Old Age In Cats

[jasminelovescats]

My cat is about 14-15 human years old. He is showing signs of old age as well as signs of kidney failure that I know is very common in old ages. I have rung the vet and explained all of his symptoms to them, they include; extreme weight loss, bad smell, hair loss, crunching when eating wet food and dehydration(he is always thirsty). They have told us that these are all symptoms leading to kidney failure and that there is nothing that they can do for him except prescribe medication that may give him a little longer than he has if it works.
I love my boy to death and it breaks my heart that he is so unwell and I cannot do anything about it.
My question is- does he really have Kidney failure? Or could there be something else wrong with him such as cancer or a treatable illness?? He has been wormed and flead so neither of them is the issue.
Any help would be much appreciated as I would do anything for him to get better.
I have heard of cats that live to 20 that is why I am questioning whether or not there could be another issue.
Thank you in advance!

 

[duckpond]

Cats, much like people can have different lifespans. A lot of this will depend on Genetics. I am sorry your guys is not feeling well.

That being said i think i would want a full vet check before they make any kind of diagnosis. I am a bit shocked they would give you any kind of diagnosis on the phone?

There are medications and foods that can help. I would first thing have a full vet check, figure out exactly what the problem is, then go from there. Your vet should be able to help you formulate a plan for your cat. And once you know what you are dealing with, for sure, please let us know. We can pull upon our experiences as well.

 

[Kieka]

I would take my cat in, to a different vet, and get an actual physical exam. Something as serious as kidney failure really can't be diagnosed by phone. Plus the symptoms could be something else, a combination of unrelated symptoms or you could be missing something that points to another. Additionally, even if it is kidney failure, there are different stages and a cat can live many more eyears with proper care and treatment.

I really would do an actual in office exam (or find a home visit vet) and go over different options. If it is kidney problems, this site may be of more assistance as they are only focused on kidney failure Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Kidney Disease - Everything You Need to Know to Help Your Cat

 

[RavenHawke]

I would have him/her do bloodwork and a urinalysis. My cat had ckd and that's how they diagnosed her. She started to lose muscle mass, peed all the time, drank all the time. I never gave her meds, I dont know what meds they are talking about. I changed her diet and nothing helped. Its one of those withering diseases. The only thing that seemed to help was wet food. I did sub qs a couple times but in the end it didnt matter. They say cats with ckd always feel like they have a hangover. I could tell in her, she would just sit there with her head down. That's when I said it was time. She was only 16, if that. Cats living to 20 I think is rare. I've had a lot of cats and none ever lived past 16. If you have any questions feel free to ask, I dealt with her disease for over a year. You get to the point where you feel like a vet in training.

 

[neely]

First, I'd like to welcome you to TCS! I'm glad you found our site and came here for guidance and support.

I completely agree with the above members that a veterinary exam is in order as well as a blood work up. For your reference, here is a helpful Article that discusses health concerns in aging cats: Health Concerns In Aging Cats
And another Article that may be helpful about kidney problems in cats:
Your Cat’s Kidneys Called

 

[les26]

I am sorry you are going through this, always tough to deal with. There are many vitamin and herbal things that you can see online for kidney support, plus things like Transfer Factors Plus which is great for the immune system, it wouldn't hurt to search Google and take a good look at them and read what they claim to do and read the reviews, maybe they would help? But yes you have to get a vet check and bloodwork and the whole thing, please let us know how it is going and good luck!

 

[jen]

I cannot believe a vet would just diagnose over the phone, without full bloodwork, and tell you there isn't anything to do... Please find another vet asap, get him in for a full blood panel, urinalysis, etc... With kidney failure the cat needs low protein food and subQ fluids every few days.

When was his last blood panel done? Was there any sign of early symptoms previously?

 

[RavenHawke]

I cannot believe a vet would just diagnose over the phone, without full bloodwork, and tell you there isn't anything to do... Please find another vet asap, get him in for a full blood panel, urinalysis, etc... With kidney failure the cat needs low protein food and subQ fluids every few days.
When was his last blood panel done? Was there any sign of early symptoms previously?

I would find out what stage it is before giving sub qs every few days. My girl had a heart murmur and it can make it worse. She needs a full panel done first. I didnt do sub qs until the end. Sub qs wont cure it, sometimes vets like to get your hopes up with diets and crap like that. But there is no cure. That was something I had to learn the hard way. Always hoping something will and nothing did. Just make them comfortable is all you can do. Lots of food and water. I regret making my girl eat food she hated cause it didnt help, the low protein diet just made her waste away. There are a lot of studies saying that either or isnt really going to do much good. I've had vets say the same thing

 

[jen]

True, I guess my point was there are things you can do to make the cat feel a little better, be more comfortable, and/or be around a little longer. The vet shouldn't have diagnosed over the phone or basically said "too bad, nothing you can do, bye".

 

[RavenHawke]

True, I guess my point was there are things you can do to make the cat feel a little better, be more comfortable, and/or be around a little longer. The vet shouldn't have diagnosed over the phone or basically said "too bad, nothing you can do, bye".

Yeah I agree, new vet is required. I wasnt trying to be a jerk. I'm sorry
I just went through all that and it was pointless for my girl. I guess some cats are ok with it but she was miserable.

 

[jen]

Yeah I agree, new vet is required. I wasnt trying to be a jerk. I'm sorry
I just went through all that and it was pointless for my girl. I guess some cats are ok with it but she was miserable.

It's all good. Nothing is going to FIX them you are correct. We always just encourage clients to make the cat as comfortable as possible, but you are just prolonging the inevitable. Cats just do everything possible to mask their pain and discomfort and people never seem to really GET that so pushing diet, meds and fluids is the best that can be done to help them when people refuse to euthanize a cat who really probably should be. That's my honest opinion. You pretty much just treat the symptoms until the cat refuses to eat. Once they refuse to eat it usually means they are too sick and have "given up" and are ready to go

 

[RavenHawke]

I completely agree.

 

[laura mae]

It could by hyperthyroid too. Only way you are going to find out what is going on is to actually take the cat to a vet. There are several stages of kidney decline and the only way you are going to know what stage is to have the vet run a blood test.