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My dog's heart rate is slow before dental surgery. Is it safe?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Silky Terrier | Male | neutered | 10 years and 9 months old | 13.5 lbs

I have a 14 pound dog who is getting dental extractions done in a couple of days. However, when i was playing around with him the other day i found that his heart rate seemed a bit slow so i took his resting heart rate while he was sleeping. it came out to be 14 beats/15 seconds. i took it on and off for the past couple of days and it always ends up being 13-14 beats every time. Should i call my vet and tell them about my findings? Also do u think it is safe for my dog to have this surgery?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Heidi DVM, CVA, CCRT, CVTP, CVSMT, CVCH

Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist, Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner

Published on March 12th, 2018

It is normal for a heart rate to vary and to be slower when a dog is sleeping. Your veterinarian will examine Chico and take his heart rate before anesthesia. For dogs with low heart rates, sometimes we will use different anesthetic drugs to make sure that their heart rate stays in a normal range. Or if there is any concern about it, they may elect to wait on his surgery. However, I would certainly mention your concerns to your veterinarian, and if they have not done an exam of his heart recently, you may consider scheduling another appointment before the dental to have your veterinarian do a full examination on Chico to discuss your concerns. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

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    Answered By Andrea M. Brodie, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on December 30th, 2018

    A heart rate of 80 to 120 beats per minute is perfectly normal. Your veterinarian will also listen to the heart and evaluate the quality of the heart beat. Frequency, intensity. regularity, separation of beats and murmurs, and will then decide whether your dog is safe for anesthesia. Trust your vet. He will not risk anesthesia if it is obviously detrimental to your dog.

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