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i just adopted a 3 year old male stand. poodle - he is not ...

Sent to Pet Experts July 12 2006 at 6:08 AM
   

i just adopted a 3 year old male stand. poodle - he is not fixed and seemed very healthly when we got him. i took him to the vet after getting him for a check up and she did some xrays (she thought he was brething to hard) and found not only did he have some broken ribs from being abused but he had an enlarged heart. can he live with this conditon??? will it get worse??? what should i be feeding him??? ( we also have a toy poodle puppy and they are both eating pedigree small bites) is it woth me taking him to go see the heart doctor??? and can he lead a normal life with this??? also can he go on long walks????

 

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Age: 3; Male; Breed: standard poodle

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July 12 2006 at 6:12 AM (3 minutes and 58 seconds later)
         
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It may take some meds and time to get him back healthy enough to go for long walks. There are heart meds that may help with getting the enlarged heart working better.
You might want to contact the place you adopted the dog from to let them know about his condition. If this was a rescue or shelter he may have been hit by a car if he was found as a stray. If this was a private owner or breeder then you might want to discuss the condition of the dog at time of sale with the former owner and perhaps with animal control.
Dogs can live a decent life with a heart issue depending on what is wrong. A heart specialist may help you determine the exact problem and what treatment plan is best for him.
Hope this helps you!


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July 12 2006 at 6:16 AM (4 minutes and 22 seconds later)
         
Reply to Nancy Holmes's Post: Riley came from a place that rescued him from a puppy mill- they where using him to breed and he would NOT breed, so they were going to put him down but insted dumped him at the rescue. he was all up to date on shots at the time of getting him. is the food hes on ok???? since hes a poodle is it still safe to get him groomed??? can i expect him to live a normal life once i get him on meds and we go see a heart doctor???
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July 12 2006 at 6:26 AM (9 minutes and 47 seconds later)
         
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I would make sure the groomer knows about the sore ribs and the heart issue so he doesn't get more injured and if he gets too stressed they can stop the grooming.
I would definitely notify the rescue then as they may want to bring charges against the breeder.
If you wanted to put him on a better quality of food that is usually an advantage for healing and recovery. Pet supply stores carry foods such as California Natural, Merrick, Blue Buffalo, Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover, Dick Van Patten etc and you might find it will help him to have a good diet.
Pedigree has a lot of fillers and preservatives in it in comparison to the more premium foods.
How he can do and how long a life he will have is a big variable. He may not be as active as a normal standard poodle would be (this could be good - standards are *really* busy dogs!). He might die younger than a healthy dog would but you can't predict that. I had a dog with a 5 out of 6 heart murmur live to be 16 1/2. I've also lost a dog with a mild heart problem at age 9.
If he is positive for heartworm for example treating him may make a big difference.
I've also had a couple of dogs who lived into their early teens with the help of heart meds. You just can't tell. I wish I could. The cardiologist might be able to give you a more accurate prognosis after a full exam.


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July 12 2006 at 6:31 AM (4 minutes and 48 seconds later)
         
Reply to Nancy Holmes's Post: thanks- that does help, i feel like crap i just feel soooo badly for him and really did not know what sort of under taking this was going to be. he is HW neg. i got a blood test done for that yesterday, and hes neg. for anything else and up to date on all his shots. i just made an appt. with the heart doctor, its going to be hard to afford it but at least ill know what i am looking at for his life. oh and hes not a really hyper poodle all he does is sleep and wants to try to sit in my lap ( an oversized lap dog)
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July 12 2006 at 6:36 AM (5 minutes and 37 seconds later)
         
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