Recent Content by cowkittymom

Thank you so much for all of your replies and comforting words. I am feeling less guilt and better about my decision, little by little. In case this is of any help to someone who finds this thread in the future, here's a link to an article about the outcomes of cats experiencing acute on...

@silent meowlook, thank you so much for this reply. You are absolutely right. I need to be firm with myself so I have the energy to take care of my others pets, Phoebe’s littermate Calvin and my dog. Calvin has the exact same coloring as Phoebe. It is comforting to see him.

@silent meowlook, thank you for this message. I'm needing to re-read it because I'm of course second-guessing my decision. Phoebe was euthanized on Tuesday at noon. In my heart, I think I made the right decision. After I got home, Phoebe was willing to eat a little, but continued to drink...

Thank you for your wise message, @silent meowlook. I am at peace with my decision to euthanize Phoebe. Given the progression from 1.7 to 2.2 between August & the end of October, it does seem like her kidneys were rapidly deteriorating. Even though an abdominal ultrasound in October only...

Sadly, Phoebe was very lethargic late last night & having trouble walking. I took her in today. Her RBC are up, but her creatinine is back up to 7. I wish I had noticed the kidney symptoms earlier. I think it's too late. I've decided to let her go tomorrow. I also have her littermate...

Do you think I should restrict her to one room? I’ve already closed off the downstairs since she seemed wobbly on the stairs. The upper level is only 900 square feet. There is water in every room and 2 litter boxes, which she has been using. I have been hand-feeding and she is eager to eat...

The vet gave Phoebe iron & B12, and put her on a ESA, darbepoietin, for anemia. Does anyone have anyone have experience with this treatment and how long it takes to work? It breaks my heart to see her so weak.

Thank you all for your support! She is of course exhausted & mostly sleeping, but eating in between her naps. Despite all of that time on the IV fluids, her thirst drive is still quite high. Both times that I visited her, she meowed at me for the water in my bottle, and I've seen her drink...

Phoebe is now home! After 3 nights of hospitalization, Phoebe's creatinine is now 5.7. Not great, but given Phoebe's nervous nature (the nurses said she seemed terrified the entire time she was there), the negatives of continued hospitalization seemed to outweigh the potential benefits. She...

I'm pleased to report that after IV fluids since Thursday night, Phoebe's creatinine has gone down from 9 to 6.6 as of this morning. Hopefully there will be further improvement over the next two days, and it will stick after she's taken off the IV.

Hi @stephanietx, I did try to switch Phoebe & her littermate brother to wet food only several years ago. I did it very gradually, but she went on a hunger strike and started losing weight, so I gave up. She does seem to enjoy wet food more these days, maybe due to the resorptive lesions that...

Thank you, @Joxer, for the suggestion. They have taken her off of the Prednisolone for now. The specialist also mentioned the possibility that it is what triggered the current crisis. I presume that the IBD treatment regimen will be adjusted. Since Phoebe's only symptom this entire time has...

I had a nice long visit today with Phoebe. She is looking much better and eating well. The specialist said we will just need to see how well Phoebe's kidneys will recover. Her goal is to get the creatinine down to less than 5 before discharging her. She said this could take 3-5 days. As...

Hello all, thank you so much for your replies! I'm still waiting for an update from the internal medicine specialist and will visit Phoebe later this morning. I also thought the 2-day timeline and recommendation was too strong given that Phoebe hadn't even started supportive treatment. I have...

Thanks so much for your reply. They said her kidney disease was early stage and no treatment was necessary yet. I had to change her kibble last fall because her appetite became finicky. She now eats Hills Adult Chicken Age 7 plus kibble. Also eats some of her brothers urinary rx wet food. I...