Heart Murmur Supplements

[Brian1945]

I have a 7yr. old Golden Retriever who was diagnosed three years ago with a "suspected heart murmur." This has now been confirmed, and the blood test result is in the "middle range" and the vet thinks it is a leaking heart valve. The dog is showing no symptoms whatsoever, and the vet suggests that it would be a good idea to start him on Vetmedin before he begins to show symptoms. I have read that supplements such as Ubiqunol would be worthwhile so am wondering if you could advise if this and any others would be helpful? He weighs 70lbs. so perhaps you could also give me the dosage. Would you agree that I should also put him on Vetmedin?  As I live in a rural area of Scotland I guess anything you suggest will have to be purchased online either from the UK or from the USA. Many thanks!

[Aleda M Cheng, D.V.M., C.V.A]

Has your dog had an echocardiogram?  An echo shows the heart in a 3D view so that amount of leakage from the heart valve can be accurately accessed.  The dose range for Ubiquinol is very wide as the supplement is so safe.  60 to 100 mg would be ideal and be given once to twice daily.  Hawthorn Berry is also a great heart supplement and your dog would require a full human dose twice daily.  Lastly, the Chinese herbal supplement "Compound Dan Shen" available by prescription from your vet is specifically for heart murmurs and this product is available in Scotland by post.  Vetmedin is very safe in dogs but it really would be best to have an echocardiogram for your dog preferably performed by a veterinary cardiologist before prescribing.  It would be worth driving an hour or two to have this test performed.