Sick cat losing weight - any suggestions.

Hi all,

Would some of you be kind enough to give me some advice about my cat
Max ?
He has chronic Renal Failure and recently a tumor was found on his leg.
He limps now, eats like a horse and otherwise seems OK. We feed him
Hill's KD at our vet's recommendation and he eats it without too much
fuss. I'm wondering if the KD is nutritious enough since he continues
to lose weight. He is becoming a skeleton with fur. Does anyone know of
a supplement I can give him to help gain some of the weight back ? The
KD food won't do much for his kidneys if he starves first !
Any advice would be much appreciated.

- Thanks to all - Tom D.

Talk with your vet...they may be able to offer some suggestions. When was
your feline companion diagnosed with kidney problems ? My vet also
suggested Eukanuba Renal formula. Try that too.


wrote in message
ups.com...
Hi all,

Would some of you be kind enough to give me some advice about my cat
Max ?
He has chronic Renal Failure and recently a tumor was found on his leg.
He limps now, eats like a horse and otherwise seems OK. We feed him
Hill's KD at our vet's recommendation and he eats it without too much
fuss. I'm wondering if the KD is nutritious enough since he continues
to lose weight. He is becoming a skeleton with fur. Does anyone know of
a supplement I can give him to help gain some of the weight back ? The
KD food won't do much for his kidneys if he starves first !
Any advice would be much appreciated.

- Thanks to all - Tom D.

Red flag. He limps... perhaps he is in pain? Just because he isn't crying
in discomfort, doesn't mean he isn't in pain. If he's in pain, I'd be
looking into taking him out of that pain, if you know what I mean.

The tumor may be a sarcoma, which is cancerous. Maybe he is losing wt.
because of the cancer. You should bring him back to the vet.
Gail
"Terry" wrote in message
...
Red flag. He limps... perhaps he is in pain? Just because he isn't
crying in discomfort, doesn't mean he isn't in pain. If he's in pain, I'd
be looking into taking him out of that pain, if you know what I mean.

wrote in message
ups.com...
Hi all,

Would some of you be kind enough to give me some advice about my cat
Max ?
He has chronic Renal Failure and recently a tumor was found on his leg.
He limps now, eats like a horse and otherwise seems OK. We feed him
Hill's KD at our vet's recommendation and he eats it without too much
fuss. I'm wondering if the KD is nutritious enough since he continues
to lose weight. He is becoming a skeleton with fur. Does anyone know of
a supplement I can give him to help gain some of the weight back ? The
KD food won't do much for his kidneys if he starves first !
Any advice would be much appreciated.

- Thanks to all - Tom D.

k/d is too low in protein for all but cats in end-stage CRF. If your cat's
BUN is less than 60-80 mg/dl, you might want to speak to a vet about feeding
him x/d or g/d canned. x/d is the closest to k/d (non-acidified) just with
a little more protein and slightly higher (acceptable) phosphorus (as long
as
your cat doesn't have hyperphosphatemia).

You might also want to speak to a vet about potassium and omega-3
supplements. Both supplements can slow the progression of CRF and omega-3s,
(EPA) and (DHA) can limit tumor growth and make tumor cells more susceptible
to both chemotherapeutic drugs and the cat's own immune system.

Has the tumor been biopsied?

Phil

Another thought is to have they thyroid checked. Could be hyperthyroid
- leading to weight loss and continued hunger. I had a cat with renal
failure who also limped but had no tumor. Perhaps the limp is from the
kidney pain? Just a guess.

Phil P. wrote:
wrote in message
ups.com...
Hi all,

Would some of you be kind enough to give me some advice about my cat
Max ?
He has chronic Renal Failure and recently a tumor was found on his leg.
He limps now, eats like a horse and otherwise seems OK. We feed him
Hill's KD at our vet's recommendation and he eats it without too much
fuss. I'm wondering if the KD is nutritious enough since he continues
to lose weight. He is becoming a skeleton with fur. Does anyone know of
a supplement I can give him to help gain some of the weight back ? The
KD food won't do much for his kidneys if he starves first !
Any advice would be much appreciated.

- Thanks to all - Tom D.

k/d is too low in protein for all but cats in end-stage CRF. If your cat's
BUN is less than 60-80 mg/dl, you might want to speak to a vet about feeding
him x/d or g/d canned. x/d is the closest to k/d (non-acidified) just with
a little more protein and slightly higher (acceptable) phosphorus (as long
as
your cat doesn't have hyperphosphatemia).

You might also want to speak to a vet about potassium and omega-3
supplements. Both supplements can slow the progression of CRF and omega-3s,
(EPA) and (DHA) can limit tumor growth and make tumor cells more susceptible
to both chemotherapeutic drugs and the cat's own immune system.

Has the tumor been biopsied?

Phil

Thanks Everybody for the helpful advice, I'll be calling the Vet again
soon to run some of your suggestions past him.

Guess I should have given more info about my cat in the beginning.
Max is 14 years old, and neutered. He was diagnosed with Kidney
problems
a few months ago. His BUN level was in the low 50's and Creatinine was
high also, though I don't remeber the exact number.
He has been checked for thyroid problems and does not have a problem.
He was also checked for diabetes which was negative also.
A month after the first vet visit we noticed weakness in his leg and
some limping. We brought him back and that's when the vet found the
tumor. He wasn't positive if it was cancerous and couldn't say if the
cat is in pain.
Like I said, except for the limp and the low weight, the cat seems to
be enjoying life. He eats, drinks, plays, sleeps and purrs when petted.
This is why I haven't considered Euthenasia yet. When the time comes,
it will be hard , but I won't let him suffer.





Buddy's Mom wrote:
Another thought is to have they thyroid checked. Could be hyperthyroid
- leading to weight loss and continued hunger. I had a cat with renal
failure who also limped but had no tumor. Perhaps the limp is from the
kidney pain? Just a guess.

Phil P. wrote:
wrote in message
ups.com...
Hi all,

Would some of you be kind enough to give me some advice about my cat
Max ?
He has chronic Renal Failure and recently a tumor was found on his leg.
He limps now, eats like a horse and otherwise seems OK. We feed him
Hill's KD at our vet's recommendation and he eats it without too much
fuss. I'm wondering if the KD is nutritious enough since he continues
to lose weight. He is becoming a skeleton with fur. Does anyone know of
a supplement I can give him to help gain some of the weight back ? The
KD food won't do much for his kidneys if he starves first !
Any advice would be much appreciated.

- Thanks to all - Tom D.

k/d is too low in protein for all but cats in end-stage CRF. If your cat's
BUN is less than 60-80 mg/dl, you might want to speak to a vet about feeding
him x/d or g/d canned. x/d is the closest to k/d (non-acidified) just with
a little more protein and slightly higher (acceptable) phosphorus (as long
as
your cat doesn't have hyperphosphatemia).

You might also want to speak to a vet about potassium and omega-3
supplements. Both supplements can slow the progression of CRF and omega-3s,
(EPA) and (DHA) can limit tumor growth and make tumor cells more susceptible
to both chemotherapeutic drugs and the cat's own immune system.

Has the tumor been biopsied?

Phil

Most tumors in cats are cancerous. Also, at his age, the likelihood is that
it is cancerous.
Gail
wrote in message
ups.com...
Thanks Everybody for the helpful advice, I'll be calling the Vet again
soon to run some of your suggestions past him.

Guess I should have given more info about my cat in the beginning.
Max is 14 years old, and neutered. He was diagnosed with Kidney
problems
a few months ago. His BUN level was in the low 50's and Creatinine was
high also, though I don't remeber the exact number.
He has been checked for thyroid problems and does not have a problem.
He was also checked for diabetes which was negative also.
A month after the first vet visit we noticed weakness in his leg and
some limping. We brought him back and that's when the vet found the
tumor. He wasn't positive if it was cancerous and couldn't say if the
cat is in pain.
Like I said, except for the limp and the low weight, the cat seems to
be enjoying life. He eats, drinks, plays, sleeps and purrs when petted.
This is why I haven't considered Euthenasia yet. When the time comes,
it will be hard , but I won't let him suffer.





Buddy's Mom wrote:
Another thought is to have they thyroid checked. Could be hyperthyroid
- leading to weight loss and continued hunger. I had a cat with renal
failure who also limped but had no tumor. Perhaps the limp is from the
kidney pain? Just a guess.

Phil P. wrote:
wrote in message
ups.com...
Hi all,

Would some of you be kind enough to give me some advice about my cat
Max ?
He has chronic Renal Failure and recently a tumor was found on his
leg.
He limps now, eats like a horse and otherwise seems OK. We feed him
Hill's KD at our vet's recommendation and he eats it without too much
fuss. I'm wondering if the KD is nutritious enough since he continues
to lose weight. He is becoming a skeleton with fur. Does anyone know
of
a supplement I can give him to help gain some of the weight back ?
The
KD food won't do much for his kidneys if he starves first !
Any advice would be much appreciated.

- Thanks to all - Tom D.

k/d is too low in protein for all but cats in end-stage CRF. If your
cat's
BUN is less than 60-80 mg/dl, you might want to speak to a vet about
feeding
him x/d or g/d canned. x/d is the closest to k/d (non-acidified) just
with
a little more protein and slightly higher (acceptable) phosphorus (as
long
as
your cat doesn't have hyperphosphatemia).

You might also want to speak to a vet about potassium and omega-3
supplements. Both supplements can slow the progression of CRF and
omega-3s,
(EPA) and (DHA) can limit tumor growth and make tumor cells more
susceptible
to both chemotherapeutic drugs and the cat's own immune system.

Has the tumor been biopsied?

Phil

wrote:
Thanks Everybody for the helpful advice, I'll be calling the Vet again
soon to run some of your suggestions past him.

Guess I should have given more info about my cat in the beginning.
Max is 14 years old, and neutered. He was diagnosed with Kidney
problems
a few months ago. His BUN level was in the low 50's and Creatinine was
high also, though I don't remeber the exact number.
He has been checked for thyroid problems and does not have a problem.
He was also checked for diabetes which was negative also.
A month after the first vet visit we noticed weakness in his leg and
some limping. We brought him back and that's when the vet found the
tumor. He wasn't positive if it was cancerous and couldn't say if the
cat is in pain.
Like I said, except for the limp and the low weight, the cat seems to
be enjoying life. He eats, drinks, plays, sleeps and purrs when petted.
This is why I haven't considered Euthenasia yet. When the time comes,
it will be hard , but I won't let him suffer.

Have you offered him treats to entice him to eat more? I would think
that in his situation, adding some treats is not going to harm him at
this point. Cooked chicken breast or meat baby food (with no onions)
are some things I used to entice my cat to eat when he was ill. You can
warm them a little to be more appealing.

Hugs to you and Max.

Thanks for your kind words and advice.

Yes, I have offered him extra food in the form of treats. He really
likes Deli Turkey (at 8.99/lb) ,which he gets almost daily, and poached
Salmon (about once a week when I cook it for myself). I'm worried about
the whole "too much protein" thing, but like I said before, limiting
protein will do him no good if he dies of malnutrition first. I guess
I'm lucky since he still devours anything I put in front of him. I
guess when he loses his appetite, it will be a sign that things are
really bad.

Rene S. wrote:
Have you offered him treats to entice him to eat more? I would think
that in his situation, adding some treats is not going to harm him at
this point. Cooked chicken breast or meat baby food (with no onions)
are some things I used to entice my cat to eat when he was ill. You can
warm them a little to be more appealing.

Hugs to you and Max.