How often should I count the breaths?

It depends on the phase. In the first week, or when building the baseline, count once a day at the same time. Once the animal is stable you can ease off to two or three times a week. Return to daily counting if you change treatment, if the animal was just discharged, or if you notice something different in behaviour or breathing. The rule is simple: the more uncertain the situation, the closer the monitoring.

Is it fine to count while the animal is lying down but awake?

It is better than nothing, but the value is less reliable. Awake, even calm and lying down, breathing responds to noise, presence and small movements, and the numbers become harder to compare from day to day. The reference figure the thresholds are built on is the one gathered in deep sleep. If you really cannot catch it asleep, note that you counted it awake, so the figure is read for what it is.

My animal breathes 24 times a minute: should I worry?

A value around that level, in an animal stable on treatment, usually sits within what you would expect when the heart is compensated. What matters is not the single number but its stability over time and the comparison with the personal threshold you agreed with the vet. A steady 24 is reassuring, while the same 24 climbing to 34 and then 40 within a few days is a signal to report, even with no other symptoms.

If the number is high but the animal seems fine, what do I do?

First recheck: a second count an hour later, after ruling out heat and agitation, tells you whether the high value was real or a one off. If it stays repeatedly above the agreed threshold, call the vet even without an obvious cough or breathlessness, because the whole point of this monitoring is to catch the deterioration before the symptoms. Do not wait for coughing or breathing difficulty to appear before acting.

Health management25 minLevel: IntermediateUpdated on August 20, 2026

Counting sleeping breaths to keep track of the heart

Resting respiratory rate is the most useful early warning in heart disease: how to count it in sleep, what to expect and when to call the vet.

Audience: Pet owners, Veterinarians
Species: Dog, Cat
Scope: Valid everywhere, Italy, European Union

What you need before you start

Una diagnosi o un sospetto di malattia cardiaca comunicati dal veterinario
Un cronometro o l'orologio del telefono con i secondi ben visibili
Un posto tranquillo dove l'animale dorme regolarmente senza disturbi
Un modo per registrare ogni conteggio con data e ora, anche solo una nota

In a dog or cat with heart disease, the most useful signal you can gather at home is not a dramatic symptom, it is a number: how many breaths the animal takes in one minute while it sleeps deeply. This figure, the resting respiratory rate, tends to rise in the days before congestive heart failure, when fluid begins to build in the lungs but coughing and breathlessness are not yet obvious. Counting it consistently is one of the few ways an owner can catch a deterioration before it becomes a nighttime emergency. It needs no instruments, it does not disturb the animal, and it is learned in a few days. This guide explains how to count reliably, what values to treat as normal, how to build a personal baseline, and how to tell a change worth a phone call from one that means nothing. It stays a form of monitoring, not a diagnosis: the treatment and any dose changes are always the vet's decision.

Why sleeping breathing tells you so much

Awake, an animal breathes variably: it moves, it gets excited, it pants to regulate temperature. In deep sleep all of that falls away and what remains is the baseline work of the lungs, the cleanest figure to compare from one day to the next. When the failing heart starts to clear fluid poorly, the lungs stiffen and the body's first response is to breathe a little more often. That small rise often appears days before the cough.

How to count without waking the animal

One breath is an inhale plus an exhale: the chest rising and falling counts as one. The most common mistake is counting the rise and the fall separately, getting twice the real figure. Follow the steps calmly, without touching the animal.

Wait for deep sleep
The animal should have been asleep for a few minutes, still, not dreaming. If the paws or eyelids twitch it is dreaming and the breathing is irregular: wait for it to settle.
Watch the chest move
Look at the flank or ribcage rising. If the light is poor, the outline against a light source makes the movement easier to read without getting too close.
Count for a full minute
Start the timer and count each complete rise and fall as one, for sixty seconds. A full minute is more accurate than counting for fifteen seconds and multiplying, because sleeping breathing is not perfectly regular.
Record the number at once with date and time
Write the value before you forget it, with the day, the time and a note if anything was unusual, such as intense heat or a more active day than normal.
Repeat at the same time when you can
Counting at roughly the same moment each day, in the evening for instance, reduces variation from timing and makes the series easier to read over time.

What values to expect

In an animal whose heart is compensated by treatment, the resting respiratory rate usually stays low and stable. There is no single number that fits everyone: what matters most is the individual animal's usual value and its trend over time. The table gives a general reference, but the personal threshold you agree with the vet is worth more than any average.

General references for resting respiratory rate in sleep. They are indicative: your animal's personal threshold, set with the vet, remains the decisive criterion.
Situation	Breaths per minute	How to read it
Dog or cat stable on treatment	Below 30	Value expected when the heart is compensated
Attention zone	30-40 repeatedly	Recheck several times and alert the vet if it persists
Alarm zone	Over 40 consistently	Contact the clinic straight away, even without a cough
Rapid rise	More than 20% over personal baseline	Early signal to report even if the number is still low

Building the personal baseline

A single number says almost nothing, a series says everything. The strength of this monitoring lies in comparison with your own animal's habit, and to have it you must gather a few values while it is well, so you can recognise the departure when it arrives.

In the first week, count once a day at the same time, with the animal in a stable phase.
Work out the usual value, the band into which almost all the measurements fall.
Agree with the vet the personal threshold above which to call, usually tied to that usual value.
Once the initial phase is over, ease off to two or three counts a week if the animal stays stable.
Go back to counting daily if you change treatment, if the animal was just discharged, or if you notice something different.
Bring the series to every check up: the trend over time matters more than the day's number.

When the number should make you act

Not every swing is a signal. A single high reading after a hot or busy day may mean nothing. What counts is repetition and trend: a value that rises and stays up, or that climbs at each count, deserves attention even when the animal seems normal.

Recheck before you worry: a second count an hour later confirms or disproves the first.
Look at the trend of the last few days, not the single isolated figure.
Allow for trivial causes: heat, digestion, an intense dream raise the number without the heart being involved.
Call the vet if the value repeatedly exceeds the agreed threshold, even without a cough.
Never change the drug dose on your own: the number flags, the treatment is the vet's to adjust.

Frequently asked questions

How often should I count the breaths?: It depends on the phase. In the first week, or when building the baseline, count once a day at the same time. Once the animal is stable you can ease off to two or three times a week. Return to daily counting if you change treatment, if the animal was just discharged, or if you notice something different in behaviour or breathing. The rule is simple: the more uncertain the situation, the closer the monitoring.
Is it fine to count while the animal is lying down but awake?: It is better than nothing, but the value is less reliable. Awake, even calm and lying down, breathing responds to noise, presence and small movements, and the numbers become harder to compare from day to day. The reference figure the thresholds are built on is the one gathered in deep sleep. If you really cannot catch it asleep, note that you counted it awake, so the figure is read for what it is.
My animal breathes 24 times a minute: should I worry?: A value around that level, in an animal stable on treatment, usually sits within what you would expect when the heart is compensated. What matters is not the single number but its stability over time and the comparison with the personal threshold you agreed with the vet. A steady 24 is reassuring, while the same 24 climbing to 34 and then 40 within a few days is a signal to report, even with no other symptoms.
If the number is high but the animal seems fine, what do I do?: First recheck: a second count an hour later, after ruling out heat and agitation, tells you whether the high value was real or a one off. If it stays repeatedly above the agreed threshold, call the vet even without an obvious cough or breathlessness, because the whole point of this monitoring is to catch the deterioration before the symptoms. Do not wait for coughing or breathing difficulty to appear before acting.

What to do next

Count the breaths for a full minute while the animal sleeps, counting the rise and fall as one, and record every value with date and time. Build the baseline while it is well, agree with the vet the personal threshold above which to call, and watch the trend rather than the single figure. Bring the series to every check up and never adjust doses yourself.