We just got back from the vet.

on the up side she didnt even flinch when she got her jab her weight is perfect and everyone (as usual) said how lovely she was.

on the down side the vet said she has a grade 2 heart murmur in the left hand side.

now my memory is bad at the best of times but i could have sworn that one vet before said they couldnt hear anything and if they ever did they said it wasnt as bad as a 1. so i have to ask whats happened to make it grade 2 in the last year. all of this didnt occur to me till after we left.

unfortunetely this has kicked off my paranoia so i am thinking of going back and saying ok what does this all mean day to day.

the vet said to keep a eye on her for lethargy and coughing, i said "lethargy?! how can you tell with a cav!?"

herself is now snoozing in her fave spot on the lino in the kitchen.

Perhaps lethargy for a lazy Cavalier would mean not being able to walk for more than a few minutes outside (or easily tiring from what used to be a normal walk), sleeping most of the day without having a lot of energy for eating, etc.

I think even a Grade 2 would be nothing to worry about yet. I'm sure others will have more info about that...

i'm not exactly worried, i'm more depressed.

Ciren said:

i'm not exactly worried, i'm more depressed.

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Oh I am sorry :hug: Maybe you could go to a cardiologist for a proper assessment.

Sorry to read that Peaches has a grade 2 heart murmur, I know what you mean about not asking certain question at the time, we have had the same problem, when Jasper went to the vets last October to have anal glands done a vet checked is heart and said grade 3, but by December he was coughing so back to the vets and saw someone different and she said more like grade 4, Jasper is now on heart meds and water tablets for short term, but to be honest other than coughing he loves is walks and is all over the place, we have him still monitored, due to go again in July and we have been told as long as he enjoys his excercise and his cough does not get worse and he"s eating and keep an eye on his weight. he is not big anyway, just keep a close eye on any changes and I would be straight back to the vet, I have been a bit concerned about how this hot weather would affect him going to get the floor fan out for him. Unfortunately there his no cardiologist near us. Big hug to Peaches:hug:

thanks guys, i am feeling slightly better

It's always worrying to get an unexpected response at the vets but this is still a low grade. She may always have had a murmur since you got her or soon after -- many vets are not great at hearing or grading low grade murmurs (it is a specialist area). The thing now is to keep tabs on it so you know how she is doing.

It is worth seeing a cardiologist to get a proper grade. I'd look into one of the low cost health clinics sponsored by the CKCS Club -- many shows will have a cardiologist and you can sign up to go and get a very low cost auscultation done on the day.

There's lots of info on managing MVD in the health library section. The main thing is to keep cavaliers LEAN as any extra ounce puts extra strain on the heart and means extra work for those valves, which will wear out sooner. Some cardiologists say on average people lose a cavalier a few *years* before would otherwise happen simply because they are overweight. Even a pound of extra weight creates a significantly heavier load on the heart. So keep a distinct waist!

There's really not much difference between a grade 1 and grade 2 murmur; both are pretty low grade. But you need to be watching diet and weight and maintain exercise for her. I'd consider supplements. Id get a baseline reading on the murmur from a cardio. And have an auscultation done every year now and not rely on a vet to determine care for MVD as they will sometimes initiate treatment much later than is optimal.

Could I just add to Karlin's excellent advice - be very cautious in hot weather. Especially the really stuffy weather when cloud is low and air quality poor - the sort of heat you have to almost push your way through. It puts a lot of extra strain on the heart, so exercise very early or very late - or simply keep them cool in the house and forget about walks for a few days. After all, we don't very often have more than a week of that sort of heat in Britain!

Kate, Oliver and Aled