11/10 Max AMPS 145

Max & Lori

Member Since 2021
Max’s lab values are back and his kidney values were significantly higher since July when he had his last labs (BUN, creatinine and SDMA). :( I’m not too surprised because he’s been peeing and drinking tons of water. I wasn’t expecting it to be that much elevated though. I’m not really sure what I else I can do. He’s eating all low phosphorus being Weruva foods and EZ complete homemade with boneless meat. His vet of course is suggesting a renal diet to lower the protein, but I know that’s not really recommended here, and to be honest, he probably wouldn’t eat it anyway. She also suggested giving subQ fluids just once a week to begin with (50 ml). She’s trying to balance that between his heart issues and the kidney disease. I’m not sure how much that would help. He gets fluids now only when he has a flare up of pancreatitis. His calcium was slightly elevated this time as well. She didn’t mention that when she was giving me results. Anything significant about that needing attention?

I’d really appreciate some advice about what to do now. I’m really surprised the values went up that much. I gave her the papers on Cabergoline. She said she would study that but seemed open to it. I was kind of holding off right now and still thinking about it because of everything else he has going on, but I’m wondering if that could help at all with the kidneys (because of the acro). I’m kind of upset about this because I lost my last cat to CKD. He didn’t last long after diagnosis and I was following the vet’s recommendations. I’m tagging @Wendy&Neko @Suzanne & Darcy @tiffmaxee @Bron and Sheba (GA) but anyone else is welcome to comment also. I’m already looking for info on Tanya’s CKD website. Thanks in advance everyone. His labs are posted on his SS.


https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/11-8-max-amps-131-pmps-259.283382/#post-3121761
 
Any chance Max was dehydrated for the blood draw? His potassium and phosphorus still look good, it's just the BUN/creatinine and SDMS that look off. His calcium was 10.8 a year and a half ago, so I wouldn't call that a significant change. Unless it's also up on the next b/w.

Some people add cooked egg whites to lower phosphorus, but his is maintaining fairly well. I've also seen one website (TC Feline), just adding butter to the raw meat mix. It increases the fat, and reduces the protein. I'm not sure you can get this version of TC Feline in the US, but you might be interested in reading the formula on page 3 of this user guide. That adds sweet potato which adds carbs, so not a perfect fit.

Is this the IM vet you saw? I am super wary of adding fluids to a heart issue, but that's based on my experience with Neko.

On the up side, he seems to be doing well holding the reduction.
 
Every cat I have ever had has had ckd. It’s so sad they can’t figure out what to do to prevent it. I’d add as much water to his food as he will tolerate. I’d ask his cardiologist if you can safely give fluids, how much, and how often.

I just saw what Wendy wrote as I was writing. I think Max was given too much fkuids right before I found out he had CHF so too had a bad outcome.
 
Any chance Max was dehydrated for the blood draw? His potassium and phosphorus still look good, it's just the BUN/creatinine and SDMS that look off. His calcium was 10.8 a year and a half ago, so I wouldn't call that a significant change. Unless it's also up on the next b/w.

Some people add cooked egg whites to lower phosphorus, but his is maintaining fairly well. I've also seen one website (TC Feline), just adding butter to the raw meat mix. It increases the fat, and reduces the protein. I'm not sure you can get this version of TC Feline in the US, but you might be interested in reading the formula on page 3 of this user guide. That adds sweet potato which adds carbs, so not a perfect fit.

Is this the IM vet you saw? I am super wary of adding fluids to a heart issue, but that's based on my experience with Neko.

On the up side, he seems to be doing well holding the reduction.

No this was his regular vet. His cardiology vet okayed him to get fluids in smaller amounts when needed, so I’m very cautious about that. That concerns me quite a bit. I didn’t think he was dehydrated, but like I said he pees a ton. He also drinks a lot from his fountain. I’m constantly refilling it. I also add water to his food. His specific gravity looks normal though, right. Does that mean he was pretty well hydrated? Maybe that’s not the best indicator either. Thanks for the link. I will definitely look into it. That’s a huge difference in the BUN and creatinine though in a short amount of time. Can kidney disease progress that fast? And what is causing it, the acromegaly? I can’t remember much about my previous cat. I didn’t know a lot about CKD in cats back then. I’m sorry for all the questions. I’m really upset about it.
 
What kind of B vitamins are recommended? I haven’t been giving that. The only supplements he gets is probiotics, fish oil and psyllium capsules.
 
His specific gravity looks normal though, right.
Not really, I've seen cat normal is 1.035, though maybe a bit lower for older cats, and his has dropped below that. But he was less in March, then came up a bit, then back down. First thing in the AM pee is usually more concentrated and a better test of how well he can still concentrate. Possibly you could get a first thing in the AM pee and run it to the vet to test.
Can kidney disease progress that fast? And what is causing it, the acromegaly?
Any chance Max might have a UTI, or even kidney infection? Both of those can increase kidney numbers. Sometimes bacteria shows up in a culture, but not in the urinalysis. Acromegaly is hard on kidneys. I used to have a link to an article describing why, but apparently it's moved. :(
 
I’m not sure if he does have a UTI. I guess I can call tomorrow and see if we can still do a culture? Or maybe I can try and get a sample. I don’t have a sterile cup though. I will ask about that. Do you think the Cabergoline could help prevent or slow down kidney damage from acro?
 
What kind of B vitamins are recommended? I haven’t been giving that. The only supplements he gets is probiotics, fish oil and psyllium capsules.
I use Jarrow B Right B-Complex divided into 10 number 4 size gelatin capsules. This is what is commonly used/frequently recommended on Tanya’s support group. This is important to help keep up the hematocrit.
 
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