Heart Disease?

Dexter was diagnosed with Heart disease today My vet says we caught it really early.
I noticed him cough yesterday morning at breakfast time, he coughed 3 times and then was fine, back to normal, eating and hopping around, I figured he must have choked on a pellet, but as he was fine I thought nothing more of it. Then the same happened again this morning so I took him to my vet who promptly did chest xrays and a heart scan. We are starting him on Prilium.

Does anyone else have a bun with Heart Disease? How do you manage them? Do they lead a normal life? Anything to look out for?

Vet has said that when he starts to get worse we will put him on Fortekor but he isn't at that stage yet and they can start to build up resistance if they are put on it too early.
I was hoping it would be a simple Pasturella on his lungs (which he incidentally also has, but not bad enough to be causing any problems, he has a head tilt and has lost an eye to pasurella, so that was no surprise!!)

Poor bun, no advice I'm afraid but hopefully someone will come along soon. ((HUGS))

I have had several Rabbits with heart disease. They were treated with Fortekor and a diuretic. This bought them on average a year of good quality life before I had to let them go.

I suspect Dexter's heart problem is a result of his Pasteurellosis. His heart will have had to be working extra heard to compensate for his poor lung function and this can lead to cardiomyopathy.

EC can also damage the heart.

Trevor is on vetmedin and frusol :wave:

I've got Dopey 2 on Enacard and adding in Furosemide. Hers seems more complicated than 'just' the heart though because she seems to only be able to breathe out of one nostril as well, plus question mark over some other stuff.

Thanks everyone. It seems like 1 bunny gets better and another gets ill. Nearly lost Poppy to impaction in the last couple of months. He isn't even 2 yet I hope we still have some time left, he is a brilliant little man, so friendly and he has been through so much in his life . He and his brother were dumped at PAH at 8 weeks old both with prolapsed rectums. They are both over that but Dexter has suffered with pasturella his whole life, strange that his brother Patch has never shown signs of Pasturella.

Vet said we have caught it early so hopefully meds will keep it managable.

My Oidhche had an enlarged heart which affected her breathing. She also sneezed/coughed as the very first symptom, which I overlooked as just a sneeze until she developed further problems (Oh, the wisdom of hindsight). Oidhche's treatment was Furosemide, a diuretic to remove the fluid causing the pressure on the lungs, Enalapril, an ACE inhibitor used for heart failure (which is what Prilium is), and Pimobendan (Vetmedin) also for heart failure. I noticed a massive difference within a month or so of starting treatment, the Pimobendan giving the biggest improvement. As you know it's not curable and the only treatment is life long medication. I would definitely ask about Pimobendan as I think that was what made the biggest difference with Oidhche and I know Donna had great success with it in her Pearl. My vet consulted the D!ck vet about using it in rabbits as it is normally used in dogs, there was a charge for the consult but worth it.

Oidhche was her usual pain-in-the-backside self and continued to destroy my house despite her condition. As it progressed she lost a lot of weight and did frequently struggle with her breathing, she didn't flop as much as this made her breathing more laboured and she did generally slow down. I want to stress that this was really in the end stages and she only really slowed down a couple of weeks before she died. What I found important was to keep an eye out for any days which she was worse and adjust things accordingly. You learn what they are telling you and find things that help through trial and error really. On bad breathing days I would open windows to let the air circulate or take Oidhche outside, I also supported her chest in the late stages which seemed to make her more comfortable. I found that cooled chamomile tea helped her breathing slightly, it's a natural sedative and she loves it which helps.

Here is Oidhche's thread if you would like a read and Pearl's, another bun who had the same problem.

The very very best advice I can give you is to live in the here and now and not worry about the future. Don't waste time thinking of the 'what if''s, you can't change them and you can bet Dexter won't be bothering! :lol: I hope that you find good ways to manage Dexters condition and that you have many happy times with him to come.