10/13 Chloe - AMPS 100 | PMPS 96 - officially CKD

[Librarianista]

Yesterday: https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB...mps-109-pmps-114-antibiotics-question.254156/

Not much appy this morning. She did spit up just after her AMPS. Gave her some Cerenia and there are 3 different kinds of food out, so hopefully one will be appealing soon.

Vet this afternoon. I am feeling very run down today with all the possibilities of what could be wrong (especially with her kidneys), and what treatment might be and how much more taxing that could be on me.

 

[Librarianista]

Well, no UTI at least. Officially CKD, although the vet didn’t say what stage. Still early, since she wants to try diet alone first. Wrote me a script for all the prescription foods since I said Chloe was picky.

While all her Weruva foods in rotation are less than 250 mg/100 kcal in phosphorous, only one is truly low phosphorous. So we’ll be trying the chicken pate with just a little bit of the others on top. Hopefully she doesn’t mind. Otherwise I don’t know what we’re gonna do. I joined the CKD group on Facebook, and we’ve tried almost all the other diabetes-friendly foods they recommend. The others are proteins she doesn’t like. This cat…

I haven’t put in her latest labs yet, but her BUN actually went down from 51 to 49, so that’s something I was glad to see. But the other blood test they run to confirm CKD (can’t remember the name) was in the 20s when it should be, like, under 14.

Another silver lining is that this appointment was with a different doc than her usual, and I think I will be requesting this one from now on. She was impressed with how well I knew her numbers, meds, and was generally taking care of her diabetes. Granted she didn’t seem to recognize that a lot of her success is because we’re not on prescription food, but still… felt like a vast improvement in the overall experience.

 

[Katherine&Ruby]

I'm really sorry to hear this, Alex. The test is called SDMA.

Is raw food not an option for you? That's what really helped Ruby. I started feeding raw in late February and her kidney values are much better. Both BUN and creatinine are lower, and her oncologist didn't even bother doing the SDMA during our last visit because she was so much better.

I also started regular subQ with her after her enema in the hopes it would help her constipation and though it didn't help her bowels very much, her BUN was much lower. Did your new vet suggest that as a possibility?

 

[Librarianista]

I knew it was only a matter of time, given her last results. I just already kind of feel held hostage by her condition. I don’t know how much more energy I have to give.

Unfortunately I do not have the storage space to feed raw. I can fill the fridge/freezer in my rental about 2/3 full before it starts to complain loudly, and we’re pretty much at capacity. We are hoping to move in the next few months, so that’s something I might explore when we have more space.

The vet did not bring up subq at all. She wanted to try diet first, then said meds would be the next option. She did not go into detail about what those meds were.

 

[Katherine&Ruby]

There are some raw foods that you may be able to get from your local pet store that are low phos so you can just shop for what you need. Lotus is one company that makes a low phos boneless raw and they come in smaller containers: https://www.lotuspetfoods.com/product-view/cat/raw-food/Turkey-57#Detailed Nutrients. The Lotus turkey is .91% phos on a dry matter basis, so this is below the 1% DMB recommended for CKD cats.

I don't know that there are meds that can specifically help CKD. Usually it's about managing the symptoms.

I think the Tanya's CKD group on groups.io is better than the Facebook group because it's a message board and there are some really good voices there who can look at your labs and chime in, sort of like people are here. https://tanyackd.groups.io/g/support

CKD is totally manageable. If you can handle her FD, you can do this. Big hugs to you!

 

[FrostD]

Lots of people here manage both, you got this! But I know how it feels...diabetes in and of itself is a lot, and other diagnoses (acro, CKD, lymphoma, etc) on top feel overwhelming. So take a day or two, then get yourself a plan of attack just like anything else

There are also phos binders but I know zero about CKD besides what I've read in passing here.

 

[Bandit's Mom]

I just already kind of feel held hostage by her condition. I don’t know how much more energy I have to give.

I know how you feel! In the last 2 months, Bandit has gone from being a happy, energetic sugar kitty to one that needs pills and fluids just to keep her going. It is hard to see them unwell and yes, that much more work.

Tanya's website is a font of information - much more than a vet can tell you. Do you have her latest labs esp kidney values? In the early stages it is not much more than feeding low phos food.
Did the vet prescribe any ondansetron and cyproheptadine? She might need an antacid also. Bandit needed all 3 for a few days but I am now using them on an as-needed basis.