The Horse Forum banner
Status
Not open for further replies.

horse with a heart murmer

4K views 5 replies 5 participants last post by  stacysills02 
#1 ·
so my horse has a heart murmer hes turning 5. i was wondering if anyone out there horse has this and if so did it ever effect there riding. my horse acks normal ride normal. but i was just wondering if when he gets older will this bug him?
 
#2 ·
Did a vet tell you of the murmur? If so they should have listened after working the horse too.
Lots of horses have heart murmurs heard at rest that go away when at work. Listen for it when your horse has worked a bit, chances are it will then be gone & is nothing to worry about.

I know a bunch of horses with murmurs, even old ones. They are fine.
 
#3 · (Edited)
My oldest mare is 30 years old (31 in April) and has a heart murmur. In the last few years it's gotten worse, and it's now Grade 5, whatever that means. In her 20's, I drove her many miles on our back roads (pulling a 2 wheel cart) without a problem. She loves her work and is still the Queen for pony rides and does so happily!

You should ask your vet some more questions to learn whether it's a serious murmur, or incidental, and whether there are restrictions on his activity. I think a lot of horses (and people, too) have mild heart murmurs that don't cause them any problems.

My vet said my mare would live long enough to give pony rides to my grandchildren (I have none yet!). We baby her because she has arthritis in her shoulders and knees, so she isn't used for hard work anymore.
 
#4 ·
My horse has a grade 2 murmer on two valves. He was diagnosed at age 6. He's 9 now. It does not affect him at all. He is an eventer and does 10 mile hunter paces without breaking a sweat. If you notice your horse having a hard time catching his breath after hard work, you will want to learn how to check is heart rate. Check it before work, and then within 2 minutes of finishing exercise. The horse's heart rate should return to normal (before work rate) within 5 minutes. Any longer than that, and it might be at a stage where it would affect him. Otherwise, don't worry too much about it. It can't hurt to have the vet show you how to find it with a stethescope so you can make sure it doesn't increase in loudness over the years. Many horses have them and it does not seem to affect them. If he's TB, is extremely common.
 
#6 ·
thanks everyone the vet did make me longe him and she said his heart was normal. just told me not to over work him. never told me if it would get worse she just said to keep a eye on him. shes coming back out in febuary. i think ill ask her some more questions
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
You have insufficient privileges to reply here.
Top