Heart Murmur In Cats Uk

Although a murmur may signify a problem with the heart or its blood.

Heart murmur in cats uk. An echocardiogram is necessary to differentiate between a heart murmur that is just due to excitement versus. Heart murmurs in cats are usually graded on a scale of 1 - 5. Lethargy low energy Exercise intolerance slowing down when playing or running.

However the clinical signs may be subtle and not noticeable until the disease becomes advanced. However the significance of a murmur very much depends upon the situation. Heart murmurs A heart murmur means that in addition to normal lub-dub heart sounds the vet can also hear extra sounds when listening with a stethoscope.

Fast shallow noisy or heavy breathing. Your vet will be able to hear whether you cat has a murmur using their stethoscope. A cat with a heart murmur that is caused by a structural heart disease or an extracardiac problem will generally have some sort of symptoms or clinical signs that can be attributed to the disease.

On its own a heart murmur is not a reliable indicator of heart function and is commonly found in healthy cats. Heart murmurs in cats can be due to the excitement of the veterinary visit physiologic heart murmurs or due to underlying heart disease. In some cases sudden death of affected cats can even occur.

Cats with benign or innocent murmurs will have a normal life span while cats with heart murmurs caused by life threatening structural defects of the heart may only live for months or a few years. Being told that your pet has a heart murmur can be very daunting. Like others have said a murmur is a really unhelpful symptom because it can mean that the cat has heart problems like HCM or nothing at all.

Normally two distinct sounds are heard when listening to the heart of a normal dog or cat. Read on learn more about the types causes symptoms and the treatment options available as advised by pet experts. A heart murmur is an unusual sound that can be heard with a stethoscope when listening to a cats heartbeat.