Civie with Hyperthyroidism and CRF

[CamiF]

Hello,

Talked to my vet today about my hyperthyroid cat and the progression of CRF. He has been on thyroid medication for about a year and a half. I also give him an over the counter fish oil and over the counter probiotic, both for the CRF.

He has never been able to gain weight like he should.

He currently takes 7.5 mg of Methimazole daily (1/2 in the morning and 1 in the evening) for the thyroid issue. His thyroid level came back as 0.3 in last week's blood work. His creatinine level was initially tested as 2.5 in the summer, 3.1 in the Fall, and 3.5 last week.

His phosphorous is 3.8.

Vet has suggested adding benozopryl, which will have the added benefit of increasing the appetite. We also want to decrease the thyroid medication. We are going to decrease methimazole to 5mg daily (1/2 every 12 hours).

I would like to look into azodyl as well.

I have tried the low protein food, which he would not eat. Additionally, I do not like the thought of low protein food for an obligate carnivore, and I understand that treatment method is controversial.

Any additional thoughts?


Thank you!
Cami and Buddy

 

[KristenP&Sam]

Are you doing sub-q fluids as well?

 

[Jill and Remi]

Sounds like my civie, Phoebe. Only now she is hypOthyroid. I believe when the thyroid values get low it causes the kidney values to increase. The thyroid regulates how the kidneys work and when it slows down the kidneys can slow down thus making them work harder. I hope that makes sense.
I agree that that thyroid level indicates a decrease in the methimazole.
I feed Phoebe Friskies specail diet canned food because it is lower in phos. You can check out phos values on Janet and Binky's list. I also water her food down and make sure she has filtered water to drink. Now that we have gotten her thyroid back in normal range her kidney values have improved. I hope to see the same for your kitty!

 

[CamiF]

No, we are not doing sub-q fluids. My vet indicated it was premature to talk about that with his current levels. From what I understand, the thyroid can be a catch 22 with CRF. On the one hand, a thyroid that is too hyper causes increased blood pressure and wear on the kidneys. On the other hand, it filters waste through the kidneys quickly. I hope I am understanding it correctly. That said, lowering the methimazole is good in some ways but may be bad in others. Thanks for the feedback!!!

Cami & Buddy

 

[Jill and Remi]

After rereading my post I must correct it. When the thyroid slows down it slows down the kidneys not allowing them to process things through them sufficiently. I think that makes better sense. Sorry, don't know where my brain was.

 

[Jess & Earl]

Hi Cami

Vet has suggested adding benozopryl, which will have the added benefit of increasing the appetite.

Do you mean benazepril? This does not increase appetite and doesn't benefit cats except those with a certain type of kidney disease (not the usual type).

Just to be clear, thyroid function and thyroid values do not affect renal disease ... the degree of kidney damage that any cat has is not changed by treatment for hyper- or hypothyroidism. (Persistent hyperthyroidism does lead to hypertension (high blood pressure) which can damage the kidneys over time, however. Untreated hyperthyroidism can cause both renal and cardiac damage.)