I have a 14-year-old cat, Wintressia, who means the world to me (I'm sure you all understand!). I have been nearly neurotic about her health since "our" dog (the cat, in her mind, owned the dog, not me) died of cancer two years ago. So whenever anything seems even the slightest bit off with Win, we head to the vet.
Six months ago, her bi-yearly "senior checkup" and bloodwork were normal - at least, that's what the vet said.
At the beginning of this week, Win's attitude and behavior seemed a little bit off. She had an appetite - she still begged for food and ran to the food dish the second I put it down - but she then seemed unwilling to eat. She'd take a few tiny licks or bites of the food and walk away, but if I acted as if I was going to the cupboard to get a can of food, she ran over and began to beg as if she was starving.
On Tuesday she vomited, almost immediately after eating. The vomitus was basically just undigested food with a few blades of grass. I didn't want her to be starved or dehydrated, so after cleaning up the barf, I offered her a small amount of fresh food. She seemed to have an appetite and consumed the food. She hasn't vomited since, and although her appetite is lessened, she still eats. I took her to the vet on Thursday, though, since she's an older cat and I'm paranoid.
The vet called me Friday night with the blood/urine results. She started off by telling me that my cat had lost approximately 75% of her kidney function. Off to a great start with the news, there, doc.
She said most of Win's bloodwork/urine tests looked normal, but:
Win's BUN is 53 (upper limit of "normal" is 36)
Win's creatinine is 2.8 (upper limit of "normal" is 2.4)
The vet did mention that her phosphorus levels are normal, though she didn't give me the exact amount. I plan on asking for a copy of the bloodwork ASAP so I can look over all the other levels.
My vet also didn't outright SAY that Win has CRF/CKD, but with those elevated levels, I'm assuming that's the diagnosis I'm rolling with.
I asked for treatment options, and my vet said that at this level, she wanted to start Win on "Azodyl" and put her on a low-protein diet. She recommended Science Diet - which they sell at the vet's office, of course. One whole wall is devoted to SD products.
I'm not trying to bash Science Diet or Royal Canin, as I know they're good companies who have spent a lot of time and money developing special-needs diets, but I really, really wanted to stay away from grains and grain by-products. I looked at some of the ingredients listing for SD k/d formula: Pork By-Products, Brewers Rice, Oat Fiber, Corn Starch, Psyllium Seed Husk - and I know that psyllium seed husks are what's in human fiber/laxative products like Metamucil. Cats don't need to be sucking down Metamucil.
After feeding my cat Weruva, which she loves and is grain-free, it seems almost negligent of me to move my cat back to a food that's filled with grains and grain by-products. I know many cats thrive on diets of commercial pet foods which are mostly grain-based, and I probably sound like a premium-food snob, but aaargh. I just don't know what to do. Weruva is about 66% protein, depending on the flavor - and something like the SD k/d formula is 28% protein.
I've been reading the fantastic stickies in this forum and some other sites recommended for cats with CKD/CRF (Tanya's - felinecrf.org - has been particularly helpful) but I'm still kind of working through the shock of "your cat may die of this". Win is all I have left from a large "family" of pets, and I'm nowhere near ready to lose her. I'm willing to do anything for her, subcutaneous injections, medications - but I don't want to be making her worse by feeding her the "wrong" diet.
I've been reading some documentation and various sites on the controversy of the low-protein diet "necessity" for cats with CRF/CKD. Has anyone here had any personal experience with choosing to keep their cats on a normal diet instead of the prescription low-protein diet? Conversely, does anyone have any personal experience with a low-protein diet being effective?
Also, are there any specific things I should ask my vet about CKD/CRF?
Sorry for the extra-long rambling post - I'm surrounded by non-pet-lovers IRL and it feels so comforting to have a community to talk to!
Six months ago, her bi-yearly "senior checkup" and bloodwork were normal - at least, that's what the vet said.
At the beginning of this week, Win's attitude and behavior seemed a little bit off. She had an appetite - she still begged for food and ran to the food dish the second I put it down - but she then seemed unwilling to eat. She'd take a few tiny licks or bites of the food and walk away, but if I acted as if I was going to the cupboard to get a can of food, she ran over and began to beg as if she was starving.
On Tuesday she vomited, almost immediately after eating. The vomitus was basically just undigested food with a few blades of grass. I didn't want her to be starved or dehydrated, so after cleaning up the barf, I offered her a small amount of fresh food. She seemed to have an appetite and consumed the food. She hasn't vomited since, and although her appetite is lessened, she still eats. I took her to the vet on Thursday, though, since she's an older cat and I'm paranoid.
The vet called me Friday night with the blood/urine results. She started off by telling me that my cat had lost approximately 75% of her kidney function. Off to a great start with the news, there, doc.
She said most of Win's bloodwork/urine tests looked normal, but:
Win's BUN is 53 (upper limit of "normal" is 36)
Win's creatinine is 2.8 (upper limit of "normal" is 2.4)
The vet did mention that her phosphorus levels are normal, though she didn't give me the exact amount. I plan on asking for a copy of the bloodwork ASAP so I can look over all the other levels.
My vet also didn't outright SAY that Win has CRF/CKD, but with those elevated levels, I'm assuming that's the diagnosis I'm rolling with.
I asked for treatment options, and my vet said that at this level, she wanted to start Win on "Azodyl" and put her on a low-protein diet. She recommended Science Diet - which they sell at the vet's office, of course. One whole wall is devoted to SD products.
I'm not trying to bash Science Diet or Royal Canin, as I know they're good companies who have spent a lot of time and money developing special-needs diets, but I really, really wanted to stay away from grains and grain by-products. I looked at some of the ingredients listing for SD k/d formula: Pork By-Products, Brewers Rice, Oat Fiber, Corn Starch, Psyllium Seed Husk - and I know that psyllium seed husks are what's in human fiber/laxative products like Metamucil. Cats don't need to be sucking down Metamucil.
After feeding my cat Weruva, which she loves and is grain-free, it seems almost negligent of me to move my cat back to a food that's filled with grains and grain by-products. I know many cats thrive on diets of commercial pet foods which are mostly grain-based, and I probably sound like a premium-food snob, but aaargh. I just don't know what to do. Weruva is about 66% protein, depending on the flavor - and something like the SD k/d formula is 28% protein.
I've been reading the fantastic stickies in this forum and some other sites recommended for cats with CKD/CRF (Tanya's - felinecrf.org - has been particularly helpful) but I'm still kind of working through the shock of "your cat may die of this". Win is all I have left from a large "family" of pets, and I'm nowhere near ready to lose her. I'm willing to do anything for her, subcutaneous injections, medications - but I don't want to be making her worse by feeding her the "wrong" diet.
I've been reading some documentation and various sites on the controversy of the low-protein diet "necessity" for cats with CRF/CKD. Has anyone here had any personal experience with choosing to keep their cats on a normal diet instead of the prescription low-protein diet? Conversely, does anyone have any personal experience with a low-protein diet being effective?
Also, are there any specific things I should ask my vet about CKD/CRF?
Sorry for the extra-long rambling post - I'm surrounded by non-pet-lovers IRL and it feels so comforting to have a community to talk to!
