Long time OTJ but still questions about food

[fridaysmom]

Hi! My cat Friday has been in remission for 8 years now. I thank my lucky stars every day that the insulin treatment information I learned here worked. We had kept him on DM all these years until about 2 years ago when I was told he had the beginnings of kidney disease. The treatment for kidney disease is low protein which conflicts with diabetes treatment of high protein. I ended up feeding him high quality protein Instinct brand food. The issue is that over the last year he just hasn't eaten it. He's lost 1/3 of his body weight and is in serious jeopardy of starving. I just had new blood run and the kidney disease is still mild and hasn't progressed. There are no obvious indications of why he's losing weight either. So what I'm wondering is this....if the diabetes is in check and the kidney disease is in check, can I feed him "junk food" i.e. Friskies, etc. to get calories into him since the immediate concern is weight gain. It's just so hard, after all these years of being so careful, to feed that to him but it feels like it might be actually be the best option.

As a side bar, Friday has been pulling his fur out in chunks, sometimes down the to the skin, for the last year. We've tried everything and can't get it to stop. Not really related to the above question but wanted to mention it.

Any and all thoughts welcome. Thank you!!

 

[Sharon14]

Hi, glad you made it over here! It is important that Friday eat, and a low carb/low phosphorus food would be best since there is kidney problems. A couple good ones are, Wellness Grain Free Turkey and Wellness Core Beef, Venison and Lamb. Also, check out Tanya's site that I linked in your other thread.

 

[Anitafrnhamer]

Low protein is not even ideal for a kidney cat. One of the best ways to increase protein without increasing phosphorus is to try mixing cooked egg white into the food. Phosphorus is the enemy of kidney cats and cooked egg white has very little phosphorus yet satisfies the protein needs of cats.

felinecrf.org is the best resource for you now.

 

[Critter Mom]

As a side bar, Friday has been pulling his fur out in chunks, sometimes down the to the skin, for the last year.

I suggest asking about this in a separate thread on Feline Health.

I'm assuming you've already done this but the only things I can suggest are checks for allergy issues or endocrine issues.


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