Heart Murmur in Canines:

A heart murmur is a cardiac problem in young dogs due to fury in the blood flow. Many dogs develop this problem when they are young, but later live without any symptoms. For many dogs, developing a symptom of heart murmur does not mean that they will have heart related problems later; such conditions are known as benign heart murmurs. However, for many dogs this condition can be serious; they can develop many heart-related problems such as congestive heart failure.

There could be two reasons for heart murmur in dogs, one is congenital, which would imply by birth and another is acquired, which would mean after birth.  Some causes for a heart murmur are listed below:

• Mitral valve dysplasia: This is a condition where the heart valve has a leakage and results in heart murmur.
• Ventricular septal defect: This is a condition where holes are present in the ventricular walls of the heart.
• Increased velocity of blood: This happens during the growing phase of a puppy where the heart starts pumping larger amounts of viscous blood. This problem ends after the complete growth of the puppy.
• Increased viscosity of blood: This is caused by anemia or fever.
• Pulmonary stenosis: This is a condition where the pulmonary artery becomes narrow, causing turbulence during the outflow of blood from the chamber.

There are many symptoms that indicate this problem in dogs; however, the best way is to get a proper examination done by a veterinarian. For both Benign and severe types of heart murmurs, symptoms are almost the same; therefore, correct diagnosis is very important.

A few symptoms of heart murmurs in dogs are listed below:

• Coughing
• Labored breathing
• Poor exercise ability
• Fainting or total collapsing
• Bluish tinge to the tongue and gums

Some diagnostic tests for the proper diagnosis of heart murmur in dog are listed below:

• Auscultation: The process of checking heartbeats through a stethoscope
• Chest X-ray: Provides knowledge about the size and shape of the lungs and heart chambers
• Ultrasound examination: Provides precise information about the heart structure
• Electrocardiogram (ECG): Determines the abnormality of the heart rhythm
• Echocardiogram: Measures the heart rate and determines how well the heart is working
• Blood test: Detects any viral infection in the blood that can cause damage to the heart valves

Diagnostic results can differentiate between the types of heart murmur - either benign or severe forms. Benign heart murmur does not require any treatment and disappears after maturity. However, the severe type of heart murmur requires drug treatments such as the ACE inhibitor to reduce the blood pressure. In very severe cases like canine heart murmur, surgery is the only option for the dog’s survival. Heart murmur is curable with the help of proper medication, food, and care.