Sad ping.
I have lost two young cats that were 4 and 5 years old to this disease. It is fatal and irreversible. See your vet who can give you good guidance on this. I am so sorry.
I have been through this a number of years ago and found a web site www.felinecrf.com that has much useful and comforting information. Look under Caregiver Information and Managing CRF especially.
Here is a solution:
http://www.alysion.org/euthanasia/
I have a male cat, and males are notorious for urethra blockages because of mineral build-ups. He got that, and peed little drops of blood and urine on everything.
I removed the minerals from his water by using reverse osmosis water to water the catz for a few weeks.
There is a down-side. RO water will kill anyone that uses it as a sole source, long term. It actually leaches minerals from the body.
When Sky starts the pee-pee dance, we go on RO water for a few days, until the problem clears up.
Don't know if that will help with your situation, but you have my prayers for comfort during a difficult time.
/johnny
I believe we have a responsibility to our pets to make the judgment for them when it comes to the end. We need to do the right thing and cry or mourn for our lost pet after.
Call a farming friend or cousin ... They’ll take your kittie in and be lovingly with them till the end.
Get your vet to prescribe Hills Prescription diet, k/d Feline Renal Health, with chicken. It comes in wet and dry. Our 16-year old cat has been diagnosed with renal failure and has been on this diet for over a year and has gained weight.
I purchase a litre of Lactated Ringers approx. every three weeks from the vet. They showed me how to administer subcutaneously. Initially, I was giving him 100 milliliters every day. I did this for 5 days. Now I give him 75 milliliters every other day.
It requires you to monitor his activity level and to increase the dosage as necessary.
Eventually, I know I will have to do the right thing for him and euthanize. It wont be easy, but I have to do what his best for him.
Last year my mother's beloved kitty cat (just two years old) began suffering from a faulty metabolism that caused everything he ate to turn into sand in his bladder. She had him cleaned out, even paid for a very expensive operation to reroute his "plumbing" (an operation that works in most cases). But it didn't work for him. His metabolism simply quit on him, and nothing could help. Even after the operation his bladder filled up till it lost its elasticity. He'd probably have required periodic surgery just to stay alive (which she couldn't have afforded). But she never had to make that decision because he died on the operating table. I can't tell you how hurt she was or how it hurt me to see her suffer and grieve so.
These are things you simply don't get over. We know that for people there is a World to Come. I don't know if there is one for our beloved pets or not, which makes losing them so traumatizing (I'd like to think they'll be there, but I must defer this decision to our beloved Creator).
I am so sorry for what you are going through. This isn't going to help any, but I just want you to know that this happens to everyone who has an animal friend. It's inevitable. You are not alone in your pain.
May G-d comfort you.
I did everything I could to keep him alive. Wound up giving him IV's at home but it was no use. It only prolonged everyone's agony for about a month.
We finally had to .... well, you know.
First of all, my sympathy(more aptly, empathy) is with you.
I have quite a bit of experience dealing with feline CRF, unfortunately. My last kitty, a Persian, was diagnosed with CRF when he was 9 years old; his was attributed to polycystic kidney disease, which is fairly common in that breed, and incurable.
First of all, if your cat is in kidney failure, this will be evident in kidney function tests. Kitties will have either some or all of the following: elevated BUN/urea,creatinine, phosphorus, calcium, or potassium. There are other elevations that can be found in a regular blood panel.
If kidney failure is evident, you have several options: the use of subcutaneous fluids and phosphorus binders(if needed), special diet and other home treatments. Some cats don’t respond at all and, ultimately, need to be euthanized. I have known people with elderly cats who got good results, so there could be some hope for your kttty. The goal is to make your pet as comfortable as possible by giving him or her the best quality life attainable.
I’m enclosing a link for you that you will find helpful. It’s a site for those dealing with feline kidney disease, and it’s not only very informative(I used it frequently when dealing with my sick ones), but supportive:
www.felinecrf.org
Had it not been for this site, I don’t think my last cat would have experienced 4 more years of high quality life. He was on daily subcutaneous fluids(not all CRF cats need fluids) and several other medications, but you would have never known he was sick by looking at him. My husband and I made this commitment to him and, although, it was a little expensive, it was worth it.
Have a look at the website I included. Even if you opt for no treatment you will find a lot of encouragement and support as you go through this process of letting go. The woman who owns this site, and others who contribute, have been through it all.
My heart goes out to you——I know how hard this is. Hugs to you and your kitty.
I knew something was wrong several years before it showed up in tests. Even took him to a university hospital, but apparently they can lose 70% of their function before it shows up.
I lost him way too early, at 14 years old. He had several small strokes which he seemed to deal with okay, but then had a big one and I had to put him to sleep. Broke my heart. I still miss him.
Losing a pet is never easy; all we can do is limit their suffering. I'm so sorry. Do you have photos of her?
You may or may not know about this CRF support group. It is excellent.
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/Feline-CRF-Support/
My heart goes out to you.
The treatments were not that expensive. I seem to remember about 80 dollars (this was back in the early ‘90s) The first treatment got her about 6 additional months. Each subsequent “dialysis” lasted a shorter period of time - I guess because her kidney function continued declining.
Then the toxins build up again and she needed another treatment. The cat was in and out of the vet quickly, taking 5 or 6 hours, if I remember correctly - for the entire fill and drain process.
There was also a change of diet to reduce the metabolic toxins and reduce the load on the kidneys.
When all was said and done, we got her another 2 years or so, probably at a cost of around 400-500 dollars.
Our vet had a theory that soybeans in cat food produced a lot of toxins that were hard on the cat kidneys, and since that time I have read cat food labels and tried to minimize the amount of soybean meal they eat.
I now feed a Diamond brand dry food, and it has no corn, soy, beef, or wheat. It is a chicken and rice formula, and costs about $20 for an 12 pound bag at Tractor Supply.
Since being on this food, my cats have been especially healthy. I believe it has reduced the number of skin and digestive problems, and they appear to thrive on it.
As for your cat, 19 years may not be enough for you, but this really has been a good long life for your kitty. And there does come a point where we need to let them go. But maybe you aren't at this point yet. You might want to ask your vet about this procedure, and maybe get a second opinion. I apologize for not having more details, but it has been a long time.
Good luck with your kitty cat.
Yes. It’s terribke and hopeless. Time to put her to sleep and end her suffering.
Are you sure that your cat is not diabetic? We have an older cat, and the weak back legs and hovering over the water bowl are similar symptoms. Our cat gets daily insulin injections now and doing much better. He actually went into remission for a while and did not need the insulin. Strength has returned to his back legs. We feed him Purina M/D cat food, Evo grain free cat food and canned food at least once a day. If possible, you should try to get your cat completely off dry food and stick with the high quality canned food as much as possible.
We had a sweet little girl kitty, a tortie point Himalayan who was 16 years old.
Last year she had the exact same symptoms.
She had renal failure and nothing could be done.
We cried and it broke our hearts, but we had to let her go or else let her suffer. Not to mention the mess in the house.
One month later we lost another kitty to complications of dental disease. That kitty was 17 years old.
This is so hard I know. I just said a little prayer for your cat. It is the hardest thing to go thru. I have had cats in the past. They lived a long time as well. It is never long enough with our pets. Prayers for sure!