Heart murmur shows abnormal blood flow within the heart, this can be caused by the change in function of the heart valves, which may also be caused by abnormal communications between either sides of the heart…  These problems can be congenital (present from birth) or acquired (to do with diseased, or age changes effecting after birth, they maybe more progressive resulting in heart failure over time…

The Heart Murmur test must only be done by a cardiologist (the fist indication of heart problem maybe your vet has detected a problem when listening to your pets heart, and therefore should refer you to the cardiologist A vet letter is not acceptable as proof that your dog is healthy of heart, as a vet can not detect a grade 2 or below problem) If a murmur is detected and you intended to breed from the animal you must not breed…  Two heart-tested parents can still produce an effected pup, but it significantly reduces the chances of effected pups if both parents are tested…Also note that puppies can have a heart murmer and go on to not be affected as they grow this is why the proper heart test cannot be done under the age of one year old! so anyone who says the pup/young dog is heart checked ask for proper documentation!

A puppy that has been vet checked clear without the relevant document proving they have been tested has not tested clear contrary to what some owners think...

There are a few different defects in the Bull Terrier heart Miteral Dysplasia, this is congenital and is a result of genetic problems with the Sire and the Dam…  Miteral Dysplasia is caused by faulty heart valves and leaves the body with less blood as a result the heart gets enlarged due to the being over worked in trying to get the blood properly around the body, the end result the animal will die…  This condition commonly called Heart Murmur can vary from mild to severe and are graded as such…

You may never notice your dog has a problem however, should these dogs be bred from their off spring have a good chance of being effected, so without the test you can never be 100% sure your dog is clear of Heart Murmur…

Signs and symptoms of Heart Disease can be one or all of the following:-

Poor exercise ability, laboured breathing, and fainting, coughing, blue tinge to the tongue or gums…and in the same breath a dog can display none of the above and still have a problem.

The test carried out by the cardiologist is done with a special stethoscope or performing a Doppler ultrasound scan, the results given are either clear or Murmur detected with a grade form 1 to 6…  Results should show either 1/6 being mild to 6/6 being severe…

Explanation of Grades:-

Grade 1 – A very soft Murmur only detected after very careful auscultation

Grade 2 – A soft Murmur that is readily evident

Grade 3 – A moderately intense Murmur not associated with a palpable precodial vibration

Grade 4 – Loud Murmur a palpable precodial vibration is not present or is intermittent

Grade 5 – A loud cardiac Murmur associated with a palpable precodial vibration, the murmur is not audible when the stethoscope is lifted from the thoracic wall

Grade 6 – A loud Cardiac Murmur associated with a palpable precodial vibration and audible even when the stethoscope is lifted from the thoracic wall

An experience cardiologist maybe able to make an educated guess based on the characteristics of the murmur, as to what is causing the murmur, but an echo Doppler is require to confirm the reason…  Which maybe due to:-

1. Narrowed valves

2. Leaky valves

3. Abnormal shunts

Your cardiologist will explain the above to you…

A normal vet can only detect grade 2 to 3 upwards and as the inheritance of this is still unknown animals with Murmurs are advised not to be bred from…

We use Sue Roberts to test our dogs in halifax call :07850 740 356