My Beloved Cat Has Heart Disease... How to Cope with a Sudden Diagnosis of "Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy"

Feline heart disease is difficult to detect early, and by the time it is discovered, it can be too late, or it can lead to sudden death. As a cat writer, I’ve heard many stories about various cats and knew this, but when my own beloved cat, Jiji, was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, my mind went blank, and I was once again struck by how difficult it is to detect heart disease early.

This time, I'll share how Jiji's heart disease was detected early, the treatment he is currently undergoing, and how I've come to terms with my beloved cat's illness. I hope this information will be helpful for early detection.

Early Detection of Heart Disease with Cardiac Biomarkers

In November 2021, I took Jiji to the vet after he fell from a cat tree at home and couldn't walk. There, the veterinarian gave me some unexpected news.

"This cat's heart is getting worse. I felt something was off during the blood tests and ultrasound, so I did a more detailed examination and found that he has hypertrophic cardiomyopathy."

...Huh? My cat has heart disease? I have heart disease, and now Jiji has heart disease too? Why? He never showed any signs of discomfort.

That was my honest reaction when I heard the vet's words. After the initial confusion, a sad question arose: "Will Jiji not live long?" I remember almost crying in the examination room.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a disease in which the heart muscle (myocardium) thickens, impairing heart function and preventing it from pumping enough blood to the body. In Jiji's case, his kidney problems also seemed to be a contributing factor.

We were able to discover the disease thanks to an experienced veterinarian. Instead of dismissing the slight discomfort she felt during the ultrasound and blood tests as "oh well," she performed a cardiac biomarker "NT-proBNP" test.

I thought I had a good understanding of cat heart disease, including symptoms like mouth breathing, lack of playfulness, and lethargy. I had even interviewed cats with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy several times to ask about early detection points.

Still, I failed to notice Jiji's illness. Early-stage heart disease is truly asymptomatic... At that moment, I was once again keenly aware of the terror of heart disease.

Dislocation itself is not good, but even now, it makes me afraid to imagine what would have happened if he hadn't dislocated his leg at that time. 

More mischief since starting medication!

Fortunately, the disease was detected early, so Jiji began treatment by taking a medication called "Fortekor" once a day. He now visits the vet every two months for follow-up observations.

Jiji, who had always been perfectly healthy, was taking medication for the first time. At first, I was worried, "He's probably going to hate the medicine... Will he even take it?"

But cats are amazing, aren't they? They defy expectations. At our house, we mix the crushed medicine into "Churu" (a treat), and Jiji completely mistakes medicine time for "snack time." When I say, "Jiji, it's medicine time," he happily runs over.

仲間が薬を飲んでる時は邪魔せず、そっと見守る我が家のおキャット様の優しさを撮りました🎥 pic.twitter.com/6BTa7pAGHR

— ゆあ ｜ ライター🖊 (@yunc24291) April 27, 2023

I love that simple, straightforward side of you, Jijipon. When I told the vet about it, she laughed and said, "How cute! It's good that he hasn't figured it out yet (laughs)." 

Since he started taking the medicine, Jiji has become more mischievous and more interested in toys. Perhaps like me, who gets bored easily, Jiji often loses interest in toys quickly. However, he now shows more behaviors like tracking with his eyes and trying to play.

Maybe he was too uncomfortable to move before. Thinking about that makes me want to prostrate myself and apologize profusely for not detecting it myself earlier. (I actually did prostrate myself about four times.)

Every time I see Jiji waddling his cute butt as he climbs onto the table and battles with a ballpoint pen, a struggle begins within me: "I want to be angry, but maybe he's making up for lost time he couldn't play."

I even blamed myself... How I came to terms with my beloved cat's heart disease

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is an incurable disease. While I can now think, "Let's live with it well," for a while after the diagnosis, the heavy reality of "it's incurable" was painful.

Why did it develop? I should have been more careful. Was our life at home not good enough? Perhaps if Jiji had lived in another home, he would have been healthy.

Such questions, to which there was no answer, kept surfacing, and I blamed myself for being a terrible servant.

However, because I myself had heart disease, I was able to regain my composure. For this, I am grateful for my chronic condition.

Although the names and symptoms of the diseases differ, they are both heart conditions. Therefore, I should be the one who can best understand his frustrations and worries. I know best the frustration of feeling cold in a room that a normal cat or person would find cool, and the pain of wanting to move but your body not complying. I decided to consider these "known feelings" from his perspective and make whatever considerations I could.

Once I started thinking this way, my heart felt lighter, and I was able to approach Jiji's heart disease with a positive attitude.

Many people, like me, probably blame themselves when their beloved cat gets sick. But if your cat knew you felt that way, they would surely be sad. Cats are gentle creatures who love their owner's smile, so I want you to cherish your own heart for the sake of your beloved cat.

"Though the diagnoses are different, it's the same heart disease, Jiji. Let's both enjoy the present as much as we can and live so long that the doctors are surprised."

I want to achieve this goal, which I told Jiji in the car on the way home from a vet visit one day. That's why I deliberately avoid imagining a sad future and will continue to focus on living each day together, striving to help Jiji become a Nekomata.