What do liver mass, gallstone, and round heart mean on my dog's X-ray?

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!

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.

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Abdominal x-rays are sometimes helpful in determining if there is a mass in the cranial (front part) of the abdomen, near the spleen or liver. Sometimes this is obvious, but masses can be more subtle on x-rays, and it can be difficult to determine from what organ a mass is originating. If there is concern for an abdominal mass on x-rays, an abdominal ultrasound may be recommended to better determine what organ the mass is associated with. I hope this is helpful - best of luck with Teddy!

Unfortunately, the x-rays are not showing up as well here as the originals would, so I'll comment on what I see, but I could easily be missing something. The heart does not appear enlarged, but their are some distended arteries in the x-ray that make me suspicious of heart disease and more specifically heartworm. The abdomen is generally distended and the liver appears somewhat enlarged. This can happen with the heart disease I mentioned or some other condition affecting the liver. I do not see an obvious pyometra on the x-rays or ultrasound (sonogram). I wish I could help you with the other questions, but it's impossible without me knowing the cat's full history, or having the opportunity to examine the cat myself. One thing we can offer on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach is a consultation. This is a service that you would have to pay for, but it would allow you to text back-and-forth with one of our experts and send as many pictures as you want. With these consultations, we can help to identify the problems by gaining all the necessary information. Otherwise, you may seek a second opinion from another veterinarian in your area. I hope this is somewhat helpful and everything turns out OK Maicah.

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!

An enlarged heart could mean that your dog is developing heart disease but it could also just be normal for your dog. Your vet could submit a blood test called a proBNP which helps detect heart disease. You could also have a cardiologist perform an ultrasound of her heart to evaluate the function of her hear and measure the size.

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.