Regular veterinary checkups are essential for early detection and management of heart disease in pets. As experienced veterinarians recommend, schedule thorough exams for your cats and dogs—at least annually for cats under 10 years old and twice yearly thereafter—with special focus on cardiac health.
In Cats:
Watch for signs like rapid or difficult breathing, weakness, lethargy, exercise intolerance, and collapse. Cats rarely cough from heart issues. A healthy resting respiratory rate is 15-30 breaths per minute; consult your vet if it exceeds 35 breaths per minute at rest or sleep.
The most prevalent condition is hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), a primary heart muscle disease that typically thickens the left ventricle walls. It's usually acquired later in life, not congenital.
Cats with significant structural heart disease nearly always exhibit a heart murmur (turbulent blood flow audible via stethoscope) or other abnormal sounds. Note: About 20% of cats with murmurs have no underlying heart disease.
In Dogs:
Common symptoms include rapid or labored breathing, coughing, weakness, lethargy, reduced exercise tolerance, and fainting episodes. Normal resting respiratory rate is 15-30 breaths per minute; seek veterinary care if over 35 at rest or sleep.
The leading heart condition in dogs is myxomatous mitral valve degeneration (MMVD), an age-related acquired issue affecting the mitral valve—not present at birth.
Puppies may have innocent "flow" or "physiological" murmurs from turbulent blood flow, audible by stethoscope, which typically resolve by 8-12 weeks of age.
