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![\"Stethoscope\"](\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Stethoscope.jpg\")
<\/p>\nDid you know that there is a super simple test you can do to assess the health of your dog or your cat\u2019s heart?<\/p>\n
The test is called the Sleeping Respiratory Rate or SRR.
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Measuring the Sleeping Respiratory Rate simply involves counting your pet\u2019s breaths!<\/p>\n
Count your pet\u2019s breaths when (s)he is sleeping in a room at a normal temperature, i.e. not too cold and not too hot. The number you come up with is measured in breaths\/minute. You can either watch your pet\u2019s chest go up and down, or look at the flank do the same. Count over 1 minute. Repeat this process daily for 3 days and calculate the average (simply add the 3 numbers, and divide by 3).<\/p>\n
Make sure you make a note of the numbers you come up with, for example on a calendar.<\/p>\n
What you\u2019ve essentially accomplished is find out what we call a baseline. Any future measurement will be compared to this baseline number.<\/p>\n
Continue counting once a week or so. If your pet\u2019s SRR changes significantly between measurements, then you should measure it daily again to confirm the change, or to document a trend. If a trend does come up, you should contact your vet for further evaluation of your pet\u2019s heart.<\/p>\n
A normal Sleeping Respiratory Rate should be under 30 breaths\/min in dogs and cats. It could be in the high-teens or low 20s. An SRR that is consistently greater than 30 breaths\/min in patients with underlying heart disease is strongly suggestive of developing heart disease. More specifically, it could be a sign of Chronic Heart Failure (CHF). However, there are other possibilities, such as a respiratory disease along with mild heart disease. Your vet will have to decipher the mystery.<\/p>\n
There are at least 4 reasons to assess and record the Sleeping Respiratory Rate:<\/strong><\/p>\n As you may know, dogs with heart disease may cough, but it is not consistent. And cats don\u2019t cough at all.<\/p>\n Instead, cats have very subtle changes in demeanor, weight loss, appetite and activity<\/p>\n On the opposite, measuring the SRR works in all pets.<\/p>\n What you do with this information is up to you. I\u2019d strongly suggest you do it. It\u2019s free, fun and easy, and it can make a big difference in your pet\u2019s life.<\/p>\n Until next time,<\/p>\n Phil Zeltzman, DVM, DACVS, CVJ<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Did you know that there is a super simple test you can do to assess the health of your dog or your cat\u2019s heart? The test is called the Sleeping Respiratory Rate or SRR.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-125","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n\n