Heart Murmer in young Kitten

[kathabee]

Hello to Everyone:
This is my first post and I am hoping to get some support and help with a very difficult situation.
I just bought a beautiful Persian Kitten. We went to the Vet and the Vet found a hole in his heart, or Heart Murmer.
Needless to say I was devistated, I could not even breathe it was so heartbreaking. I immediately called my Breeder to let her know. She told me not to worry, this type of thing is common and the kitten may outgrow it. If anything happens she will replace him.
I was able to calm down and started my research hunt. It is difficult to obtain information on this subject. I have been told by the Vet and other Breeders this kitten will have health problems, possibly a shortened lifespan etc. I cannot afford large vet bills and have really gone out on a limb to purchase him, working overtime, saving my pennies.
Right now I am lost, I cannot afford the cardiologist bills.
Has anyone experienced a similar situation or have any suggestions good and bad.
Every time I look at this kitten I start to worry and cry thinking he will not be with us and it is affecting my bonding.

Kathabee

 

[valanhb]

Hi and welcome!

I am so sorry about the situation with your kitten. I don't have any personal experience with Persians, but a former co-worker had a kitten with the same condition. I don't know all the details, or how much it really compares to your situation. I know that they did end up having to put the kitten down, but knowing the woman, I'm not sure how much time, patience or vet care she was willing to put into it. Again, let me emphasize that I don't know the details or how similar it is to your situation. Only that it was a Persian kitten with a heart murmer.

Regardless, don't let his condition come between you and your kitten. He is still a little gift to be cherished, even if it does turn out to be only for a short time. He may end up surprising you with how strong he is, especially with someone to live for! I'm sure there are those better informed than I who can give you better information.

Love and snuggles from my furbabies to yours!

 

[debra myers]

Kathabee - I am moving your question to the health forum, as you will get wonderful answers there. I welcome you to our fur family! If anyone out there can help you, it is this bunch.

I hope and pray that your kitten will become healthy.
Deb M.

 

[maui]

Hi Kathabee

I'm sorry the vet visit brought bad news. While I know close to nothing about feline cardiology I wanted to comment about the breeder / buyer relationship.

I have both a purebred Russian Blue and a domestic shorthair Calico. . .I love them both, but when I bought my Russian Blue I had expectations that she would be a healthy kitty as you did before you bought your Persian; it is part of the understanding that goes with purebreds that you would not have expected had you gotten your cat at a shelter.

The breeder who sold us our Russian Blue required that we take the kitty to the vet within one week. Her kittens were guaranteed to be healthy and if the vet's visit proved otherwise, she would refund our money or provide a different cat. I think that most reputable breeders have a similar arrangement.

I sense that you are not feeling comfortable with either the breeder or the kitten. If I were you I would listen to what the vet and other breeders have said. . .particularly the vet's opinion because he stands to lose -- not gain -- if you return this kitty for a healthy one, since he is likely to get lots of business from you if you keep a cat with a heart problem.

That said, I know it sounds so cold like these kitties are merchandise. . .but you didn't go into the deal to get a kitty with a heart ailment. You went into the deal for a healthy cat. the breeders are indeed supplying a "product" and good breeders stand behind their product.

I know the joy of bringing home my little purebred fur baby and while I love my domestic too (they are both old and have expensive vet bills) I would have equally been devastated if something was found wrong with her as a baby. I wish for you joy in your first purebred as I did mine -- not heartbreak and devastation.

 

[tarnikhouse]

do you know what grade the heart murmur is? it sounds like it might be a high grade one, but i just wanted to make sure.
my josie has a low grade heart murmur (1-2) and she is fine. she was a stray who found me around thanksgiving, and she is about two, so she's not a kitten like yours is, but she is still a kitten at heart.
josie's heart murmur doesn't seem to bother her at all. the vet who first found it (the emergency vet i took her to the day i found her to get her tested for fiv/felv before bringing her home to my other baby, delph) didn't tell me much about it. apparently, heart murmurs of the low grade are only really a problem when the cat undergoes anesthesia (sorry, i'm not sure how to spell that). well, josie went under to get spayed (turns out she already was), and she was fine after that, too.

i think the last reply about you never knowing how strong your kitty is has the right idea....when i was growing up, we adopted a collie who had been terribly neglected for the first 8 1/2 years of her life. when she came to live with us, we took her and had a lot of tests done on her hips/back and the vet told us she only had about 6 months to live before her body would just give up on her. well, she lived almost 2 more years before we had to let her cross the rainbow bridge. love kept her alive, like it did with our other two dogs who outlived the expected collie life by many years.

so, the moral of my reply is to find out what grade heart murmur it is, and then love that kitty with everything you have inside of you. afterall, isn't it better to have loved and lost, than to never have loved at all??!!

steph, delph and josie

oh, for all of you who tuned in to my anxious emails about delph and josie being so sick last week, they are both perfectly happy and healthy again. there was one (wicked) twist on it though...i caught delph nibbling on my jade plant one morning, and then she promptly threw up...it seems that her problem was not stress-related afterall. she brought it upon herself! she is back to her happy, chubby self!

 

[josie]

I am the owner of an 11 month old exotic persian (exotic basically means she is a persian with short hair), her name is Phoebe. I purchased Phoebe from a breeder and was guaranteed her health, same as you. She is the sweetest, most adorable kitten and it took literally hours before I was extremely attached to her. I took her to her vet for her first routine checkup and shots, (let me just say that I completely trust my vet, I truly beleive in his honesty and will follow any advice or warning he gives). My vet heard a murmur, but said not to worry, that usually kittens grow out of heart murmurs as the kitten develops and that he would monitor the murmur each time we came back. Prior to having her spayed we returned to the vet for a pre-op checkup and the murmur was worse. My vet said he did not feel comfortable operating on her with the way the murmur sounded and suggested doing an eckocardiagram to determine the severity of the heart problem,(whether is was a murmur or a hole) and what the possible implications of the problem were. I was hesitant because of the cost ($500) and having just paid a great deal of money to purchase the kitten I didn't really have the money to pay for this test. However,any animal deservers to be taken care of and if I was not going to be able to provide Phoebe with the care she needed & deserved, then I shouldn't have her in the first place. I agreed to the ecko and postponed the surgery. My vet agreed to a payment plan. My vet sent the results of the ecko to a feline cardiac specialist and he determined that it was indeed a murmur and was not life threatening (1-2) and that Phoebe would live a normal life. I still bring her in to the vet on a routine basis for checkups, but that is at my request, not my vets.

I would suggest having the same test that I had for Phoebe for your kitty and take it from there, or try to find a specialist in your area that can help you. Also, I changed vets twice before I found one that I was comfortable with, be sure that you really have a trusting relationship with your vet and he/she won't lead you in the wrong direction. You have too much invested emotionally and monetarily in your kitty to risk being taken advantage of.

 

[veneri13]

Report it to the breeders association.