005)

i doubt it you know what lillos like! you know he wont eat re heated meat?!?!?!


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## KB (Apr 13, 2004)

*whew* that is MUCH better


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