Well, after a loooong delay...too long actually....Six Toes has his appointment with the cardiologist in September! I had no idea there was such a thing-cat cardiologists-until I did a little research. Here's what I found out:
For many states you can count on one hand the number of board certified ACVIM (American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine) cardiologists. Some states like California have quite a few vets around who have this specialty and you can find a list of cardiologists for each state here. Cardiovascular diseases are often found in cats, with the most common killer being myocardial disorders. Cats can also have Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM), Feline Restrictive Cardiomyopathy (RCM) and dilated cardiomyopathy, just to name a few. For some conditions only medication is indicated, however, in more severe cases surgery might be the only option open to an owner. Just like humans, cats can have pacemakers and even coronary bypass surgery although it's extremely rare that such procedures are done! It's amazing what's possible with today's veterinary skills combined with technology, even at this rudimentary stage surgically.
I don't know what the cardiologist will tell us about Six Toes, but I'm so hopeful that he'll be ok on just medicine.
I'll let you know how he fairs next blog entry.
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