Hi all! It’s been a while since I’ve posted here (college and exams got in the way) but I remembered how wonderful this community is and thought I’d post my questions here.
A couple weeks ago, we brought in our cats for their senior checkups. Two of three were healthy, but one, Diana, was diagnosed with kidney disease. I’ll attach a picture with her numbers to provide extra info.
For most of her life, Diana has been fed canned food (Merrick, Wellness, Nutro, as well as other brands), with some raw from Primal or Rad Cat mixed in every once in a while. The vet recommended the Blue Buffalo kidney prescription diet, which I started to feed last Friday (10/12), along with these supplements (one pill twice per day). We’ve also been instructed to give her sub-q fluids, sodium chloride, 100cc once per day, for 14 days. We’re on day 9 now, for the fluids and diet.
We will be following through with our vet’s instructions, but I do have some questions. She absolutely hates getting the fluids at home, so much so that I now bring her in to the vet every day for a tech to do it (thankfully it only takes 5 minutes, if that!). Is it normal for cats with kidney disease to continue needing sub-q fluids? My vet said we’d know more after her recheck. I just feel terrible she has to get poked every day.
Concerning the diet: How is the Blue Buffalo diet? Diana has lost a bit of weight since starting—I forget what her original weight was—it was just over 7lbs, but she’s now at 6lbs 8oz. Is this normal? She eats plenty, and a couple days ago I started giving her a lunch between meals. She also seems a little subdued (less active, less talkative, less "purr"y etc). I brought this up to the tech, and the vet will be calling me, hopefully within the next couple of days. I made an appointment in November with another vet in the area who is very knowledgeable in nutrition, just for a second opinion. We’ve gone to her before, but she is not our primary vet as visits are pretty costly.
And finally, how will this affect Diana’s future? My mom is worried we won’t have her around for very long, and I’m hoping this isn’t the case. She’s very loved.
Thank you for reading, and for any help/advice!!
A couple weeks ago, we brought in our cats for their senior checkups. Two of three were healthy, but one, Diana, was diagnosed with kidney disease. I’ll attach a picture with her numbers to provide extra info.
For most of her life, Diana has been fed canned food (Merrick, Wellness, Nutro, as well as other brands), with some raw from Primal or Rad Cat mixed in every once in a while. The vet recommended the Blue Buffalo kidney prescription diet, which I started to feed last Friday (10/12), along with these supplements (one pill twice per day). We’ve also been instructed to give her sub-q fluids, sodium chloride, 100cc once per day, for 14 days. We’re on day 9 now, for the fluids and diet.
We will be following through with our vet’s instructions, but I do have some questions. She absolutely hates getting the fluids at home, so much so that I now bring her in to the vet every day for a tech to do it (thankfully it only takes 5 minutes, if that!). Is it normal for cats with kidney disease to continue needing sub-q fluids? My vet said we’d know more after her recheck. I just feel terrible she has to get poked every day.
Concerning the diet: How is the Blue Buffalo diet? Diana has lost a bit of weight since starting—I forget what her original weight was—it was just over 7lbs, but she’s now at 6lbs 8oz. Is this normal? She eats plenty, and a couple days ago I started giving her a lunch between meals. She also seems a little subdued (less active, less talkative, less "purr"y etc). I brought this up to the tech, and the vet will be calling me, hopefully within the next couple of days. I made an appointment in November with another vet in the area who is very knowledgeable in nutrition, just for a second opinion. We’ve gone to her before, but she is not our primary vet as visits are pretty costly.
And finally, how will this affect Diana’s future? My mom is worried we won’t have her around for very long, and I’m hoping this isn’t the case. She’s very loved.
Thank you for reading, and for any help/advice!!
