Heart Murmurs?

[Christie & Willie (GA)]

Hi all... when at the vet today, the vet mentioned that she heard a heart murmur for the first time on Willie (this is our third visit there). This vet and I are parting ways, (details here),, and as I'm considering new vets, and whether or not we need to start with a specialty vet clinic, I just wanted to pick the board's collective brain on murmurs... given everything that is going on with Willie, I'm trying to figure out where this fits into the things we need to deal with.

Any input is greatly appreciated!

 

[MommaOfMuse]

Did she say what grade of heart murmur? Max has a slight murmur and it doesn't seem to effect him at all.

Mel, Max & The Fur Gang

 

[Karen & Smokey(GA)]

No advice...just wanted to tell you I think Willie is the cutest !!

 

[Christie & Willie (GA)]

She didn't say anything about the murmur... just that there was one. it was clear this was our last visit with her, so I don't think she was about to go into much detail... just wanted me to know so I could tell the next vet I go to.

Thanks, Karen... he really is a sweetie. At some point, I'll have to catch a pic of him with his ears out to the side... they are so big, he looks like the flying nun when he does it!!

 

[Hope + (((Baby)))GA]

"To decide how serious a heart murmur really is, your pet needs to have an echocardiograpy (doppler ultrasound) performed by a veterinarian experienced in interpreting the results. An x-ray and an EKG will also be required to see how much damage has already occurred."

Just a little info from one of the heart sites that may help you. I always suggest a cardiologist, not just a vet trained in reading the results who may not be up to date on all the heart meds available.

 

[Christie & Willie (GA)]

Thanks, Hope! The vet clinic I'm going to take Willie to for his skin has both a dermatologist and a cardiologist on site. I will definitely be talking to them about the murmur the vet heard today.

 

[Ann & Scatcats]

I've had a heart murmur and a third tone since I was 20 (43 now) and it is physiological and not affecting me in anyway. It is inhereted in my case, my mum also had it but also without any problems.

That said I also have a rescue kitten now, who had a severe loud heart murmur when we took her to the vets 3 months old. When she was 5 months old we took her in for an ultrasound of the heart, since several heart conditions can give a murmur. In her case she had a small hole in the heart, a defect called VSD here (Sweden) but it was a good prognosis and nothing that would bother her at the moment, and she has always been the overall healthiest of the three sibling kittens they are. She will be doing another heart ultrasound when she is 1 year old, since these small holes can close as she grows.

Her name is Donna and this is Donna on top http://bluewaterlily.weebly.com/5.html
She has unusual and the coolest markings of them all, masqued, I named her Donna after a character in the masqued Commedia de'll Arte.
She is my special heart kitty.

 

[Lisa and Merlyn (GA)]

http://www.2ndchance.info/heart.htm

http://maxshouse.com/heart_murmurs.htm

http://maxshouse.com/hypertrophic_cardiomyopathy.htm
mute the loud music...

more technical..
http://maxshouse.com/Cardiology/myocard ... he_cat.htm

Merlyn had HCM with severe left atrial enlargement on diagnosis. He did live 2.5 years with CHF /HCM.. but he did not have a murmur. I hope Willie will be ok. You definitely want to get more info on the murmur, and a cardiac ultrasound.

 

[underdawg]

Your cat looks like a relative of mine (my cat that is). Too Cute!

 

[dodgingwrenches]

My Heart (cat) has a heart murmer as well, first identified when he was diagnoses with his diabetes (he's OTJ now). The vet told me not to worry about it, that many cats have heart murmers and live long and healthy lives. He'll just monitor it every check up. It could also go away again.