Resting Respiration Rate and Heart Disease
The Resting Respiration Rate and
Heart Disease in Cats and Dogs
Dr. Bob Encinosa
One of the most effective and
simplest ways to monitor your dog’s or cat’s health is to learn to take a
resting respiration rate (RRR). This can be especially important if your dog or
cat has a history of heart or lung disease or other chronic conditions such as
anemia.
Quite simply, the RRR is a
measure of how efficiently your pet is getting oxygen from the air. The process
for measuring this is to simply count the breathes your pet takes by watching
the movement of their chest. Count the number of breathes in a 15 second span,
and multply by 4 to get the number of breaths per minute. It is important that
the pet is not hot, has not been recently active, and is not panting. So make
sure they have been indoors and resting for an hour or so. It is easiest to
count the breathes when they are sound asleep.
Most healthy dogs and cats will
have a RRR of between 10 and 30 breathes per minute. Once you’ve taken your
pet’s RRR a few times , you will have a pretty good idea of what is normal for
them and you can use that as a baseline for future reference. If their RRR
increases by 20% or more, they are likely having the first signs of a worsening
condition.
Here’s a common example. You have
a 10 year old poodle who has been diagnosed with a heart murmur, but no other
health problems yet and no signs of congestive heart failure. This is a great
time to get an idea of what its RRR is because odds are that this newly found
murmur will progress over time until the first stages of heart failure begin to
appear. If over many months, your poodle’s RRR has been around 26, but now is
33, it is time to visit your veterinarian very soon.
This simple test is one of the
best ways you can be an active part of your pet’s health care and treatment.
OUR LOCATION
Address
10931 Boyette Road
Riverview , FL 33569, US
Contact Information
Regular Schedule
Monday
7:00 am - 6:00 pm
Tuesday
7:00 am - 6:00 pm
Wednesday
7:00 am - 6:00 pm
Thursday
7:00 am - 6:00 pm
Friday
7:00 am - 6:00 pm
Saturday
8:00 am - 2:00 pm
Closed
Sunday
Boarding Schedule
Monday
8:00 am - 6:00 pm
Tuesday
8:00 am - 6:00 pm
Wednesday
8:00 am - 6:00 pm
Thursday
8:00 am - 6:00 pm
Friday
8:00 am - 6:00 pm
Saturday
8:00 am - 2:00 pm
Boarding Pick-Up Only 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm (Our phones are not active on Sundays)
Sunday
Grooming Drop-Off Schedule
Monday
7:00 am - 9:00 am
Tuesday
7:00 am - 9:00 am
Wednesday
7:00 am - 9:00 am
Thursday
7:00 am - 9:00 am
Friday
7:00 am - 9:00 am
Saturday
8:00 am - 9:00 am
Closed
Sunday