Dehydrated Or Kidney Disease?

Rosepud

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So my partner recently purchased a cat from the breeder who they're vet had told them had kidney disease, we got this cat with the knowledge he had kidney disease just making sure this is here. I was sent a copy of his bloodwork and our previous cat had kidney disease and it just didn't make sense for kidney disease. He also had an elevated WBC count neutrophils and an elevated RBC count the RBC count is a sign of dehydration as well as his numbers for BUN and Creatinine were at the high end of normal. His urine was also very concentrated all things you would expect in a dehydrated cat not a kidney cat. So today I brought him to my vet and they agree it's likely not kidney disease as the urinalysis shows his urine is concentrated, she is more worried about infection due to the WBC count and neutrophils. The bloodwork won't be back till tomorrow so I am not sure how that looks but my vet seriously doubts it's a kidney issue based on his urinalysis. Would you recommend he gets a 3rd opinion? Also he doesn't have a UTI or a fever but his bloodwork had shown signs of infection previously any thoughts? Sorry for how lengthy this is.
 

kittyluv387

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Based on what you're saying no it doesn't necessarily mean he has kidney disease. But could be something else do to the other findings from his blood. How old is this cat?
 

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Hi! I guess it depends on how much confidence you have in your vet regarding whether to get a third opinion.
Does the breeder understand that the vet they're using is perhaps not as competent as they might prefer?
 
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Rosepud

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Based on what you're saying no it doesn't necessarily mean he has kidney disease. But could be something else do to the other findings from his blood. How old is this cat?
He's a year and a half.
 
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Rosepud

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Hi! I guess it depends on how much confidence you have in your vet regarding whether to get a third opinion.
Does the breeder understand that the vet they're using is perhaps not as competent as they might prefer?
They don't they seem to have full confidence in them, but to me I didn't trust that diagnosis which is why I asked my vet to redo it and to get their opinion.
 
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Rosepud

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They don't they seem to have full confidence in them, but to me I didn't trust that diagnosis which is why I asked my vet to redo it and to get their opinion.
And my vet said almost guaranteed to not be kidney disease and he has an infection.
 

kittyluv387

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My cat actually had slightly higher numbers than the normal range. Of course my vet was claiming kidney disease. But he eats a higher protein diet than most cats so it makes sense. I consulted with Dr. Pierson from catinfo.org about it and she didn't believe he had kidney disease either. So it's not always black and white. If he's eating dry food I would switch him to wet and continue to monitor his kidney values over time on an excel spreadsheet. It could be that his norm is on the higher end of normal.
 
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Rosepud

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My cat actually had slightly higher numbers than the normal range. Of course my vet was claiming kidney disease. But he eats a higher protein diet than most cats so it makes sense. I consulted with Dr. Pierson from catinfo.org about it and she didn't believe he had kidney disease either. So it's not always black and white. If he's eating dry food I would switch him to wet and continue to monitor his kidney values over time on an excel spreadsheet. It could be that his norm is on the higher end of normal.
He is also underweight and we are feeding mostly wet but leaving dry availble since needs to gain weight. He is still within the normal ramge and with a high RBC count which indicates dehydration it seems likely it's not kidney related. He also has an appointment with a nutritionist tomorrow.
 

kittyluv387

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He is also underweight and we are feeding mostly wet but leaving dry availble since needs to gain weight. He is still within the normal ramge and with a high RBC count which indicates dehydration it seems likely it's not kidney related. He also has an appointment with a nutritionist tomorrow.
Yikes. Sounds like the breeder did not do right by this cat. Sounds good. Just keep track of his numbers.
 
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Rosepud

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Yikes. Sounds like the breeder did not do right by this cat. Sounds good. Just keep track of his numbers.
I plan too. I don't really think the breeder is at fault since the underweight the vet they used said was due to the kidneys as he was a healthy weight at some point. I do think their vet should have noticed that the bloodwork showed 2 signs of an infection though amd looked for that which is what my vet thinks is causing him to be underweight. The breeder seemed like they were doing their best.
 
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Rosepud

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He does also have gingivitis as well which I found out today, and the breeders vet never told them.
 
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Rosepud

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Nice job following through, Rosepud. Let us know the results please. You are an amazing guardian and parent. :yess:
His kidney values are still normal even lower than before, his white blood cell count and neutrophils are higher than before, and the RBC count is now normal but still high. My vet believes he has an infection and they're going to run some more tests to check for that. They think the infection could be causing some level of dehydration, but my feeding almost exclusively wet and the flowing water dishes seem to be helping. His urine was also more concentrated than normal it was higher than the high-end which means his kidenys work great but he is still dehydrated. We have found he really likes the slide n serve and other mousse wet foods, and once the infection is figured out or whatever it is he's getting a dental for the gingivitis.
 
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Rosepud

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Nice job following through, Rosepud. Let us know the results please. You are an amazing guardian and parent. :yess:
My partner is actually the one who picked him, we keep getting special needs cats because he says "we're here for a good time not a long time" so it'll be nice to hopefully get a long time this time!
 

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This "we're here for a good time not a long time" is something all should remember. I hope Wilbur does have a long time, but more I hope he has a good time. Prayers to help that happen.
 
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Rosepud

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This "we're here for a good time not a long time" is something all should remember. I hope Wilbur does have a long time, but more I hope he has a good time. Prayers to help that happen.
Thank you! Unfortunately Wilbur was our last good time not a long time cat who passed away we weren't going to get another until July at the soonest hut my partner decided we NEEDED this one his name is Kip. Wilbur had a good time unfortunately not a long time which I guess happens when you adopt a 12 year old cat with health problems, but hopefully Kip can have both!
 

Kflowers

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Right oh, Kip it is. Though, I expect the one who listens knew who I meant even if I got the name wrong. Or at least I hope so.

I'm sure Wilbur was glad to spend the time he did with you. We rescued an 18 year old and gave him the best last six months we could. It's a good thing.
 
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Rosepud

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He saw another vet today who basically said they didn't think anything was wrong with the kidneys but that something very minor was wrong and we are running a stool sample and a pathologist is checking the bloodwork for more information about infection. The vet today also gave us some stuff to help his tummy.
 
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