Well, after $900 worth of tests, it appears not to be cardiomyopathy.
The valve on the left side of her heart is faulty. That side of her heart is already enlarged, and she already had some fluid in her lungs. hence the coughing. Actually, she was coughing when she got here, without any other symptoms, that would have been obvious without taking her blood pressure.and the vet who saw her missed the murmur.
her blood pressure was already very high, which happens as her body tries to make up for the faulty valve.
My normal vet caught it immdeiately, but advised waiting until 12 months for a cardiac work-up, as murmurs often go away and because apparently it is better to wait until they are adult.
Her prognosis is very uncertain. She might live a reasonably normal life, or not. In six months she will have her blood pressure checked again, which will tell us if the fortekor is helping. I think it may be, as I haven't heard her cough since she commenced treatment.
While she lives, I will be paying $90 per month, or however much it is as time goes on, for drugs.
Vet says it is either congnital, or she may have developed it as a very small kitten if she had any kind of infection that gave her pericarditis.
I would strongly suggest you get her mother checked by a cardiac specialist, and leah as well, if you plan to breed from them, as both the occasional cough and the murmur were not diagnosed properly either by your vet, or the first vet in the practice I use, which means the murmur is tricky to pick up, and the worrying nature of the cough is easy to miss.
Viola herself seems perfectly well and happy, which is typical for cats with this problem, until things get pretty bad...you know how stoic cats are!
I will give her the best care possible as long as I can. I have a great vet and we will ensure that, whether her life is long or short, it is the best life she can possibly have.
She is a very intense, chatty cat. They both enjoy going for walks in the park with me...on a leash of course...are very playful (have smashed endless belongings of mine) and are enjoying the iPad games I bought for them. Sebastian is the one who will greet starngers as though they are his best friends, Viola is more reserved.
While I know you had no idea, I nonetheless have a cat who was sold to me with a serious illness. I have already spent over $1,000.00 on this illness, and will continue to have to spend a lot of money.
While I know I cannot demand it, I would consider it only fair if you re-funded the $700.
Regards
Deb
