Did anyone see Neighbours on the tv this evening? I was stuck at home waiting for someone to collect a load of fruit, so tv was on, and therefore I saw the soap Neighbours. The programme finished with a scene in which two characters go to an RSPCA shelter to see a puppy. The "kindly expert" RSPCA man says, "That puppy is not for sale. It has to be put down as it has a heart murmer"!!!!!
In many breeds, I often hear of vets claiming young pups have heart murmurs, none of which have been correct diagnoses. Seeing this "expert" on prime time soaps is going to scare any puppy buyer and as soon as the vet says anything, they are going to expect to have to have the puppy put to sleep.

I didn't think heart murmers were that serious, had a goldie that devolped one at two years old, with the right treatment it went away and he lived a long and healthy life to the age of 15.

Dogs can be born with heart murmurs and in this case it’s usually a hereditary condition. They can also develop a murmur particularly in time of stress, serious injury and the like. A friend of mine’s Golden developed a murmur after being hit by a car. The murmur cleared after a couple of days. Occasionally the heart condition MAY be serious enough to warrant putting the dog down but those cases are few and far between. Most can live relatively full life with no trouble and in my experience it's the exception rather than the norm that euthanasia is needed.

John

Depends upon on the severity of the murmur, they are graded by this. However, even at quite a serious grade murmur they are very rarely pts without necessary treatment/change in exercise, weight etc first.

In my experience, every young vet grad feels it is his duty to the world of dogs to tell the owners that they all need neutering at birth, all pure breds are riddled with hereditary diseases and all dogs they check over at jab time, have a heart murmur!!!!!
Glad my own vet is a sensible chap, who breeds dogs himself, rarely neuters and never sprouts the drivel we see on these awful pet rescue/vet type tv programmes.
Good, got that off my chest!!!

Holly has a heart murmur. She was diagnosed with it last year. I had taken her for her booster but saw a different vet than usual. He asked me if I knew that she had a heart murmur, nothing to worry about but I should be aware.

A few months later, I took her for something or other and saw my usual vet and asked him to check her heart. He said she has a very slight heart murmur graded 0.5 (?). If I had seen him when I took her for her booster, he wouldn't have said anything.

Talking about the rubbish that they say on the TV prog's. It really annoys me when a dog whose just been put in a kennel of theirs, is put with a number of new people and they always say that the dog must have been treated badly and unsocialised because it looks nervous of the people who are around them and won't go up to them. If you were thrown in a room 6 x 4, put with strange people etc. wouldn't you be nervous?. Some breeds are WARY of new people, not nervous and nobody seems to know the difference on these prog's.

Boy it annoys me.

Well said Sam.Your a person after my own heart. unnecessary neutering and euthanasia is not on at all .I had a rough collie dog who had a heart complaint .I found out about it when I tried to use him on a bitch, he got very stressed. Well to cut a long story short a quiet life, allowed him to live up to nearly 9 yrs. mari

Hi there,

I took my puppies to the vets today to have their initial vaccinations and he informed me that 2 of them have very slight heart murmers, could be caused by high blood pressure due to the traveling and heat - will probably not be noticed at their next jabs.

As a responsible breeder, I have to inform the perspective new buyers of this as I don't want their vets suggesting I have done them in.

Does anyone have any documented information on heart Murmers in puppies that I could give the perspective buyers please.

thankyou
Donna

Donna
Could you not have your vet visit your home and have them checked again, if it may have been caused through stress?

Please don't worry too much, I remember being told that one of mine had a heart murmer when I asked exactly what that meant he said Oh don't worry 90% of people have a murmer and nothing ever comes of it. Now I don't know if this is correct but I do know that over the years several of my dog have been said to have a 'murmer' and all have died at a good age of something else.

Thankyou everyone, I feel better now - my vet has assured me that it is quite normal for puppies to have a slight heart murmer but it will genrally be nothing to worry about and they can lead a normal life.

I also had a very reputable breeder (15 years breeding) around today, she is very well known in the breeding world and the shows - she has reared a few champions and she actally bought one of my puppies who had a heart murmer (I did inform her of it before she made her choice)
She checked all my puppies and said they are all very nice, happy and healthy so I am very pleased. Thankyou all again

Donna