If you had a gorgeous bitch who had passed everything with flying colors, including two auscultations, and then was diagnosed with very mild tvd when echoed at two years old, would you just sigh and spay her or would you get a second opinion? She is a very active, very athletic bitch who has won large classes at specialties. Dam, grand-dam, and great grand-dam are all echo clear, as are all studs in the pedigree three generations back. Part of me says get a second opinion but the other part says just accept a bad break and move on.

For heavens sake , get a second opinion !

Even if you get a second opinion, it is TVD, not a grade one elbow. Count your blessings that it's mild and she'll likely have a wonderful life. TVD is so prevalent in today's pedigrees just because you have generations of echo doppler clear doesn't mean you aren't going to have it show up. Many people on this forum can tell you about TVD out of echo doppler clear parents - with multiple clear generations behind. TVD can be deadly and there is no cure and no genetic test. If you don't want additional heartache, love her but don't breed her. I wish you the best of luck. I hate TVD!

If it is TVD then a second opinion will not help. If it is regurge that has been inproperly diagnosed as TVD then a second opinion will help. What did you see on the echo? Did the cardiologist show you the tricuspid valve and the malformity/problem? If so, a second opinion will not change that. If you did not see the echo and only got a verbal diagosis, I would go back to the cardiologist and get more details before I spent money on a second echo. You want to clearly understand what the problem is.

If it is TVD, please do not breed your bitch no matter how beautiful she is. I know it is heart breaking, but she should not be bred if she has TVD.

Thank you all for your input. I did watch the cardiologist do the exam; that's why I wondered if I should get a second opinion.

She definitely won't be bred; that was never an issue. The question was whether to seek a second opinion, not if Labs with TVD should be used in a breeding program.

I'm a very small hobby breeder who has been breeding Labs for twenty years and finally got close to what I envision as the perfect girl, only to be knocked back to square one. Worse, I'm reaching the age when there isn't much time to recoup. This has truly been a heartbreaking experience.

The poster above brought out some good questions...
If the TVD was diagnosed based on regurgitation alone, then I would definitely get a second opinion. There doesn't seem to be a general consensus about what is an acceptable level of regurgitation and it has been posited that about 50% of large breed dogs have some form of regurgitation that is not TVD, or MVD related.

If, however, the bitch is already showing some signs of changes - stenosis, early CHF - or there is evidence of a malformation of the tricuspid valve, then a second opinion is not going to help.

I am very sorry you are facing this. It is a very tough decision.

Yes, a very tough question. In addition to the lack of agreement among cardiologists about what constitutes "normal regurgitation," what constitutes "malformation of the tricuspid valve" is also not as clearcut at it may sometimes seem on Internet lists. Without a genetic test, normal variation versus abnormal variation is a question. Stenosis and CHF generally develop later in the disease so they are not much help for breeding decisions. A very, very tough question.

If you aren't going to breed her, what's the point of a second opinion? If you are really wondering if you should stop showing such a pretty girl - I'd say enjoy her and keep showing her! If I am misunderstanding what you are after, I apologize in advance. I know it won't cure the heartbreak - but winning with her will still feel good.

Maybe the point of a second opinion is to find out how serious the problem really is, not about showing.

Or to find out if there is a problem at all.

You stated that you are not going to breed her right? if you have the $ by all means get the second opinion even if it's to confirm that it really is TVD. However, if second opinion confirms TVD and you say three generations on each side behind your girl is color doppler clear you still don't know where it's coming from and that still sucks.

Or how about if the second opinion says it isn't TVD?

Always get a second opinion with something such as this.