An adorable little dog is loving life once again after his broken heart was mended by our specialist cardiology team.
The beloved seven-year-old dachshund, called Frank, had been suffering up to a dozen seizure-like episodes a day.
He became so poorly he was referred to us as an emergency case.
Owner, Wendy, explained: “Frank suddenly started collapsing to the ground, shaking and suffering a real shortness of breath. Our local vets thought it could be idiopathic epilepsy and put him on tablets but that didn’t help.
“Frank’s episodes started to become much more frequent and last longer until one day he was having an episode every 30 minutes. That’s when he was referred to Willows.”
Wendy said she was convinced Frank had a serious neurological condition and was stunned when our team revealed he was actually suffering from a heart condition.
She added: “We were utterly shocked. We had been preparing for a neurological condition and fearing the worst but the Willows team noticed an abnormality with his heart rate, so he was transferred to the cardiology department.”
Sid Sudunagunta, an RCVS cardiology specialist and diplomate of the European College, and cardiology resident Sophie Goodrich took immediate charge of Frank’s treatment.
Sophie explained: “Frank’s episodes were actually due to poor blood flow to the brain, which resulted in episodes that looked like seizures.
“He has a condition called third degree atrioventricular (AV) block which was so severe his heart rate had dropped to only 25 beats per minute compared to the expected rate of around 80 beats per minute.
“In most cases, this is a condition caused by a degenerative disease affecting the heart’s electrical conduction system.
“The normal electrical impulses from the top of the heart are blocked and do not reach the bottom chambers.
“Instead, the heart relies on electrical impulses originating from the bottom heart chambers, which are much slower than the normal heart rate.
“The solution was to perform an emergency pacemaker implantation to enable the restoration of a normal heart rate.
“It went very well. Frank recovered perfectly from the procedure and was discharged the following day.
“Surgery was a complete success and he is now back to exploring the countryside with his owners and has had no more seizure-like episodes.”
Wendy is thrilled that Frank has made such a remarkable recovery and said: “When we were told the diagnosis we were shocked. We had absolutely no idea it could be a heart issue.
“We’d also never heard of a pacemaker being fitted in a dog before but Sophie instantly put our minds at ease.
“She was so informative and reassuring throughout such an emotional and stressful time for us. The operation took place within a few hours and Sophie kept us informed throughout.
“When we collected Frank the next day he had a bandage on his neck to cover the wound where his pacemaker sits.
“We loved the fact the bandage actually had a heart on it to also show where the pacemaker sits.
“He also has a My Latitude meter, just like a smart meter, that alerts us and Willows to any issues with his pacemaker and submits his heart rate readings twice a year to Willows.
“He is completely back to his old self, he has absolutely no issues at all and is back to exploring the UK for his Instagram page @frankthe_sausagedog.
“We will never be able to thank Willows enough. We now realise we could have lost Frank at any point as his heart rate had been dropping dangerously low, to just 20-30bpm.
“That’s why we’re so grateful. Sophie is a true credit to Willows and the veterinary industry. She kept in touch during every step of his treatment and nothing was ever too much trouble. We will never forget her and what she did for us.
“All of the staff were all amazing, Receptionists, Interns, Office Staff, every single person we dealt with couldn’t have been more knowledgeable or friendlier!
“When we returned for Frank’s follow-up checks, he recognised the team and was so happy to see them all.
“We would 100 per cent recommend Willows. In fact, we already have already been recommending them to other pet owners and we would have no hesitation on coming straight to Willows if Frank ever got poorly with anything else in the future.”
