Help! My dog has an X-ray. What does it mean and what's next?

I don’t think the heart looks terribly enlarged, maybe on the big side of normal. Ask the vet who took the rads if they are able to submit them to a radiologist for review. (A radiologist is a vet who spent at least 3 additional years to do a residency to specialize and study only imaging. Their expertise is really valuable in cases that are not clear cut and obvious.) If his lab work is all normal, and a radiologist is concerned about the appearance of the heart, then it’s logical to seek out an echocardiogram (ultrasound of the heart) by a veterinary cardiologist. If a radiologist does NOT think the heart looks questionable, and Boo’s lab work is all normal, it might be worth considering an abdominal ultrasound (sonogram of the belly) to see if there are any abnormalities there (enlarged lymph nodes, abnormal spleen, any abnormality in GI or urinary tract, etc). I hope that’s helpful, sorry there is no easy clear cut answer. Interpreting X-rays is like looking at 1 piece of a puzzle. History and clinical signs, physical exam, lab work, and other imaging all tie in to the bigger picture. If you would like to have a consult, I may be able to help you further with more information, and would do my best to help point you in the right direction. Thanks for asking Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Looking at x-rays that are not viewed with a proper screen can be very difficult, so it can be easy to miss things on these images. I can see the following: 1. The heart does NOT appear to be enlarged 2. The lungs have a slight increased opacity around the peri-hilar region (this can sometimes be associated with heart disease) 3. There is poor detail in the abdomen (this could be due to 'chest settings' and not actually 'real') 4. There is some discospondylosis present in the lumbar vertebrae (bridging between two vertebrae- likely inconsequential) 5. There is no sign of free fluid or free gas in the chest cavity 6. On the second image there is some gas in the esophagus, but this might be artifact of being sedated. 7. On the second image the lungs seem more 'white' then they should be, in the caudo-dorsal region. I recommend that if you are still unsure, have the x-rays sent to a radiologist specialist, as they will get a format they can better manipulate and give you better information about the lung parenchyma (tissue itself of the lungs) which is very hard to evaluate with the images you have provided. I don't see anything too remarkable in these x-rays. If you tell us what is clinically wrong with George we can look at the images again with his clinical picture in mind. Best of luck with George!

Unfortunately the quality of the image coming through to us isn't great. If you are talking about the circular area on the upper right side of the abdomen, this is gas in the stomach and can be normal. If your vet wants to try additional diagnostics but doesn't have ultrasound, they could do a barium study, or they could send the x-rays to a radiologist for review (a veterinary radiologist has extensive training at reviewing x-rays and so can sometimes interpret things a regular vet may not). X-rays can be send electronically to a radiologist for review through various services, so I would ask them if they feel either of these options would be appropriate.

These xrays are not good enough quality and the positioning of the limbs is not good either, it will be very difficult to determine if there is a problem according to those xrays. i personally cannot see anything abnormal but you may want to have it sent to an xray specialist.

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It sounds like your veterinarian is suspecting that Delilah has a liver mass, or tumor, and that the liver overall is larger than normal. This causes the stomach to be displaced, or pushed backward farther than normal. The GB is the gallbladder (an organ near the liver that stores bile), and a cholelith is a stone in the gallbladder, or a gallstone. A round heart can be seen on chest x-rays when there is underlying heart disease. Older small breed dogs such as Chihuahuas are at increased risk of mitral valve disease, which is a degenerative disease of one of the heart valves. This can result in blood leaking backwards in the heart, causing dilation of some of the heart chambers. Often a heart murmur is heard with this disease. An echocardiogram (ultrasound of the heart) is needed to definitively diagnose this. I hope this interpretation is helpful!

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. If Blu is anemic and liver values are poor then I think you need to think about whether or not Blu's quality of life is good or not. An x-ray will show if there is free fluid in the abdomen (a bleeding tumor for example) or a mass effect (signs of a tumor or other changes). It is used to determine what the cause of the anemia and the liver values being poor are, and whether or not it is likely due to cancer. X-rays are also recommended of the chest to look for spread of cancer to the lungs. This is recommended whether you wish to pursue surgery or not so that you know if Blu has compromise to the lungs. These x-rays give you information that will help you determine if signs that you are seeing with Blu are relavent or not. For example, if Blu has x-rays that show spread of cancer to the lungs, when she starts breathing up then you know this is severe and euthanasia should be pursued and you shouldn't 'wait' on it. This is the same if we know if she has a mass in the abdomen, this will tell you that if she has a collapse or weakness episode, you will know whether or not it is a bleeding tumor, and know not to wait- as waiting will prolong suffering. If she is clinically unwell at this point and you don't wish to pursue surgery or other interventions, then euthanasia should be discussed. I'm sorry Blu is having these issues, I hope she feels better!

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It is difficult to make the diagnosis from the picture you posted but the rounded, egg-shaped area in the central part of the abdomen looks abnormal. Also, a part of the kidney is surprisingly dense, which could be a sign of a disease. I would not be able to make a diagnosis without having Coco fully examined and receiving full clinical history. However, I am concerned about the large shadow in the abdomen and the dense part of the kidney. The chest looks normal for a cat of her age. If you have more x-rays of Coco (ideally a view called dorso-ventral) that would be very helpful if post them on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.