AndreaJEP
Member Since 2022
Thanks to the amazing people here and the wealth of information you have compiled, my sweet Scully has been in remission from her diabetes since January 2023. Her neuropathy completely disappeared and she has been at a healthy and stable weight for over a year.
Her vet informed me on 5/13 that Scully has some early CKD, and prescribed her some kidney care food (Hills) and Azodyl. I expressed concern about going back to a higher-carb food, but the vet said that the kidney concerns trumped concerns about the return of diabetes. She wasn't pushy, but I trusted her...until I calmed down and started reading up on things, especially here. I was hoping you all could tell me what you think.
Here's a brief (or not, lol) rundown:
March 16th-ish - senior wellness visit. All went well, as far as I was told. (Urinalysis was later as I had to free catch.)
April 21st - noticed straining to pee. Would enter litter box, strain & produce nothing, leave litter box & produce small amount of urine, then repeat. Behavior and appetite otherwise normal. Urination the previous evening was normal. Took to after-hours vet, where they could not get a urine sample, but said it sounded like a UTI and prescribed Clavamox.
Over the next couple of days, I did find a few more pee spots on the floor, but then everything returned to normal, though with some loose stool at first (presumably from the Clavamox). I did finish the entire course (10 days, I think?) as directed.
May 6th - Got home to find more pee spots on the floor, this time with drops of blood in them (not diffused through the urine). Called regular vet and got an appointment for the next day. Behavior and appetite otherwise still normal.
May 7th - Vet drew blood, collected urine, and attempted bladder x-rays. (Scully said "no" after the first few images.) Labs are attached. There are urinalysis results for 5/7 and 5/9 because the outside lab that did the cultures re-ran the tests on the existing sample.
May 8th - Fasted/sedated appointment for bladder ultrasound. No stones or masses found, but some "thickening" found, consistent with infection or cystitis (I believe?).
May 13th - I got the CKD call from the vet that had me crying and freaking out. Vet referred me to an ultrasound specialist who could image Scully's entire abdomen, including her kidneys, to look for kidney stones or a tumor.
May 16th - ultrasound performed, and I was told results would be sent to her regular vet the next day or the following Monday. Unfortunately, I still don't have these results, thanks to a combination of two big storms, a tornado (which damaged the specialist clinic), and Memorial Day. They only just re-opened yesterday, and while I don't want to be a pest, I'm also worried that they forgot about my girl, as she is not a regular patient of theirs.
Now - I showed the lab results to my dad when I got them (he is a retired human physician, not a vet). He never sugarcoats anything, but he thinks her results look borderline based on reference ranges, and not nearly as bad as I was led to believe. And reading things here, I now know that the Hills k/d food is a BAD idea, but I'm wondering whether she actually even needs low phosphorus or Azodyl? I'm prepared to pick foods from this list (p.15, diabetic/ckd) or similar if her normal Fancy Feast pate is now inappropriate for her, but I don't want to over-treat her, either. And I REALLY don't want her to have to be on insulin again.
What do you all think? Labs are attached. All the circling was done by me as I tried to make sense of everything.
Thank you for reading, regardless
Her vet informed me on 5/13 that Scully has some early CKD, and prescribed her some kidney care food (Hills) and Azodyl. I expressed concern about going back to a higher-carb food, but the vet said that the kidney concerns trumped concerns about the return of diabetes. She wasn't pushy, but I trusted her...until I calmed down and started reading up on things, especially here. I was hoping you all could tell me what you think.
Here's a brief (or not, lol) rundown:
March 16th-ish - senior wellness visit. All went well, as far as I was told. (Urinalysis was later as I had to free catch.)
April 21st - noticed straining to pee. Would enter litter box, strain & produce nothing, leave litter box & produce small amount of urine, then repeat. Behavior and appetite otherwise normal. Urination the previous evening was normal. Took to after-hours vet, where they could not get a urine sample, but said it sounded like a UTI and prescribed Clavamox.
Over the next couple of days, I did find a few more pee spots on the floor, but then everything returned to normal, though with some loose stool at first (presumably from the Clavamox). I did finish the entire course (10 days, I think?) as directed.
May 6th - Got home to find more pee spots on the floor, this time with drops of blood in them (not diffused through the urine). Called regular vet and got an appointment for the next day. Behavior and appetite otherwise still normal.
May 7th - Vet drew blood, collected urine, and attempted bladder x-rays. (Scully said "no" after the first few images.) Labs are attached. There are urinalysis results for 5/7 and 5/9 because the outside lab that did the cultures re-ran the tests on the existing sample.
May 8th - Fasted/sedated appointment for bladder ultrasound. No stones or masses found, but some "thickening" found, consistent with infection or cystitis (I believe?).
May 13th - I got the CKD call from the vet that had me crying and freaking out. Vet referred me to an ultrasound specialist who could image Scully's entire abdomen, including her kidneys, to look for kidney stones or a tumor.
May 16th - ultrasound performed, and I was told results would be sent to her regular vet the next day or the following Monday. Unfortunately, I still don't have these results, thanks to a combination of two big storms, a tornado (which damaged the specialist clinic), and Memorial Day. They only just re-opened yesterday, and while I don't want to be a pest, I'm also worried that they forgot about my girl, as she is not a regular patient of theirs.
Now - I showed the lab results to my dad when I got them (he is a retired human physician, not a vet). He never sugarcoats anything, but he thinks her results look borderline based on reference ranges, and not nearly as bad as I was led to believe. And reading things here, I now know that the Hills k/d food is a BAD idea, but I'm wondering whether she actually even needs low phosphorus or Azodyl? I'm prepared to pick foods from this list (p.15, diabetic/ckd) or similar if her normal Fancy Feast pate is now inappropriate for her, but I don't want to over-treat her, either. And I REALLY don't want her to have to be on insulin again.
What do you all think? Labs are attached. All the circling was done by me as I tried to make sense of everything.
Thank you for reading, regardless
Attachments
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