Investigation of the prevalence of heart diseases in golden retriever, cavalier king charles, german shepherd dogs

Mortality due to cardiac diseases in dogs varies depending on age, sex and breed. The most common cardiac problems are dilated cardiomyopathy and chronic valvular disease. This study was carried out on 300 neutered or non-neutered Golden Retriever, Cavalier King Charles and German Shepherd dogs, one year and older, with or without previously recognised cardiac disease, brought to a private veterinary clinic for control purposes in İzmit, Turkiye. No gender discrimination was observed. After anamnesis and general examination, the dogs were evaluated by haematological and biochemical analyses, x-ray, electrocardiography and echocardiography. The study material consisted of 40.7% Cavalier King Charles, 33% German Shepherd and 26.3% Golden Retriever dogs. 57.7% of the animals were male. 52.3% of the material was 1-3 years old, 27.4% was 4-6 years old and 20.3% was >7 years old. Anamnesis revealed that 71.7% of all dogs had no history of previous paediatric illness. After clinical examination, dilated cardiomyopathy was detected in 10%, myxomatous mitral valve disease in 8% and myocarditis in 7% of the dogs. No evidence of cardiac disease was found in 69% of all material. In addition, sinus rhythm was detected in 71%, ventricular premature complex in 6.3%, atrioventricular block in 5.3% and bradycardia in 4.3%. The mean vertebral heart scale value for all dogs was 9.55; EF, 64.28±9.12; FS, 34.05±5.73. NT-proBNP was measured as 950.32±1222.48 pmol/L. When the disease prevalence was compared according to breeds; dilated cardiomyopathy and myxomatous mitral valve disease were found in 29.8% of Cavalier King Charles, dilated cardiomyopathy and myxomatous mitral valve disease in 31.6% of Golden retrievers, dilated cardiomyopathy and myxomatous mitral valve disease in 37% and myocarditis in 25.9% of German Shepherd dogs. When the disease prevalence was compared according to age groups, it was determined that myocarditis was the most common cardiac disease in Cavalier King Charleses in the 1-3 age group, while dilated cardiomyopathy was the most common cardiac disease in the 4-6 and >7 age groups. In Golden Retrievers, myxomatous mitral valve disease was the most common disease in the 1-3 age group, myocarditis in the 4-6 age group and dilated cardiomyopathy in the >7 age group. In German Shepherd dogs, myocarditis was the most common disease in the 1-3 age group, while dilated cardiomyopathy was the most common disease in the 4-6 and >7 age groups. In total evaluation, the most common cardiac problem in the 1-3 age group was myocarditis with a rate of 8.9%, while 80.9% of the dogs were not diagnosed with cardiac disease. In the 4-6 age group, the most common cardiac problem was dilated cardiomyopathy with a rate of 11%, while 73.2% of the animals were normal. In the >7 age group, dilated cardiomyopathy was diagnosed most frequently with a rate of 31.1%. In this group, 32.8% of the dogs were undiagnosed. When the disease prevalence was compared according to sex, it was determined that the most common cardiac disease diagnosed in male dogs was dilated cardiomyopathy with a rate of 12.1%, whereas myxomatous mitral valve disease was the most common disease in female dogs with a rate of 10.2%. The most common cardiac problem in male Cavalier King Charles dogs was dilated cardiomyopathy and myocarditis with a prevalence of 10.3%, whereas myxomatous mitral valve disease was found in female Golden Retrievers with a prevalence of 10.6%. 6% in male Golden Retrievers and myxomatous mitral valve disease in females with a rate of 9.4%, and dilated cardiomyopathy with a rate of 15.5% in male German Shepherds and other causes with a rate of 9.8% in females. When the distribution of body weight measurements according to breed was analysed, the results of the study revealed that there was no statistically significant difference between breeds in terms of diagnosed diseases. In the comparison of the prevalence of cardiac diseases according to whether the dogs in the study group had any disease in the paediatric period or not, 63.3% of the dogs diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy and 52.4% of the dogs diagnosed with myocarditis had any disease in the paediatric period. In this study; the cardiac diseases seen in the adult period in the mentioned breeds were identified, their incidence was evaluated, echocardiographic measurement data were compared, and the possible effects of factors such as breed, sex, age and body weight on the diagnosed cardiac diseases and these cardiac diseases on some cardiac biomarkers were investigated. In addition, although it has not been identified, the importance of previous illnesses in the paediatric period on the potential for cardiac disease development was also emphasised in this study. The results of the study emphasize that the rate of cardiac diagnosis may be higher in dogs that have had a paediatric period disease according to anamnesis data than those that have not had any disease in the future, and similarly, the adult NT-proBNP values measured in dogs that have had any disease in the paediatric period may be higher than those that have not. This study, which reveals important data about the susceptibility to heart diseases in terms of the breeds evaluated and the cardiac diseases that may be seen in these breeds, emphasises the issues that should be considered during the breeding, breeding, care and examination of these breeds and clinically shows that these breeds are likely to have a predisposition to cardiac diseases.