What is heart failure in dogs?

Heart failure is simply when the heart fails to work appropriately. So the heart is just a big pump that pumps blood from the body back into the lungs, where it's oxygenated, and then back into the heart, where the heart pumps it back into the body, where we can use it again. And so congestive heart failure occurs when that blood does not flow appropriately.

Heart failure in dogs occurs when both the right-sided and left-sided heart disease are present. It typically starts on the left side and progresses to the right. When the entire heart is enlarged, it is considered complete heart failure.

Heart failure in dogs can be either right-sided or left-sided. Right-sided heart failure results in fluid backing up into the abdomen, making the dog appear pregnant. Left-sided congestive heart failure causes fluid to build up in the lungs, essentially causing the dog to drown in its own body.

When fluid builds up in a dog's lungs and chest, oxygen cannot effectively diffuse through the fluid. This condition often results in patients who are extremely sick, exhibiting symptoms like rapid breathing and coughing. In severe, life-threatening cases, tipping the animal can cause fluid to pour out through their nose, resembling tipping a teapot. Unfortunately, once this stage is reached, humane euthanasia is often considered, as some dogs may even pass away while undergoing treatment. This situation underscores the severity of heart failure in dogs, highlighting the critical nature of the two main types of heart failures they experience.

Heart failure in dogs is when we're starting to notice not only the signs of cardiac disease but a decompensation, where they're no longer able to cope with it. Typically, we see that as a response to increased fluid retention somewhere, whether that's in the lungs, causing difficulty breathing, or we start to see fluid filling the belly. In the abdomen, starting to get free fluid in the abdomen is a really good sign that we've got some heart problems on the right side. In both cases, those are very severe and need to be seen by a veterinarian as soon as possible.