Cat with kidney disease, but increased appetite???

indeedido · Mar 12, 2015

Hi everyone,

I am very confused about my CKD cat. I know there is a thread for cats like this, but I couldn't see anything regarding my issue. Actually, I haven't been able to find anything online at all.

My female cat, Duo, is around 15 years old and she was diagnosed with kidney disease about 4 months ago. On this occasion, I told the vet that she has increased appetite, so a thyroid test (the usual plus T4) was conducted. She came up perfectly fine, which is the same result I had with the same test about a year prior. She has always begged for food a lot, and I always assumed that it was because she's older, and I know older cats cannot always absorb nutrients well. When I asked the vet why she would have an increased appetite, she said "i don't know, it's weird, but see how she goes on the prescription diet first then we'll look at the other stuff".

That vet is since retired. About 2 or 3 months ago, Duo had a UTI, so I took her to another vet at the same practice. He gave her antibiotics, and while I was there I asked twice about the increased appetite and he just said "I don't know". Great, thanks!

So it's getting worse. She begs all the time. She is on Royal Canin Renal diet, but not consistently because she gets bored with it and won't eat it if I give it to her all the time. Besides, she doesn't seem to get satiated with it, and it seems to make her hunger worse. She won't eat any of the other brands.

She doesn't eat much at a time (which seems inconsistent with hyperthyroid anyway) - so it's like she wants to eat a little bit, constantly. She's been wormed, but I bought a different wormer today in case she has become resistant. She has always intermittently had periods of hair loss which I have fixed with either worming her or giving her higher protein food (because I did both at once, I'm not sure which one fixed it), but now she is losing it in chunks. She is thin, but hasn't lost weight rapidly. She seems to have a slightly bloated tummy, just slightly. She drinks and urinates a lot, but that is consistent with CKD.

My husband is a diabetic, so I was able to to test her blood sugar with his kit about 4 months ago, and her levels were fine, so I'm pretty sure it's not diabetes. Plus, she has had urinalysis since then, so presumably any sugar in the urine would have been picked up.

Has anyone ever experienced, or heard about anything like this, before? It's so difficult, because on the one hand I feel I should be feeding her the prescription diet consistently to keep phosphorous levels down - on the other hand, if I feed her meat and other good quality food, she seems to be satisfied for longer.

Could this just be a case of poor nutrition absorption that is overwhelming any loss of appetite she might experience from CKD? Or can increased appetite in a CKD cat actually happen as an isolated symptom?

Sorry this is long-winded!! I have never posted on a forum about one of my pets before, but I'm quite desperate now!

Rachael

P.s. are CKD cats more susceptible to getting worms? I think the cats have become resistant to the flea treatment I use, so perhaps she is getting reinfected?

stephanie42 · Mar 13, 2015

i'm not a vet or doctor or anything like that. i have had two cats with kidney failure; one was mild when diagnosed and we kept him alive for about 5 years with a dietary change.

currently piglet is my CKF kitty. it was noticed during an exam for a problem tooth. i've struggled with what to feed her - everyone goes on and on about phosphorus. i had switched to lower phos non-Rx foods (she would no eat any of the Rx options we tried, and i hate the ingredients). for a while i had her on wellness indoor kibble and various high quality canned foods. i continued doing research and settled on a combination of canned foods i was comfortable with - we rotated with some of the merrick pates, nature's variety instinct, and wellness core indoor canned. piglet's numbers were pretty stable on this food. i've recently switched to commercially prepared raw and home cooked food. the home cooked option gives me the opportunity to lower phosphorus by omitting bone and using egg shell. we go back to the vet to see how her levels are in about a week.

piglet's appetite has never lowered. even right after she had to have dental surgery, she wanted to eat. like you said, she drinks more water which is 'normal' of CKF kitties, but she's still eating everything i put down (i try to give her about 200kcal/daily). piglet does not beg, but the food i'm feeding is highly digestible and nutrient-dense. like you said, it seems duo is satisfied more/longer when you feed her higher quality food or meat. i'm a firm believer that CKF cats need to eat. i believe that if we feed a high-quality, highly digestible protein source and TRY to limit phosphorus, we're doing the best we can. perhaps you could try feeding the higher-quality food more often and then have her levels checked again to see how the phosphorus is affecting her?

mrsgreenjeens · Mar 13, 2015

stephgas said:
i believe that if we feed a high-quality, highly digestible protein source and TRY to limit phosphorus, we're doing the best we can. perhaps you could try feeding the higher-quality food more often and then have her levels checked again to see how the phosphorus is affecting her?

I totally agree with this. I have had at least three kidney cats (have one now), and the better the protein, the better off they are, IMHO. Even my Vet just said on our last visit that we should try to get our Callie to eat a really good quality protein diet, which is pretty opposite the normal "feed low protein to kidney cats" song and dance you usually hear

. Now, granted, our old girl is on appetite stimulants to get her to eat , and she is still as thin as a reed

, but she has never been much of an eater.

Is that Royal Canin K/D dry or wet food? If she will only eat Royal Canin, then I would at least try to feed her the wet variety, and if she doesn't like the wet K/D, then I would offer her some of their other wet foods. Wet foods seem to be much more satisfying for cats than dry food (satisfying as in "filling"

) If she is eating dry food only, then if you can convert her to wet food, the sky is the limit

. We can help you with converting her...just let us know.

puck · Mar 13, 2015

Firstly, if her T4 was over 3.0mcg/dL, this is therapeutically high for a cat, and a free T4 should be evaluated to truly rule out hyperthyroidism. Even if a cat is less than 3.0 I check a free T4 by ED before trusting my cat truly is euthroid, aka normal. If this value isn't elevated, know that a good appetite is rare in a renal failure kitty, and just take advantage.

Usually, you have to juggle and vary diets so much, you're dealing with diarrhea and vomiting also. Inappetance is common because CRF leads to GI and esophageal ulcers, due to azotemia/uremia causing enough pain to limit the appetite, causing elevated bile acid, and a feedback loop of nausea and inappetance. Not uncommon to have them on antacids and sucralfate to coat the stomach in a protective layer. As long as feeding time and med time is separate from sucralfate, it's very effective. Cerenia is also helpful, but only if the cause of the nausea is also treated, with antacid and/or sucralfate.

You don't have to stick to the Royal Canin Renal; it's just an easy option that is reduced protein and reduced phosphorus, with added potassium. Restrict phosphorus as possible, and if it's still at normal levels in the diet, then binding the phosphorus needs to be discussed with your vet. These additional medications do not taste good, and can inadvertently discourage appetite if associated with meals. We wait to administer until a cat has eaten heartily, then draw the appropriate dose, split to divide across each meal time. Restricted dietary protein has been considered outdated medical advice concerning feline renal failure management. It's more important to ensure they have good meat sources of protein offered in variety, rather than low protein. If their blood urea nitrogen or BUN rises gradually, calculated via blood chemistry, nitrogen trapping is started to limit the nitrogen absorbed into the bloodstream, after protein has been digested and its nitrogen components are available in the intestines for absorption. Nitrogen trapping is done with dietary fiber, such as psyllium husk or Epakitin.

Blood pressure, heart valves, and urine should all be closely monitored and regularly evaluated in feline renal failure management also. Many patients need meds to moderate all of these, once their disease progresses enough. Changes can be managed successfully for many years, but must be diagnosed to be managed.

margd · Mar 14, 2015

My Wesley also had an enormous appetite, despite his kidney disease. He was diagnosed when he was 13 and lived until he was 19. Despite his love for food, he refused all the prescription diet canned foods that are recommended for cats with kidney disease so ended up eating Friskies canned food the whole time. His last night, he had a stroke and could no longer walk and was obviously in distress so I called a mobile vet to come out and put him out of his misery. Before I did, I put a bowl of Friskies in front of him and he polished it all off! His thyroid was fine up until the very end so that doesn't explain his big appetite - he just loved to eat.

Just wanted to let you know that your cat is not the only one who likes to eat, even with malfunctioning kidneys!

indeedido · Mar 16, 2015

Wow, thank you so much for the help everyone. It's is especially helpful to know that not ALL kidney disease cats lose their appetite, because even on Tania's CRF page, all she says is that this is 'extremely rare' and the cat probably has hyperthyroid or diabetes. I guess the thing that throws me is that her weight and coat are not good - she's been a bit thin for a long time, but her coat is now absolutely terrible.

puck, I am almost certain that it was the free T4 that was checked. There were two tests done in house that came back normal, then on both occasions, a more in depth test was ordered to be done out of house, and I'm sure I remember the words 'free T4' being uttered. And from what I can gather, hyperthryoid cats have tonnes and tonnes of energy and eat everything they see - Duo is definitely still fussy, just wants to be fed regularly. I have been feeding her the Royal Canin wet diet. Dry food is all but banished from our house after all three of my cats had recurrent UTIs, and I have never looked back.

All that aside, I feel that she has improved the last few days. I decided to get a bit more fat into her diet to see if she that will make her feel more satiated, so I bought some cream and cat milk. She loves the cream, and if I leave the milk near her water, she tends to drink it instead of the water at times, so I feel as though I'm sneaking in some calorie and nutrients, which will hopefully fatten her up whilst not increasing phosphorous drastically. And I have to say that the results have been good - she is disturbing me less at night for food. I thought she had improved because of the worming tablet I gave her a few days ago, then I found it on my husband's desk - she had spat it out! Ahhh cats. So I wormed her again, so I'll see if that helps.

stephgas and mrsgreenjeans, thank you for the encouraging words about protein. My gut feeling has been telling me that I should be giving her good quality protein. Duo has always been a slim cat, and I have always had the inkling that she doesn't absorb nutrients well, so perhaps this problem has gotten worse in parallel with the diagnosis with kidney disease. I think I need to remember that she is my cat, and I know her the best. I do try to keep phosphorous down - I did a whole heap of research on this. And as I read somewhere, if they don't get enough protein and their muscles break down, this will hike the phosphorous levels up, so it would seem kind of counterintuitive to feed them too little protein, especially in an old cat who has trouble absorbing food.

puck · Mar 16, 2015

That's great, that she loves canned/moist food. So many cats will only eat dry diets, preference of texture started in their early years, and no amount of mixing, appetite stimulation/tempting, or hunger strike will shift them to eating moist diet.

Kidneys, heart, joints, and skin/coat all benefit from omega 3 fatty acids. Her coat may improve if you add DHA/EPA to her food. Welactin is a good option, highly concentrated, so minimal volume is needed to meet her dose every other day. It's also stable for many months at room temperature, so the bottle of oil is effective until it's empty.

Inappetance is more common in higher grade disease, when the kidneys are smaller, degraded, and nausea/ulcers make them feel cruddy. In early disease, with mild azotema and slightly elevated phosphorus, they usually still eat normally.

Renal kitties eventually need potassium supplementation, so we monitor their electrolytes every 3 months at a minimum to ensure we manage the disease as closely as possible. Tumil K and Renal K Gel are the popular options easiest to administer for owners.

Duo sounds as though she's faring well. I hope this continues. Maintaining her body condition is a primary goal and she's using enough groceries, muscle wasting doesn't seem a concern for her at this point. Some of my renal patients have responded well to acupuncture therapy as well. We use circulation points of energy too, to help limit bone marrow insult and anemia, common secondary issues with renal disease. Dogs tolerate the needles better than cats as a whole, but it is worth a try.

Good luck with your baby, and you are doing well, paying attention to her nuances and early changes in preferences/behavior. For my own, once we need to medicate/manage more than we enjoy the day, we try compounding meds and making that part as least invasive as possible. Once we're past easy medicating and managing, treating is stressful, and/or joy of living is lower, we begin to weigh our decisions.

Duo is fortunate to have an attentive caretaker. Hospice and palliative care is a challenge I too enjoy!

mrsgreenjeens · Mar 16, 2015

If you don't feel she is getting all the nutrients from her food, you might try adding Digestive Enzymes to her food. I add them to Callie's food, not just because she's a kidney cat, but because she's a senior. It's amazing what it does to the food. I mix a little bit into the can and it softens it up if it's a pate style, or if it's a gravy type, it turns the gravy almost to water, so I know it's doing something. I use Prozyme.

indeedido · Mar 16, 2015

Thanks puck, yes I've been really lucky that she's not a dry food addict. I've always fed my cat both wet and dry - they love the dry, and I used to free feed it, now they only get it as a treat. Contrary to others' experiences, I find that Duo (and my other cats too) seem much more satiated with dry food than wet. I'm also going through the wars keeping the other two younger boys satisfied as they are more picky with wet.

I've heard about omega 3s and coat - is there any benefit using the brand you mentioned over using a human grade omega 3 only fish oi? I haven't looked into it, but l would assume it would be cheaper. Though I live in Australia, so everything is expensive really.

It's funny you should mention early stage kidney disease and appetite, puck, because when she was diagnosed (which was not very long ago), the vet said her numbers were barely elevated. So it seems that she should be in better shape considering her low numbers. I don't feel that she has muscle wasting, her spine can be felt but not ridiculously, and her backbone area seems pretty solid. She jumps down from the top of the fridge to the ground without seeming to be in pain, and she leaps from the bench up to the fridge (not the ideal sleeping spot, but the two other boys leave her alone up there). But she does seem a bit uncomfortable a lot of the time, as in she takes a while to go to relax and go to sleep.

mrsgreenjeans, I love the idea of digestive enzymes. Are there any side effects? How much do you give? Looks as though Prozyme is a human medicine, is that correct? It's expensive. Nobody ever told me that three innocent looking cats would end up costing me a fortune..!! But I'm really keen to try digestive enzymes before anything else. I just noticed you said it softens the food - would it also act within her stomach too? Because that is definitely what I'm after.

Sorry for all the questions, thank you for being so helpful everybody.

mrsgreenjeens · Mar 17, 2015

Indeedido, Google "Prozyme PET formula" and you should see several Prozyme's for pets, some say specifically for felines, but I've actually never used that one

. I think the main difference in that one is the flavoring. You use a teeny, tiny amount...1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon (don't know how that converts to the metric system) per one cup of food! My last bottled lasted 3 years! I just replaced it and it was less than $20, but I wasn't having it shipped to Australia. Maybe a local pet store carries it?. I would call around. And, yes, the purpose of the digestive enzymes is to help pull nutrients from the food that would normally pass right on through. I just mentioned that you can actually see a change immediately when you mix it into the canned food, or at least within a few seconds, so you can tell it's doing things. The only side effect I know of is if you give too much, and you have a cat that leans towards being overweight, they can quickly put on pounds! It works that well. We have a member here who used this product when she put her little ones on a raw diet, and she had to cut back on the amount she added to Bugsy's food because he was gaining weight (not from eating too much food, but because he apparently absorbed ALL the nutrients in his food). She cut back on his digestive enzymes and he stopped gaining. Unfortunately, I have NOT had that problem with my Callie. I WISH I did

BTW, your household sounds a bit like mine. I have Callie, my 15 year old kidney cat, then I have "the boys"

(6 year old pranksters who are always bugging her....I'm guessing she wishing she could still jump up on the fridge, although she can still jump pretty high, but they're younger and bigger, so they've definitely got an advantage over her.)

indeedido · Mar 17, 2015

mrsgreenjeans, this Prozyme sounds amazing. But is it just me, or this an incredibly ingenious and sneaky way to get more bang for your buck when it comes to cat food?? I'm amazed at how well you say it works.

Can't believe yours lasted 3 years - was the the 450 gram one?

I noticed it has lactose in it, and also noticed there is a lactose free one called Prozyme Plus. Which one do you use/recommend? I looked at another pet enzyme product by Dr Goodpet, and noticed that it was lactose free but they used beet fibre - I think I would prefer to give Duo a bit of lactose than beet fibre. She can manage cream without troubles so perhaps the little bit of lactose in this product won't bother her. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. I really appreciate your help, I don't know why I've never noticed this before.

Haha, your house sounds exactly like mine!! Duo is also around 15 years, and we have two boys - one 8, one 6, and they are little terrors. They don't try to hurt her, but they just tap the back of her legs to make her growl and run. I've been telling Duo for years that all she needs to do is give them one good swipe one day, and they'll leave her alone. She doesn't listen

.

puck · Mar 20, 2015

For omega 3 fatty acids, the EPA and DHA of Welactin is more concentrated, so less is given. It's measurable, via syringe, or small measuring spoons, without dealing with capsules that need to be punctured and squirted onto food, which they may not eat. If cats don't like oil on their food, I give it via syringe directly by mouth. Nutramax Labs does efficacy studies to verify their products are digested/absorbed and effective.

Clinically, patients on the potent doses of Welactin experience less inflammation than the products owners have tried from drug stores/pet stores. This is 1000s of clients' experience, clinically supportive of using Welactin for patients with skin, joint, cardiac, digestive, liver and/or kidney disease. Consumer Labs listed many of the well-known neutraceutical names low on the list regarding value and accurate labeling of capsule contents. I know Welactin is effective and accurate, so I recommend that one to patients' owners and use it exclusively in clinic. There is a brand of capsules that is good for dogs, but not ideal for cats.

A lower concentration of essential fatty acids is effective for skin, but other organs need a higher concentration to effectively help with inflammation and cellular regeneration. And if a higher concentration is possible in a smaller volume of fish oil, this is best for smaller patients. The less volume, the less likely to induce diarrhea or lead to inappetance/avoidance of food.

Acupuncture is another option to investigate that is very helpful with pain and nausea associated with renal insufficiency.

As renal disease progresses, it can affect their heart, blood pressure, and GI tract, so we get a BP every 3 months unless they're hypertensive, then we check monthly with tweaking meds. Listening to their heart at least every 3 to 4 months to catch any changes early, and start ACE inhibitors as soon as needed. As soon as they start inappetance, we start antacids and antinausea meds regularly, because keeping them eating and hydrated is very important to retaining kidney function and slowly progression of disease (loss of kidney tissue) as much as possible.

bearcat1 · Mar 2, 2016

We have a 17-year-old cat with CKF. He has been stable with treatment for over a year, but recently dropped a pound and his creatinine went up, so we are giving him more fluid under his skin twice a day. What we cannot understand, given his condition, is the fact that he wants to eat constantly. He eats at least 3 small cans of cat food a day (or more), plus unseasoned chicken or turkey breast, lactose-free milk, and a bit of dry food. He wants to eat at least 6-7 times a day and won't leave us alone until we feed him. As far as we're concerned, he can have all the food he wants, and the vet agrees. However, the vet has no idea why he eats constantly when he has CKF. She keeps saying that we should be having to persuade and coax him to eat, but that's not the case. He even wakes us up in the middle of the night! Unfortunately, his weight is not increasing, but he acts like he's starving constantly and gobbles all of his food. He's been screened for hyperthyroidism and diabetes and doesn't have either. I'm glad to read that we're not the only ones experiencing this, because everything we've read is just the opposite.

mrsgreenjeens · Mar 2, 2016

My Callie, whom we just lost last week to kidney disease

, had a large increase in appetite once I found a wet food she really liked. And I ended up feeding her TWICE each night in the middle of the night. I froze two bowls of wet food every evening before bedtime, then put them in ziploc bags and put them on my nightstand (one of them on an icepak). She would wake me up when she was hungry and by that time one was thawed. Once she ate that one I would take the other one off the icepak and let it start thawing. Voila. I didn't have to get out of bed and everyone was happy. She also get 6 or 7meals all thru out the day. I don't think she every really gained back the weight she lost, but at least she didn't lose any more.

beeha · May 13, 2016

Our Jewels is going through kidney disease and our other cat, Monty, did too. WIth him we did all the treatments and it didn't feel right. We're letting Jewels age naturally. Well, she is eating a lot just as a few of the people on this board have mentioned. This has happened within the last two months or so. She is only 3.9 pounds so she is very boney. She does throw up at least every other day, sometimes a few times a day, sometimes clear liquid. She goes to the bathroom a lot. She doesn't seem to be in pain, but of course it's hard to tell. She's also doing weird things, like going outside to sit under the kids' swingset even though she's been an inside cat her whole life. I figure, if it makes her happy, then no big deal. Our dog sits with her.

Back to the eating. She's eating only wet food and so far, I think because she's been eating Fancy Feast Classic, pate only, she has survived this long. She's gone from being diabetic at 17 pounds, and that was about four years ago when we were giving her insulin, to now having kidney failure. So the diet has worked because we stopped giving her insulin within only a few months. But now she eats non-stop and I am constantly wetting her food (what a pain! LOL) because once it's dried she doesn't like it.

How long did your cats survive a good life once their begging for food non-stop had begun? I'm asking because it seems like it's another "stage" in this disease.

Thank you.

mrsgreenjeens · May 13, 2016

BeeHa said:
Our Jewels is going through kidney disease and our other cat, Monty, did too. WIth him we did all the treatments and it didn't feel right. We're letting Jewels age naturally. Well, she is eating a lot just as a few of the people on this board have mentioned. This has happened within the last two months or so. She is only 3.9 pounds so she is very boney. She does throw up at least every other day, sometimes a few times a day, sometimes clear liquid. She goes to the bathroom a lot. She doesn't seem to be in pain, but of course it's hard to tell. She's also doing weird things, like going outside to sit under the kids' swingset even though she's been an inside cat her whole life. I figure, if it makes her happy, then no big deal. Our dog sits with her.

Back to the eating. She's eating only wet food and so far, I think because she's been eating Fancy Feast Classic, pate only, she has survived this long. She's gone from being diabetic at 17 pounds, and that was about four years ago when we were giving her insulin, to now having kidney failure. So the diet has worked because we stopped giving her insulin within only a few months. But now she eats non-stop and I am constantly wetting her food (what a pain! LOL) because once it's dried she doesn't like it.

How long did your cats survive a good life once their begging for food non-stop had begun? I'm asking because it seems like it's another "stage" in this disease.

Thank you.

How long has Jewels had kidney disease, and what stage is she in? My girl really never "begged" for food, she just seemed to start eating well once we found some new foods for her to try, or maybe it was that she started feeling better somehow, or maybe it wasn't related to either of those things...I honestly don't know. I THINK it was finding a new food, combined with keeping food in her at all times so she didn't have vomiting issues. (I guess you saw my post above where I explained about feeding her 2 meals in the middle of the night? I didn't leave wet food out for her because otherwise the other animals in the household would have scarfed it down

)

All that being said, we still gave her prescription Pepcid A/C to keep her stomach acid at bay, because that is a very common issue with kidney cats, and often results in that clear frothy throw-up, particularly early in the morning. She was impossible to pill, so we gave it to her as an injectible (similar to insulin). Easy peasy.

Did you know that the Fancy Feast CLASSICS is pretty high in phosphorus, which, unfortunately, is bad for kidney cats? The CLASSICS are great for diabetic cats, since they are low in carbs, but not great for kidney cats. IF she is amenable to a change in foods, you might look for something much lower in phos, or start adding a phosphorus binder to her food. What is her creatinine level, do you know? Are you familiar with this website: http://www.felinecrf.org/canned_food_usa.htm#canned_usa It is my "go to" for anything kidney related. That particular link is for food and which foods contain what % of phos.

lmg1959 · May 13, 2016

My cat was 14 yrs with ckd I fed her grain free food and vet prescribed antibiotics and potassium I also did subcutaneous fluids at home at her worse she was 3 lbs, I did all the treatments for 3 months. It has now 2 years later and she looks very good. I hope it works out well for your kitty.

jennifer jacobs · Jul 1, 2016

My cat Zeus is 12 and I've had him on an animal based raw diet for years switching from wet canned food (Wild calling, & Petguard) to seared (Partially raw) turkey, his favorite. After being diagnosed with asthma 1 year ago, he has hardly any symptoms anymore. . Dry kibble is the absolute worst thing for a cat and actually tends to cause kidney problems according to the research I've done. An ancestral diet truly is the only real way to prevent any sort of non-genetic disease or illness from occurring in the first place....an ounce of prevention and all.A great site is: catinfo.org. Lisa Pierson, DVM is brilliant. Good luck!!

Sunflower1951 · Jan 17, 2018

indeedido said:
Hi everyone,

I am very confused about my CKD cat. I know there is a thread for cats like this, but I couldn't see anything regarding my issue. Actually, I haven't been able to find anything online at all.

My female cat, Duo, is around 15 years old and she was diagnosed with kidney disease about 4 months ago. On this occasion, I told the vet that she has increased appetite, so a thyroid test (the usual plus T4) was conducted. She came up perfectly fine, which is the same result I had with the same test about a year prior. She has always begged for food a lot, and I always assumed that it was because she's older, and I know older cats cannot always absorb nutrients well. When I asked the vet why she would have an increased appetite, she said "i don't know, it's weird, but see how she goes on the prescription diet first then we'll look at the other stuff".

That vet is since retired. About 2 or 3 months ago, Duo had a UTI, so I took her to another vet at the same practice. He gave her antibiotics, and while I was there I asked twice about the increased appetite and he just said "I don't know". Great, thanks!

So it's getting worse. She begs all the time. She is on Royal Canin Renal diet, but not consistently because she gets bored with it and won't eat it if I give it to her all the time. Besides, she doesn't seem to get satiated with it, and it seems to make her hunger worse. She won't eat any of the other brands.

She doesn't eat much at a time (which seems inconsistent with hyperthyroid anyway) - so it's like she wants to eat a little bit, constantly. She's been wormed, but I bought a different wormer today in case she has become resistant. She has always intermittently had periods of hair loss which I have fixed with either worming her or giving her higher protein food (because I did both at once, I'm not sure which one fixed it), but now she is losing it in chunks. She is thin, but hasn't lost weight rapidly. She seems to have a slightly bloated tummy, just slightly. She drinks and urinates a lot, but that is consistent with CKD.

My husband is a diabetic, so I was able to to test her blood sugar with his kit about 4 months ago, and her levels were fine, so I'm pretty sure it's not diabetes. Plus, she has had urinalysis since then, so presumably any sugar in the urine would have been picked up.

Has anyone ever experienced, or heard about anything like this, before? It's so difficult, because on the one hand I feel I should be feeding her the prescription diet consistently to keep phosphorous levels down - on the other hand, if I feed her meat and other good quality food, she seems to be satisfied for longer.

Could this just be a case of poor nutrition absorption that is overwhelming any loss of appetite she might experience from CKD? Or can increased appetite in a CKD cat actually happen as an isolated symptom?

Sorry this is long-winded!! I have never posted on a forum about one of my pets before, but I'm quite desperate now!

Rachael

P.s. are CKD cats more susceptible to getting worms? I think the cats have become resistant to the flea treatment I use, so perhaps she is getting reinfected?

Juanne · Jul 14, 2018

I know this is a fairly old post but I've only just discovered your site.
Our 15 year old female cat (CiCi) was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease last September after a very serious bout of pancreatitis which nearly killed her. Amazingly, she pulled through and despite trying and trying to get her to eat the renal diet (Royal Canin) she wouldn't take to it except she will eat the dry biscuits off and on. We figured its all about quality of life - she has always loved her food so we made the decision to give her best quality normal tin cat food along with fresh meat like Fussy Cat (which I believe is kangaroo meat). This has been going on now since the end of last year and it's now July and she has certainly showed no signs of getting worse. She drinks a lot, which we expect, but is also eating heaps as well despite losing a bit of weight gradually. The vet checked her for thyroid and diabetes which came back normal. The vet estimated she had 12-18 months to live, but it's almost been a year and she still looks reasonably well and certainly still loves to eat. When she had the pancreatitis the vet had to give her an appetite stimulant as she went without food or water for a week. I don't know if this has affected her some how and has increased her appetite even this far down the track? I guess what I'm asking here is, has anyone else experienced the CKD going along this route and do you think we're doing the right thing in regards to her diet?

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TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

Senior cat.