Atrial Fibrillation

[Bosley's Folks]

Hi, all.

Just found out that our stray boxer that we took in (Vader, not Bosley) has Atrial Fibrillation. Defined as: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common electrical disturbance or arrhythmia of the heart, marked by rapid randomized contractions of the atrial heart muscle causing a totally irregular, often rapid , ventricular rate.

We found out when he passed out today, going totally limp. I thought he was gone (he's an older dog), but as I was rushing him to the vet, he revived. The vet is putting him on Digoxin , which is a pretty hard core drug that helps keep the heart beat regulated.

I guess my question goes out to anyone out there that might have dealt with this before. How did you treat it and what did your vet do to diagnose/treat the problem? How did your pet handle the treatment and what was the outcome? Because, it doesn't seem to look good.

Thanks.

P.S. Here is a picture of the Boys. Bosley is on the left and Vader is on the right.

 

[jeffisonline]

Very common in boxers I hear...

In addition to my dog Orson's many meical problems, he also had this disorder as well...But the development of really good heart medications actually help dogs who suffer this disorder live an almost normal life, and it doesn't mean they will die from this.

Orson would start panting and then his eyes would flicker, and he would just fall over...then within a moment he would come back from it...He went on a medication called enacard sp?
That preveted this from happening again, however, orson's was caused by fluid in his hear sack, so it's the same and different.

I really hope this is managed by medication, and that your baby will be fine...

Jeff

 

[JulieM]

If he's experience abnormal beats of ventricular origin, it's most likely Boxer Cardiomyopathy (ARVC). The drug of choice in most cases is Sota (Betapace), Boxers have been on this for years and live mostly normal lives. I'd suggest a visit to a veterinary cardiologist, preferably one familiar with Boxer hearts. There is a listing by state here:
www.vetheart.com/bystate.htm