heart murmur found

[cutecritters]

I took one of my baby chins in for an upper rep. infection and found out that he has a heart murmur. the vet didn't know a whole lot about it and said there was not a whole lot of info on this subject. the vet said it could be stress induced and have it checked again when he is better, and if it was still there rec. having an ultrasound done to find the exact cause.

I know there is a lot of controversy on this issue, and not a whole lot is known, but any info would be appreciated. I've heard most with heart murmurs live normal lives w/o too many complications.
thanks

 

[ticklechin]

What class murmur does he have? The vet has to be very experienced to hear a class 1-3, a 4-6 can be heard easily. Vets do misdiagnose murmurs if they do not have much chin experience. A ultrasound or echocardiogram are worthless with chinchillas-a animal endocardiologist that I was refered to told me all they can see on a animal that small is that they DO have a heart, the resolution is not that good for such a tiny item.

As far as longevity-a class 4 murmur and up can cause health issues as the chin ages, symptoms to look out for is getting tired at play quickly, breathing heavy, blue tinge to the lips and ears, general lethargy and to listen to a chins heart with a class 4 up the heart sounds like a washing machine.


I would not worry about this chin since its a kit, you can have the heart rechecked when the chin is over a year old and see if the problem is gone, which it most likely will be.

 

[AZChins]

Most can live a fairly good life with a murmur. Except for one day it can worsen and the chin can have heart failure after they have seemed to be normal for the longest time.

I definitely agree with Dawn. Take him back in after he has some size at maybe a year to a year and a half old and see if they can hear the murmur. Sometimes vets misdiagnose murmurs especially in babies.

I had a rescue recently pass away from a heart condition...it appeared to be pneumonia to me, but it was his heart. The stress of leaving his old home must have just made it worse. He was the "easy to catch" chinchilla that the people had...and was always a little slower. (And, his father was the son of his mother...so he was a bit inbred there...)

I hope that the murmur isn't too bad with this little baby.

 

[Tanya]

I'd make sure that cardiovascular system's nutritional requirements are met. Herbal Heart Support for chins supplies the heart with necessary elements, increases transport and circulation of oxygen and nutrients throughout the body, strengthens the heart muscle (you can click on the link to read more).

Please use organic hay if possible to avoid pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, etc.

 

[Anne-Lise]

In Quebec 1 out of 4 chinchillas has a heart murmur of some sort. That is bad. Even worst the fact that it can be genetic, hereditary....

When an animal has a heart murmur, it means that its heart need to beat faster to do the same job. Of course, the heart grows older faster and thence it shortens the lifespan of the animal.

 

[ticklechin]

The heart has to work harder on murmur chins, when the heart valve does not open all the way, less blood can move through the smaller opening, if the valve doesn't close tightly, blood may leak backward. These problems can cause the heart to work harder to pump the same amount of blood. Or what can happen is blood may back up in the lungs or body because it's not moving efficiently through the heart causing heart failure.

 

[starleomach]

Being it is a young animal I would not panic. Many babies human and non are born with heart murmurs that that out grow it is a very high percentage that are born with a mild one.