badboyz Posted March 20, 2009 Share Posted March 20, 2009 (edited) Wondering if anyone can advise me here. I took my chi boy (15mths) to the vet for his vaccination. The vet listened to his heart and commented that she considered it slow for a dog his size and age, and more normal for a large breed. It was about 90 bpm. She did relate a story about a dog she had whose heart rate was very slow and slowed down to about 36 bpm. The dog died not long after. My boy was very subdued from the moment we walked in the door. He is usually bouncy and lively and interested in everything, but today he just sat very still and practically flopped on the steel examination table. Possibly did not like the whole surgery smell and feel. Is she just being paranoid due to her own experience or should I be concerned? Edited March 20, 2009 by badboyz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rappie Posted March 21, 2009 Share Posted March 21, 2009 The heart rate of any dog can vary fairly significantly regardless of size but as a general rule, smaller dogs have higher heart rates. I would expect a Chihuahua to be between 120-140 but this is not a set rule. In your case what would be of more concern to me would be whether the heart rate is like this all the time, whether it can increase in response to stress (including exercise) and whether the dog shows any clinical signs related to it (reluctance to exercise, fainting etc). I'd suggest that you check the heart rate at home several times and check. If it's persistently low then I would think it worth doing some kind of investigation, even if only starting with an ECG. In a small dog you should be able to feel the heart beat by cupping their chest with your hand, count the beats over 15 seconds then x4 to get beats per minute. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badboyz Posted March 22, 2009 Author Share Posted March 22, 2009 Thanks for the advice Rappie. My vet did advise the same, counting the heartrate as you described. When resting it seems to be around the 90 mark and when playing around 120. No clinical sypmptoms of a problem at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badboyz Posted March 22, 2009 Author Share Posted March 22, 2009 (edited) Actually a couple of weeks ago I believe he had a run in with a cane toad. He came in from outside (in the evening) frothing rubbing his face madly and vomitted quite a few times. I washed his mouth out a few times after doing an online search. He seemed to settle after a while and slept normally on my sons bed. Seemed fine in the morning. Could this have caused an issue with his heart? Edited March 22, 2009 by badboyz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Kuntz Posted March 22, 2009 Share Posted March 22, 2009 Heart rate is quite variable, based on stress levels, etc. 90 does not really concern me. The 36 bpm that the other dog showed was because it had a third degree heart block and needed a pacemaker. If there are no clinical signs of collapse or weakness, I would not be particularly concerned. If you are concerned, then an ECG is appropriate. Charles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badboyz Posted March 22, 2009 Author Share Posted March 22, 2009 Thanks Charles. I really feel he is perfectly healthy, so will just monitor the heart rate every so often to be sure it stays regular. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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