This little device can be a game changer for dogs with heart conditions
Strange but True: You Can Donate This Used Medical Device to a Dog—And Potentially Save Its Life
Published on Jan. 07, 2025
When Colorado resident Christine Bachman walks her cute terrier mix, Blanche, strangers often stop to smile at the happy, dancing dog. Then they inevitably ask, “What’s on her neck?”
The little gadget, Bachman explains, keeps her dog lively—and likely alive. But Blanche (shown above) isn’t the only animal to benefit from the medical device. Plenty of pups rely on this lifesaving tool, originally made for humans. If you have one that’s no longer in use, donating it could be a game changer for a dog—and its people.
To learn what this lifesaving medical device is, how to donate one to a dog and why it’s so rewarding, read on.
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What used medical device can you donate to a dog?
As Bachman tells curious passersby, it’s “a pacemaker—a human pacemaker.”
The medical device has been life-changing—and lifesaving—for the rescue dog, according to Bachman. For years, Blanche seemed like a couch potato, lagging behind on hikes and needing to be carried after a few minutes. When she was 8 years old, a veterinarian diagnosed the 17-pound dog with second-degree atrioventricular (AV) block; her abnormally slow heart rate was affecting her ability to walk.
After having a pacemaker implanted in 2022, she’s morphed into a “little monster,” Bachman says with a laugh. “It’s amazing. She can walk and doesn’t get out of breath. Without it, I’m sure my little baby would be gone by now.”
What does a pacemaker do?
The role of a pacemaker is to keep the heart beating at a determined heart rate, the same as it is in humans, according to Anna McManamey, DVM, DACVIM (Cardiology), an assistant teaching professor of veterinary cardiology at the University of Missouri’s Veterinary Health Center who has implanted around 50 pacemakers into dogs.
When a dog has an abnormally slow heart rate, the pacemaker, or “pacer,” keeps it consistent.
“They’re really cool devices,” she says. “They have sensors in them that can sense motion of the patient and change the patient’s heart rate based on the amount of activity they’re doing. Our patients can have a low heart rate when they’re sleeping, but if they’re up walking to the water bowl, then the heart rate will increase. And if they’re trying to run after the squirrel, then their heart rate increases even more.”
Why are donated pacemakers crucial?
A pacemaker can be a boon for a dog with heart issues, but new ones cost thousands of dollars. So veterinary cardiologists often rely on donated pacemakers—including used human pacemakers that still have battery life—to keep costs down for pet owners.
“Given the cost of new devices, implantation of a new pacemaker would probably be cost prohibitive for most pet owners,” says Jonathan Abbott, DVM, DACVIM (Cardiology), a professor of veterinary cardiology at the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Tennessee who has implanted over 75 pacemakers into dogs. Like many other universities with veterinary schools, the University of Tennessee offers a pacemaker-donation program.
“The use of pacemakers that have been donated from biomedical device companies or pacemakers that have been donated by bereaved individuals is the usual source,” he says, “but there is at least one company that sells pacemakers specifically to the veterinary community.”
How can pacemakers be reused?
The reusable part of a pacemaker is the generator, also called a “pulse generator” or “can.” The generator has two components: the battery that keeps the generator running and the other half that is essentially a computer, according to Dr. McManamey.
“It interprets signals that are received from the patient’s heart, and it also delivers signals to generate heartbeats,” she explains. “It does that in a very intricate way. But the goal is to make the heartbeat as physiologically normal as possible.”
The lead, or “lead wire,” that connects the generator to the dog’s heart cannot be reused. Veterinarians cut away the used leads and buy new ones to work with used pacemaker generators, which are cleaned and sterilized before implantation.
How can a pacemaker help a dog?
Dogs that act lethargic, lack their normal enthusiasm, pass out or seem intolerant of exercise might have underlying heart conditions. “In veterinary patients, pacemakers are implanted almost exclusively to address clinical signs such as fainting or episodic weakness that result from abnormally slow heart rates,” Dr. Abbott says.
So, if a dog’s slow heart rate is caused by issues like AV block, bradyarrhythmia or sick sinus syndrome, a pacemaker can help it start exercising again and clear up more serious symptoms—as well as the risk of sudden death.
For instance, nearly a decade ago, a pacemaker made a huge difference for Jo Baird’s dog, Becky. The miniature schnauzer always loved stretching out for belly rubs. But when Becky was 6 years old, Baird noticed a highly unusual dog behavior. “One day, she was sitting on my lap, stretched out and just froze in position,” Baird recalls. “She paused like a seizure, but she didn’t shake.”
Baird and her husband rushed Becky to an emergency animal hospital, but by then, the dog had returned to normal. Back at home, the freezing episodes started again during “tummy-rubby” time, so they sought help from an academic institution.
Fortunately, the team at the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign detected an irregular heartbeat. A monitor showed Becky’s heart rate sometimes dropped into the 30s (dogs’ normal heart rates range from 70 to 120 beats per minute), and she was diagnosed with sick sinus syndrome.
After the team implanted a pacemaker, Becky never experienced another freezing episode—and she lived an additional seven years before dying of an unrelated issue. Baird is grateful they opted for pacemaker implantation. “She would’ve never lasted if she continued having those episodes,” she says. “We were very thankful [for the pacemaker] and never regretted having it done.”
Do dogs have to be a certain size or age to have a pacemaker implanted?
Because there are two methods of implanting a pacemaker into a dog—transvenous or epicardial—dogs of any size are candidates for pacemaker implantation. Smaller dogs like Yorkshire terriers, Chihuahuas and other toy breeds have only one option, though: epicardial pacemaker implantation, which can also be performed on cats and even ferrets, according to Dr. McManamey.
Similarly, dogs of any age can undergo pacemaker implantation. “Age is not a disease,” she says. “I think a lot of people might be afraid to consider pursuing a pacemaker because their animal is older, but we see [heart] disease most commonly in old patients. So there’s still a good quality of life that can be had and good quantity of life that can be had in these dogs.”
Dr. McManamey has seen remarkable turnarounds in dogs who get pacemakers. Often people won’t realize their pet is symptomatic from a heart condition, particularly with senior dogs. “They just think, it’s probably just their arthritis or they’re just slowing down,” she says. “Then after we lift their exercise restrictions after their procedures, they call us saying, ‘Oh my gosh, they have so much energy! We’re going on walks!’ So they’re really rewarding cases.”
Does the age of the donated pacemaker matter?
The age of a donated pacemaker matters less than its remaining battery life. In fact, pacemakers essentially have a use-by date—typically 10 years or less of battery life. If they aren’t implanted in time, manufacturers like Medtronic cannot sell them for use in humans.
“For a human, that would be unacceptable because we expect them to live decades longer,” Dr. McManamey says. “Whereas with our patients, even if it’s a young animal, a decade of life is expected, and that’s great. So we’re able to use those pacemakers that have an unacceptable shelf life for a human but very acceptable for our patients.”
Medtronic donates its past-date pacemakers to CanPacers, a program sponsored by the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM) Cardiology to help keep costs down for veterinary patients. CanPacers sells leads and pacemakers to veterinary cardiologists from a repository at North Carolina State University.
Of note: CanPacers does not accept donations of used pacemakers, so you’ll have to donate those directly to a veterinary cardiologist. From there, the team can use equipment to check the remaining battery life.
What are the costs of pacemakers and pacemaker implantation?
When veterinary cardiologists buy unused pacemakers from CanPacers, they cost $300 to $500—what Dr. McManamey calls “an amazing break in the cost.”
“So we’re able to deliver that price break to our clients, which is awesome,” she says. “When we get donated pacemakers that are used, then that’s zero cost for us, so even less for the client.”
Other charges that go into actual pacemaker implantation in dogs include echocardiograms, blood work, the surgeon’s time, anesthesia and hospitalization.
“All of those things add up. I would say in an academic institution, usually that estimate is going to be around $5,000 to $7,000 these days. And it can be a little bit more expensive in the private-practice realm for various reasons,” she notes. “But the actual cost of the generators, because we are able to get them from donations, is low. That’s really great because I think if they weren’t, we wouldn’t be able to place them. We would have clients [for whom] an extra $10,000 on top of that is cost prohibitive. So the donations are really important.”
Is there a waitlist for pacemakers?
CanPacers has a waitlist for pacemaker generators; at the time of this writing, the inventory is zero. Supply fluctuates, according to Dr. McManamey, which is why donations of used pacemakers are so important to help save dogs.
“When it gets really low, we do have this kind of urgent call,” she says. “We basically throw up the ‘Bat-Signal,’ and we ask other institutions, ‘Do you have generators that you can send us?’ So we’re pretty good about making sure that we spread the love, so to speak, with getting pacers to institutions that need them.”
She notes that demand for pacemakers can vary by region. For instance, Texas may see a greater need for pacemaker implantation in dogs because Chagas disease is very common there.
Who can donate a used pacemaker?
People who have a pacemaker removed and replaced can donate the used device to a dog. (Dr. McManamey notes that while human pacemakers cannot be reused in human patients in America, the University of Michigan runs a program called Project My Heart Your Heart that accepts donations of used pacemakers for people in low-income countries.)
Those who die with a pacemaker can specify in their will and tell their families that they’d like the device donated to help pets. In fact, pacemakers must be removed prior to cremation. So funeral homes, crematories, hospitals and private individuals can all donate used pacemakers for use in veterinary medicine.
How do you donate a used pacemaker to a dog?
A number of U.S. veterinary schools with cardiologists have established formal and informal programs to accept donations of used pacemakers, according to Dr. McManamey. “If you or a family member wants to donate a pacemaker to a veterinary cause, I would say teaching hospitals that have cardiologists are probably the best places to ask,” she says.
If possible, find out the brand or company that makes the pacemaker because each university needs to have the right equipment for a specific generator. (For instance, the University of Tennessee’s College of Veterinary Medicine can accept only Medtronic brand pacemakers, and generators without built-in defibrillators.)
When you call to ask if a veterinary college or specialty hospital can accept the pacemaker, tell the team the brand you have and ask about any other requirements. Keep in mind that most institutions won’t accept pacemakers formerly used by people who died of a contagious disease.
To donate a used pacemaker to the University of Missouri’s Veterinary Health Center, Dr. McManamey asks that the generator be lightly cleaned if possible, wrapped in a paper towel or two and put into a double zip-close bag for a bit of biosecurity. Then ship it in a small cardboard box to the cardiology team, which will check the battery life and sterilize the generator for use in the next patient who needs a pacemaker.
Ultimately, Dr. McManamey feels donating a used pacemaker is an easy and meaningful way to help save lives. “It’s much better for people to consider donating this piece of equipment rather than them ending up in a bucket somewhere and never being able to help someone,” she says. “I think it’s a very beautiful way to help another soul.”
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At Reader’s Digest, we’re committed to producing high-quality content by writers with expertise and experience in their field in consultation with relevant, qualified experts. For this piece, Jen Reeder tapped her experience as a longtime pet journalist and former president of the Dog Writers Association of America to ensure that all information is accurate and offers the best possible advice to readers. For this piece, we relied on reputable primary sources, including professional organizations and published research studies, as well as our writer’s personal experience. We verified all facts and data and backed them with credible sourcing, and we will revisit them over time to ensure they remain accurate and up to date. Read more about our team, our contributors and our editorial policies.
Sources:
- Jonathan Abbott, DVM, DACVIM (Cardiology), professor of veterinary cardiology at the College of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Tennessee; email interview, Dec. 18, 2024
- Anna McManamey, DVM, DACVIM (Cardiology), assistant teaching professor of veterinary cardiology at the University of Missouri’s Veterinary Health Center; phone interview, Dec. 13, 2024
- Jo Baird, owner of dog Becky, who received a pacemaker in 2016 at the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; phone interview, Dec. 9, 2024
- Christine Bachman, owner of dog Blanche, who received a pacemaker in 2022 at VRCC Veterinary Specialty & Emergency Hospital in Englewood, Colorado; phone interview, Dec. 17, 2024
- Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine: “Arrhythmias”
- Merck Veterinary Manual: “Normal Canine Physiologic Values”
- World Journal of Cardiology: “Chagas heart disease: An overview of diagnosis, manifestations, treatment, and care”
