My cat has kidney disease and won't eat or move. Should I worry?

Unfortunately, this could be a number of things. The first thing I tend to think of in older cats in which renal disease has already been diagnosed is the development of a urinary tract infection, and especially if urinary signs (urinating outside the box, increased frequency of urination, increased drinking, etc) that should be considered. Kidney disease predisposes them to the development of UTI's, and they can quickly become serious in these patients as often times it's not a LOWER UTI (i.e. a bladder infection) but an UPPER UTI (i.e., involving the kidneys). At this point she's only missed one meal, so I wouldn't panic yet - especially because she did eat when you hand fed her. However, do be diligent and consider whether she needs another checkup (to include a urinalysis and potentially x-rays or ultrasound) if this keeps up more than 24 hours, since it's such unusual behavior for her.

My concern is that Evelyn is potentially having kidney disease or failure from the cysts with what you are describing. The only thing you can do (if this is what is going on) is take her to a veterinarian and run blood work to see how bad her kidneys are. If the numbers are bad (which I would assume they are with her symptoms) she would need intense hospitalization and IV fluids. There is really nothing at home that you can do for her. I am so sorry she isn't doing well and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Pepper! 20 years old is amazing! It's hard to say why Peppers back legs are having so much trouble. It could be from weakness from progressive kidney disease or a new problem like high blood pressure, diabetes, anemia. She likely has arthritis at her age. Sometimes older pets can have strokes or even brain tumors as well that can cause behavioral and gait changes. It sounds like she is extremely thirsty (trying to get in to the tub). If Pepper hasn't had her blood work checked in a while I would call your vet monday and have her seen. If you think she is suffering take her to an Emergency hospital today for evaluation, they can run the blood work today in house. I hope this helps and I wish you and Pepper the best!

If you are worried she is dying she needs to be seen by a veterinarian right away. Not eating is a serious problem in cats and will only cause her further liver damage, plus she is likely severely dehydrated by the lack of drinking. She needs immediate supportive care and reevaluation to see if anything can be done to save her life and make her more comfortable.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Based on your description, I am quite concerned she may be dehydrated and may have some systemic disease or infection going on. I would have a veterinarian examine her so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any further questions / concerns and I would be happy to help further.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. If Willow did not have her blood tested when she was in for her exam I would highly recommend having the vet pull a blood sample and check to see if she has any abnormal values. Kidney disease is something we quite commonly see in older cats and this certainly could be the cause of the vomiting / decreased appetite. The sooner her blood is tested the better and the faster you will know what is going on with her. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

These lab results do not provide any "normal" values, which can differ based on the type of equipment used to run the sample, however I would agree that based on what I am used to as normal values Sabrina is in either renal failure or has very severe dehydration. Renal failure seems more likely given that she is also quite anemic (has low red blood cells), although her liver values do not look high to me. Typically renal failure is treated with aggressive intravenous fluid therapy, and with kidney values this high it seems unlikely that only getting fluids every 12 hours will make much of a difference. Also, with anemia such as she has, great care has to be taken not to give fluids too rapidly as to worsen the anemia. Persian cats are predisposed to a type of kidney disease known as polycystic kidney disease. This is easily diagnosed with ultrasound examination of the kidneys. Unfortunately, the prognosis is grim.