Heart Disease In Cats Signs. Weakness, difficulty walking, and breathing difficulties can be subtle and hard to see. The biggest difference is that cats tend to mask their signs better than dogs, and therefore go longer without detection.
Heart disease in cats presents itself in much the same way as in dogs, with a few exceptions. Some cats may live up to six years with an undiagnosed heart. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (hcm) is an inherited disorder that manifests as thickening of the left ventricle (one of the lower chambers of the heart), such that the heart muscle has a decreased ability to relax and fill normally with blood.
In the initial phase of disease, cats may show no signs at all and appear completely normal.
However, many cats have a silent disease that can only be found by a blood test — nt probnp. Thankfully, a cat parent who's armed with some basic knowledge and a trusted veterinarian can: It depends on what type of heart disease and how serious it is when diagnosed. Most of the heart is a muscle that serves to constantly pump blood throughout the body.