Heart Murmur

[Ralbert]

At my dog, Finn's, annual checkup, the vet detected a soft heart murmur (grade 1). He said that while it was very light, he was bothered by the fact that it came out of nowhere (Finn is 2 1/2 and has not had any heart problems to date). Is it normal for boxers to develop heart murmurs at this age? The vet said he wants to see him again in 3 months, but I am trying to gather as much information as possible now (good and bad). Finn is acting completely normal, not showing any signs of fatigue or coughing, but I can't help worry that there is a problem.

 

[Sam S]

Hi, it is not unusual for boxers to have heart murmurs and live normal healthy lives. Having said that though, it would be prudent to be watchful of Finn, ie don't let him over exert himself etc.

If I was you I would get a second opinion though, we too were told Ali had a slight heart murmur by one vet and then told by our regular vet we had nothing to worry about ... :rolleyes:

Make sure Finn is really quiet for the vet (I know it's not easy with Boxers!), apparently it is can sound like a heart murmur if they are excited.

I would also suggest using the search engine (top right hand of screen) to check other peoples stories about heart murmurs.

I know a boxer with a Grade 6 heart murmur who is very healthy and approaching 12 years old. All the best

 

[JulieM]

A grade 1 murmur is extremely mild and should not affect the dog's quality of length of life in any way. It could very well be just an "innocent" flow murmur - not due to any condition of the heart (murmurs in Boxers are very often associated with Aortic Stenosis).

I do agree that you might want to get a second opinion, though I would get it from a board-certified veterinary cardiologist (there is a listing by state at www.vetheart.com/bystate.htm , if that doesn't work then it's .html ). A cardiologist has much more practice grading murmurs than a general practice vet and will be able to do futher diagnostics if necessary. Plus, at 2 1/2 it's not likely the murmur will progress, so you'll have a certain peace of mind once you know for sure what you're dealing with (or not!).

A search here for murmurs or aortic stenosis will pull up ton of information for you as well.