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Heart murmur in a dog? I know someone who is trying to find a home for a 10 month male chihuahua that has a heart murmur. I have 3 dogs already and really no rooom for more but I kinda want him. Even if I dont get him I am trying to help find a home for him. Does anyone know what a heart murmur is? Is it serious? Will he require lots of medical attention? I know people are going to be askign me these question so I figured it was best to find out the answers. |
Heart murmurs are most often caused by defective heart valves , yes , it is serious and will need medications . |
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... |
How sweet you are! I just love little chihuahuas. We had little Pixie for just about 2.5 years. Then we had little Patsy and she lived past 17 years. Next we had little Mitzi and she lived over 12 years. They were cute little reddish brown colors - all three of them. They were such sweethearts. If I could handle more than one doggie at a time, I would love to have another chihuahua. Whispersmom has given you some good info. All I found was this: Heart murmur Heart murmurs are relatively uncommon in Chihuahuas and even those that have one usually have the functional type. As in people, that means they can be as active and athletic as they want and live long, normal lives. http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/Dumm...e/id-2062.html |
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