My cat with kidney failure refuses to eat. What can I do to help her?

Find a food with a strong smell/odor. Warm it slightly then offer it to Precious. You can also mix a teaspoon of warmed baby food in with her food. Discuss appetite stimulants, such as mirtazipine, with your veterinarian. The vet may also suggest some kidney friendly diets such as Hill's k/d or Royal Canin Renal Support. Bloodwork should be submitted to check kidney function. Elevated BUN and creatinine levels may cause nausea and inappetance. Hospitalizaton and IV fluids may be necessary to decrease levels.

I think IV fluids and supportive care are a reasonable place to start. If your veterinarian is suspicious of acute kidney injury then Mimi could regain kidney function with aggressive supportive care, but some cats will worsen despite treatment. If your veterinarian is suspicious of chronic kidney disease then her kidney function may not improve but often cats can be managed with medication and diet changes with a good quality of life for months to years. The acute vs. chronic designation is usually based on the history and overall exam findings. I think an ultrasound and urinalysis are good next steps - you may also want to ask about culturing the urine (although she may currently be getting antibiotics which could change the results, I can’t quite read a couple of the injectable medications). A blood pressure might also be helpful, and checking phosphorous, calcium and electrolytes in a blood panel could help. The only lab finding that is a little odd is the increase in lymphocytes, although sometimes the machine will not differentiate between cell types well and this may not be significant. Good luck to Mimi!

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.

Poor girl. I would certainly consider at least getting her checked again and fluid therapy (IV or subcutaneously). If her values are not too bad, she may be able to be managed at home with subcutaneous fluids that you yourself give. That is if you are up to the task. Also I am not sure if she is on a prescription kidney diet. If not, then she needs to be transitioned right away. The vet can also prescribe some anti-nausea medication for her to help with her condition. And lastly, I would highly recommend a supplement called Azodyl, which is a natural way to help lower your pets kidney enzymes. Their toxic levels in the bloodstream are directly correlated with how sick your pet will feel, so focusing on lowering these values can improve your pets condition greatly. Here is a website link with more kidney therapy options --> https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4952670 I hope that these additional treatment suggestions help Chloe stabilize and perhaps hold off the euthanasia talks for a while. Best of luck moving fowrard and take care. : )

I am so sorry about your poor kitty. Renal failure can be a very hard and frustrating disease to manage. This is especially true if we can't fix an underlying cause such as an infection, a tumor, or an exposure to a toxin. Usually once cats in renal failure require blood transfusions and those injections it is the end stage of the disease. There are a couple of veterinary colleges that do kidney transplants. One being The University of California at Davis. That would likely be her only option remaining. If you do not want to pursue a referral to a facility that does transplants, which I believe is very reasonable, it is important to keep Freya comfortable. This could include keeping her on a kidney diet, medications to control her blood pressure and G.I. protectants as well as potentially repeating the injections to increase her blood count level. Ultimately kidney failure is fatal. Therefore I would discuss with your veterinarian quality-of-life factors for her as well as what her ultimate life expectancy is based on her kidney failure. Some cats can survive a few weeks others a couple of months. It is very variable.

Sorry to hear about your kitty. It sounds like he is in the advanced stages of kidney failure. Unfortunately kidney damage can not be reversed once it occurs - only managed. Once cats get to this stage of kidney disease, most treatments are focused on trying to make cats feel as good as possible for as long as possible. Sometimes treatments that are prescribed include SQ fluids (water given as an injection under the skin to increase hydration), anti-nausea medications, blood pressure medications, antacids, and other therapies to manage complications associated with kidney failure. It is hard to give a prognosis without knowing the specific details of your cat's bloodwork and history, but if he is not eating or drinking, he may be suffering and can quickly decline. If you are concerned about your kitty's quality of life, have a discussion with your veterinarian.

I am so sorry that Alex has been diagnosed with Kidney disease and it sounds like possibly hyperthyroidism. Unfortunately, these two diseases can be difficult to battle. I would talk to your vet about starting him on an appetite stimulant. You can also have fluids given to him under his skin on a daily or every other day basis to help keep the kidney values down to help make him feel better. I would have your vet recheck the thyroid and kidney values if his have been on medicine for awhile to ensure it is working properly and there isn't something else going on. You could also look for an alternative vet to seek acupuncture to help stimulate appetite. I hope this helps!