When I got home tonight, Orion was breathing quite heavily. He was still very lethargic and showed no interest in food. I told all of this to the vet, who listened to his lungs and said that he heard air moving, but he wanted to take a chest X-ray anyway.

The X-rays showed some fluid build up and a "valentine" heart. He thinks it's Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The prognosis is not good. Dr. Sullivan told me that sudden death was a possibility. (Sidenote: One of the reasons I like my vet is that he doesn't hesitate to give you the truth, even when it's not good. I appreciate that.) We need to do a ultrasound and an EKG to confirm the diagnosis. There's not much they can do besides make him comfortable.

As he told me this, I found myself tearing up. I apologized, but he understood. He's given him medicine to reduce the fluid buildup and to calm him down.

Let's hope my boy doesn't worsen overnight.