My Specs has a heart murmur *Update/8/7*

I know that some PTers have cats w/a heart murmur but, admittedly, I haven't paid much attention to the threads other than to encourage them and to send prayers. Specs and Yoda were in for their physicals today and Specs has a heart murmur. I didn't take them to Dr. Lee, my usual vet who's farther away, because this was just checkup day and my local vet handles that stuff and she's only 10 minutes away. She admitted to me that she doesn't have all the equipment necessary for testing and she also doesn't have the expertise for treatment if the murmur is due to something more serious. I'll have to wait until I get paid, which won't be for a couple of weeks, before I can take Specs in to see Dr. Lee because Boo and Coco Puff are due for their checkups, too, and they won't refill my Rx for Clomicalm unless they get their checkups. (I simply cannot have a pee party added to the mix. I'll lose my mind. I'm close as it is.)

So, I'm asking for prayers for my pretty boy Specs and also if you have any pertinent info that you think I should know, please post it if you think others will benefit from the info or PM me, if you prefer. Please don't frighten me, though, and by that I mean that, if you're an alarmist, it might be better not to reply. I'm tough; I can do anything where my cats are concerned but what I need are facts and success stories. My calico Puddy, who's been a CRF kitty for years and is operating on only one kidney now, is getting weaker every day and I've been battling my fear that her end may be near. I'm on shaky ground emotionally right now, not to mention financially because the vet bills are never-ending. I have to go in on Wednesday for my own tests. (I'm having some troublesome gynecological issues at the moment and I'm hoping that it's something simple.) Boy, it just keeps on comin'.

Mary, I'm sorry to hear Specs has a heart murmur. :( I don't really know anything about that, other than there are degrees of it. I hope Specs' is the mild version - I'm sending positive thoughts that is is. :)

Try not to get yourself worked up about it until you know for sure. Many cats have lived with it for years. :)

((((hugs))))

Heart murmurs can be symptoms of a whole lot of things including nothing at all. Some are completely (or nearly so) harmless, others represent more serious heart conditions. They are graded on a 1 to 6 scale, with 1 being mild and 6 being serious.


If it's toward the higher end, the vet may want to run an ultrasound (echocardiogram) to see if there's a problem such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). This is a condition where the heart wall thickens and becomes less compliant so the heart doesn't pump as effectively. HCM is an extremely variable condition. I have two cats with mild HCM who have been treated for about 5 years or so with a once a day pill. Sammy, who died last year at age 19 had very pronounced HCM as well as chronic renal failure. Even so, she lasted 5 years with the condition. And she'd had the heart murmur much longer, and I suspect congenital. (I got her when she was 9, and she had the heart murmur then.)

However, other cats succumb quickly. HCM cats are susceptible to throwing blood clots that can completely block an artery.

:( Oh No Mary so sorry to read this news.. Are you going to take Specs to see Dr. Lee also for their judgement?? Oh I hope Specs will be ok.. Sending Lots of Good Vibes & Prayers from my clann..

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Originally Posted by nepeta

Heart murmurs can be symptoms of a whole lot of things including nothing at all. Some are completely (or nearly so) harmless, others represent more serious heart conditions. They are graded on a 1 to 6 scale, with 1 being mild and 6 being serious.


If it's toward the higher end, the vet may want to run an ultrasound (echocardiogram) to see if there's a problem such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). This is a condition where the heart wall thickens and becomes less compliant so the heart doesn't pump as effectively. HCM is an extremely variable condition. I have two cats with mild HCM who have been treated for about 5 years or so with a once a day pill. Sammy, who died last year at age 19 had very pronounced HCM as well as chronic renal failure. Even so, she lasted 5 years with the condition. And she'd had the heart murmur much longer, and I suspect congenital. (I got her when she was 9, and she had the heart murmur then.)

However, other cats succumb quickly. HCM cats are susceptible to throwing blood clots that can completely block an artery.

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Thank you so much for your reply. This is exactly the kind of info that I was looking for. I called my main vet, Dr. Lee, and he told me the same thing. I knew that he'd be able to put my mind at ease and, as soon as I get the results of the blood work tomorrow so that I have something to report to him, I'll make an appt. for Specs for an x-ray and one other test that I can't recall the name of at the moment. Then, if Dr. Lee thinks it's necessary, the echocardiogram will be done. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it's a 1.

How old is Specs?

My Duffy was diagnosed with a murmur 5 - 6 years ago. He had a cardiac ultrasound, and it was determined that his murmur was totally innocent - just like mine!!

When we took him to the Vet, he got upset, and the murmur surfaced. It requires no treatment, no follow up, no nothing.

I've had a murmur all my life - sometimes they hear it, sometimes they don't. Like Duffy - no treatment is needed.

I wish for you and Specs a repeat of Duffy - a lot of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

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Originally Posted by Grace

How old is Specs?

My Duffy was diagnosed with a murmur 5 - 6 years ago. He had a cardiac ultrasound, and it was determined that his murmur was totally innocent - just like mine!!

When we took him to the Vet, he got upset, and the murmur surfaced. It requires no treatment, no follow up, no nothing.

I've had a murmur all my life - sometimes they hear it, sometimes they don't. Like Duffy - no treatment is needed.

I wish for you and Specs a repeat of Duffy - a lot of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

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He's approximately 8 1/2 years old. My vet thought that he was about 2 1/2 years old when I rescued him and I've had him for 6 years now. Thanx for the good thoughts. I appreciate it a lot. I had a heart murmur when I was pregnant and after delivery, the murmur disappeared. So I'm hoping that Specs' murmur is all sound and fury, as you say.

Let's hope Specs isn't pregnant! :p;)

Sounds like he is in really good hands - and the murmur can appear at the vet's an nowhere else. It's like us hoomins having our BP go up when we get our checkups.

Prayers that Specs will check out fine, and that you will too.

PT Prayers for Puddy...does she seem comfy?

{{{{hugs}}}}

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Originally Posted by Catty1

PT Prayers for Puddy...does she seem comfy?

{{{{hugs}}}}

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She seems to be. She's eating fine but now she refuses to use her personal water fountain. She insists on drinking only out of the bathroom sink. I was ready to call Dr. Lee because I thought it meant something (what, I have no idea) but she only does it at night. During the day she uses the other water fountain w/no problem. So I made sure hers was clean as a whistle but, for some reason, she wants to use that bathroom faucet. She can no longer jump up on the toilet to the sink; she's too weak, I guess, so she cries until I get out of bed and lift her. Of course, it wouldn't matter if she could get up there on her own anyhow because she can't turn on the faucet. She just doesn't look good, y'know?

Mary, I am hoping for the best for Specs!!! Our Riley(soon to be 8 in August)was diagnosised at ONLY 8 months. He has not had a single symptom since I noticed he had dyspnea(trouble breathing)while he was playing. He has cardiac ultrasounds every other year. He has a Grade III/IV murmur.He has never taken a single pill. Let's hope for the same for your Specs!!! Prayers for you both!!! Sandra

Mary you have posted in my threads lately giving me advice and support so i wanted to try and do the same for you, as you know Ash has a heart murmur and early renal failure, he had the murmur about two years ago, and it is mild, no treatment was advised at this stage,and until the recent diagnosis he was not receiving any medication, but is now on fortekor, which is for cardiomyopathy (not sure i spelled that right) and his renal failure, it might be an option for your kitty too, however if it is only mild, probably the vet will advise no treatment.

The vet also told me sometimes kitties get so worked up at the visit that it appears they have a murmur and they really don't at all, i was hoping that was the case for Ash, but sadly not.

I am sorry to hear you are having so many health issues personally and with the kitties, i know how that feels for sure, it is very stressful and i can only wish you the best for all your concerns, HUGS.:love::love::love:

I do hope that your dear Specs can manage with the heart murmur quite well. I have 2 kitties with heart murmurs, Higgins and Juliet. Both are a 1. I almost broke down when the vet told me that Higgins had a heart murmur. It was just a couple months after my Simone had to be put to sleep because of congestive heart failure. That was such a difficult time, and then to hear that Higgins had heart trouble too was almost too much. The vet reassured me that his murmur wasn't as serious as Simone's condition. In fact, since both kitties' murmurs are only a 1, they don't have to have any special treatment for them. Please keep us updated about Specs' condition.

I'm sorry that Specs has a heart murmur. Sending prayers and vibes his way.

Dusty had a heart murmer that was diagnosed in 1997 at 7 years of age, at that time the vet felt that she may have been born with the condition. Dusty required no meds for it, or had any health problems because of it until 2006 at almost 16 years of age. I had her for 12 years and of those 12 only the last year did her murmer cause any type of problems for her.

On a side note I have an uncle in his late 60's who has had a heart murmer since birth. He takes no meds for it, and is a very active person, including many sports when he was a bit younger.

I hope your vet does whatever tests are necessary and finds that your Specs heart murmer is one of those that are not serious or require meds for.

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Originally Posted by Catlady711

Dusty had a heart murmer that was diagnosed in 1997 at 7 years of age, at that time the vet felt that she may have been born with the condition. Dusty required no meds for it, or had any health problems because of it until 2006 at almost 16 years of age. I had her for 12 years and of those 12 only the last year did her murmer cause any type of problems for her.

On a side note I have an uncle in his late 60's who has had a heart murmer since birth. He takes no meds for it, and is a very active person, including many sports when he was a bit younger.

I hope your vet does whatever tests are necessary and finds that your Specs heart murmer is one of those that are not serious or require meds for.

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Thank you for posting this. It's the kind of story that I like to hear. I have total faith in my vet, believe me. Dr. Lee leaves no stone unturned and he's very aggressive w/treatment and I can discuss anything w/him. Specs' blood work came in today and all is normal. So I will call Dr. Lee tomorrow to make an appt. for the appropriate tests and will let everyone know the results as soon as I know them.

I hope that further tests will reveal that Specs murmur is of a mild nature and that he will go on to live a long happy life!! Prayers going out to you and Specs. :)
I'm sorry to hear that Puddy may not be doing so well this past little while. It's so hard to go through this and I pray that she has just hit a temporary 'bad spot' and will be back to her old self again. And if her time is nearing, then I pray that you have many many days to spend time with and cuddle her. Prayers for beautiful Puddy too!!

Mary, I'll add my two cents to the "me, too!" list. I have a heart murmur (with the fairly ominous-sounding name of "aortic insufficiency"), and as a result of that I have to do the following things differently in my life:

ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! :D

I can imagine how freaked out you are by Specs' diagnosis, but it sounds as though you have a fabulous vet -- and as you're seeing here in this thread, a heart murmur, more often than not, is usually not as scary as it sounds.

((((((HUGS)))))) to you and Specs!

Diana

Mary, I'm sorry to hear this.:( Hopefully Specs has only a very mild one and won't require any medication for it. I'll keep him in my thoughts and prayers.

I recently learned that both Sunny and Sky have heart murmurs.:( Sunny will be 8 in late August and Sky just turned 6 in June. Sunny had his annual exam in April and was fine. He was later having some behavioral issues so I brought him to my holistic vet and she noticed that he had a heart murmur. He's now on a calming herbal pill which is also good for his heart. She checked him out again and said that it's very slight and that he has a very strong heart so
both my regular vet and she don't think that I need to do anything more at this time.

When Sky had his annual exam in June,my regular vet noticed that he had a
slight heart murmur and he had been seeing my holistic vet several times and she never noticed one. He then had another appointment with my holistic vet and she also noticed that he had one but it's also very minor so at this time I don't have to anything more about it.

Many years ago one of my doctor's noticed that I had a slight heart murmur and she did some tests but everything was normal. Since then no other doctor has ever detected a heart murmur on me. My dad has one and all he has to do is to be sure to take some pills before and after he goes to the dentist.

Mary,

I wish I had more information for you but, I have had friends that had cats with heart murmurs and they needed no treatment and lived normal lives. These kitties where thought to have had these heart defects from birth. I would keep up the hope and I would not worry yourself until you know what's going on. My thoughts and prayers are going to you, Specs, and Puddy. Make sure you take care of yourself and not let yourself stress out too much, this can effect your own health. Just being there for you babies lets them know that they are loved and cared for. Big PT hugs to your babies from me, and my whole kitty gang. Please keep us updated!:love::love::love:

Thanx, everyone. I had my local vet fax Specs' blood work results to Dr. Lee and I'll call to book his appt. tomorrow. I didn't do it today because I had my own medical tests to endure and I've been feeling kinda punk ever since. I'll know the results tomorrow or Friday. Thank goodness I don't have to wait during the weekend. Puddy is behaving very strangely, too, and it has me worried. She's been sleeping w/me ever since her kidney removal and last night she decided that she wanted to sleep downstairs w/the rest of the Fur Posse. Normally that shouldn't bother me but seeing that she hasn't been herself, I'm worried. She's downstairs w/them now, too, and she's wanted to be alone all day. She's eating and drinking and using the litter box just fine except today, after I gave her the subQ treatment, she didn't even try to make it to the litter box but peed in the dining room. If she hasn't improved by tomorrow, I'll call Dr. Lee. I'm just overwhelmed right now w/my medical problems, then Specs and, of course, always Puddy because she's been in CRF for so long and it seems her time is slipping away. Please keep the prayers coming. I sure could use 'em and my Fur Posse can, too.

My Speckers is due for his chest x-ray next Monday, August 11 and if it doesn't reveal anything, an ultrasound will be done while we're there. Oughta be a fun day. I'll be taking Boo and Coco Puff in at the same time for their checkups. Gonna have quite the concert to and fro. At least it's at my local vet who is only 10 minutes away. If the tests show any problems whatsoever w/Specs, though, he'll go to Dr. Lee pronto. Specs actually let me snap a pic of him the other day, so here he is w/his deer-in-the-headlights look. LOL Can't see his eyes too well but you can see the white rim around them, which is why I named him Specs; he looks like he's wearing spectacles.

Mary, Specs is a beauty! He looks just like my friends cats. I wanted to wish you all the luck and prayers for your visit on Aug 11. I am hoping the best for you and your babies. Your are right about that being quite the day - you will definitley have your hands full with all those babies and check-ups, etc. Good luck and make sure you keep us updated!:love::love::love:

My local vet just called and wants me to drop Specs off rather than bring him in w/Coco Puff and Boo. I just can't do it; I'm too far behind on my work to keep running back and forth. Honestly, do they think I can just keep taking off work? She said that it's going to take too long otherwise. C'mon, a chest x-ray takes seconds. I think I'll just take him in to Dr. Lee when I take Puddy for her blood work on the 18th.

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Originally Posted by Medusa

My local vet just called and wants me to drop Specs off rather than bring him in w/Coco Puff and Boo. I just can't do it; I'm too far behind on my work to keep running back and forth. Honestly, do they think I can just keep taking off work? She said that it's going to take too long otherwise. C'mon, a chest x-ray takes seconds. I think I'll just take him in to Dr. Lee when I take Puddy for her blood work on the 18th.

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It's possible the local vet is working you in and can't get to the xrays immediately but instead if you dropped the dog off they can work him in when they catch a break. There are days we have to do that when it's really busy.

Well, I booked the appt. over a week ago so I don't think she was working Specs in. This was at her suggestion. I'll just take him in when I take Puddy in a week from Monday but I'll be sure that they have the time to do it. Btw, Specs is a cat. LOL

I'm sorry that you had to reschedule his appointment. If I had taken my Sunny to my vet for further tests for his hear murmur, she said that it would take at least 30 minutes and I think she said that he would have to be sedated. They would take his blood pressure and then look at his heart with an ultrasound machine. She never said anything about taking x-rays which should be much faster. I hope that everything goes well on the 18th.

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Originally Posted by krazyaboutkatz

I'm sorry that you had to reschedule his appointment. If I had taken my Sunny to my vet for further tests for his hear murmur, she said that it would take at least 30 minutes and I think she said that he would have to be sedated. They would take his blood pressure and then look at his heart with an ultrasound machine. She never said anything about taking x-rays which should be much faster. I hope that everything goes well on the 18th.

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Well, he'd get a chest x-ray first, then maybe an ultrasound and if that doesn't tell us anything, then an echocardiogram. Thanx for your good thoughts. I don't want any more bad news about my Fur Posse. :(