"cindys" wrote in message
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"22brix" wrote in message
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snip


Cindy,

I'm not an expert on this but I've read that finding a food low in
phosphorus is more important than a low protein diet.

Several websites that I've read have said the same.

The bad part is that higher protein foods are frequently high in
phosphorus. The biggest problem with the low protein, kidney diets is
that they're not always that palatable. You may want to play around with
different kidney foods.

And right now, Alex is not eating an awful lot, and he has lost over a
pound since last May. This is the pattern I went through with Molly during
the last two years of her life. I've been feeding my cats Fancy Feast in
the morning. What happens is that Alex eats a little and then Bullwinkle
ends up polishing off the rest of Alex's portion (and Daisy's portion and
Tux's portion as well) in addition to his own. Despite his voracious
appetite, Bullwinkle has also lost weight. He was recently tested for
thyroid problems and that came back negative. All of my cats have been on
OM prescription food since Alex's diabetes diagnosis last spring. At any
rate, Alex has not seemed overly enthusiastic about eating. He's not
starving himself, but he's picking and eating small amounts. I'll give the
kidney diet a try, but I can pretty much guarantee already that he is not
going to go for it. For the last year of her life, Molly existed
exclusively on human tuna. It was the only thing she would eat other than
deli meats or my home cooking (beef or chicken). I supplemented her with
feline vitamins.


My CRF kitty was finally put on fluids last summer when she became
dehydrated after several years of high normal BUN and creatinine. I'm
currently giving her 100ml fluids every other day subQ. Molly's BUN and
creatinine levels are actually slightly better than they were in August.

So your kitty has actually shown improvement! That's great! My Molly never
really went on subcu fluids. At the end, she did receive subcu fluids a
few times at the vet. I was going to initiate them at home, but she was
already close to the end of her life at that point and she was suffering,
so I opted to euthanize. Now, I feel sort of confused. Phil (whose
opinion I respect a great deal) is advising against the subcu fluids at
this point because of additional stress on the cat's kidneys. A website I
just read is saying the same thing as my vet (that the subcu fluids should
be initiated early and will prolong the cat's life). Your cat has been on
them for seven months and has shown improvement. And then, there's
Bullwinkle whose lab values are still within normal limits but high. Is
there any way to diagnose impending kidney disease before the BUN and
creatinine are elevated (in an effort to prevent it)? I am so confused
and so upset. I intend to speak to my vet tomorrow and follow Phil's
advice to seek a second opinion from a specialist. There is no veterinary
nephrologist in my area, but there is a veterinary specialist who
completed a nephrology residency (currently specializing in some other
organ system).

I'm giving her omega-3 and potassium supplements. Molly has her good
days and her bad days.

I will absolutely give these supplements to Alex and Bullwinkle. I also
gave Alex 5 mg of Pepcid today. He has thrown up some clear liquid several
times (I know from experience this is due to nausea from kidney disease).
His nausea may also explain why he is less interested in food. It seemed
like he perked up a little bit after the Pepcid (I hope it wasn't wishful
thinking on my part), but I'll give it to him again tomorrow before
breakfast and see if his appetite improves. I will also begin offering him
canned food multiple times during the day.

I cherish the good days--they still outweigh by far the bad days.

I wish you the best.

Thank you so much.
Best regards,
---Cindy S.


According to my vet, cats will do better long term on the kidney diets but
if they don't eat it, it won't help them! What I have been doing with Molly
is mixing her diet food with a really stinky cat tuna food. It's the one
thing she really likes. I wish she'd eat the kidney food alone but. . .I'm
opting for calories.

I'm not sure Molly has improved over all--her lab values are a little better
but we've had some crises along the way. She was diagnosed with high blood
pressure in February. As soon as we got that under control she had a raging
urinary tract infection. She's now been off antibiotics for a couple of
weeks and seems to be feeling pretty good. One endearing thing about her is
her purr--it's the loudest purr I've heard on a cat. I can hear her in the
next room when she's really going. She's been doing that a lot the past
couple of weeks and she only does that when she's feeling pretty good.

As far as the fluids my vet didn't put her on fluids initially; her kidney
values were borderline for several years--it wasn't until she got
dehydrated and was feeling punky that we started the fluids. As my vet
explained it to me, a high BUN makes the cat feel nauseated. The additional
fluids dilute the BUN and should help some with appetite. I know that once
Molly was on fluids, she perked up quite a bit. I, too, really respect
Phil's knowledge. He has a lot of good information regarding CRF. Getting
a second opinion is a very good idea.

There are a couple of crf support sites as well, a lot of information and
people who are going through the same thing.

Good luck with Alex and Bullwinkle, both. I love older cats but they bring
their own issues!

Bonnie