Could use some encouragement (stomatitis and kidney disease in young cat)...

[di and bob]

I just wanted to come back on and thank you for the update, wonderful news. Also, the DMG is for supporting a cat's immune system. since my cats have leukemia, any sickness could potentially kill them. I had tried L-Lysine and they still got the Herpes Virus, (common cold in cats) but since I have had them on DMG, they have had NO colds!

 

[r-kins]

Oh sweetheart, Im so so sorry. That must be so hard on you. I don’t know much and I certainly don’t know how I can help, but I just wanted to say that you’re not alone. I’m very anxious, worried, frustrated, overwhelmed and exhausted from my constant anxiety for my kitties. I promise, it’s okay. And it will be. You’re doing great. I wish you and your cats nothing but the best. Sending hugs Please, take care

Thank you for the kind words. This is really overwhelming, but I'm feeling a little better with so many kindred cat lovers and after giving it some time to settle.

You're doing great with your cats! The fact that you're on TheCatSite forums saying kind things already lets me know how much you love your babies and understand what we're all going through.

 

[r-kins]

So what I was worried about has begun happening pretty consistently: Freddie doesn't like his renal food. He seemed to enjoy the royal canin loaf, but he's over it. I'm rotating between five types right now and some days he'll eat them and some days he won't. His brother is still eating the delicious stuff and Freddie wants that. So, I guess the good part is that he still wants food, he just doesn't want HIS food.

A couple of nights ago I ended up just giving him regular cat food because he refused to eat any of the renal food and he's feeling a bit thinner. I was feeling really sad about it because obviously the easier food is on his kidneys, the longer I'll get to have him. I know I'm not a failure as long as I do my best, but it still feels like I'm just ruining his life by trying to get him to eat food he hates and also not keeping him alive any longer when I give in. But it's most important that he eats, isn't it?

Today I picked up some squeeze-ups to put on top of the renal food and am hoping that entices him into having it. At 7 calories per tube, they easily fall within the percentage of renal food I'm trying to get him to eat vs other food. Here's hoping that works. I also got some fancy feast to try smushing a teaspoon or so on top to help make it more appealing. Ironically, Freddie hasn't even had fancy feast since I got him.

This is so stressful. Lots of people (in person) have told me their old super old kidney cats are doing just fine on regular cat food (because they won't eat renal food) and I'll be ok too, but since Freddie is so young and I've only had him a year, it feels like they don't really understand how much is at stake for me. I never want anyone's cat to die and it is no less painful just because your cat is old, but getting a young cat and only having him a year before finding out he probably won't live that long is unfairness that I have experienced before and am struggling through yet again.

 

[Furballsmom]

doing just fine

...doing just fine is one of those statements that unless it's backed by actual blood test numbers, honestly doesn't mean much.

But it's most important that he eats, isn't it?

Yes. As you said, all you can do is the best you can do

 

[lwndlnd]

So what I was worried about has begun happening pretty consistently: Freddie doesn't like his renal food. He seemed to enjoy the royal canin loaf, but he's over it. I'm rotating between five types right now and some days he'll eat them and some days he won't. His brother is still eating the delicious stuff and Freddie wants that. So, I guess the good part is that he still wants food, he just doesn't want HIS food.

A couple of nights ago I ended up just giving him regular cat food because he refused to eat any of the renal food and he's feeling a bit thinner. I was feeling really sad about it because obviously the easier food is on his kidneys, the longer I'll get to have him. I know I'm not a failure as long as I do my best, but it still feels like I'm just ruining his life by trying to get him to eat food he hates and also not keeping him alive any longer when I give in. But it's most important that he eats, isn't it?

Today I picked up some squeeze-ups to put on top of the renal food and am hoping that entices him into having it. At 7 calories per tube, they easily fall within the percentage of renal food I'm trying to get him to eat vs other food. Here's hoping that works. I also got some fancy feast to try smushing a teaspoon or so on top to help make it more appealing. Ironically, Freddie hasn't even had fancy feast since I got him.

This is so stressful. Lots of people (in person) have told me their old super old kidney cats are doing just fine on regular cat food (because they won't eat renal food) and I'll be ok too, but since Freddie is so young and I've only had him a year, it feels like they don't really understand how much is at stake for me. I never want anyone's cat to die and it is no less painful just because your cat is old, but getting a young cat and only having him a year before finding out he probably won't live that long is unfairness that I have experienced before and am struggling through yet again.

I’ve read some studies that said that renal diets are a literal bullshit. I recommend to do your own research and decide what’s best for your kitty.

Low phosphorus and moisture rich diet is the key. Some wet foods are relatively low in phosphorus which is very important for managing kidney disease in cats.

Some studies also provide with information that low protein diet is not a good choice for a cat with kidney disease unless it’s really advanced. This is because cats with kidney disease are prone to losing weight and low protein diet will only cause it to happen faster so protein is essential but it should be high quality protein. Cats need a lot of protein to build muscles and keep their weight in line.

You should look some of that information up, hopefully it will be helpful for you and your fur baby.

Sending love and good vibes

 

[r-kins]

I’ve read some studies that said that renal diets are a literal bullshit. I recommend to do your own research and decide what’s best for your kitty.

Low phosphorus and moisture rich diet is the key. Some wet foods are relatively low in phosphorus which is very important for managing kidney disease in cats.

Some studies also provide with information that low protein diet is not a good choice for a cat with kidney disease unless it’s really advanced. This is because cats with kidney disease are prone to losing weight and low protein diet will only cause it to happen faster so protein is essential but it should be high quality protein. Cats need a lot of protein to build muscles and keep their weight in line.

You should look some of that information up, hopefully it will be helpful for you and your fur baby.

Sending love and good vibes

Thank you for your kind words. I am reading a lot about it but a lot of it is unclear. At the end of the day, I'm a regular person who doesn't feel educated enough to make these decisions. Looking at chart after chart and all sorts of research is making things even less clear and making me feel stupid and incompetent in just trying to keep my cat alive.

He's in stage 3 (loss of 75% of kidney function) so it's pretty advanced already. I'm having a hard time finding food that is simply low in phosphorous but not low in protein, also. And then it seems like low protein is more for end stage, and at 75% loss he is nearing that. So I just don't know.

And I'm here, with my cat in my lap being so sweet, and I just want to do what's best for him and I don't even know what that is.

 

[r-kins]

Hey all, thanks for your support again.

Freddie is a big fan of Weruva's Steak Frites (for now), which actually has a fairly similar protein and phosphorus profile to the Blue Buffalo kidney support food that he used to like. I've gotten him back to eating some of the Royal Canin T along with Steak Frites and he seems pretty happy again. I also started giving him smaller meals 4x a day instead of two big meals. I work from home so I can do this, luckily. Maybe part of it was that I was expecting him to eat more to try and get his calories up and he can't eat that much in a single sitting, especially when he doesn't particularly enjoy it.

Does anyone have their cats on Hill's Sr Food? That also looked comparable in phosphorus and I could at least try it if he won't eat anything else.

I'm just going to focus on keeping that phosphorus low and making sure he's eating and hydrated. As for the protein, well, he's just going to be getting some extra. I have looked into the "protein isn't actually bad" and it seems like studies could go either way on it. Lots of studies showing that cats live considerably longer on a renal diet than a standard diet, but not a lot about low phosphorus regular/high protein diets. A couple sites say go completely high protein but don't have any references. Please share if you have any good studies or articles on it! I found out my friend has a kidney cat who's been on fluids and a regular diet of very high quality food for five years and is doing fine, so in the end it's all a crapshoot, depends on both you and the cat, and I'm just going to do the best I can with the information I have.

He's still young, maybe I'll get a long time with him as long as I'm willing to do fluids in the future (which I am). It feels like I enter panic mode whenever anything changes with him from the trauma of my last cat's death (everything was urgent, all the time), but this is the long game and I'm trying to take a step back and breathe.

 

[Furballsmom]

It feels like I enter panic mode whenever anything changes with him from the trauma of my last cat's death (everything was urgent, all the time), but this is the long game and I'm trying to take a step back and breathe.

I'm having that same thing, it's hard to adjust to being able to be a little less vigilant

 

[BellaBlue82]

I just wanted to post and send you hugs. I haven't been on here a lot the past few weeks, but was reading your post and can certainly empathize with how you feel. We had lost two cats in the past month, and all three of our furry kids have some kind of medical issues. Nico had diabetes, high blood pressure, constant UTIs, and IBD. Casper had feline herpes virus, megacolon, and finally liver failure. Sadie has hemolytic anemia, and IBD. It's like the universe sends me the kitties that need extra care, because I can and will take care of them the best I can to give them as long a life and as loving a home as I can. Kudos to you for always going above and beyond for your fur babies. It's speaks volumes of your kind heart.

 

[Julesbiscuits]

Hi! I just wanted to chime in here because I had a cat who passed away at 4 years old from kidney disease. I felt awful about it for so long because I didn't know any of the signs and we and our vets didn't catch it until he was too sick and we had to let him go. It sucks to lose a cat so young and it sucks even more to have it happen twice! 2 years before our dear Julian died my elderly dog passed away suddenly, so it was a lot of death in a very short period.

If there's one piece of advice I can give, it's to really make sure you take care of yourself, too. I let my anxiety get way out of hand after Max and Julian died; if I could go back I would have attended therapy or read up on CBT, and I definitely would have got another cat to keep Misfit company sooner; I'm a bit worried that by not taking care of my emotions properly in the years afterward and letting avoidance take over I affected his mental well-being negatively too

Anyways, I can empathize with your situation and am sending all my love to you and Freddie and Finn