Heart murmurs are graded according to severity. Grade 1 can easily go undetected. BUT, say a grade 3 will need treatment and maybe more diagnostic testing and meds. They can easily be detected with a stethoscope. Grade 4 and up can literally be seen from across the room. Even the lowest grade can be problematic at some point. Most dogs with grade 3 or higher do not survive to a ripe old age. And, yes faulty valves are the major causes of murmurs but there is a defect PDA that means there is a hole between the chambers of the heart and blood swishes back and forth. That is a simple explanation of a complex problem..
Dogs who have severe murmurs will frequently lead to lung problems and will be treated with a heart med and furosamide(sp) to keep fluid from collecting in their lungs.
It is very kind of you to look for a home for that baby. The SmallPawsRescue has had many Bichons bought/rescued from the auctions that have had murmurs. They try to get them all to the vet school in Texas for surgery but there are other places that do the surgeries, too. Sometimes, a very low grade murmur will sorta resolve and cause NO problems at all... |