My Ckd Cat Is Acting Strange.

Hello again ya'll.
So I have come back once again because my poor baby Catdaddy is acting so strangely. He got sick at the end of March, so we started him back on the fluids twice a week, 50 cc. It's was all he could stand at the time. And he was doing pretty well. He ate ok, and drank water. But, now that it's June his behavior has changed. He now is wanting to go into the bathroom, and he likes to hide in the bathtub now. He also seems so desperate to get into my parents room, which he has never done. And now likes to hide under my brothers bed. He hasn't done any of these things before. He isn't eating as much as he was two months ago. He is still jumping onto tables and will eat treats if I give him some. And he will eat food at his own pace, but sometimes just won't eat a lot. But, I am thinking I may have to go 100 cc every other day. Or at least 3 times a week. Has anyone else experienced this change in behavior? I dunno what to do. I'm scared he is taking a turn for the worse. I checked his gums and ears, they still seem pink. I may call my vet in the morning but I just wanted to see if anyone else has had this happen. Thank you.

I should also add that my Catdaddy is turning 16 next month. He is elderly.

SusieCookie said:

I should also add that my Catdaddy is turning 16 next month. He is elderly.

Click to expand...

My daughter's 18yo cat had that same behavior when she was constipated. She was passing loose stools so we were surprised when the vet felt a mass. She had been drinking a lot but off her feed. The vet kept her all day to do several slow enemas followed by a regimen of lactulose and miralax, then just lactulose.

catsknowme said:

My daughter's 18yo cat had that same behavior when she was constipated. She was passing loose stools so we were surprised when the vet felt a mass. She had been drinking a lot but off her feed. The vet kept her all day to do several slow enemas followed by a regimen of lactulose and miralax, then just lactulose.

Click to expand...

I had the vet check him yesterday and no masses were found in his colon. He also has pink ears and nose so he isn't too sickly. He didn't run a fever and doesn't have swollen lymph nodes. He is high on the creatine scale, 3.5 last we checked. Our main concern was that he lost two pounds the last two months. We gave him SubQ fluids yesterday and the vet wanted to give it to him again Thursday. So I am at a loss at why his behavior is so strange. I'm hoping that once he gains weight and is on the fluids more often he'll feel better.

My last cat also lost two pounds in two months - twice. It coincided with a Hill's k/d prescription, which I know is junk food but fed anyway because it kept her numbers stable on the blood chemistry panel. The vet prescribed mirtazapine twice. It turned her into Cookie Monster, but I changed the drug's name to meowsapine because its side effect is loud and frequent meowing.

Has your vet brought up possible nausea or stomach acid? Nausea even without vomiting is common in CKD cats. My cat hides in new spots when his stomach is upset. You could try 1/4 of pepcid ac daily at night to see if that helps. If he still doesn't feel well, ask your vet for cerenia and an appetite stimulant

Also, do you know if your cat had high phosphorous levels at your last check up? You can add phos bind to his food to bring that down, which will help him feel better

As far as fluids, seems low if your cat has higher numbers. My cat is on the high end of stage 2 and gets 100ml almost daily

My cat always wanted to be alone in her own room with her own things. Towards the end she started to pee everywhere, I thought it was a uti, but it was her kidneys finally failing. I wish i would have known and not gave her antibiotics. Her last week, the fluid did nothing. They only helped twice, after that nothing. She wasnt even peeing it out. Plus she had a heart murmur and giving sun qs with a murmur can be dangerous. So we had to call it. I regret it every day but she needed the pain to stop
Sending love your way

Daisy6 said:

My last cat also lost two pounds in two months - twice. It coincided with a Hill's k/d prescription, which I know is junk food but fed anyway because it kept her numbers stable on the blood chemistry panel. The vet prescribed mirtazapine twice. It turned her into Cookie Monster, but I changed the drug's name to meowsapine because its side effect is loud and frequent meowing.

Click to expand...

I crushed up the Stimulant they gave me yesterday and mixed it with some baby food in a syringe. He has seemed to get his appetite back but not eating as much as the first time he had been on it.

Cara80 said:

Has your vet brought up possible nausea or stomach acid? Nausea even without vomiting is common in CKD cats. My cat hides in new spots when his stomach is upset. You could try 1/4 of pepcid ac daily at night to see if that helps. If he still doesn't feel well, ask your vet for cerenia and an appetite stimulant

Also, do you know if your cat had high phosphorous levels at your last check up? You can add phos bind to his food to bring that down, which will help him feel better

As far as fluids, seems low if your cat has higher numbers. My cat is on the high end of stage 2 and gets 100ml almost daily

Click to expand...

Hmm I never thought of any of that! I can bring it up with my vet tomorrow. Also with the subq, My vet recommended that I try to get anything in him. My cat is quite the feisty one, and wiggles a lot even when restrained. Most days all he would tolerate was 50cc before he wiggled out of the needle. Trust me we have tried everything to get him to stand still. Treats, blankets, holding him down with two people. He is already on an appetite stim, I mixed it with some baby food yesterday afternoon. But his appetite isn't as ravenous as the first time he was on it two months ago. But it could simply be nausea. He did throw up once today.

RavenHawke said:

My cat always wanted to be alone in her own room with her own things. Towards the end she started to pee everywhere, I thought it was a uti, but it was her kidneys finally failing. I wish i would have known and not gave her antibiotics. Her last week, the fluid did nothing. They only helped twice, after that nothing. She wasnt even peeing it out. Plus she had a heart murmur and giving sun qs with a murmur can be dangerous. So we had to call it. I regret it every day but she needed the pain to stop
Sending love your way

Click to expand...

I'm so sorry about your dear darling. I will surely keep an eye on mine. He's mainly be under the bed and the top of the table. He just usually loves to be with my brother, but lately he's been avoiding him.

SusieCookie said:

Hmm I never thought of any of that! I can bring it up with my vet tomorrow. Also with the subq, My vet recommended that I try to get anything in him. My cat is quite the feisty one, and wiggles a lot even when restrained. Most days all he would tolerate was 50cc before he wiggled out of the needle. Trust me we have tried everything to get him to stand still. Treats, blankets, holding him down with two people. He is already on an appetite stim, I mixed it with some baby food yesterday afternoon. But his appetite isn't as ravenous as the first time he was on it two months ago. But it could simply be nausea. He did throw up once today.

Click to expand...

I understand, my cat tolerates sub q fluids well I think because he's so old that not much bothers him anymore lol. maybe you could get more fluids in him by adding something like sheba or fancy feast broths to his regular food, both are pretty low in phosphorous so they won't cause kidney damage. I hope your vet lets you try Cerenia, it worked really well for my cat and even has the nice side effect of improving mood and being anti inflammatory. It's really bitter so your cat might have foamy saliva after, so don't be concerned about that. You can get it in injection form too, and I think some compounding pharmacies make an oral suspension to mask the taste

Cara80 said:

I understand, my cat tolerates sub q fluids well I think because he's so old that not much bothers him anymore lol. maybe you could get more fluids in him by adding something like sheba or fancy feast broths to his regular food, both are pretty low in phosphorous so they won't cause kidney damage. I hope your vet lets you try Cerenia, it worked really well for my cat and even has the nice side effect of improving mood and being anti inflammatory. It's really bitter so your cat might have foamy saliva after, so don't be concerned about that. You can get it in injection form too, and I think some compounding pharmacies make an oral suspension to mask the taste

Click to expand...

I will see if the vet thinks Cerenia will help. He's been on it before for a similar problem. He is now just refusing to leave the table. I left a comfy blankey and some food. But anytime I take him off the table he goes right back to it.

When cats don't feel well most commonly they avoid people. Has he been eating and drinking on his own?

I also fed my cat baby food, beef or chicken broth but make sure they don't contain any onion or garlic. Read through the ingredients.

cat1967 said:

When cats don't feel well most commonly they avoid people. Has he been eating and drinking on his own?

Click to expand...

He did eat yesterday afternoon when I left the food for him underneath the bed. And came out for treats but retreated back after he was done. But after he ate about two bowls he threw up and hasn't really eaten much since. He lapped at his food last night when I pushed it towards him. But he then just sat down back on his table. Hardly moved.

He probably has an upset stomach and maybe he ate a lot. About those treats, one of my cats always vomits when I give them to her so I have stopped. I can only tell you that Royal Canin Recovery can food really stayed in my poor cat's stomach. Because he also had an upset stomach and obviously nausea especially after the anti-nausea injections were stopped. You should really ask the vet for some prescription diet, as Recovery is a prescription diet food.

Update: The first couple of days that we started back up on Fluids every day he started eating again, but still hid under the bed. I placed food and water for him under the bed so he always had access. But, now he isn't pooping. He has been peeing frequently, but he is a butt and likes to pee where he shouldn't. But, the past couple of days have been hard. He isn't walking right, like he's drunk. When he sits, he kinda leans. I have been trying to give him 100 cc of fluids every day. He did finally eat some turkey on his own while we gave fluids, but for the most part I have been force feeding him to keep him from starving. He also continues to hide, only coming out for water and to pee. I have already arranged an appointment with the vet tomorrow afternoon, but my guts are all twisted. I have a feeling his CKD has turned into CKF. I am just all torn up because I had to put my baby Snugglebug down around this time last year. It's heartwenching that I might have to do it again. I just don't know what to do.

If you have to put him down you will do it for his own sake but don't think about it just now. Don't worry so much about the poop, Benji pooped after five days and the vet could feel his poop inside him. He told me it is ok since the bowel is long and he will empty it when he feels he has to. Peeing is good and since you are force feeding him he gets enough fluids. How much do you feed him. I gave him about 160 ml daily. And around 100 ml water since he didn't drink any. Good thing you are taking him to the vet though. Walking strangely might be from dizziness or weakness. Your vet will tell you of course. Good luck and keep us updated of course.

cat1967 said:

If you have to put him down you will do it for his own sake but don't think about it just now. Don't worry so much about the poop, Benji pooped after five days and the vet could feel his poop inside him. He told me it is ok since the bowel is long and he will empty it when he feels he has to. Peeing is good and since you are force feeding him he gets enough fluids. How much do you feed him. I gave him about 160 ml daily. And around 100 ml water since he didn't drink any. Good thing you are taking him to the vet though. Walking strangely might be from dizziness or weakness. Your vet will tell you of course. Good luck and keep us updated of course.

Click to expand...

Thank you for this. I haven't had the chance to measure exactly how much I've given him food wise, but I have tried to give him at least 15ml every 2 hours. He eats it up pretty well. And has been liking the broths I've given him. He just looks so tired, and doesn't walk around much. Under the bed is his fav place to be. Just sitting. Hopefully tomorrow my Vet will give me a better look at what I should do. I am just always prepared for the worst.

15 ml every two hours is good. And the fact that he licks the broths on his own is also good. Do not worry about him sitting under the bed, when cats don't feel well they do want to hide. He must be tired but that is expected. You will have a better picture and advice by the vet but be hopeful and don't think of the worst. You might see him all well soon.