How to live with fainting and BCM... please help me with proper expectations

[laurelstreet]

Hello everyone,

I'm writing today to ask for the real-world experiences that (too many) Boxer owners have had with their dogs following a diagnosis of Boxer Cardiomyopathy.

My darling Ella had been listless and skipping meals (that NEVER happens!) over the last weekend. Monday, she was diagnosed with BCM... it was very clear on the EKG. Tuesday she began Sotalol as an initial treatment. We're trying to locate a cardiologist as our next step.

Wednesday, Ella had her first collapse (that I know if) and I happened to be home that day. It was brief, she seemed stunned and over the next 30 minutes she was 'back' to normal. Thursday she greeted me at the front door, but I heard her fall behind me as I went into the kitchen. She recovered within minutes. Friday night she got excited when a bird flew in our open back door - while I was attending to that - Ella quickly collapsed. That is three collapses in three days.

Have any of you seen these episodes with similar frequency? Can anyone tell me if they will start coming more often? Have your dogs recovered quickly after fainting spells? Or do they become more difficult to recover from?

Most important, if anyone has sadly lost a dog to this disease... what should be my realistic expectations for her life after diagnosis?

There is a wealth of posts here in BW about the medicality of this issue. Also, I have gotten a lot of that info from my vet and other sources online.

What I cannot seem to find are answers to my questions about 'living with the disease' and some honest, direct, and thoughtful advice on what I can expect for her in the coming days, weeks, months, or hopefully years.

I would genuinely appreciate your insights and advice - thanks to you all.

[sriley]

My heart goes out to you. At the risk of sounding like a broken record (I've posted similar info under several other threads that you may not have had an opportunity to read), I'll recap what I went through this summer after my Buddy was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy. Buddy had syncopes, but they always occurred while he was sleeping. Whenever he fell into a deep sleep, his blood pressure dropped and his heart couldn't pump enough blood/oxygen to his brain, hence the syncopes. His limbs would stiffen, his neck would extend upward, sometimes he would let out a low howl, and he lost control of his bladder. Within a minute or two, he was fine. He was diagnosed with an enlarged heart, cardiomyopathy, and a grade 2 murmur on July 15th. He was put on Fortekor and Vetmedin but the drugs weren't much help to him as he didn't present symptoms of heart disease until it was too late. Exercise became far too risky and Buddy slept the summer away. He lost interest in his dry kibble, so we began mixing moist dog food in with his kibble. After a few weeks, the moist mixed in with the dry lost its appeal and we began feeding him "people food" just to get some calories into his system. I'd feed him oatmeal in the morning and pasta with beef (or whatever we were having) for dinner. I realize this probably wasn't the healthiest diet for him, but by that point, we knew he wouldn't be with us much longer and wanted to keep him spoiled and content. We kept him comfortable for as long as we could, but we just couldn't see him suffer any longer and decided to help him make the journey to rainbow bridge on August 31th. During that last week before we said goodbye to Buddy, the frequency of his syncopes increased and they became more severe. I believe they were starting to take a toll on him neurologically as his front legs began buckling and he was having balance issues. By far, it was the most awful experience of my life. Words simply cannot express how heartbreaking it was to watch Buddy go downhill so fast. It's absolutely devastating when you do everything you can to help your baby and it's all for not. Hopefully your Ella has shown symptoms early and the drugs will be effective for her. My vet told me the drugs prescribed for Buddy's heart issues (Fortekor and Vetmedin) are the same drugs used in people with similar heart conditions. These drugs were described as the "Cadillac" drugs for heart problems by my vet. Has Ella had a Holter monitor test done? If your vet has already diagnosed her with cardiomyopathy, I'm not sure if a Holter would be beneficial for Ella or not, but it might be worth looking into. Perhaps this is something you can discuss with a cardiologist. Best of luck to you and Ella. Please keep us posted and take comfort in knowing that you're not alone. Some of us have experienced what you are going through and we can certainly sympathize. I am sending Ella lots of (((healing vibes))) and I will keep her in my thoughts and prayers.

[laurelstreet]

I am sorry about Buddy, truly. I had read about his troubles when he slept. I don't know that Ella is having these... but I appreciate the insight that he 'slept the summer away.' Ella seems to be doing that too.

I'm also worried about her diet - she's not eating much - but if I push her with people food, even little snacks, she doesn't seem to tolerate it long.

Your timeline, tragic, helps me understand. This is the type of first-hand experience I feel I need to know. Right now for Ella, I'm trying to make every moment count.

I wish there was more info out there on how to live with the disease, and I think this dialogue is helpfull... hopefully for others in the future.

I encourage others - with different experiences - to chime in here. Please, let's try to build as complete a picture as possible of what it's like to live with this disease for those who may read in the future.

[sriley]

Buddy's cardiomyopathy certainly didn't help him any, but I think his biggest problem was his enlarged heart. When Buddy's chest was x-rayed, my vet explained that the way they determine whether the heart is enlarged is to look at the heart in proportion to the ribs. For a dog Buddy's size, his heart should have measured approx. 10 ribs. His was 12. In all honesty, I think Buddy had other issues that may or may not have been induced with the use of Rimadyl and/or Deremaxx. He began having serious balance issues. I actually thought that he had suffered a stroke, but my vet wasn't convinced since strokes are highly uncommon in dogs. My vet has been practicing veterinary medicine for years, but admitted that the symptoms Buddy was presenting were new to her. She was kind enough to refer us to a facility that may have been able to provide us with more answers, but it's a teaching hospital for up and coming veterinarians and I didn't want Buddy to become a guinea pig. I mean no disrespect to veterinarians in training, but Buddy had already been through enough. It was also going to be a long commute (well over an hour), and while Buddy loved the car and travelled well, it was getting riskier and riskier just to take him to the local vet clinic that was a mere 5-minute drive away. The stress of taking him to an unfamiliar clinic during the summer months may very well have proven fatal for him.

After Buddy was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy, I did a lot of research on his condition. One study I had read (I wish I could remember the source) suggested that 50% of the breed will develop heart problems and for 1/2 of those affected, their first symptom (often collapse) is fatal. Thankfully, Buddy's symptoms didn't result in immediate death, but I sure wish I could have done something sooner. I have 2 new Boxer pups and I plan to put both my boys on Holter monitors. Aside from prevention, the key with cardiomyopathy is early detection. I'm not sure how old a dog should be before a Holter monitor test is done, but it is on my list of questions for the vet when we visit at the end of the month.

Anyway, all apologies for the long response. I guess what I'm trying to tell you is not to lose faith and to remain optimistic. Just because Buddy's decline was swift and tragic doesn't mean Ella's will be. Remember, Buddy's woes likely extended well beyond his heart. I will keep my eye on this thread and respond with my experience should you have further questions. As always, please keep us posted. Hang in there, Ella!

[MyDogOscar]

Our experience with Oscar has been totally different than the post about Buddy . A clear picture for Ella's future will take some time to develop. It depends on what stage her illness is. How dilated the right side of her heart is, how her right ventricle myocardium looks, how frequently her arrythmias occur, how close to heart failure she is, and how easily her rhythm is controlled long-term. I am involved with the study of this disease in humans(ARVD) and happen to have a dog with the canine variety. Oscar collapsed 3x in August during the morning walk over 1 1/2 weeks. He has a history with melanoma, too, so we were unsure if it was neuro(mets to brain) or cardiovascular. The morning he was to see the cardiologist he had his worst episode. He had a potential lethal tachycardic arrythmia(long runs of 300bpm)! He required overnight hospitalization in critical care and it was difficult to get his rhythm under control, it eventually happened. It was very dicey for a while. We didn't think he would last more than a couple days when we brought him home.
That was 9 weeks ago and he has made a remarkable recovery! He is back to full-length walks and is medicated with mexilitine and sotalol. It was a slow recovery. He has had no more syncopal episodes. We just followed up with the cardiologist and she lowered his sotalol in half and is very pleased with his progress. Obviously his life span is not what it would be without ARVC and he could leave us at any moment, but that goes for any living being on Earth! He is happy to be here NOW, be sure to remember that is all dogs care about-right now.

It's difficult for us humans to deal with this. Hopefully seeing a cardio-vet will help you and your dear Ella.There are many variables with this condition. We wish you the best....!

[laneysmom]

I am so sorry to hear about Ella. My boxer before Laney, was Nikki. Nikki was diagnosed with BCM about 6 mos before she died peacefully at home. But Nikki was going on 12yr old.
Now Laney, was diagnosed in Aug this year and she just turned 2yr old in Mar. Of course, I read everything I can find on this disease. It breaks my heart again & so soon after Nikki.
Laney seems to be doing well with her meds (lasix, vasotec, baby aspirin) so far. My sister had a Doberman mixed and she lived on heart medicines for 8yr, finally passed away at 14yr old. It just goes to show you, no one knows for sure how long we will have our beloved boxers...please try to be optimistic and enjoy Ella every day as I'm sure you do. It's not always easy to do, I know from personal experience. Hugs & Kisses and good healing vibes for Ella <<<<>>>>

[Boxer Babies]

Im sorry your going through this.

Although I dont have expereince with BCM, I do with Aortic Stenosis. My boy was diagnosed about three and a half years ago after he collapsed a couple of times after too much play. The last one he actaully stopped breathing for a few seconds.

We went to a Cardiologist and got the diagnosis of severe AS. They said he should not be alive given the severity of the disease.

Thai was put on Atenalol (aussie name). He has one tab per day. We have yearly check ups with the Cardio and his heart is only slightly enlarged after three and a half years.

at first we really restricted him and lokked him on the patio while we were at work, but after we got over our initial devastation we thought, he deserves to live his life as a Boxer should, running, playing.... We try not to over do things when its really hot, and a couple of times he has had a little turn where he just stops and gets a bit wabbly on his feet. But (touch wood) no more syncope episodes and he is going great guns. He is healthy and happy, you wouldnt know he has a problem.

So hang in there, give the drugs some time to really kick in and hopefully you will enjoys a few more years yet....

Good luck, please keep us updated.

[laurelstreet]

Hello everyone,

Here's an update on what we've been through in the last month. Ella was placed on Sotalol 40 miligrams, twice a day. She's responded very well to the medicine so far. Before she went on it, she was listless and basically immobile throughout the day.

I think what's key in our case was that we quickly identified that something was wrong - not eating, not acting like her normal bouncy affectionate self and took her to the doctor right away and was able to interrupt a medical situation that was rapidly spiraling downward.

The fainting spells were very distressing to me as they came so fast upon her diagnosis and in the first few days of Sotalol, before it had time to reach therapeutic levels in her body. This was touch and go for the first week of treatment.

I'm happy to report that the medicine has had a very beneficial effect on Ella. She is active, cheerful, affectionate - much as she was before the trouble began. I do not think she would go back to eating dry kibble - but she is eating regularly with a mix of a high-quality canned food mixed in with the dry food.

My doctor stresses that the medicine is not a cure, but only a therapeutic treatment that will improve the quality of her life - it has done that so far. Ella is 8 years old and we are being cautious, but so far we seem to be managing.

Thanks to you all!

[Boxer Babies]

Im so glad to hear Ella is doing well on the meds.

Fingers crossed and lots of love to you

[laneysmom]

I am so happy to hear the good news!!! Hugs & kisses to Ella...xoxoxoxo