Can a healthy dog (with no heart disease) have a heart murmur?
We just had Xavier, our 4-year-old poodle, into the vet for his
vaccinations. The vet said he had a faint heart murmur but that it
was insignificant. I thought any heart murmur was serious.
Q: Can a healthy dog (with no heart disease) have a heart murmur? We just had Xavier, our 4-year-old poodle, into the vet for his vaccinations. The vet said he had a faint heart murmur but that it was insignificant. I thought any heart murmur was serious.
A:
The short answer to your question is yes, a normal, healthy dog or cat can have what is called an “innocent” heart murmur. In order to explain this, let’s first talk about what causes a murmur.
A murmur is a sound best described as a “shhh.” It’s usually only heard with a stethoscope and is caused by turbulence in the flow of blood. Each beat of the heart pushes blood through all the vessels. And if the flow is uninterrupted, it is very quiet. But if there is a narrowing of a blood vessel, or if a valve in the heart is a little leaky, some of the blood will actually tumble, becoming turbulent as it makes it way through the circulation. (A good demonstration of turbulence is done with a garden hose. Turn on the water and listen as the water flows relatively quietly through the hose. Now pinch the hose, narrowing the area where the water flows. It makes a hissing sound because the water squeezes through the smaller opening.)
Turbulent blood flow and a heart murmur can be caused by several different abnormalities. And some of these are insignificant; they don’t lead to congestive heart failure or a shortened life expectancy.
Veterinarians usually grade heart murmurs on a subjective scale of 1 to 6. A grade 1 murmur is often deemed insignificant or innocent if there are no other remarkable findings during the physical exam.
For some people, this explanation isn’t enough. If you’re still concerned, ask Xavier’s vet for a referral to a veterinary cardiologist. An echocardiogram is not terribly expensive and can show all the valves of the heart as well as the different major blood vessels. A healthy echo exam can give you peace-of-mind and answer all your worries about your buddy.
Q:
I read where a dog with a microchip was lost about three months ago. The dog was put in the shelter, and the owners never came to pick it up (they were reportedly out of town on vacation). After 10 days, the shelter placed the dog up for adoption and it was taken by a young family. Now the original owners are claiming the dog should be returned to them. They say that the microchip makes the dog legally theirs, no matter what anyone says. The new owner doesn’t want to relinquish this dog. What’s the law on this one?
A:
I’m not sure there’s a legal precedent for this as of yet. But a similar situation occurred in San Luis Obispo County a while back. There was a huge uproar, especially when a local talk show host got involved. And eventually, this dog was returned to her original home.
I can see arguments for both sides of the debate on this issue. But I don’t believe that the microchip has any legal effect on ownership decisions. It only facilitates contacting pet owners should their animal stray from home. It sounds as though normal protocol was followed with this case, where the shelter kept the animal for a predetermined time to allow the owners to come pick up the dog. When no one came to claim this pooch, it was placed up for adoption.
It seems to me that this whole scenario could have been avoided if someone had taken some responsibility. I wonder who was caring for this dog while the owners were on vacation. Why didn’t that person call the shelter when the dog was missing from home? Was the contact information on the microchip up-to-date? If so, why didn’t someone find out the dog was missing?
There’s a huge lesson here for anyone planning a vacation and leaving their pets at home. Make sure that your caregiver is responsible and will take initiative if your pet disappears. And be sure that your contact information on your pet’s microchip registry is current.
And one more thing. Always be sure to let your veterinarian know that if there are any problems while you are away, your caregiver will have the authority to bring in your pet for medical care if needed. Having done all that, you can leave and not have any worries about the well-being of your furry friends.
