CARE FOR ANIMALS WITH CHRONIC RENAL FAILURE
Follow your good vet's advice, and use my dog or cat food recipes as a supplement, with more pasta and rice than animal protein, aiming at 14-17% protein for dogs, and 28-30%. Giving vitamin B Complex is very important for animals with kidney disease, as is potassium gluconate supplement. A broad spectrum, daily multi-mineral and multi-vitamin supplement is called for. You need to aim at a lower protein and phosphate diet. Your vet may want to prescribe a phosphate binder, and a specific diet for chronic renal failure. Unfortunately many animals, especially cats, do not like these processed dietary formulations.
Giving dogs about 1 teaspoon daily per 30 lb body weight of safflower oil will help support kidney function. A teaspoon daily of fish oil is good for cats with this malady. Herbal tinctures like dandelion, couch grass, and a little chopped parsley in the food, or made into a tea and added to the animal’s drinking water---only if they like it--- will also help. My dogs like these teas, and took only a few laps before they decided that it was good. Cats can be more finicky, and anything that stops them from drinking plenty of water is bad when they have chronic kidney disease.
The sick animal, ---and kidney disease causes much nausea, ---will not feel like eating. Vitamin B complex helps stimulate appetite. Extra mineral supplements are very much needed when sick animals drink and urinate more than normal. Coax the sick animal to eat whatever she or he likes, with caution. Animals' nutritional wisdom is not perfect. Some may just want a little pasta and scrambled egg until they feel better and their kidneys, and also possibly their challenged livers, repair. Getting in some nutrition by hand-feeding, and even injecting replacement fluids and nutrients under the skin in animals who feel too sick to eat or drink, can save many a life.
Dietary restriction of protein does not benefit cats and dogs with progressive renal disease. Small daily feedings of high quality animal protein is called for such as egg, calf liver, cottage cheese, a little yoghurt, chicken, and tilapia fish.
Complications can develop, such as anemia that calls for ferrous sulfate supplement or more costly Procrit injections. Many animals develop hypertension, and that calls for a low salt diet and medications like a beta antagonist such as propanolol, or a diuretic like Furosemide. Peritoneal dialysis also helps.
For ethical reasons, and the fact that cats with kidney transplants are more prone to develop diabetes mellitus and infections, I do not advise cats being given kidney transplants to prolong their lives---and their suffering.
Chronic renal failure can bring on a host of complications, from blood clots, (thromboembolism), dental, eye, heart and joint problems, to impairment of the immune system, pancreatitis, and seizures. Regular veterinary check-ups for cats and dogs with chronic renal failure are therefore called for.
Treatment with Vitamin D3 (Calcitrol) is extremely important because the kidney cannot activate this essential nutrient that leads to low blood calcium levels and stimulation of the parathyroid gland that in turn can cause bone loss/osteomalacia, loose teeth, ‘rubber jaw, lameness, and increased susceptibility to fractures.
Many animals are now suffering from chronic kidney dysfunction, thanks to the nation-wide accidental poisoning of highly processed manufactured pet foods. Chronic renal failure is likely to be the next companion animal epidemic.
The Rainforest ‘Treasure Tea’, a mixture of herbs that includes Chanca piedra, known as the ‘stone breaker’ for its ability to dissolve kidney and gall bladder stones in humans, marketed by the Amazon Herb Co. ( 1-800-835-0850) may help dogs and cats with both kidney and liver problems. It may or may not help dissolve the melamine-cyanuric acid crystals in the kidneys of cats and dogs suffering from the Chinese-poisoned pet food pandemic that came to light in the spring of 2007 with thousands of animals dying from acute renal failure.