Golden Retriever With Fluid Around the Heart After Being Spayed

Reader Question

We took our three year old Golden Retriever to the vet to be spayed one week ago. She has been

a very healthy and energetic dog. In fact, we had waited several years for a litter that had her healthy

qualifications. Our first Golden came from a backyard breeder and we had to put him down due to health problems when he was only a year old. We thought we would bred the best Golden Retrievers

for family pets! When she turned three in May we realized that our family was still too busy to devote the amount of time it would take to breed correctly. The decision was made and we took her in to be spayed. When we picked her up she was really "out of it" from the anesthesia. (We have had more than ten pets neutered or spayed over the last twenty years so we knew what to expect as "normal"). It seemed she had had too much pain medicine, but it wore off by morning. Her incision looked good and she seemed to be doing well except that her appetite was not back to normal. She ate a lot of grass. Six days later she threw up a bird's nest size of grass along with her food in the morning. I left for work not too concerned. When I returned home at noon, however, she was struggling for her breath! I could hear her breathing shallow and she looked to be in pain. I took her to the vet and they took an xray of her chest. She had fluid around her heart and lungs that prevented her from getting her breath. By late afternoon she had had a barium soup solution to show her diaphragm. The vet was trying to locate the area to insert a needle to draw off fluid. She was on oxygen when I took her to the emergency animal clinic an hour away for treatment through the night. Her condition did not improve and the next morning I admitted her to an animal hospital. They took more xrays, an EKG and an ultrasound which they used to successfully draw fluid that was analysed. We were stunned when they told us that they think she has a heart condition that was exposed by the stress she suffered with the surgery. I was able to bring her home and she was exhausted and slept for a day.Now she seems like her old self again bringing us her toys, chasing the cat and begging for treats. We are thankful but still confused. The vet at the animal hospital wants us to take her to a well-known university for more in-depth analysis of her heart so that she can receive treatment for her "condition". Our question is how did all this happen? Is it possible that this vey healthy, well-bred dog had an underlying heart condition? Her breeder tests for OFA (hips), elbows, eyes, thyroid, and heart problems prior to breeding. Is this follow up a "just in case" measure by the vet? He did say that the fluid that was drawn and analysed had some cells that pointed to a heart condition. We would appreciate hearing your thoughts on her diagnosis.

Answer from Our Team