how do check a dog for a heart murmur?

Answer 1

This article will help you out:

Murmurs are graded in severity from 1 to 6, with 1 being the softest murmur that can be heard and 6 being loud enough that it's evident before the stethoscope even touches the chest. Murmurs graded at 4 to 6 can often be felt if the hand is placed at the right spot on the chest.

Most murmurs are diagnosed by auscultation, which simply means that the veterinarian listens to the heart with a stethoscope. Although auscultation can indicate the presence of a murmur, further tests are needed to determine its cause and severity. Your veterinarian is likely to refer you to a veterinary cardiologist for these tests.

Depending on the breed, age, and predispositions of your dog, the cardiologist will want to take thoracic radiographs (chest X rays), if the referring veterinarian hasn't already taken them, and run an electrocardiogram and an echocardiogram (ultrasound).

The radiographi indicate overall heart size and enable the cardiologist to see the pulmonary vessels in the lung. This allows him to judge the degree of normalcy or abnormalcy resulting from the heart disease. An electrocardiogram shows the heart's rate and rhythm and is useful if abnormal rhythms are detected through auscultation.

An echocardiogram provides a precise measure of the thickness of the various chamber walls of the heart and a look at each of the cardiac valves. This test allows the cardiologist to determine the state of the valves and to calculate overall cardiac performance, which is helpful in deciding whether therapy is necessary. Follow-up echocardiograms tell the veterinarian whether or not the therapy is working.

The cardiologist may also check your dog's kidney function. "Renal disease is the most frequent cause of high blood pressure in dogs and cats," says James Ross, DVM, professor of cardiology at Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine. "The presence of renal disease adds a greater workload onto the heart and can make some cardiac conditions much worse much quicker unless the hypertension is brought under control.

"So it's often advisable to do some screening of blood for buildup of waste products, take a look at some urine, and make sure there's nothing going on there-and maybe check some enzymes that are associated with liver disease and congestion that sometimes develops as the heart falls."

Answer 2

Listen to the heart with a stethoscope. But, you might want to just take the dog to the vet.

Answer 3

ekg and listen with a stethyoscope.