Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice needed

[phlika29]

Hi all

Remi has just come back from his vet check up as I was concerned about muscle weakness and he does indeed have slightly low potassium levels. His readings were 3.3 in a normal range of 3.5-5.8. My vet has recommended kaminox supplement but was happy for me to do so e research and Mae my own decision on what to use. I am wondering what others have done. Do they buy from the local pharmacy or shall I just go for this medication. Is it likely to affect his blood glucose levels?

http://www.viovet.co.uk/Non-Prescriptio ... wgodtQMAMA

The vet mentioned his asthma being worse and this is not a surprise having stopped oral steroid medication when he was diagnosed diabetic and so this is something else I am looking into-maybe accolate.

His creatinine was in the normal range but his urea was slightly raised but then he is on a very high protein diet/low fat and low carb that I Think I might have to reconsider.

 

[phlika29]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

I've phoned the vets and they have the kaminox in stock. It worries me that it says palatable but I can't see that it has any sugar in the ingredients. So I am goi g to go and buy some. I could order it cheaper online but I want to start him on it as soon as possible and so by the time you factor in postage I doubt there is much in it.

Now my only other concern with this is whether it is oily, I don't want to set off his pancreas :!: :?

 

[BJM]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

Here is another potassium supplementI have seen folks use, without added amino acids (which are protein building blocks).

Most cats do not need fat restrictions for pancreatitis; some may.

For asthma, have you checked out Fritz The Brave. And our view on steroids with asthma in diabetics, is you do what you have to do to manage the asthma (which can be fatal), and adjust the insulin as needed. It will work best if any oral steroid dose is consistent, rather than alternate days, so the glucose levels will be predictable.

 

[MommaOfMuse]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

Can't help with the low potassium but for asthma...What about the Aerocat with an inhaled steroid? Maxwell has seasonal asthma and that is what I use with him as needed.

Mel and The Fur Gang

 

[phlika29]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

Thanks BJM

I think I will stick with the kaminox this time around as it is a liquid and therefore hopefully easier to hide in his food . I wonder if the amino acids will be a good thing to build back up his back leg muscles as my vet said they weren't in great condition.

 

[phlika29]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

Can't help with the low potassium but for asthma...What about the Aerocat with an inhaled steroid? Maxwell has seasonal asthma and that is what I use with him as needed.

Mel and The Fur Gang

Hi mel

Sorry I wasn't clear in my first post. He was having oral steroids in addition to the inhaled steroid meds. For whatever reason his asthma is hard to control. He never coughs or has an attack but you can hear his breathing get wheezy and can change from one second to the next. At the moment he is having 2x puffs of flixotide 250mg twice a day and it just isn't enough. Even with 5mg eod he was on that high a dose of inhaled meds.

 

[MommaOfMuse]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

Sarah

Maxwell gets two different inhaled meds for his, Flovent and Albuterol. The Flovent is for when it is mild, and then I add the Albuterol if he's extremely wheezey. Maxwell doesn't really have attacks either, but gets chesty and coughs. So maybe talk to your vet about adding the Albuterol it's really be a saving grace for Maxie-man. Since he was a Katrina rescue and spent so much time during and after the hurricane exposed to all that mold and decay he is really sensitive to mold, dust and unfortunately grain pollens which right now here in Nebraska we have a plethora of as we are in the heart of harvest season. He and I are both coughing, as neither of us do well during harvest.

Mel and The Fur Gang

 

[phlika29]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

Cheers mel

I hate how the changes in season can affect their asthma so much. Poor maxwell being exposed to all that mould,etc. I am sure remi got worse after we had cheap carpet fitted in the house. If I could afford to I would rip it all out and replace with hardwood floors and replace all of our bedding with hypoallergenic wool. I am going to get a hepa filter but all this medication and supplementary stuff costs so much money.

I will email my vet again. That will only be my fifth on in e last few days :-x

 

[MommaOfMuse]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

I hear you on the carpets. That is the only thing I hate about the new house. It is not only carpeted but that ancient 70s shag carpet. I HATE it. Not only is it nearly impossible to get hair balls off it holds everything. As soon as we can afford to, we're ripping it out and either refinishing the hardwoods I suspect are under it if they are still in reasonably good shape, or putting in laminate new hardwood and tile. I've been asthmatic since I was 3, while it was much worse as a child I certainly haven't grown out of it, just now it is more seasonal than it was, and ironically it seems only to grain and cattle, both of which Nebraska has in ample supply. When I was living in North Carolina where everything flowers, I had none. :roll: @-)

Mel and The Fur Gang

 

[phlika29]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

Typical isn't it. Remi was much better when he just had uncovered floorboards but the house was just too cold in the winter. I don't know if it is because the carpets are cheap and give off fumes even though they have been down for years. Or whether the house dust mites are doing their thing.

I have picked up the supplement and it smells really strongly of beef. So now I am worried it is going to upset his IBD and flair his pancreas. I guess I would have been better with the other one but now I have paid for it :roll: . I think I will go ahead and try it tonight but order the one BJM linked.

I know nothing about Nebraska but am going to look it up now

 

[tiffmaxee]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

Max's potassium goes down to 3.5 and then pops back up again to 3.9-4.0. My vet says since it is a moment in time he would want more than one low test before supplementing. I bought NOW brand potassium gluconate on Amazon. It's in powder form and concentrated so that you just need 1/8 a teaspoon. You can mix it in the food and it shouldn't be detected.

 

[MommaOfMuse]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

There isn't much to know about Nebraska. Our major geographical feature is the horizon (we're are flat as a pancake). But we are the part of the bread basket of the US. Chief industries around here are wheat, soybeans, milo and corn and beef cattle...lots and lots of cattle. We probably have more cows than people in most parts of the state. Pretty much as a kid your first job around here is detasseling corn, that is where you go through corn fields on a big machine and pull the tassels (the pollen producing part) out of the corn stalks so they don't cross pollinate to make hybrid corn seeds.

There is a joke here..."want to go to the mall, want to go to Chucky Cheese, want to go to Petsmart...Too bad we live 200 miles away from the nearest one." and that is about the truth. We also joke about you truly know you are from Nebraska if you have used the lawn mower and the snow blower on the same day...sadly it is more true than funny. I have gotten a sun burn in the morning and by evening up to my knees in snow with a blizzard blowing in. We have wide swings in weather, extremely hot summers and extremely cold winters.

Mel and The Fur Gang

 

[melba tee]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

I give Melba Tumil K. It can be put on their food. If you're lucky she will eat it. Melly wouldn't. I had to mix it with water and syringe it in his mouth. His potassium levels stayed about 3.0 for months and he lost so much muscle. Combined with the neuropathy, he couldn't walk at all sometimes.

We tried sub Q fluids, which worked well for a while, but he needed it every day and my vet said that wasn't a good idea in the long run. So we had a feeding tube put in. His potassium levels are normal now.

 

[phlika29]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

There isn't much to know about Nebraska. Our major geographical feature is the horizon (we're are flat as a pancake). But we are the part of the bread basket of the US. Chief industries around here are wheat, soybeans, milo and corn and beef cattle...lots and lots of cattle. We probably have more cows than people in most parts of the state. Pretty much as a kid your first job around here is detasseling corn, that is where you go through corn fields on a big machine and pull the tassels (the pollen producing part) out of the corn stalks so they don't cross pollinate to make hybrid corn seeds.

There is a joke here..."want to go to the mall, want to go to Chucky Cheese, want to go to Petsmart...Too bad we live 200 miles away from the nearest one." and that is about the truth. We also joke about you truly know you are from Nebraska if you have used the lawn mower and the snow blower on the same day...sadly it is more true than funny. I have gotten a sun burn in the morning and by evening up to my knees in snow with a blizzard blowing in. We have wide swings in weather, extremely hot summers and extremely cold winters.

Mel and The Fur Gang

Well it sounds like a state of extremes. Living on the south coast of the UK I am used to more gentle weather. We have seasons unfortunately they all involve rain . Last winter was I only remember there being one of two frosty mornings.

 

[Melanie and Smokey]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

We used Tumil K on Sophia, one of our skinny old ladies, when she was low Potassium. She RAN from that stuff :lol: Look for a "tasteless" powder and try to sneak it into the food. We ended up adding Potassium to Sophia's SubQ fluids because she was getting those and it was the easiest way to get them into her. She LOVED food, but no Potassium supplement or treat we ever tried worked with her :?

 

[phlika29]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

Thanks Wendy for the reply. Remi seems to love to taste of the supplement. Maybe a little too much. I just gave him some food without it in and he walked away from it. My concern he is that he is only just above 50 and usually would wolf down the food at this level. But not tonight so it's either because he wants the new supplement in it or perhaps it has made him feel sick. He did seem to look nauseous earlier after he first had it.

Sorry am not very with it. I've had a terrible throat all week and it seems to be getting worse.

 

[phlika29]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

We used Tumil K on Sophia, one of our skinny old ladies, when she was low Potassium. She RAN from that stuff :lol: Look for a "tasteless" powder and try to sneak it into the food. We ended up adding Potassium to Sophia's SubQ fluids because she was getting those and it was the easiest way to get them into her. She LOVED food, but no Potassium supplement or treat we ever tried worked with her :?

Hi mel

You should smell the kanomix! It stinks of beef. Remi really loved it but I just hope there isn't anything in there that will upset all his various conditions. Not sure if you can get it in the US but it might be worth ago if you ever need it again.

 

[BJM]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

Until you can rip out those carpets, it may help to put down heavy sheets/blankets, etc. It'll make clean up easier, it'll keep some of the carpet dust from coming up, and it'll help prevent more dust accumulating in the carpet. They can be washed weekly, too.

 

[Elizabeth and Bertie]

Re: Remi-low potassium levels diagnosed supplement advice ne

Living on the south coast of the UK I am used to more gentle weather. We have seasons unfortunately they all involve rain

:lol: :lol: :lol: