Flow Veterinary Cardiology provides a Advanced Practitioner led Small Animal Cardiology referral service for dogs and cats. Our service is based in Co. Cork.
25/11/2025
This sweet gentle giant called Boxer visited us last week for his cardiac assessment 🤩
Boxer was so well behaved for his investigations - a total gentleman of a dog!😍 He had a proper fan club amongst our team by the time his visit had finished 😂
Great Danes and many other giant breeds have an increased prevalence of Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM) and proactive screening is recommended to catch DCM cases early.
Thanks to Boxer’s owner for her kind permission to post Boxer’s picture!
24/11/2025
Which breeds are at higher risk of a PDA?🧐
🫀While any breed (including crossbreeds) can be diagnosed with a patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), several breeds have been shown to have an increased predisposition. Here are 7 of those breeds (in no particular order) for your reference!
🐾 Historically, purebred dogs were reported to be more commonly affected than crossbreeds. But with the rise of popular “posh crossbreeds” like Cavapoos, Maltipoos, and other combinations of the breeds listed, I’m seeing a significant number of these mixed-breed pups presenting with PDA as well.
👂 Have you ever suspected a PDA during puppy auscultation? What breed were they? Share your experience in the comments below ⬇️
Don’t forget to save this post for future reference ✅
20/11/2025
Spotting a PDA murmur early can be lifesaving. With timely treatment, many puppies go on to live long, healthy lives.
Need a quick refresher on how to recognise one? Swipe through and save this post for later!
Have you ever heard the murmur of a PDA? 🩺
09/11/2025
A brilliant few days attending the 50th anniversary meeting of the Veterinary Cardiovascular Society (VCS) this week🫀
🗓️VCS is a major highlight in the cardiology annual calendar, where veterinary cardiologists and cardiology nurses from the UK, Europe and further afield come together to talk all things vet cardio!
It is an invaluable opportunity to keep up to date with developments in the field, connect with fellow cardiologists and to generally embrace being a bit nerdy about our shared passion for cardiology!
I started attending VCS way back as a final year vet student, and have attended almost every year since! Here’s to another 50 years of this wonderful society! 🥂
28/10/2025
👂So you’ve heard a murmur in a young puppy or kitten - but what could it be?
🧭Locating the point of maximal intensity of a murmur (where it sounds loudest) will help you to narrow down your list of differentials of congenital heart disease - a very helpful skill to master! 🤓
🩺Thorough auscultation of both sides of the chest, at the base and apex, is essential for detecting these murmurs.
🎯This is easier said than done, a sniffing, wriggling, excited puppy is a noisy moving target!
✅ My top tip is to auscultate wriggly pups held up in your arms - this helps to limit their movement and can improve the quality of your auscultation in these cases
❤️ It is most important not to forget to listen high up in the left axilla (armpit), where we would expect to hear the continuous machinery like murmur of a PDA; a condition where prompt diagnosis and management with either surgical or interventional occlusion is critical to ensure a good outcome for the patient.
Has this post been helpful? If so, save it for reference later! ✅
25/10/2025
🫀 Puppy & Kitten Murmurs: Innocent or Pathological?
Whilst it is not an exact science, thorough auscultation can give us a few clues to help us figure out whether puppy and kitten murmurs are likely to be benign or pathological.
Swipe ➡️ for key distinctions and when to consider referral for echocardiography.
📖Further reading - if you want to dig into this topic in more depth, I would recommend reading this great paper (it also has some lovely flowcharts!): Cote et al.,(2015), ‘Management of incidentally detected heart murmurs in dogs and cats’, Journal of Veterinary Cardiology, 17, pp.245-61.
💬 How do you approach murmur assessment in your young patients? Share your thoughts below.
20/10/2025
Ah the life of a veterinary cardiologist…..! Some days we get to cuddle sweet puppies like little Beatrice here, some days it’s …..not so glamorous!
Little Beatrice was referred to us for cardiac assessment and an echo last week, and despite being only a baby at 12 weeks old, she was as good as gold and fell asleep in my arms after her scan. 🤩
Thanks to Beatrice’s owners for their kind permission to post her picture!
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Flow Referrals Ireland is a veterinary cardiology referral service for pets based in Millstreet, Co. Cork.
Established by Veterinary Cardiologist Jane Pigott, an RCVS Advanced Practitioner in Veterinary Cardiology.
Jane and the cardiology nursing team are looking forward to welcoming you and your pets to Millstreet. At Flow Referrals we pride ourselves on providing an excellent referral service to pet owners.
Pet Owners: Please contact your primary care family veterinarian to obtain a referral to visit our cardiologist. We’ll work closely with your vet every step of the way, and after consultation and treatment your general practice vet will provide continued care. You may be concerned that your pet needs to see a cardiologist - But don’t worry, your pet is in the perfect place to get the right treatment.
Referring Vets: At Flow Referrals we want to work to become a trusted partner for General Practice Vets. Once you have discussed your case with Jane, one of our nurses will contact your pet owner to arrange an appointment, the team is committed to keeping you and your pet owner constantly updated to ensure the referral process flows smoothly. Our cardiologist Jane is always happy to discuss cases and offer informal advice. We are your partner in care.
