When to measure it
An animal's blood pressure should be measured:
- during surgery;
- after an injury;
- in older animals, at their annual preventive check-up.
For healthy animals aged 8 and over, it is recommended to measure blood pressure at the annual preventive check-up as well.
Why hypertension is dangerous
As in people, hypertension in dogs and cats contributes to eye, heart, kidney and neurological disease. It usually appears in older animals as a secondary condition:
- in cats, due to chronic kidney disease or hyperthyroidism (an overactive thyroid);
- in dogs, most often due to chronic kidney disease or Cushing's syndrome.
Systemic hypertension is found in 61% of cats and 93% of dogs with chronic kidney disease, and in around 87% of cats with untreated hyperthyroidism. Unlike in people, primary hypertension is rare in animals. So when hypertension is found, the animal must be checked for the diseases mentioned above.
Signs
An animal with high blood pressure may show no outward signs at all. When signs do appear, they are most often eye problems. Hypertension can cause:
- sudden blindness;
- nosebleeds;
- blood in the urine;
- spots of blood on the retina;
- dilated pupils.
Normal values and treatment
Normal blood pressure in dogs and cats is 140–160 mmHg systolic and under 90 mmHg diastolic. In dogs the normal range varies more by breed: small dogs have higher blood pressure than large breeds.
Stress can raise an animal's blood pressure, so treatment is not given until it goes above 200 mmHg. The exception is animals with diseases that hypertension can make worse.
How we measure it
To keep the margin of error as small as possible, blood pressure is measured first, before any other procedures, while the animal is still calm. It is measured at least 5 times. At the clinic we use petMAP devices: they measure blood pressure quite accurately, calculate the average and are suitable for animals of any size. The procedure is painless and quick.
