sonnyvincent
Well-Known Member
My Dijon has tentatively been DX'd with CHF.
His probably started earlier last month. It was subtle at first but by 9/15 I took him to the vet. She's the best rat vet around here which is not saying much. I convinced her to try Lasix after X-Rays showed large amounts of fluid. He's in the low 400s grams wise. She started him on .09mL BID but there was no improvement after a few days. I came on here and someone said I could go up to double that if needed and to watch for dehydration. I went up to .15mL and there was SOME improvement the next few days after that. His Xrays after a week showed the fluid had gone down some.
I took him in again 2 weeks after, and he had improved enough that the vet could see some inflammation with his heart. She finally put him on enalapril (2.5mg pill mixed with 1mL, .1mL/day). He has shown some improvement, I definitely think enough improvement to know it's helping. But I'm not sure the dose is high enough or whether he should have it two times a day. I'm going to call to talk to her about it.
I have a few questions: The vet said he'd probably be on Lasix as well as Doxy/Baytril for the remainder of his life. Someone on one of the groups questioned whether he should need Lasix that long. He did run out and hasn't shown a decline so I'm thinking he's OK. With the risk of dehydration if he doesn't need it then I'm not sure I'd keep him on it.
Also, I've read there can be benefits from atenolol. Has anyone here ever tried that on a CHF rat? Did it help?
Dijon does mostly seem to be doing well. But he gets VERY worn out when he's upset (after meds) or after he eats. He isn't very active. He does eat and drink. Occasionally he'll still suck in his sides and breathe fast but that is not all the time. I'm just thinking he needs a higher dose and/or two doses a day of the enalapril, or perhaps atenolol added.
IF anyone has had a CHF rat and wants to share your experiences please let me know. I'm also curious how long after DX CHF rats usually have.
His probably started earlier last month. It was subtle at first but by 9/15 I took him to the vet. She's the best rat vet around here which is not saying much. I convinced her to try Lasix after X-Rays showed large amounts of fluid. He's in the low 400s grams wise. She started him on .09mL BID but there was no improvement after a few days. I came on here and someone said I could go up to double that if needed and to watch for dehydration. I went up to .15mL and there was SOME improvement the next few days after that. His Xrays after a week showed the fluid had gone down some.
I took him in again 2 weeks after, and he had improved enough that the vet could see some inflammation with his heart. She finally put him on enalapril (2.5mg pill mixed with 1mL, .1mL/day). He has shown some improvement, I definitely think enough improvement to know it's helping. But I'm not sure the dose is high enough or whether he should have it two times a day. I'm going to call to talk to her about it.
I have a few questions: The vet said he'd probably be on Lasix as well as Doxy/Baytril for the remainder of his life. Someone on one of the groups questioned whether he should need Lasix that long. He did run out and hasn't shown a decline so I'm thinking he's OK. With the risk of dehydration if he doesn't need it then I'm not sure I'd keep him on it.
Also, I've read there can be benefits from atenolol. Has anyone here ever tried that on a CHF rat? Did it help?
Dijon does mostly seem to be doing well. But he gets VERY worn out when he's upset (after meds) or after he eats. He isn't very active. He does eat and drink. Occasionally he'll still suck in his sides and breathe fast but that is not all the time. I'm just thinking he needs a higher dose and/or two doses a day of the enalapril, or perhaps atenolol added.
IF anyone has had a CHF rat and wants to share your experiences please let me know. I'm also curious how long after DX CHF rats usually have.