16 Year Old Cat With Hyperthyroidism And Stage 3 Ckd

[Ensoul]

Hi all first post. I took my cat to the vet today because he was losing weight and he has hyperthyroidism (which I am less concerned about I think) and stage 3 CKD.

I am more concerned with the CKD. I bought him special kidney food but I am wondering how many other owners out there had an older cat with CKD and how was the prognosis? I know his is old at 16 but I am wondering how much time time I potentially have left with him. I was hoping he'd made it to 20 but that seems impossible now.

 

[Jem]

Well, my cat is pushing 20 soon, he has stage 4 CKD and has been at stage 4 for a couple of years. We are now having to do daily sub-Q fluids (100 ml) a day and have been doing them daily for the past year. Every cat is different but there are many things you can do to keep him happy and comfortable.
Check out Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Kidney Disease - Everything You Need to Know to Help Your Cat
SOOO much great information on that site.
Good luck with your kitty!

 

[Ensoul]

Thank you Jem for the response and link. The vet mentioned the fluids. How long have you been doing that and how expensive are the Sub Q fluids?

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I've had three kidney cats, and agree that you need to check out that above website. It was my "go to" for everything kidney when my furbabies were still with me. Each one of mine was 13 when diagnoses, and lived for three years after diagnosis, but they weren't in Stage 3 when they were diagnoses. BUT, as Jem pointed out, every cat is different. I will say that none of mine ever ate the kidney food, simply because they didn't like it, so if your guy doesn't eat it, don't fret, just make sure he eats. There is a listing of foods on that website that lists food in order of the amount of phosphorus in it, and the goal is to feed the least amount of phosphorus, so if necessary, use that chart. I found that feeding wet food worked best, as kidney cats need moisture, so I also even added water to their wet food, along with giving them sub-q fluids when the time came, which is usually around the end of stage 3. But you can't always go strictly by the numbers. Sometimes if your cat is acting like they just don't feel well, some sub-q fluids can really perk them right up.

 

[1 bruce 1]

I don't have much to add other than lots of support.
Here's a that he sees that 20 year old mark...and then some!

 

[Jem]

I'm in Ontario Canada, so I'm not sure what the cost would be for you but... The fluids are 10 dollars a bag (1000mls) and I give him 100 a day, so it lasts 10 days, a box of needles (they need to be changed after every injection) are about 10 dollars for a box of 100, and a replacement line (you can reuse the line for quite some time and only replace the bag of fluids and needle) is also about 10 dollars.
In the beginning of using fluids, (about 3 years ago), we only did the fluids once in a while when he wasn't eating very well, not walking well, overall feeling ill. We would give him 100mls for about a week, then we would be good for a few months. That went on for about a year and a half, until the disease got much worse, now, we need to give him his fluids daily, we've been doing this for about a year now.

 

[Ensoul]

You guys are awesome thanks for the responses. I think we may do the fluids as it is much cheaper than I thought.

 

[Jem]

One more thing though...Did your vet show you how to do the fluids yourself? It's a little nerve racking at first, because let's face it, nobody likes needles. But let me assure you that the large majority of cats don't even flinch. They take needles very well.
Good luck with everything! Keep us posted.

 

[Ensoul]

One more thing though...Did your vet show you how to do the fluids yourself? It's a little nerve racking at first, because let's face it, nobody likes needles. But let me assure you that the large majority of cats don't even flinch. They take needles very well.
Good luck with everything! Keep us posted.

The vet just mentioned the fluids and sent us home a little packet about it. We were undecided about it. The reality is the price was a concern as I just spent $400.00 on him and with a family of 4 there is only so much money I can spend.
However I read your post I will go back to the vet and say we want to give him fluids. My wife is a nurse so I will let her handle the needles lol.

 

[Jem]

My wife is a nurse so I will let her handle the needles lol.

Lucky!!! I actually threw up I was so nervous/scared/guilty my first time.
But we do what we have to, so I brushed my teeth took a deep breath then went to it.

If you need anything else, we're here for you and your cat.

 

[Ensoul]

So I ended up ordering the fluids from the vet and it was 46 bucks a bag which seemed absurd.

Thanks to Jem telling me what it cost her I looked online she saw these sell for 10 bucks a bag. I called back and asked for a perscription and while the person on the phone seemed hesitant they said they will do that.

I get it's a business but charging 46 bucks for a bag is absurd. Thats nearly five times the amount of most places.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Yes, our Vet wanted to charge us $65 for one needle, IV set-up and bag of fluid. Instead, I ordered 100 needles on line for $12.00, IV set-ups for $1.25 each and got my fluids at Walgreens for less than $10/bag (I think it was $14 for TWO, since I usually picked up two at a time, but it's been a few years now since our last kidney cat passed away ) If you live near a Costco, you can get the fluids there even if you aren't a member.

Terumo thin walled needles are the best. I used 20 G. They flow pretty fast. My hubby was a nurse too, so he did the "stick", although I would if he wasn't available. It's all in the mindset that you are HELPING them, not hurting them. On the website above they have all kinds of hints to help make giving the fluids easier, like warming the fluids, etc. One thing they do not mention is, I always put a big fluffy towel in the dryer while I was warming the fluids, then I would wrap my girl in the nice warm towel when she was getting them. That way she felt nice and warm and secure. Otherwise she would always start shaking during the process. I really think it's because the fluids didn't stay warm enough and of course, she was terribly thin, as kidney cats usually are.

 

[Jem]

So I ended up ordering the fluids from the vet and it was 46 bucks a bag which seemed absurd.

So glad you decided to look into it further. I am fully aware that my vet is awesome and does not try to gouge to make a buck. I wish everyone could find the same.

 

[Ensoul]

Sorry to bump and old topic but wanted to provide an update. Took him back to the vet and he was about a pound and a half less. The vet was concerned. The long and short is he had a lump on his kidney which she believed was cancer. Unfortunately I had to put him down.

What sucks is that he was fine (beside the weight loss) a month ago. Over the past 3 weeks he was going the bathroom all over the place, he stopped jumping up we me on the bed or chair when I was sitting or lying down. He spent all his time in my son's closet and only came out to eat.

He went downhill quickly. I am devastated but we did all we could but he was just heytige worse and worse. Thanks to everyone here for the advice over the past few weeks.

Karl

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I'm so sorry for your loss . Sometimes they do go downhill quickly, and when they hide all the time like you described, then they usually don't fell well at all. If it was cancer, that certainly explains a lot, right?

When you feel up to it, you can post a memorial to him in our Crossing the Bridge forum. Many people find it cathartic to do so.

Again, my sympathies.