![[Yorkie]](https://vetmed.illinois.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/pc-dcm-diet-fries-260x157.jpg)
DCM on the rise in small breeds Veterinarians around the world have seen a sharp rise in cases of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM, in which the heart is enlarged and weakened) in dogs not previously recognized as predisposed to this condition. The one linking factor: a grain-free diet based on exotic ingredients. “For the past year...
![[maine coon cat heart disease]](https://vetmed.illinois.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/pc-feline-heart-disease-260x157.jpg)
Heart disease is harder to detect in cats than in dogs Cats and dogs may occupy similar places in people’s hearts, but when it comes to the two species’ hearts—and heart disease—there are a lot of differences. Dr. Ryan Fries, a veterinary cardiologist at the University of Illinois Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Urbana, explains some...
![[Reddington with Jane Do]](https://vetmed.illinois.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/pc-weedon-reddington-260x157.jpg)
shelters often euthanize heartworm-positive dogs Reddington probably didn’t realize it, but he was in a bad spot. Not only was the dog living in an animal shelter, he had also tested positive for heartworm disease. In many cases, those two factors amount to a death sentence. But luckily for Reddington, he found an owner and...
![[patient with pacemaker is very active]](https://vetmed.illinois.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/pc-pacemaker-lucy4-260x157.jpg)
‘They are more common than you think’ The heart is essential to the body, regardless of the species. Luckily, when dogs have heart problems, veterinary cardiologists, like Dr. Ryan Fries at the University of Illinois Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Urbana, are able to keep things ticking along. Pacemakers have been used in human medicine since...
![[heart disease]](https://vetmed.illinois.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/pc-cardio-vitt-260x157.jpg)
Heart Disease: Early Detection Is Key We hear about the risks and dangers heart disease poses to human lives all the time, but did you know that forms of heart disease could also impact your dog? Heart disease—a broad term that encompasses multiple diagnoses—is a very common disease in dogs and increases in prevalence with...
![[Dr. Ryan Fries examines a dog]](https://vetmed.illinois.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/pc-ecg-fries-260x157.jpg)
Electrical impulses flow across the heart in a current The electrocardiogram machine plays a dramatic supporting role in movies and TV shows, its flat line and piercing tone alerting the medical team to race to the bedside of a patient whose heart has stopped beating. Electrocardiograms, or ECGs, are equally important as an everyday diagnostic...