Cat/kitten heart murmur

Joannef_2

It's a bit of a long story but basically I had a cat who had a heart murmur who then developed an enlarged heart, got blood clots in 2 legs and recovered. He then got blood clots in both back legs and we thought he was recovering but he ended up with a kidney problem and had to be put to sleep at 10.

I now have a bsh kitten who is gorgeous. I took her to the vet and he told me he thinks she has a heart murmur . Now I should have asked lots of questions but because of what happened to my old cat and the fact I just wasn't expecting him to say that there was any problem with her, I didn't ask and I can't even remember exactly what he said. I know he said that it is sometimes harmless and can be noticeable when they are growing fast?

I was told by the breeder that she had 2 vet checks prior to me buying her which didn't reveal any problems. Money isn't the issue but she was very expensive (in my opinion) so obviously I was expecting her to be perfect! Obviously I understand that that's not always the case.

I would be grateful if anyone who has been in a similar situation or knows more about it could answer a couple of questions for me.

Firstly, my friend had a cat that had a murmur as a kitten which he grew out of - is it common for kittens to grow out of murmurs?

Secondly, can it appear to be a murmur just when they are very stressed? The reason I ask this is that we had to wait nearly 15 minutes for her appointment and by the time she got in she was really nervous and shaking.

And thirdly, can a cat have a murmur for its entire life without it progressing to heart disease?

I will be going back to the vet in a few weeks so I will get my questions ready to ask him then but just wanted other people's experiences in the meantime as I feel really fed up.

Thanks.

Bendybops19

Firstly - don't panic!

Lots of animals (and humans, me being one!) live perfectly normally with heart murmurs.

My siamese boy has cardiomyopathy (which is basically problems with his heart) and he takes medication for it, Fortekor, every day. He is a very happy, healthy boy!

You need to have a chat to your vet and find out how severe/mild the heart murmer is.

As far as i am aware, you are right, heart murmurs can disappear as the cat grows older though

YES a cat can have a murmur all of its life! Just like i will have mine all of my life, and i hope to live to a grand old age

Joannef_2

Bendybops19 wrote: »

Firstly - don't panic!

Lots of animals (and humans, me being one!) live perfectly normally with heart murmurs.

My siamese boy has cardiomyopathy (which is basically problems with his heart) and he takes medication for it, Fortekor, every day. He is a very happy, healthy boy!

You need to have a chat to your vet and find out how severe/mild the heart murmer is.

As far as i am aware, you are right, heart murmurs can disappear as the cat grows older though

YES a cat can have a murmur all of its life! Just like i will have mine all of my life, and i hope to live to a grand old age

Thanks. My old cat was on Fortekor but only for the last year of his life and the murmur didn't affect him until January of this year when his heart become enlarged which I'm not sure was due to the murmur or just bad luck. I'm just hoping that that's the worst case scenario.

As soon as I got home I thought of all questions to ask the vet but I was so shocked when he told me that my mind just went blank.

Bendybops19

Call your vet - have all your questions written down

asea

One of our cats Duke has had a heart murmer since he was a kitten & touch wood has been fine so far (4 years) our vet has said that it is nothing to worry about. Good luck!

eira

As a kitten our Siamese had a litany of health problems including asthma and a heart murmur- I suppose sensibly we shouldn't have taken him on but he is the most endearing soul imaginable. He goes for regular checkups and the vet says he has outgrown the asthma and the heart problems.

Sola

My moggie boy had a heart murmur and at 6 months they thought he wasn't going to survive. He's now 5, in perfect health and a really lively thug.

Joannef_2

Thanks for your replies.

To be honest, if my previous cat hadn't had a heart problem then I probably wouldn't be so worried as it seems from everyone's replies that it's not that uncommon. I will just have to hope that she either grows out of it (she is just over 4 months at the moment) or if not, hope that it won't affect her or develop into heart disease (which I assume is the worst case scenario).

She looks healthy and is a very playful and energetic little kittie!

poohbear59

Hi, I have a seventeen year old cat who is quite small and who has had a heart murmur for all of her life. She was hit by a car when about 8 and had surgery and has recently had two teeth removed under general anaesthetic too and is still fighting fit (literally!). She is smallest but 'top cat' in this house. The vet says she is probably smaller than she should have been because of the murmur.

Joannef_2

poohbear59 wrote: »

Hi, I have a seventeen year old cat who is quite small and who has had a heart murmur for all of her life. She was hit by a car when about 8 and had surgery and has recently had two teeth removed under general anaesthetic too and is still fighting fit (literally!). She is smallest but 'top cat' in this house. The vet says she is probably smaller than she should have been because of the murmur.

Seventeen is a fantastic age. The vet did say to me that if she was small then that would also be a symptom of the murmur however at the moment she seems to be a normal size for her age.

I do feel a lot happier after reading everyone's replies. I just panicked when the vet originally told me. I am going back to the vets around the 18th January so I'll ask him more then. I'm also going to take my other kitten and get the vet to give him a check over to make sure he is OK.