Has anyone cats had kidney issues? How much peeing and drinking is too much.

ANy advice would be helpful.

He takes steroids which can make him a bit more thirsty.

Thank you

I think more information is necessary before anyone is really able to comment comfortably.  How old is your cat? Are there any other symptoms besides increased thirst/urination.  How long has he been on steroids?  What is kitty on steroids for?  How long has it been since he has seen a vet?

Increased thirst and urination can be signs of many things, the two that come to mind are diabetes and renal failure.

11, no, about 8 months, three weeks

and is NOT increased, I am asking how much is too much

There isn't any specific guide to how much is too much. It really depends on the cat. Generally, if you notice the cat camped out by the water bowl and just constantly drinking and flooding the litter box with pee, then I would consider that excessive. Know what is normal for your cat and go by that. Since your cat is on steroids and a possible side effect is increased thirst and urination, just keep an eye on your cat. If the side effects worsen, talk to the vet.

If you are noticing about increased urination, I would urge you to get your kitty looked at the vet.  Your cat is at the age where it would be good to get bloodwork and urine checked to make sure kidney function is okay and it is true, increased urination can also signal other things such as diabetes.

I think it would be a great idea to get him to the vet for a check up.  Why is he on steroids?

Anybody ever use a product called
Kidney Support Gold?

psychomama said:

Anybody ever use a product called
Kidney Support Gold?

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For what specifically? I've never heard of it, but regardless of what you want to use it for, I'd strongly suggest you run it by your vet before doing so.

I would never give him anything without my Vet s approval. I did some more research and I don t think it is something I would give him. His recent blood values had some high readings , he s 8 , and the Vet mentioned renal insufficiency . I was looking for something that may help his kidney function.

psychomama said:

I would never give him anything without my Vet s approval. I did some more research and I don t think it is something I would give him. His recent blood values had some high readings , he s 8 , and the Vet mentioned renal insufficiency . I was looking for something that may help his kidney function.

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Do you happen to know what the blood values are? Particularly creatinine, BUN, phosphorus and (if done) SDMA? Are they recommending any treatment at this point or just saying it is possibly renal? Usually more than one set of blood work is needed to make a diagnosis. And  you said he is 8 years old? Making sure I understood correctly.

Glad you don't give things without going through your vet first

Early chronic kidney disease is usually treated via diet. As it progresses, and the symptoms start to show, then there is more treatment added to manage the symptoms. If your cat does have kidney disease, the most obvious symptom is not eating / losing weight. Unfortunately, once kidney function is lost, there isn't anything that can truly help it. There are things that can be done to stress the kidneys less though (kidney diet, not using tap water, etc).

I definitely think you should have the cat tested for diabetes. This can be done quickly and easily while you wait. I had a dog peeing all the time and drinking lots of water, but I didn't know the signs of diabetes. He died a while later, and I can't help but think that was part of the reason.

His bun is 22 and creatin 1.6 relatively normal He is 9.2 lbs and has held that weight for 8 months. He lost weight last January when he had a UTI. He pees normally about 5 oz every 12 hrs and has no diarrhea nor does he vomit . I feed him 3 / 4 T of Origen ea day plus wet food with a T of water . He also gets a probiotic each day as well.
The vet didn t seem concerned and the only value that did concern me was the calcium level 13.3. The vet said that with what other values are elevated it points to dehydration and there are many false readings for calcium.
Not sure why the vet did not suggest any other tests.

Very true, dehydration can throw off those numbers, and I'm surprised to they didn't suggest another test. Those values are fairly similar to my Sara's (except the calcium) but she was not dehydrated and she's had numerous blood tests this year. Another one coming up on Tuesday! Has your kitty had any urine tests done? I was going to ask if the USG was low if so.

I asked the vet but he did not think it necessary. His urine is very strong smelling like it always has been. I bought him a water fountain and he has been drinking from it . What is your kitty 's diagnosis? A show old is she?

Also he is a very fractious cat that is very stressed when he is there. He growls and his pupils are dialated the whole time. The vet tries to minimize his stress so I think he did not want to press for a urine sample.

psychomama said:

I asked the vet but he did not think it necessary. His urine is very strong smelling like it always has been. I bought him a water fountain and he has been drinking from it . What is your kitty 's diagnosis? A show old is she?

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Ah, ok. Sara has very dilute urine without any odor. She has early CKD (among other things) and the dilute urine was the first sign of it. Over the year, and after many blood tests and urinalyses (for multiple reasons), they came to the conclusion it was definitely early CKD after the last one. She's 13, almost 14 years old. 

Your kitty's doesn't sound like it's very dilute most likely if it's strong-smelling. I often wonder to be honest if dilute urine is an early sign of CKD, although I think it could mean many things.

Best of luck with your kitty. From what I ve read they can live many years with CKD.

Yeah, my Lucky had it, early stage also, but then came the acute-on-chronic part and it took him so quickly (16 days after being diagnosed with the acute part). So, I tend to be cautiously optimistic about it now. Don't take anything for granted, because nothing is guaranteed. Even if it was just the luck of the draw - so ironic considering his name.

My cat is in the hospital right now being hydrated with an IV and antibiotics due to elevations in her bloodwork which pointed to CKD. This will be her third visit and now they are keeping her since she refuses to eat or drink and they were unable to get anytime sample . I have four cats and since she left this morning they have all been so sad . My question to any of you is can a Cat live with CKD and what measures does the owner have to take to make this disease manageable . I sure hope and prayer I can take her home soon and have her back to Normal we are all so lost without her and it's been a hard last couple of weeks .