Monday, March 13, 2017

Medical News Good and Bad

The results of Renn and Cammie’s physical examinations have come in. There is some good news and some bad news, though not very bad news.

Firstly, Renn is in as good health, as I had suspected. My big boy with the tiny appetite manages somehow to keep himself fit, inside and out. There was a trace of protein in his urine, but that is nothing to worry about. I don’t know how he accomplishes it, but Renn is doing well, and there isn’t much more to write about that, except that I am relieved.



There is less cause to be enthusiastic about Cammie’s health. She is at the beginning of kidney failure. The laboratory to which the tests were sent noted that the princess (though they didn’t refer to her as such) is not yet in that condition, but her veterinary re-phrased that. Cammie is “in the early stages of kidney failure.” Cammie’s creatinine levels are at the very high end of the normal range, and her specific gravity is on the edge of the lowest at which a healthy cat should be.


The treatment for this is, at this point, purely dietary. Cammie needs to eat food specifically created for this condition, and I will be collecting some this week. Those who are familiar with my princess through this blog will know that her appetite is not catholic. She likes a very small variety, and will not even sample anything else. The food she needs to eat comes in a wider range of flavours and textures than it once did, but the very fact that it is medicated food may put her off. I’m hoping that, like Mikey and Life brand cereal, she - despite hating everything - will eat it. I won’t tell her it’s good for her.


This also means that I will be reserving Cammie’s dental cleaning for an earlier time than I had expected. The procedure will be a relatively simple one. The longer I leave it, the more will need to be done, and, possibly, the greater the complications offered by her renal situation. Surgery and new food: not something to which Cammie would look forward with relish.


The results of the tests were clearly not the success for which I had hoped, despite Renn’s health (and, as he enters middle age, let it not be thought that I am ungrateful for his report.) Someone with Tucker’s enjoyment of most foods would have been a better candidate for needing special nutrition, but my roly poly has his own worries. So Cammie and I will deal with her troubles; her doctor attended a seminar not long ago which featured a speaker who had three renally-challenged cats, and all three were faring very well on diet alone. I am encouraged by this. I will be even more encouraged if Cammie likes her new food.

22 comments:

  1. I'm glad Renn is okay and hope that with diet changes Cammie will be fine for a long time to come. I fear I likely will face this with Derry, whose SMA was high normal last spring/summer, though everything else was normal. It's my understanding that the #1 thing to do is lower the phosphorous level in the food. Easier said than done when one has a picky cat.

    We're sending her (and you) purrs!

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    1. Thank you for your concerns about Cammie. I hope the same for Derry. I think the first power I would wish for over cats would be the ability to get them to eat and drink when and what I wanted. That would be such a weight off a person's mind.

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  2. Best of luck, John, with Cammie. Maybe introducing it by first mixing it half and half with what she eats now will help. Then
    you can slowly remove the food she presently eats.

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    1. I will try that if the direct approach doesn't work. But Cammie a tough one. She won't tolerate 'contamination' of one variety of food by another, even if both are flavours she likes. I will try all approaches, if need be.

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  3. We'll keep all paws crossed that Cammie adjusts to her new food. It's vitamin-enriched and low in phosphorus which she needs. Tinker sends his regards since he is on the kidney diet himself and endures it as long as he can graze on everyone else's food which his mom indulgently lets him. Prognoses could have been much worse for both of the kittes..diet alone is taking care of Tinker who is easily 17 years old and doesn't let a little kidney failure get him down. ~ Love from the Church Cat Family "a family that preys together, stays together."

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  4. I am glad that Renn's examination gave good results. It is good that Cammie's kidney problem has been caught in the early stages and can be managed by diet. I hope she does like the renal food.
    We have had several cats over the years with kidney disease but they all lived a good life for many years after diagnosis. The cats were all originally my mother in law's that we took on when she died. The two oldest were sisters and even though they were suffering from kidney failure, one lived to 23 and her older sister was 24. The 23 year old had 3 sons and 2 of them lived until 19 and 20 also with kidney disease.
    So far Flynn has avoided it even though our vet said his hyperthyroidism makes him a likely candidate for that and heart disease.

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    1. That's encouraging that these cats with kidney failures lived so long. I hope my Cammie can emulate them - and that Flynn will avoid the issue all together.

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  5. Glad that Renn's news was good, and sad that Cammie's was not. I hope the princess will deign to eat the new food. I recall when Silas was on his special diet he ate it, but wanted the other cats' food so much he would go to great lengths to get at it.

    The kitties send their purrs.
    Eileen

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    1. I wonder if it is as satisfying or filling as regular food, or whether it just didn't taste good to him.

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  6. Our Zoe was diagnosed at Stage 2 and she has been stable for 3 years now, mostly thanks to diet and a wise Vet (internal medicine specialist) who steered us to Tonya's CDK site, and insisted we read everything there about food. There are more options there than you think. Purrs to Cammie from all of us.

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    1. I read some from that site when Tungsten was diagnosed with kidney failure, but she died soon after. I will look at that again. Thank you.

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  7. I'm so sorry to hear that Camme is starting to have kidney problems. But the good news is that it was caught early while her values are still in the normal range. Deb had a good idea about mixing the old and new food. Since Cammie is such a picky eater, you may need to start with mixing 1/4 of the new food with 3/4 of her regular food instead of 1/2 and 1/2.

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    1. I'm hoping Cammie will like the new food, because I don't think she's going to be fooled by any trick of mine.

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  8. Certainly not the good news we were hoping for. Poor Cammie. I only hope she will choose to eat the special food. Like Cammie my Jessica seemed to know which food was vet-prescribed food and turned up get nose. But we are pleased to hear Renn is in fine health.

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    1. I think FortiFlora was the only edible item I ever bought at a veterinary office that my cats ate. I'm hoping that will change for Cammie.

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  9. eye noe this commint haz nothin ta due with this post
    but eye wanted ta say thanx 777 bazillion timez for
    yur kindnezz two me & me familee last week
    sorree for de copee N paste type for mat ~~~ lovez all wayz
    boomer ♥ N st francis' blessingz two ewe cammie ♥♥♥

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  10. We always hope for a clear and completely good report from Vets and Doctors. The good is that Renn is fine, a little less so with Cammie, but I hope the change in diet will slow the renal disease to a slow crawl. I'm sure you will be monitoring her with great care and I know she is in good hands with you John.

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    1. Cammie is such a contrast: independent yet needing someone to look after her. I think she would always have preferred to be my only cat, and has done remarkably well tolerating the situation. I hope she will co-operate with me in this new one.

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  11. choosing a low protein diet isn't always the right call for a cat with kidney issues. it is the quality of the protein that is important, it is what reduces waste products so the kidneys don't have to work as hard. If she likes the kidney diet and it works for you great, but there are other options

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  12. I am sorry Cammie is beginning to have kidney issues, good luck with the food. My Phoebe also has the start of kidney disease and refused all the canned and dry kidney diets I tried from Hills. Royal Canin and Purina.

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