Chihuahua bitch diagnosed with Heart Murmur

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rendre_la_justice

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She was diagnosed with a heart murmur. I got her from a breeder age 1. I turned up, knew I should have walked away but she had dogs in cages, this little girl was quivering and had puppies with her (so would have been under 1 when she had them as they were 10 weeks) so mated on her first season :mad:

I paid a grand. Through the nose I know but I wanted her out of there. They had another chi but couldn't afford 2. House was appauling state I wante dot leave ASAP. They said vaccs card had been lost but gave me a print out from vets - now think this is fake and she copied vaccs codes from another.

Anyway took her to vets for her booster and she has a grade 2 heart murmur, a dog fore leg (I knew this) and an over shot jaw. She hasn't been fed on royal canin as they said (no suprise) and her teeth are a mess so got a £300 bill for teeth.

What is her outlook re heart murmur? She is so nervous (as I left clutching her they said she'd never been for a wlak so didn't know how to walk on a lead and she weed on pads in her cage) pads my backside I bet it was just paper.

So she's so nervous she shoots through the roof. My other dogs are good with her but lively and she quivers a lot. I am worried about her heart and her nerves. My mums dog has had a heart murmur all her life and she's 16 but she's not nervous and has been cared for from day one.

Any advice? I am worried she needs a quieter life as I have kids and noisey dogs. My sister has expressed an interest as she adores her and little chi sits on her knee and relaxes. My sister has no other dogs so she'd get one to one attention. I don't want to part with her though but I want to do what is best for her. Am I being neurotic about the heart murmur? I am just worried about all the stress she's been through.
 
Firstly - have you reported the breeder to the RSPCA for the conditions?

Secondly - what answer did your vet give you to the questions you asked?

And thridly, how long have you actually had her??
 
'Heart murmur' describes a huge variety of heart conditions, some of which show no change ever, others which deteriorate very slowly and others which have a more aggressive outcome. Ideally you want a specialist to do an ultrasound, EEG and possibly x-rays to assess exactly what type of heart murmur it is and whether she needs any medications. To my knowledge dogs with heart murmurs are not any more likely to get excited and have a heart attack, rather they tend to go into congestive heart failure because of the problem, but do ask your vet about this.
 
Poor little girl, RSPCA might or might not take action, also try the Kennel Club in case they are claiming Accredited Breeder status and a breed society which covers your area so they can advise potentia puppy buyers not to give them custom.
ALSO please inform the taxman as I am sure at that price they are topping up their earnings or any benefits they might be receiving, illegally.
Your sister might be able to offer her a calmer home.
 
Ditto the above, I would also say as you have no proof of anything from the breeder it is more than likely if her teeth were that bad at a year old then I'd say she is more likely alot older than 1.
Most dogs can live perfectly fine with a heart murmur - it's not as if she is a working dog, so just a pampered life is what she needs and maybe some meds, and a careful diet, but ask your vet.
As to her nervousness it's more than likely she missed out the social stimulation she needed as a pup - so speaking to a dog behaviorist may help, and if you think your sister could offer her a more appropriate home then it's upto you - you know the dog better than anyone, and chi's naturally shake - it's a little dog thing!
Just a note - if anyone else comes across a breeder like this awful one - DO NOT BUY from them as it is just fueling them to keep doing it - report them to everyone you can and make them go out of business that way!- very hard to do I know as you feel sorry for the animal, but you have to think of the other ones left in that situation and the tons more they will breed!
 
Exactly AA, not knocking the OP at all but I could never put £1k in the pockets of a scumbag like that for them to drink, smoke, fill up their car, stuff their faces or buy more dogs to make miserable and sell to kind-hearted people. You saved one dog OP and you cannot be knocked for saving her, but there will be more in her place :(
 
we had a little chihuahua diagnosed with grade 7 heart murmer (vet said it was the worst she had ever heard) Was put on medication, vetmedin, fortekor and survived for 2 years.. She was already quite frail at the end as her best friend had died the year previous, then developed large abdominal swelling. So, instead of letting little Beck suffer, the decision was made to let her go to rainbow Bridge to be with her Holly....
She was 8 when it was diagnosed, but if i remember right when she was 3 she had an enlarged heart.....
 
hello


i am so sorry for everything you have been throu.

my dog was diagnosed with a heart murmur 2 weeks ago and he is 13. also level 2. he is put onto the vetmedin but he now has to go back to the vet tomorrow as he is poorly still :(

my friend has a boxer who is a young one and he has a level two heart murmur and he is grand not a bother on him. he bounces all over the place and deffo does not set him back
 
Its also worth pointing out that some murmurs come and go, they are not neccessarily a constant condition. How do you know she wasnt on RC just by looking?! Teeth are a worry, you can feed any old cr** to a dog and its teeth should still be fine at 1, how sure are you of age?
In terms of finding her a new home it depends on her, living with other dogs usually helps bring nervy ones round and I wouldnt even worry about the heart with regards to her interacting with the others.
 
Please contact the "inland revenue" and give full details of her set up and "money making" and also contact the environmental health, if need be tell them you are a neighbour and the smell is "rancid" and it needs checking out and contact the council and request they inspect in regard to breeding licence/conditions/regulations. Don't let her carry on like this.
Call "trading standards also" you can certainly make life harder for her and make her aware she is being monitored.
Also if these where "advertised" please report full details to the advertiser.

As a smaller breed then a heart condition of any kind is obs better to control, and the meds we have now for heart conditions are pretty outstanding and can prolong life for years and years. It is really up to you in regard to rehoming to your sister, otherwise treat her as a normal dog and let her have quality of life.
Is she insured?
This is why it is so important to go to reputable breeders, who health test and keep their dogs in immaculate conditions with "full back up"
 
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