Veterinary Experts Beg People to Donate This Used Medical Device to Save Dogs' Lives
Much like humans, even dogs and animals eventually develop heart diseases with age. Veterinarians have found that the treatments for heart problems in dogs can be treated with a small device also used in humans. Pacemakers are medical devices used to cure abnormal heart rates in humans but these gadgets can successfully treat issues in dogs too. For instance, Christine Bachman, a Colorado resident, attested to the viability of the life-changing device to save her rescue dog, an adorable terrier mix named Blanche, per Reader’s Digest.
A pacemaker is tied to the dog’s collar that maintains its heart rhythms whilst keeping Blanche happy and lively. “It’s amazing. She can walk and doesn’t get out of breath. Without it, I’m sure my little baby would be gone by now,” Bachman said. Initially, Blanche was lethargic and always lagging on walks and hikes due to her slow heart rate. This was before she got diagnosed with second-degree atrioventricular (AV) block at 8 years old. According to her, her pet dog turned into a “little monster” of energy after a pacemaker was implanted in 2022. Hence, veterinarian experts have since encouraged more and more people to donate used pacemaker devices to pet dogs as lifesaving instruments that can easily cut costs for pet owners.
“They’re really cool devices. They have sensors in them that can sense the motion of the patient and change the patient’s heart rate based on the amount of activity they’re doing,” Anna McManamey, an assistant professor of veterinary cardiology at the University of Missouri’s Veterinary Health Center, said while explaining the role of pacemakers in both humans and animals. These devices essentially maintain the heartbeats at a determined heart rate. Therefore, when a dog is suffering from symptoms of a low heart rate, the pacemaker keeps it consistent throughout, thus, boosting its energy levels. McManamey explained that heart rates can be low when sleeping but simple activities gradually increase the heart rate. She has implanted about 50 pacemakers into dogs.
Pacemaker donations are crucial to saving the lives of dogs and other pet animals. Present sources of used pacemakers are bereaved individuals or biomedical device companies, according to veterinary expert Jonathan Abbott, a professor of veterinary cardiology at the University of Tennessee that offers a pacemaker-donation program. These initiatives are in place to neutralize the expensive costs of pacemakers, usually ranging about thousands of dollars, for pet owners. Most vet cardiologists are said to rely on donated pacemakers with enough battery life only. The report suggested that the reusable part of the device is the generator while the lead wire connecting the generator to the heart cannot be reused. It is cut off and replaced before implantation in a dog after proper sterilization.
A dog with abnormally slow heart rates due to AV block, bradyarrhythmia, or sick sinus syndrome can be treated with a pacemaker and rule out the possibility of sudden death. Implantation occurs via two methods– transvenous or epicardial. However, in toy breeds including Yorkshire terriers or Chihuahuas, only epicardial implantation is possible. This procedure can also be performed in cats and ferrets. Moreover, there is no set age for dogs that may undergo pacemaker implantation, Dr. McManamey said. She addressed the general fear among pet owners of pursuing pacemakers for their older dogs due to the notion that old age slows down pet activity. However, the expert pointed out that there is still a good quality and quantity of life yet to be lived by these dogs.