81 replies to this topic

[Lori]

I adopted my girl Sarah from SCD 4 years ago, she is 8 years old now. Just today I found out she has a heart murmur, an enlarged heart and fluid around {or in} it. My vet said Dobe's are prone to this and I'm wondering if anyone else had had any issues like this with with their doberkids. I looked it up , and all of the info I got was that the prognosis is never good. She is on a diuretic twice daily for now, and goes back to the vet in 2 weeks for more chest x-rays.
I take her to the vet twice a year and this didn't show up last fall. Can something like this come on that quickly or is my vet not doing her job? I'm sad, and angry and feeling guilty about maybe I was not seeing that my girl was ill. Jeez....this really stinks and I'm all twisted up about it.

[Nancy Robinson]

I know you are upset and I am so sorry, you have
come to the right place to learn about this sort of thing
a lot of people have gone through this with their Dobes.

I am sending you a PM of my situation it was a different
type of heart problem.

[Arda]

Rudy has been on Pimobendon a year now. He is 10. Georgie just started the Pimobendon. Frodo walked out to pee and fell over dead. He was 8. I have a bedroom closet full of them. Sometimes they just drop over dead. Sometimes we can get them on meds and give them a year or two of good life. Yes most of us who have more than one Dobe, has had first hand experience. It is never good. And we cry.

[doberpagegirl]

Lori,
I'm so sorry to hear this. Did the vet give you a specific diagnosis? My male is 8ish and he has a heart murmur, but no fluid. My Page girl dropped over dead from her heart with no warning what so ever. She was fine one second and gone the next. She was 7. Your feelings are completely understandable. I felt so guilty that I didn't know something was wrong with Page. I know logically that there was no way to know, but my heart says I should have known. It really does come on that fast. It's not your fault & it's not the vet's fault, it just plain stinks. Please keep us updated on Sarah, we will keep you both in our prayers.

Sarah

[Lori]

My vet just said it was Cardiomyopathy, I think the spelling is close if not correct. She heard the heart murmur and suggested x-rays to see what was going on, and found that her heart is twice the normal size it should be, and that she has fluid in or around it, and that her valves were stretched...I am so mad at myself for not remembering every single thing she said. It knocked me for a loop, and I was trying to maintain some self control and listen to her at the same time. I'm not a wussy and I don't get faint at the slightest thing but when it comes to Sarah...she's like my child. I just fell apart like some idiot. When I take her back to the vet I'll take one of my son's with me to be the logical one.
It just came out of left field and caught me totally off guard.
I was planning on adopting another Dober kid in the coming weeks too.{ Sarah loves her canine friends} My vet said the stress would be too much for Sarah right now , and that scared the crap out of me ! Should I be keeping her quiet or let her do all the normal things she does?
I have so many questions now that I've had time to absorb it all. I can't even think of losing her yet it keeps running through my mind.
I guess all that really matters is that I have had her for 4 wonderful years and should be grateful for that alone. Anything after this is a bonus. My vet said it is related to age and that she may be older than we thought to begin with. I do trust my vet, she is very meticulous in her work and always takes the time to listen to any concerns I may have and address them. {when I don't fall apart like today}
Anyway...seeing you guys replied so quickly made me all weepy.....lol Thank you for the information. I didn't know this was a "thing" with Doberman's, and here I was all worried about her getting arthritic in her senior years.
GAWD...!!! I love her sooo much.

[dobermidwife]

Lori,

So sorry to hear your Dobergirl has DCM. I have not had any experience with DCM myself, but lots of experience with liver disease & cancer. You may want to consider joining another group: healthdobes@yahoogroups.com This group discusses lots of doberman health issues. The group has lots of info to share and are very supportive to list members going through a rough time. Several SCD members are also on HealthDobes.

I will be praying for you and your girl.

[dayzimae]

This is truly is very hard thing, and I'm sorry you have to go through it. Fortunately, I only went through heart failure with a dog in the day before heart worm prophylaxis (a couple poodles). Hopefully with diuretics and other medications, your Sarah will be comfortable and live with you as long as possible. Will be thinking positive thoughts for you and her.

[Bumpette]

I'm so sorry for your Sarah's diagnosis. Unfortunately cardio (DCM) is a Doberman 'thing'. They are doing a lot of extensive research to try and determine a cause and ultimately a cure, but in the mean time we have to deal with it. I totally understand the way you felt at the Vet's office yesterday, I had a similar experience with our first Dobe. Back then they really didn't know much about DCM, so there wasn't a whole lot they could do for her. They know more about it now, and like Arda said, with medication you can still have a few good years with Sarah. Although I know that isn't nearly long enough. I wouldn't restrict her activities, her body will tell her what to do. And don't feel guilty, DCM sneaks up on a Dobe like it did in Sarah. There wasn't anything you could have done differently to prevent it. Give her some extra hugs from us. And keep us posted on her progress.

[Bumpette]

I have a bedroom closet full of them.

To clarify...Arda has a closet full of cremated Dobes. I just didn't want anyone to think she was keeping Dobermans in a closet.

[Cheri]

Lori, I'm so sorry to hear about your Sarah's diagnosis. Sadly, it seems that most of us who own Dobermans will be confronted with dilated cardiomyopathy sooner or later. In 1995, my first Doberman, a male who had just turned eight, woke up one morning, coughing and vomiting up phleghm. X-rays showed his heart was about twice the size it should be, so large it was pressing on his esophagus. His lungs were also filled with fluid. Up to then, he had never given a single indication that he was not well. His symptoms came on suddenly and progressed so rapidly we had to have him put to sleep three days later because he couldn't breathe. Obviously, the heart enlargement happens gradually over a period of time, but often there are no symptoms during the months or years that this is happening.

You must not blame yourself or your vet. Dobermans are the breed most often affected by DCM. It is in their genes and there's nothing in the world you could have done to prevent it. Like some other posters have mentioned here, some dogs simply drop dead one day, with no warning. In other cases, there are symptoms and there are medications that sometimes help ease those symptoms and give us a little more time with our dog.

You've come to the right place for information and emotional support. I wish you and Sarah good luck. Please keep in touch and let us know how you both are doing.

[Lori]

Jeez...everyone here is so kind !
And I kind of figured Arda had her babies "cremains" and not a closet full of dogs. Sarah is resting right now...it's raining and cold today and this is normal behavior for her on days like this. She is a touch arthritic and gets a little stiff. {just like me }
I will do whatever I need to do to keep her comfy and happy, even if it means saying goodbye.
OMG...and Sarah is terrified of thunderstorms...the Vet had given me sedatives to calm her down for those times. We had storms all last week and I was giving her the pills only to find out I could have killed my own girl because it lowers her blood pressure. With her heart the way it is she can't take them anymore. I stopped giving her Sudafed {spelling?} too. My vet said she wasn't sure how that would affect her heart either. It doesn't make a dif to me, I don't mind washing her bedding every other day, she always did leak a little in her sleep anyway.
I keep neurotically checking on Sarah while she's sleeping. She must think I'm losing my mind.
Sarah has some canine friends who come to visit and play with her. She loves everything on 4 legs, even my ferrets. {though they annoy her sometimes by swarming over her}
Oh, well, I see I am babbling now. I do that when I'm worried.
I just wanted to Thank you all for being so supportive and giving me all the info on this issue. I'll keep you posted and check back here often.
{waving at all of you! }

[Bumpette]

And I kind of figured Arda had her babies "cremains" and not a closet full of dogs.

She loves everything on 4 legs, even my ferrets. {though they annoy her sometimes by swarming over her}

I figured everyone who is on here regularly would know it was 'cremains' in Arda's closet, but I felt the need to clarify because anybody in the world has access to our site and I wouldn't want someone thinking she was keeping dogs in a closet. It is amazing how many weirdos are drawn to our site.

I would LOVE to see pictures of Sarah being swarmed by ferrets. I think ferrets are really cool critters.

[brownsmom]

To clarify...Arda has a closet full of cremated Dobes. I just didn't want anyone to think she was keeping Dobermans in a closet.

And if she had Dobermans in the closet, where would she keep her brooms?

[Bumpette]

Her brooms are never idle long enough to be put in a closet....she is always riding on them.

[Arda]

DEMERITS!! Both of you.

[ella]

Princess was coughing last new years day(2009) so when I took her to the vet the next day she was diagnosised with DCM. She was put on Pimobendon and diuretics. I'm happy to say that the medications kept my baby alive the whole year. She let me know on Christmas eve she was ready to go. She was 11 years old when she left. and the whole year I never changed anything she wanted to do. She also was scared to death of storms. I still gave her pills to calm her,better than having her have a heart attact from the storms. She played and ran in the yard and chased cats by the fense. She slowed down by the end of the year. but she still loved everyone and loved to play with the kids that came to see her. We knew she would not live forever and the vet said to let her live what was left of her life and don't change anything. I'm glad that I had her for the whole year to say goodbye and love her. I miss her terribly and I still haven't taken down all of her pictures I have around the house. but slowly I'm putting more pictures of Bonnie up.

[Arda]

The Princess was one very special lady to a lot of us. Buck shot, missing ear and all.

[doberpagegirl]

A wise woman told me, "He isn't dead yet, so quit mourning him. He is a dobermann. Let him be a dobermann." I try really hard to follow that advice. Although, I do neurotically check mine in their sleep as well.

[Nancy Robinson]

And a very wise person told me enjoy him while he is here, let him be
a Dobe there will be a time to grieve when he is gone.

[MarlysMom]

I completely agree with Cheri, not your vets fault, its common and my story is very similar to hers. I will keep you and Sarah in my thoughts; please let us know.