What could cause a fast heart rate in dogs?
Original Question: I am concerned with his heart rate and his lack of energy. He does not eat a lot lately and has started eating grass (I watched your video). I have taken him to the vet and his blood work came back fine so I am still unsure as to why he has little energy and his heart races. He is laying down now and his heart is still racing so fast. Any ideas? My vet offered nothing. - Melanie
May 17, 2018
Hi Melanie,
Thanks for your question.
There is a simple answer to this. It needs more investigation to determine if there is a concern here or not. There are many reasons for a fast heart in dogs such as an elevated heart rate can be heart disease, pain, toxin ingestion, among others. Most of these things won’t be found on blood work. I would recommend that you perform some imaging as a next step. Radiographs of the heart or even an ultrasound would be a good next step. You could consider getting a second opinion and make sure that the vet doesn’t just focus on the heart but also looks for sources of pain or other conditions that can cause it.
There is not enough information in your questions to be more specific than that.
Good luck and I hope you gain more insight into what is going on here.
Dr. Clayton Greenway
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