New puppy, heart murmur, WWYD

[TheOriginalMrsMoss]

We collected our long-awaited puppy last week. She'd had a vet check with the breeder and declared fit.

The following day, after we got home, I took her to our local vet for a check-up and was shocked to be told she has a heart murmur and Ichthyosis (she's a Golden Retriever). It was horrible as I was absolutely expecting to be told she was great and book her next appointment. DS was holding her and looked devastated.

I wasn't too impressed with the vet so I booked her for a second opinion at the sister practice. The second vet we saw said her skin was nothing to worry about but she does have a heart murmur, Grade 1, and to monitor it and have a heart scan.

TBH I'm gutted. The breeder has said she would have her back but she's DS's long awaited dog and her temperament and behaviour are lovely. However, we paid a significant amount and hoped for a completely healthy puppy, especially as this is our first dog. The breeder says none of the rest of the litter has any issues which is not much consolation really. WWYD?

I don’t know much about heart murmurs, I have heard that in puppies sometimes they grow out of them but don’t know if that applies only to certain grades or what.

Tbh, i find it hard to believe two separate vets picked up a heart murmur but the first vet didn’t.

The sceptic in me says the pup never went to the vet for a check up before being put up for sale.

I wouldn’t trust that the other puppies are all fine, how can you possibly know that if the vet (that the pup allegedly saw..) didn’t even pick up the murmur?

It’s hard to know what I’d do without actually being in that situation but I suspect I’d probably return the puppy.

Golden retrievers are an incredibly popular breed, it shouldn’t be that hard to find a better bred one I wouldn’t have thought?

Thanks for your reply Borders. I'm going to take her for her second set of injections and ask the 2nd vet I saw more details. I did read online that Grade 1 and 2 murmurs and most likely not serious and will be outgrown but, TBH, this isn't what we signed up for. We went for a health checked registered puppy to avoid exactly this situation! The breeder has said she will have her back but I'm dithering because, in all other respects, she's a great puppy.

I'm another who suspects she wasn't vet checked. It's very unlikely that two vets picked up a murmur but the first didn't.

Do you have any proof that she saw a vet before you took her home?

I'm a vet. "Innocent" murmurs - puppy murmurs that they grow out of - can be difficult to hear. They are low grade and very quiet. If you've got a wriggly puppy sniffing or whimpering then it'd be easy enough to miss. The breeder is doing the responsible thing and willing to take her back. These things happen and unfortunately it's just bad luck. Can't comment on the significance of the murmur as obviously I haven't heard it, but no need to be sceptical about what's happened, though I totally appreciate why you are upset.

I have a Goldie (got her at 6 months old) and was told by the Vet that she had a heart murmur. It was low grade and he asked about her health etc. She can walk for miles!

Another Vet at the same practice said the same. I had to see another Vet on one occasion - no heart murmur detected. Saw another one - no murmur detected.

I'm posting because it would be such a shame and upsetting for your family if you felt you had to return her.

She's now 4 and is very healthy. I can only assume that the murmur 'went'.

I really hope you can get more professional advice than mine but don't give up yet.

It's a tough one as I could in my contract return my puppy if my vet found any certifiable condition in the first week. But would I have done? Not sure.

I made sure my puppies parents were checked for genetic conditions and clear. However, that doesn't mean a healthy puppy as there are many conditions that just happen so a clear vet check means nothing other than a point in time statement just like a GP check up for humans.

The only thing that would be a big problem is health insurance. Do you have the free one that came with the puppy. If so can you continue this because otherwise it will be deemed to be a preexisting condition and vet bills are not cheap.

I had a puppy with a heart murmer - Grade 1. Vet wasn't worried and said 99.9% likely to outgrow it. And she did.

If you have taken up insurance you could find out if that would cover a referral for a specialist prognosis or pay for one yourself. I wouldn’t doubt that the puppy was declared fit by the first vet . I think it is can be difficult to be sure . I remember a vet declaring my puppy had a slight murmur then changing her mind but said it was hard to hear clearly on a wriggly snuffly puppy . I hope it all turns out ok . Personally I’d just keep my insurance up and keep the dog because I’d already be attached but that’s a very personal decision. I recently lost my much loved dog who was the puppy mentioned above . She was 11 and had lymphoma but at her referral appointment she was again diagnosed with a heart murmur and I wonder if she did indeed have one all the time. Sorry , I’m probably not being much help but even a very good breeder cannot guarantee everything . I’d seek expert advice before returning the dog though as you may regret it .

Mine had a heart murmur as a puppy. She was an English springer. She was the runt as well and was declared unlikely to reach adult hood by our vets.
She was bought for my 16th birthday and I decided to keep her as we picked her for a reason; I didn’t feel I could give her back just because she had a problem.

I spent hours making sure she was fed vertically as she had an issue with her stomach meaning she was inhaling her food instead of swallowing and slowly building up her exercise. She was fed every 2 hours by hand at that point.

She was my best friend for 14 years before she was put to sleep as he back legs had failed. She outgrew all her issues and never had a problem since those few hiccups at the start of her life

You need to do what you feel is right but in the grand scheme of things it feels like you’re more concerned about having paid full price for what you see is a puppy with a problem? Which is understandable. Outline that to the breeder and they may issue you a partial refund to cover increased pet insurance? But if not and it were my puppy I’d keep her as she would be part of my family, as well as being a good example to your kids that we don’t reject someone simply because they have a problem but help them overcome it

Agreeing with pps who have said they can grow out of it. Our welsh terrier was diagnosed with a murmur when she was a puppy, the next time she went to the vet they couldn't hear it but the following time they could. She's 6 now, and although they always listen to her heart whenever we take her to the vet, they can never hear anything now.