Older cat with Hyperthyriodism and low Kidney Function

dawnangel

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I've just come across this wonderful site and was curious if anyone out there has struggled with the same issue i'm currently having with my cat Hope. Hope is 16 years old, I adopted her from a feline haven when she was 9. She's had a few health issues in the past, but these last few years have been the worse. Last year (2015) hope was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism after losing quite a lit of weight. We started her on Methimazole  twice a day, and the hyperthyroidism seems to be under control, but we never got her weight back up to her previous weight. (she was little chubby to start with). About a year after she was diagnosed I move to Georgia (from CA) and for a few months I left Hope with my roommate. They were fond of each other. I didn't know how she would handle the move, wanted to settle into the new house myself before possibly coming back for her. Around November of 2016 I had my roommate take Hope to the vet for a health check, and because I wanted to move her out here to me. I had adjusted to the house,  and my roommate was having financial issues with caring for Hope. During that vet visit it was stated that Hope's kidney enzyme levels were poor. That she may have kidney issues, that could turn into kidney failure if left untreated. So we switched to a new kidney support food (Hill's prescription k/d), and we moved her out here to be with me in Georgia. Now.. my current issue.. I recently took in in to a local vet here to check is the new food was helping with her kidneys. The vet said that Hope's kidney's were doing a better, she had a UTI but otherwise looked in good condition for 16 years old. We've put her on Clavamox, which we've had her on before, but she seems to be having adverse reactions. She's vomiting more often (she vomits often, which the vet said could actually be due to the poor kidney function), she's gotten some diarrhea, and she not eating that much. I don't want to take her off the Clavamox, but I might have to. 

Has anyone out there struggled with a cat with hyperthyriodism, and kidney issues? How can I help her keep her food down? is there an anti-nausea meds I can get to her her with her vomiting and appetite? Was there any treatment out there for anyone that worked the best or better than something else? I don't want to see her suffer through this, but I can't stand the idea of having to put her down if we can't keep her happy and healthy. I'm so afraid that the recent issues were because of the stressful move, its only been about 3 months in the new house for her. 

thank you for any help you can offer and thanks just for reading. 
 

hexiesfriend

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I had a kitty with the thyroid issue and she stayed thinner. She eventually
Passed away of kidney failure which is a complication of the thyroid problem but she lived until 19. That's pretty normal without any conditions. Kidney enzymes can be elevated just to old age as well and the same with the weight loss. Of course with thyroid issues you always need to watch the kidneys. Has the vet
all these things to illness?
 

missmimz

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CKD and hyper-t are two disease that are very common with older cats. Vomiting and nausea is also associated with both of them. You may want to ask your vet about cerenia for the nausea, which will also help with the vomiting. I would also encourage you to check on this list of low phos foods which you could work into her food rotation. Personally, I'm not a fan of any RX foods and really not a fan of the RX kidney foods, because they're not only low in phos but low in protein, and older cats need high protein. For the price of RX foods you can buy much better quality food that's high in protein and low in phos. Poke around on the felinecrf site, it's full of really good information. 

In addition, this is a really good facebook group. https://www.facebook.com/groups/felinecrf/

http://www.felinecrf.org/canned_food_usa.htm

With the hyper-t, make sure you get her T4 levels tested regularly and that her T4 is staying around the low to mid 2's, which is the ideal place for T4 levels with a CKD cat. 
 
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dawnangel

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I think I will talk with the vet about getting something for her vomiting and boosting her appetite. I've normally supplemented her diet with Fancy Feast, but now that i'm looking into it, the phosphorus levels are high in FF. I need to look into the website more for other food to supplement her dry diet. i'm hoping that once she finished the antibiotics the vomiting with ease, and her appetite will come back. The vet I've recently seen was really really young, and sorta shrugged off the vomiting.It's not everyday, but very often. She'll keep food down, but often coughs or hacks, sometimes throwing up, sometimes just acting like she might. . Course, she's had a hack/cough for a few years now. She can't meow, she never has, she came from the shelter without a meow. I think part of the issue is possibly the formation of the her throat or an old injury from the shelter that healed back wrong. Hope is a very special cat, very affectionate and very much my furbaby. I'd like to be able to help ease some of her discomfort as she ages.
 

missmimz

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I think I will talk with the vet about getting something for her vomiting and boosting her appetite. I've normally supplemented her diet with Fancy Feast, but now that i'm looking into it, the phosphorus levels are high in FF. I need to look into the website more for other food to supplement her dry diet. i'm hoping that once she finished the antibiotics the vomiting with ease, and her appetite will come back. The vet I've recently seen was really really young, and sorta shrugged off the vomiting.It's not everyday, but very often. She'll keep food down, but often coughs or hacks, sometimes throwing up, sometimes just acting like she might. . Course, she's had a hack/cough for a few years now. She can't meow, she never has, she came from the shelter without a meow. I think part of the issue is possibly the formation of the her throat or an old injury from the shelter that healed back wrong. Hope is a very special cat, very affectionate and very much my furbaby. I'd like to be able to help ease some of her discomfort as she ages.
Pepcid is commonly used to help with acid (or bile) vomits, which are also common with CKD cats. The dosage info is on Tanya's site, but you could ask your vet about it too. Cerenia is great because it helps with nausea, which then prevents the vomiting and helps with eating. Yes unfortunately FF is high in phos, so best to avoid that one. There are some low phos dry foods, I think Halo has one of the better ones, but it's more ideal for a CKD not to have any kibble. 

CKD cats can live several years with proper food and monitoring of their phos/bun/creat levels. Def check out the FB page too if you have one, they are a wealth of info. 
 

stephenq

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I think I will talk with the vet about getting something for her vomiting and boosting her appetite. I've normally supplemented her diet with Fancy Feast, but now that i'm looking into it, the phosphorus levels are high in FF. I need to look into the website more for other food to supplement her dry diet. i'm hoping that once she finished the antibiotics the vomiting with ease, and her appetite will come back. The vet I've recently seen was really really young, and sorta shrugged off the vomiting.It's not everyday, but very often. She'll keep food down, but often coughs or hacks, sometimes throwing up, sometimes just acting like she might. . Course, she's had a hack/cough for a few years now. She can't meow, she never has, she came from the shelter without a meow. I think part of the issue is possibly the formation of the her throat or an old injury from the shelter that healed back wrong. Hope is a very special cat, very affectionate and very much my furbaby. I'd like to be able to help ease some of her discomfort as she ages.
In addition to @missmimz comments about cerenia - a wonder drug, your cat may also benefit from daily sub q fluids which you could be instructed on how to do.  Generally quite easy.
 
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