Hearts are organs that function in the same way for any type of creature, from the tiniest of ones in insects to the ones that are the size of your torso in whales. Any of them can beat irregularly, so it’s a possibility for household pets like dogs and cats too. Heart arrhythmias in dogs are the same as they are for us in the way that most of the time it’s not a big risk. But you never want to take chances with your health or your pet’s health and that’s why people will want to know do dogs have irregular heartbeats.  

The first part of what we wrote at the top will answer that question for them, and so then it becomes how to tell if a dog has an irregular heartbeat. The most primary indicator is if the dog is lethargic or less tolerant of exercise or being urged to move like they used to be. Another possible sign is that they pant even when it’s not hot or they haven’t been physically exerting themselves over long periods of time. This can be what leads people to ask can dogs have irregular heartbeats.  

It's always a possibility, but a dog irregular heartbeat is not myocarditis, congestive heart failure, or a valve problem, and those are the types of heart conditions that can kill a dog. The concern with do dogs have irregular heartbeats is arrhythmia can be an indicator of future heart failure risk. It may be something you want to be very proactive in treating right away. A sinus arrhythmia is one variant of irregular heartbeat in dogs that you don’t need to worry about. It happens when the heart accelerates with the speed of their breathing.  

Beat Better 

Continuing our look at do dogs have irregular heartbeats, we’ll now look at what treatment protocol will be if your dog has a dangerous arrhythmia. This is usually after a veterinarian has determined that the animal has abnormal valve structure in their heart, and this is when there is a risk the dog might experience heart failure later in life and possibly never become as salty as they could have been. We imagine there’s some of you who have served your country at sea and gotten a little sleazy every time there was solid ground under your feet. 

No dog owner is going to want to see that for their pet, and so their vet will likely recommend they put their dog on Digoxin or a similar dog arrhythmia treatment medication. Another part of do dogs have irregular heartbeats may be the veterinarian telling you that you need to ensure your dog isn’t getting too much salt in it diet. There are tests to determine if this is contributing to an irregular heartbeat, but it is possible, and a lot of inexpensive wet dog food is loaded with salt.