Pet Forum / Miscellaneous / Animal Health / February 2004

I am not a vet.. but the general rule of thumb on using human meds on
animals is to use the human dose.. so dose as if your dog were a human
weighing 75lbs..

Here's what I found.

http://vetriscience.com/coen1030.html This explains the dose for 30mg
capsules and the one below for the 10mg.

http://www.catvitamins.com/coen1010.html

..........In the study below - Dosage rate of 10 mg/kg BW is pretty high.
For a 75 pound dog (34 kilos) it would be 340 mg/day.  CQ10 is not cheap.
Personally I would start at lower doses and see at what dose you get an
increase in energy and stick with that.  AFAIK CoQ10 is virtually non-toxic.
I have given as much as 60 mg/day to a cat with HT.  (And funnily enough
there's an article about CoQ10 and HT in kids in 2003.)  It must be given
with fat to be absorbed and daily doses should be divided into 2 or 3 parts.
Sometimes there may be a reaction to any supplement (due to source of
material or additives). It is wise to start out at 1/4 or 1/3 dose, give
once, wait a few days, up dose, wait a few days, etc. until final dosage is
reached.

J Card Fail. 2000 Sep;6(3):233-42.
The role of coenzyme Q10 in the pathophysiology and therapy of experimental
congestive heart failure in the dog.
Harker-Murray AK, Tajik AJ, Ishikura F, Meyer D, Burnett JC, Redfield MM.
Division of Cardiovascular Diseases and Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic and
Mayo Foundation, Rochester, Minnesota 55905, USA.
BACKGROUND: Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is essential for ATP generation and has
antioxidant properties. Decreased CoQ10 levels have been reported in human
heart failure (CHF), but it remains unclear if this is a conserved feature
of CHF. The objective of the study was to determine if tachycardia-induced
CHF in the dog is associated with reduced CoQ10 levels. Furthermore, it was
hypothesized that CoQ10 supplementation may improve CHF severity by
preventing CoQ10 deficiency (if present) or via antioxidant effects. Methods
and Results: Serum and myocardial levels of CoQ10 were examined in normal
dogs (n = 6), dogs with CHF (control, n = 5), and dogs with CHF treated with
CoQ10 (CoQ10; 10 mg/kg/day, n = 5). Serum CoQ10 levels did not change with
CHF in control dogs, and myocardial levels were similar to those of normal
dogs. CoQ10 therapy increased serum but not myocardial levels of CoQ10. In
early CHF, CoQ10-treated dogs had lower filling pressures, and, in severe
CHF, CoQ10-treated dogs had less hypertrophy as compared with untreated
dogs. Other indices of CHF severity were similar in control and
CoQ10-treated dogs. Conclusion: These data indicate that CoQ10 deficiency is
not present in this model of CHF. Although dramatic effects on hemodynamics
were not observed, CoQ10 supplementation did appear to attenuate the
hypertrophic response associated with CHF. Key words: enzymes,
cardiomyopathy, hormones, antioxidant.
PMID: 10997750 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Zaghloul AA, Gurley B, Khan M, Bhagavan H, Chopra R, Reddy I.
Bioavailability assessment of oral coenzyme Q10 formulations in dogs.
Drug Dev Ind Pharm. 2002 Nov;28(10):1195-200.
PMID: 12476865 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Notes on safety:
http://www.supplementwatch.com/supatoz/supplement.asp?supplementId=91

..........One wonders about the tests measuring CoQ10 in the blood if
seasonal/circadian variations in levels were not taken into account as noted
below.

Reis F, Hermida RC, Souza I, Maldonado J, Tavares P, Fontes-Ribeiro CA,
Teixeira HM, Alcobia T, Almeida L, Teixeira F.
Circadian and seasonal variation of endogenous ubiquinone plasma level.
Chronobiol Int. 2002 May;19(3):599-614.
PMID: 12069040 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

.........Personally I'd also be giving L-carnitine and taurine if you are
not feeding fresh food. Selenium might be another thing to consider, along
with Vit C and E.
de Lorgeril M, Salen P, Accominotti M, Cadau M, Steghens JP, Boucher F, de
Leiris J.  Dietary and blood antioxidants in patients with chronic heart
failure. Insights into the potential importance of selenium in heart
failure.
Eur J Heart Fail. 2001 Dec;3(6):661-9.
PMID: 11738217 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

L-Carnitine and Coenzyme Q10
http://www.nhir.com/tests/co_q10.pdf.

More on CoQ10: The Role of CoQ10 in Clinical Medicine, Part 1:
http://www.thorne.com/pdf/journal/1-1/coenzyme_q10_part1.pdf

Vet's suggestions for dose:
http://www.caninediabetes.org/newstwo.html
The dose is 10 mg for cats and small dogs,
20 mg for medium dogs,
30-40 mg for large dogs
and 50 mg for giant breed dogs.
Give once or twice daily.

Dose suggestions for L-Carnitine and CoQ10 in case of Muscular dystrophy in
dog - Cornell:
http://medicine.ucsd.edu/vet_neuromuscular/cases/2003/feb03.html

Interesting article on CHF:    http://www.geocities.com/badasshoundass/CHF1
Home page is here if you want to know more about the author:
http://www.geocities.com/badasshoundass/

4 Paws, 5 Directions, by Cheryl Schwartz, DVM
heart disease:  cats/small dogs 10 mg/twice daily
med dogs - 20 mg/ twice daily
large dogs - 30 mg/twice daily

NOTE that the range below runs from cat to giant breed dogs:
Complimentary & Alternative Veterinary Medicine, Shoen & Wynn, Eds, Chapter
4, Therapeutic Ntrition for the Cat, Dog & Horse, Roger V. Kendall, p. 55,
Table 4-1 Suggested Nutritional Therapies for the Dog & Cat:
Congestive Heart Failure - Coenzyme Q10 - from 20-100 mg daily  (Actual
daily dose depends on species variation, weight, age, physiologic state, and
other dietary considerations. Actual daily dose should be divided and given
in smaller portions, 2/ or 3 times daily if possible.)

And as a side note, for anyone on statin drugs, it might be a good idea to
take CoQ10:
Silver MA, Langsjoen PH, Szabo S, Patil H, Zelinger A.
Statin cardiomyopathy? A potential role for Co-Enzyme Q10 therapy for
statin-induced changes in diastolic LV performance: description of a
clinical protocol.
Biofactors. 2003;18(1-4):125-7.
PMID: 14695927 [PubMed - in process]

Langsjoen PH, Langsjoen AM.
The clinical use of HMG CoA-reductase inhibitors and the associated
depletion of coenzyme Q10. A review of animal and human publications.
Biofactors. 2003;18(1-4):101-11.
PMID: 14695925 [PubMed - in process]

For PubMed abstracts, plug the PMID into the search box at:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed

buglady
take out the dog before replying