Dog with chf

[pgl35]

My 13 year  old male pug was put on Enalapril 5mg. about a year ago. 4 days ago he started acting funny - shaking , pacing . Since it was after hours at the vet , we got an appointment for the next day. The vet said he had fluid in his lungs and put him on Lasix and that he was in heart failure. When we took him to the vet a year ago , all that I was told was that his heartbeat was too fast , and was put on Enalapril. When we took him back to the vet (a different vet then from the first time) 4 days ago , was the first time we heard of our dog having heart failure. This is the weekend and neither vets are in. I am frantic with worry about how my little boy is acting. Here is a rundown , starting from the beginning-

Day 1- Took him to vet. He put him on 50 mgs of Lasix . ( dog weighs about 22 pounds). That night he paced , panted , and drank all night long. And peed alot. Also he shook badly the whole night. Did not sleep at all. He did eat his supper earlier that night.

Day 2- He didn't eat all day , he was weak , shakey, drank and peed alot and panted part of the time. He did not sleep day or night. Vet was out that day , I left a message and he called me back. I explained what was going on and he said dog was probably scared and weak and that was why he was shakey .

Day 3- Was doing better. Ate good and slept all day.  Was much stronger , hardley any shaking. That night at 3:00, Started back to shaking, not eating , not sleeping. Real weak.

Today acting the same. Is he getting too much Lasix maybe? Vet closed till tomorrow. Someone please help.

[peggy64]

his dosage should have been cut in half and given in 2 different times.

[peekawho]

Is your dog on Digoxin?  

[Misfits4Me]

IMO this dose is correct for a 22lb. dog, but should be split in half with 25mg. in the morning and 25mg. at night. I have a dog in CHF for a year now and I am basing this answer on his dosage. I can also adjust his dose to every 8hrs. if I feel he is unusually congested. However, the milograms stay the same. Hope this helps, and please keep us updated....Karla  

[Jaybay]

I'm sorry to hear about your little pug.  Unfortunately, heart failure is not uncommon at all in senior dogs, and lasix is certainly a good treatment for it.  The excessive urinating is actually a good thing as it means all the retained fluids are being flushed from his body.  I have no idea if the shaking is related to the lasix or not.

Most vet practices have an outgoing message after hours to refer you to an ER vet or another practice that covers overnight emergencies.  I think you really need to contact an ER vet with your questions, so check your yellow pages if your own vet doesn't have a referral number.  At least make the call to your vet's office and see if there's a referral number.  You don't have to wait in misery until tomorrow, so start looking for local help!