My dog Zoe is now 14 years old and she has been acting a little off. After laying down for a long amount of time she will wake up and walk around but to long after she begins to breath heavily and sort of loses balance or coordination. In these episodes she does fall over but eventually after about 30 sec or less she does stand up and act like nothing happened. She acts like a completely normal dog afterwards. Her eating and drinking has not changed. What if anything could be the reason for this. Pet's info: Dog | Vizsla | Female | spayed | 13 years and 4 months old | 100 lbs

Poor Zoe! I would be very concerned that she has a serious medical problem causing her symptoms such as heart disease, which is common in senior dogs. Heart disease leads to exercise intolerance, and it would cause her to become weak during normal activity and fall over. These symptoms are certainly not normal, and she needs a visit to the vet as soon as possible for a physical exam, routine blood tests, urinalysis, and chest x-rays. Once the cause of her symptoms are found, the vet can discuss treatment options with you. Heart disease cannot be cured, but it can be medically managed. I would get her into a vet tomorrow or first thing Monday. Good luck, I hope this helps!

Poor Misty! It sounds like from your description that she is suffering from heart failure, and it's quite severe if she is falling over and her heart is stopping. I would have her seen by a vet right away. While heart failure cannot be cured, it can be treated, and the vet can determine if her symptoms can be treated. It could be that her heart failure is so severe that letting her go peacefully is the best option, and given that your vet can see her in person, they would be best to help you make that determination. The bad breath is likely due to her teeth; severe dental disease is a common cause of bad breath in senior dogs. I would take Misty into a vet now, the vet can discuss if treating her is best or if it's time to let her go. I'm sorry she's so ill :-(