Heart murmur in puppies

[Sarah16]

Someone I know had a litter of puppies last monday, one of them didn't seem to be gaining weight like the others and was not quite acting the same as the others either so they took him down to the vets and they said he had a pronounced heart murmur, was quite cool and gave antibiotics and said to top him up with a bottle.

Last night the breeder sat up with him, helped him to feed off the mum, so the big ones didn't push him away and then topped him up with a bottle. This morning I gave them a lift down to the vets as they wanted to check how he was doing, they said he looked more alert, seemed to have put on weight and was nice and warm, but he had a definate heart murmur. The vet said the other puppies were fine, but wanted to see this little pup again in two weeks unless he gets worse. I got the impression that the vet thought his chances were not that hopeful, even though he didn't actually say that.

The breeder is obviously very upset and is working hard to try and build him up, I think that she has decided that she will keep him if he survives.

My question is has anybody had this with their puppies and what quality of life can they have?

[bluegirl]

There are varying degrees of heart murmurs and the lower the grade the more normal a life a dog will have. Some are identified in young pups and they sound very slight and they can grow out of them. This pup sounds like it has an obvious murmur and the breeder needs to think about what she will do with it. Is she intending to keep it and pay vet bills or was she looking to find it a home.

I don't think any long term reassurances can be given without medical investigations, so I'd say her only gauge is how well it is thriving and how active it is compared to the other pups and what mother thinks of it. As a human we are compelled to help and nurture but sometimes we need to look at the bigger picture.

[6thSense]

I got my rescue cocker Harvey at under a year and when the vet checked him he was found to have a slight heart murmur, but later on when he went back it had disappeared and the vet said this can happen sometimes as they develop. I've also had two older cockers with heart murmurs for which one nothing more ever came from it and the second developed heart disease, which he eventually died from, but this was when he was an old lad, so he lived a full and happy life. I know how heart braking it is to nurse a sick pup, so I really hope this little one is ok. 

[SuperCat]

My Grandma had a Yorkie who had a very obvious heart Murmur from when she was a puppy, even after being fed until she was grossly overweight and with skin problems (unfortunately the sad side of loving a dog and not understanding nutrition, also wanting to do the exact opposite of what we suggested!  ) and she lived (after we had put her on a strict diet etc) until she was 16. She actually outlived our Springer Spaniel who, other than having allergies, was a perfectly healthy dog.

She almost outlived Murphy at that time as well because he was just coming into his 'terrible teens'!!! 

Hope this pup survives but I also hope that the breeder, if she is definitely keeping this one herself, can do what needs to be done if necessary. I hate the thought of having animals living with bad conditions like that and the owners looking after them, even though they work hard, I always think that, although heart breaking, it is kinder to put the animal down because they can't understand things in the same way as us.