I had a bitch that was born with PDA. Bought her as a show prospect and when she went in for her 3rd set of shots and exam my vet heard the heart murmur. At the time he wanted to wait and see if it cleared as puppies sometimes outgrow them. At around a year it was still very present and she was rather thin. She had no lack of vigor though, and I had them perform the operation. Operation was a success and she lived to be 11 years old. I don't think I would do the operation on a very young dog, but I think it is pretty common now. This was back in 1990 when Katie had her operation. Sheri Chambers Paravel German Shepherds ============================================================================ POST is Copyrighted 2007. All material remains the property of the original author and of GSD Communication, Inc. NO REPRODUCTIONS or FORWARDS of any kind are permitted without prior permission of the original author AND of the Showgsd-l Management. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ALL PERSONS ARE ON NOTICE THAT THE FORWARDING, REPRODUCTION OR USE IN ANY MANNER OF ANY MATERIAL WHICH APPEARS ON SHOWGSD-L WITHOUT THE EXPRESS PERMISSION OF ALL PARTIES TO THE POST AND THE LIST MANAGEMENT IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, AND IS A VIOLATION OF LAW. VIOLATORS OF THIS PROHIBITION WILL BE PROSECUTED. For assistance, please contact the List Management at admin@xxxxxxxxxxxx VISIT OUR WEBSITE - www.showgsd.org ============================================================================