Why does a cat's heart beat fast? My cat has a huge heart and water in her lungs. There are three types of disease

A cat's heart can also fail. Therefore, heart disease in cats is not so rare.

The cat's heart is a muscular hollow organ that pumps blood throughout the body, it is the most important body, just like in humans. Unfortunately, cats also have various pathologies hearts. They can be either acquired or congenital. Most often born with heart defects, Persian cats, as well as and . In most cases, detection of heart pathology occurs at a time when the condition is already irreversible.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (when the cat has thick and a big heart), the most common disease in cats. At timely treatment the pet can live for several years.

Myocarditis and endocarditis – pathologies inflammatory in nature arising after an infection. The immune system weakens, and blood enters the heart with bacteria, which cause inflammatory processes. If this condition is not treated, acute heart failure develops. After pancreatitis, uremia or acute intoxication, the cat may develop myocarditis, as a result of which the heart rhythm is disrupted.

Non-infectious heart inflammation more often occur due to the use of painkillers or anti-inflammatory drugs. Myocardosis is the occurrence of dystrophic processes in the heart, which can develop due to unbalanced nutrition, past infections and various non-communicable diseases.

Also, they may develop secondary cardiomyopathies when another organ is affected, e.g. thyroid. Because of high content hormone in the blood thyroid gland, the walls of the left ventricle of the heart thicken, and the volume of ejected blood decreases. As a result, the heart works hard.

To congenital pathologies Heart problems in cats include cardiac arrhythmias and abnormalities in the heart valves. It is difficult to diagnose these diseases in adults, since the cat dies at a young age.

Cardiac arrhythmias are not necessarily associated with a disease of the heart itself; they often arise due to pathologies in other organs. But with prolonged secondary arrhythmia pathological changes already occur in the heart muscle. Arrhythmia, if not a congenital disorder, requires many examinations to identify the cause. After all, to treat one type of arrhythmia, medications are used that are contraindicated for another type.

If clinical symptomscardiomyopathy are already visible, it is no longer possible to cure the animal. The appearance of these symptoms indicates a fairly developed pathological process.

Symptoms of cardiomyopathy:

Shortness of breath or hard breath appears due to the accumulation of fluid in pleural cavity. As a result, even at rest, the cat breathes with its tongue or belly hanging out, rather than with its lungs.
Fainting and loss of consciousness may occur, accompanied by shallow breathing and a thready pulse.
Cough occurs more often in dogs, but rarely in cats. It occurs due to pressure from the enlarged heart muscle on the trachea.
Ascites (accumulation of fluid in abdominal cavity) and swelling is rare, but it does happen.
Unproductive vomiting, weakness, a drop in body temperature below 37 degrees, and attacks of suffocation are common manifestations of cardiomyopathy in cats.

Other, nonspecific symptoms such as drowsiness or poor appetite may also occur in other diseases. However, if your cat begins to sleep a lot, she may have heart disease. vascular system. Kittens with heart disease are weak, developmentally delayed and do not gain weight well.

Even if you notice any symptoms in your pet, you absolutely cannot diagnose and treat it yourself. For diagnosis and treatment, you should contact your veterinarian.

Diagnostics:

first, the doctor collects information from the cat’s owner (history);
then he examines, feels and listens to it and measures the pressure;
does electrocardiography (ECG), is not informative method for diagnosing heart diseases, used to identify pathologies associated with circulatory rhythm disturbances;
The main diagnostic method is radiography, which provides information about the shape and size of the heart, the condition of the lungs (the presence of edema, blood stagnation). Photos must be of high quality;
Echocardiography (ultrasound is the main diagnostic method) - provides information about the thickness of the walls, the size and shape of the atria, the diameter of the aorta, the rhythm of contractions, and the presence of blood clots. Modern ultrasound machines can use the Doppler effect to assess blood flow.

Preventing heart disease in cats

Prevention includes a cat’s active lifestyle, because pets with a “sofa” lifestyle are more likely to suffer from heart disease.

and I am very afraid that she will die. I've been crying all day today because I'm scared. Today I broke out so much that I for a long time I couldn’t think of anything.
On the night from Wednesday to Thursday, Zyuka had a reaction to the anthelmintic Prazitel that I gave. I took her to the clinic, where she was diagnosed with poisoning and discharged after an IV to go home to recover.
On the night from Thursday to Friday, I took her back, because in the evening blood tests came back, which found increased ESR, and renal parameters. And I took her because she lay there all day and didn’t eat, drink, or pee.

When the thermometer was installed in her body, shortness of breath began again in the clinic, but the shortness of breath went away during the day, and she was discharged without shortness of breath, but under stress it began again.

On Friday they took an x-ray, there was a little enteritis and an enlarged heart, which worried the doctors. The lungs were normal. As I was told.
This morning I came to the clinic for an ultrasound. and found a cat in terrible condition. She's worse. Her temperature has dropped and she meows very, very strangely, very mournfully and chestily, even in a bass voice. She's weak. Bottom part the body sits down with spreading paws.

I can’t help but get lost in emotions, and right now I’m starting to shake, because I can’t recognize my beautiful lute in this suffering, flaccid little body. except that the fur on my belly is just as fluffy - now I’ll swallow my tears and finish writing.

They did an ultrasound of the heart. They showed that the atrium was enlarged 3-5 times. They showed exactly how. They didn't look at the kidneys. They said that this is not the main thing now. The main thing is that pronounced edema lungs. The heart is enlarged and it did not grow in just one day, it grew for a long time. and this is a serious topic. Mom doesn't say anything good to me. Badly also tries not to speak, but I’m strong, I want to be spoken to to the point.

They took an x-ray again. There is fluid in the lungs, now they will remove this swelling.

Cat under oxygen. On a heating pad. I’m lying there. And it seems to me that she doesn’t recognize me. I talked to her and stroked her and in general but she doesn’t recognize me. It seems to me that during the examination she was drawn to me only because I was warm, it seems to me that she was just crappy and that’s all.

They sent me now until 9 o'clock, They said that right now I will remove the swelling and I will arrive at 9, and we will decide what next

They said that either there would be a remission or there would be no remission. What is a big heart?

I just called some doctor who saved the lives of someone else’s cats, but I couldn’t really understand anything. I need to receive all the appointments with stamps. And find out how her swelling is reduced.

So, I need any information, I need support, what will happen and what will not happen at all.
Heart and pulmonary failure at the cat. What should I expect? And when? the doctor says that if there is a remission it will be from six months, but anything can happen in last moment. That the stress from the anthelmintic triggered this whole program of complications.

I remind you, breed Scottish fold, age 10 years.

friends, I’m sick, for me it’s just like a bolt from the blue. I never thought that my cat had heart problems, but oops - and it’s this big. Should a cat have a heart transplant? Or does this only happen in movies?

In general, I’m just afraid and don’t understand anything.

location St. Petersburg. Ozerki metro station.

What are our chances?
how was it for you?
tell your stories with bad and good endings!

what should I do?

Without a doubt, the most main muscle In the body of any animal is the heart. It is on the endless work of this organ that both the life of our pets and its quality depend. Even the most inexperienced breeder understands without prompting that any heart disease in cats can easily lead to death furry pet, or to his severe disability. To avoid this and keep your cat healthy, you need to monitor his behavior daily and know about the main types of “problems” with the heart. And in cats, by the way, they are not uncommon.

There are many reasons leading to the development of feline heart pathologies. There are many monographs and other scientific works dedicated solely to this issue. We will highlight the main factors whose consequences we have to face in everyday life. veterinary practice:

, especially salts heavy metals. Of course, toxins primarily hit the liver and kidneys, but the heart, due to its function, also takes a toll. Toxic compounds in some cases can coagulate myocardial cells, which leads to very serious consequences. For example, to heart attacks (i.e., death of part of the heart tissue).

Genetic abnormalities development.

Permanent, unfavourable conditions content.

of various origins (including helminthic). Many people underestimate these pathologies, but in vain: a reduced level of red blood cells in the blood is extremely dangerous. And the heart “feels” this first of all, since the blood supplied to feed it does not contain the proper amount of oxygen. The result may be the same as in cases of severe poisoning.

Heartworms (). It occurs much less frequently in cats than in dogs, but more often leads to very severe complications. However, this disease is not very typical for our country.

Symptoms of heart problems

How can you even understand that your pet has some kind of heart problem? The problem is that cats are notorious couch potatoes. And if “problems” in the behavior of the same dogs quickly become obvious during regular walks, a cat’s illness can remain completely unnoticed for a long time.

However, you may notice that your pet has become more “lazy” and tries not to move unless absolutely necessary. If the cat “deigns” to walk to the bowl, it is not difficult to notice that such a simple action was not easy for him: the animal begins to hiss and.

It is no coincidence that veterinarians believe early diagnosis heart pathologies in cats is a difficult and thankless task. Often there are no clinical signs. Until the pet’s body passes some “critical point”, after which the symptoms begin to increase exponentially.

Concerning characteristic features heart pathologies, then this should include:

difficulty breathing; wheezing;
severe shortness of breath that occurs even after light physical exertion;
V severe cases(even without a phonendoscope) you can hear something gurgling and bubbling noisily in your pet’s chest. This is very warning signs, indicating the presence of profuse effusion in chest cavity. The fluid compresses the lungs and heart, causing all the breathing problems described above to develop;
strong limbs and other parts of the body (for example, ears and paws);
paleness of all visible mucous membranes (gums and eyes). All this indicates a serious deterioration in blood circulation in the animal’s body;
in severe cases (often when the cat is already dying), the skin over the entire surface of the body becomes cold.

Major heart diseases

Congenital anomalies

In cats, it is not uncommon for some kittens (or even the entire litter) to be born while already sick. And the more purebred the cat, the higher the likelihood of such an outcome. The problem is the many “junk” genes that inevitably accumulate in entire breed lines.

But still, speaking frankly, if we take the entire cat population, then the probability birth defects heart does not exceed 2% (after all, purebred cats much smaller than the usual “Murok”). The most typical congenital pathology is valve stenosis, as well as open ducts.

In most cases, it is under attack mitral valve, located between the left atrium and the left ventricle. In such disorders, the development of pathogenesis occurs according to the same principle: the edges of the valves are loose, gaps remain between them and the walls of the vessels (or between the leaflets of the valve itself). As a consequence, reverse blood flow and its accumulation in small or big circles blood circulation, which is accompanied by an increase in pressure.

Since the vessels are not intended for “storage and accumulation” of blood, its liquid part begins to leak en masse into the tissues and internal cavities body. This ends with edematous phenomena.

Please note, that heart surgery is performed on animals extremely rarely, and the point here is not only the exorbitant cost of such treatment, but also the lack of full-fledged methods for performing such interventions: cardiology in veterinary medicine is limited (as a rule) only to drug therapy.

In case of severe defects of valves and/or myocardium, the chances for long and happy life the cat's are very small. If the disease can be corrected by drug treatment, then everything is much better. It happens that a cat lives with valve disease until a very old age (but only in cases where the owners really take good care of it).

Cardiomyopathy

Practicing veterinarians in many countries around the world today believe that more than 2/3 of all acquired heart diseases in cats are cardiomyopathy. It is difficult to give an exact definition to this term. We can say that this is a complex of degenerative-inflammatory processes that lead to serious structural and functional disorders of cardiac activity.

Interesting that in cats this disease usually affects exclusively the left ventricle. Sometimes the right side of the organ is also affected, but this does not happen too often.

Regardless of the specific type of cardiomyopathy, the disease always leads to the same result: the heart can no longer pump blood normally. This usually progresses to congestive heart failure, sometimes leading to respiratory distress syndrome.

But it’s even worse: due to impaired blood circulation, the danger increases sharply formation of large blood clots in blood vessels. In cats, they usually get stuck in the femoral arteries, which leads to either spontaneous gangrene of the paws or equally sudden death.Veterinarians are still debating the origin of many cardiomyopathies. Today, experts suggest that at least 2/3 of them are primary, congenital pathologies development. Suspected causes include anemia, hyperthyroidism and high blood pressure.

Read also: The main types of trematodes in cats: general information and treatment

There are three types of disease:

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The most common variety, it is the one that is detected in practice in 95% of cases. Its main feature is its idiopathic course. Often, an increase in the thickness of the walls of the left ventricle generally occurs without any visible and logical reasons, so one can only assume the presence of some complex autoimmune pathology.

Restrictive cardiomyopathy. Is detected in approximately 10% of all primary diseases hearts. One of the most unpleasant and severe types of diseases encountered in veterinary cardiology. If you don’t go into too much detail, then in this case normal tissue the heart is replaced by connective tissue. Simply put, the organ turns into one large scar. As is easy to understand, even its relatively normal work becomes physically impossible. To give an analogy, the density of the heart becomes close to hard plastic, and it is difficult to expect even a minimal ability to contract and pump blood from such a substance. Animals with this defect do not live long. IN in the rarest cases It is possible to select a therapy that slows down the process of “keratinization” of cardiac tissue, but this really does not happen often.

Dilated cardiomyopathy. It is rare, no more than 2-3% of cases of the total number of these pathologies. It is characterized by thinning of the walls of the ventricles while simultaneously stretching them. In this case, the heart can be compared to a huge, jelly-like jellyfish. As in the previous case, such a mass cannot contract normally, and therefore, if the pathology progresses rapidly, the cat will not live long.

Heart failure

If cardiac function is significantly impaired by cardiomyopathy, heart failure will result. The latter is also a collective term that unites many cardiogenic pathologies. Contrary to popular belief, deficiency does not always develop over a long period of time. It is not uncommon for the clinical picture of the disease to appear within a few weeks. If you do not pay attention to your pet, he may well die without receiving help.

For acute course heart failure is typical frequent fainting and "twilight" consciousness. Such phenomena are associated with the fact that diseased heart cannot ensure normal blood flow through organs and tissues, as a result of which even the brain experiences oxygen starvation and lack of nutrients.

It is known that for cats that have undergone this, such phenomena do not go away without a trace. Even in cases where owners and veterinarians have been able to achieve stable remission, the development of epilepsy or other neurological diseases is likely.

Feline aortic thromboembolism (FATE)

A very severe pathology. However, talking about her as independent illness hearts, still not worth it. Often the disease develops on the basis of existing serious violations(for example, the same cardiomyopathy). Usually Blood clots in cats form in the left ventricle or atrium, which is very bad: if the clot is small, it is easily carried into the brain. A little larger - it gets into the femoral arteries and other large vessels. In any case, everything ends badly.

Sometimes blood clots are slow to break away from the valves or walls of the heart. In such situations, they become petrified (impregnated with mineral salts), which also contributes to the development of heart failure (valves with such a “weight” will no longer be able to close normally). If, with proper diagnosis, the presence of a blood clot is detected in time, it can be dissolved by prescribing special medications.

By the way, what does the word “embolism” mean? This is what is called blockage of blood vessels. IN in this case a blood clot acts as a plug. In relatively mild cases, it may not completely block the vessel: some space remains, but normal blood circulation still becomes impossible. For example, if such a “defective” blood clot gets into the femoral artery, then the cat’s leg, surface skin becomes noticeably cool. The only way To save the animal’s life and its legs, perform surgery immediately.

Based on materials from www.merckmanuals.com

The cardiovascular system of cats includes the heart itself and blood vessels - veins and arteries.

Heart performs the functions of a pump - pumps blood. The right side of the heart pumps blood to the cat's lungs, where the blood is oxygenated. Left-hand side serves other organs, delivering blood and nutrients, as well as removing waste products (such as, for example, carbon dioxide). The cat's heart is a hollow muscular organ, which (like all mammals and birds) is divided into four chambers. Muscular middle layer The heart is called the myocardium. Upper chambers of the left and right side The hearts are called atria (left and right, respectively). Both lower chambers are called ventricles - also left and right.

The functioning of the cat's cardiovascular system.

A set of valves allows blood to move through the cat's heart into in the right direction. Atrioventricular valves are located between the atria and ventricles of the heart. The semilunar valves are located at the exit of the aorta and pulmonary artery from the ventricles of the heart. Each ventricle of the heart has an inlet and outlet valve. In the left ventricle, the inlet valve is called the mitral valve and the outlet valve is called the aortic valve. In the right ventricle, the inlet valve is called the tricuspid valve, and the outlet valve is called the pulmonary valve.

Blood from the body enters right atrium through two large veins called vena cava.

When the right valve is open, blood flows into the right ventricle through the tricuspid valve. When the right ventricle is close to filling, the right atrium contracts, adding more blood to the right ventricle. The right ventricle itself then contracts, pushing blood through the pulmonary valve into pulmonary artery, going to the lungs of the cat. In the lungs, the blood absorbs oxygen and releases carbon dioxide. After this, blood through the pulmonary veins into left atrium.

At the moment when the right valve is open, blood enters the left atrium through the mitral valve of the left ventricle. After the left ventricle becomes almost full, the left atrium contracts and more blood enters the left ventricle. The left ventricle then contracts, pushing blood through aortic valve into the aorta, largest artery in the cat's body. This blood carries oxygen through the aorta throughout the body, with the exception of the lungs.

The work of a cat's heart.

Each contraction of the heart occurs in two stages - diastole And systole. The first stage is diastole, which can be tracked by the sound of the mitral and tricuspid valves closing. The second stage - systole, is determined by the sound of aortic closure and pulmonary valves. During diastole, the ventricles relax and fill with blood, and during systole, they contract and push out blood.

The frequency and strength of the heart's contractions, as well as the degree of filling and constriction or dilation of blood vessels, are controlled by certain hormones and the autonomic nervous system (the part of the nervous system that controls unconscious activity).

Heartbeat.

A cat's heart beats because it receives very weak electrical impulses from the sinus (or sinoatrial) node. This node for the heart is the natural pacemaker. Periodic electrical impulses or discharges from the sinus node cause contraction of the muscle fibers of the heart. While the cat is at rest, sinus node continues its work, delivering shocks - for a relaxed cat normal frequency is about 200 discharges per minute.

Heart rate has inverse relationship from blood pressure. When the pressure increases, the rhythm slows down, and when it decreases, the pulse frequency increases.

Sounds and heart murmurs of cats.

The heart makes sounds because the flow of circulating blood speeds up and slows down, causing vibrations in the heart. Heart sounds can be heard with a stethoscope. For cats, two heart sounds can be distinguished normally.

Heart murmurs are vibrations that can be heard in the heart or large blood vessels. Typically, vibrations are caused by turbulence in the bloodstream or structures of the heart, such as parts of the valves. Noises are typically described by their timing (that is, whether they are heard constantly or only intermittently), their intensity (that is, whether they can be heard easily or with difficulty), and by the location of their source. Not all murmurs are signs of heart problems; for example, murmurs can almost always be heard in the hearts of kittens up to six months of age.

Arrhythmia in cats.

Arrhythmia- a disturbance in heart rate, regularity or correct form heartbeat. Arrhythmia does not always indicate problems with the cat's heart. Many types of arrhythmia have no functional significance and do not require special treatment. Some types of arrhythmia, however, can cause severe consequences, such as loss of consciousness, due to lack of blood flow to the brain or even lead to sudden death of the cat. Many diseases are associated with disturbances in the normal rhythm of the heart.

Pulse of cats.

Pulse is a rhythmic dilatation of the arteries that can be felt with the fingertips during a physical examination of the cat. In a cat, the pulse is usually checked in the hip area (at the femoral artery). U healthy cat You can feel the pulse in the neck in the jugular cavity. The pulse may be absent, strengthened or weakened - all of which may indicate a certain type of heart disease or defect.