Senior dog with kidney disease won't eat or drink. What can I do?

I am so sorry to hear about Lola. It is so hard with senior pets to know when it's time to say goodbye. I know how hard it is as I lost my 15 and a half year old guy last year. The blood work values you report are very concerning. The question is if there is something that has acutely changed to make her become a lot worse, or is this simply progression of underlying chronic kidney disease. There are other disease processes that can complicate chronic kidney disease like infection, pancreatitis, high bood pressure, infectious diseases, etc. Really what your pet needs is to be hospitalized with intravenous fluids, supportive care (anti nausea medications, etc.), and to try to figure out if there's an underlying problem exacerbating the kidney disease. This will require more tests such as an abdominal ultrasound, urine culture, and potentially other things as dictated by the case. I would not give up hope until trying these things because you won't know if this will help her until you try. The opposite would be true if a pet in this situation were hospitalized for two to three days and there was no improvement in the blood work or symptoms. Then, if all the treatment options are exhausted, and the pet has poor quality of life a different decision may be reached. As dogs do not tolerate chronic kidney disease as well as cats being diagnosed for a year without progression is excellent. Sometimes having a consultation with an internal medicine specialist can really help. Your family vet would likely be able to provide a referral if you and he or she thinks this would be a valuable step. I hope this helps and that Lola feels better soon. Thank you for using pet coach.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. I am sorry to see that Boomer is in renal failure. What I typically recommend for renal failure in dogs are the following products: 1. Rehmannia 8 liquid or tablets 2. Epakitin (to help bind excessive phosphorus) 3. Renal support by Standard Process 4. Azodyl probiotic capsules (if you are not already giving these) 5. Prescription kidney diet such as Hills K/D 6. Renal K+ 7. Anti-nausea medications (Cerenia / Zofran) Some of these are more natural products and obviously the anti-nausea medications are prescription drugs but can help keep Boomer more comfortable. I also managed a kidney failure patient who also had lymphoma with all of the above including subcutaneous fluids and also treating him twice weekly in a hyperbaric chamber. His original prognosis was 3 months and that prognosis was given 15 months ago. If you have someone in your area that has a hyperbaric chamber, you can speak with them about treating Boomer with it. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

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'm sorry to hear that Caramel is not feeling well. The paperwork showing "female" instead of male is a typo somewhere. Nothing that was run in those tests determine's the dog's sex, so I suspect that was entered wrong at the lab. His kidney values are a bit high, but they aren't crazy high. If a urinalysis was not performed, talk to your vet about running a urinalysis as well, as this will help determine whether those values being high may be in part due to whether or not he is dehydrated (typically the "USG" or "urine specific gravity" is what we are looking for to help interpret this). You may also want to talk to your vet about an abdominal ultrasound (sonogram of the belly); having images of the kidneys and bladder as well as the rest of the abdominal organs (liver, pancreas, GI tract, spleen, adrenal glands) can be helpful in terms of what the most likely cause of his clinical signs are. Another consideration since he is "hardly able to get up" would be a painful condition that's making him not want to move; ask your vet if he seems painful anywhere. To summarize, here is what I recommend you do. Take him to your vet and ask about a urinalysis. Ask your vet if he seems painful anywhere (belly, back, neck, joints). Ask if your vet thinks he needs IV fluids. Ask about an abdominal ultrasound. Best of luck with him, I hope he feels better soon. Thanks for asking Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I am sorry that Odie isn't feeling well. The heart on the x-rays is very big, so treatment for the heart disease is a good idea. One of the medications given typically with heart disease is a drug called Furosemide, and this usually makes them drink and pee a lot. Other medications for heart disease including Benazepril (Fortekor) and Pimobendan (Vetmedin). Benazepril can be hard on the kidneys so follow up bloodwork is recommended. If Odie is not improving with the medications he might need higher doses. Also, if he isn't eating and drinking, I would be concerned about another disease process going on, and would recommend bloodwork. You can always try a 24 hour emergency center if you can't get into your local vet for a consult. I hope he feels better soon. I wouldn't change any medications you are giving now without talking to a vet first, and it sounds like Odie needs to be seen soon. Best of luck with Odie.

Poor Emma. If she is suffering from kidney problems and potential kidney failure. She may be painful, nauseous, or not feeling well from toxins that are building up in her body due to poorly regulated kidneys. I would recommend discussing with your vet about doing some fluid therapy on her and potential pain management as well to get her feeling better. If she does have advanced kidney disease, then starting fluids (either IV or subcutaneously) could potentially help her condition tremendously. Also offering her a liquid diet like Hill's Rebound liquid can really help keep her nutrition up. You can also try slightly warmed cans of baby food OR appetite stimulants (i.e. Mirtazapine) prescribed by your veterinarian. I hope your fur baby feels better soon!

Hello. With kidney disease, it is important to try to increase fluid intake. If he is not on a canned diet, I would try to transition him to one. Even better, would be a canned kidney diet such as Hill's k/d. Once he is eating the canned food, adding a little water will help, but you do not want to add so much water as to decrease the nutritional density of the food. Rather than broth, you can also try Pedialyte. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.