Hi all, We have the opportunity to bring a lab puppy into our home - but we found out with her 8 week check up that she had a Grade 3 heart murmur. Vet said it could go either way - could be a sign of a major issue or could be innocent and correct itself because she is the "runt". She's about 2 weeks behind her siblings in size. Doesn't appear to have any symptoms or odd traits to signal a heart issue (trouble breathing, lethargy, etc)... she has another check up this Saturday where they'll see if the murmur has changed. Does any one have experience with anything similar that could offer advice? What questions to ask? I have Google'd for 'statistics' regarding what the chances are that it will heal on it's own, but can't find any % stats to help with our decision. Thanks!!
I wouldn't open myself to the hurt of taking on a puppy who is not in the best of health and from health tested parents. Labradors are such a common breed that you will have no problems finding yourself a healthy puppy. The breeder should be keeping this puppy and not subjecting a new owner to the potential heartbreak.
This happened to me with my first pup, a Newfoundland, 30 years ago. Whilst we loved her to the moon and back, you are opening yourself up to a whole heap of heartache and uncertainty. Not to mention the fact she will never be able to get any insurance for any thing cardiac related. The best outcome sadly would be to hand her back, and that is hard
Love hurts. Fact. I might wait to see what the next exam shows. Based on that, I would ask what test (echocardiogram?) would provide the best information for decision making, if any. I hate to say I would not "buy" this pup but if I could get a clearer understanding of the heart condition, I might adopt the dog and do my best. If the condition can be well (emphasis on well) treated with surgery , are you prepared to do this? On the other hand there are cardiac conditions for which only palliation is available and are likely to get worse. In this case I would probably pass, sad to say. Good luck with your decision and let us know what you decide.
Athena, Edp, 5labs: Thank you for your input and honesty! We ultimately decided to go with another puppy. We just weren't quite in a place to take on the risk of a puppy with a serious illness. We're hoping that it is something she grows out of and can live a long healthy life, but with this being the first puppy we've had in many years, figured we need to at least start out with a healthy pup. That said, we did find another litter and got to choose from a few females - as of Sunday, we are the owners of a yellow lab named Ripley and she's quite the handful Mandi
