#renal failure in cats

[knifebun]

look. so many people use the classist card for this, but if you can't afford to feed an animal a diet that's not going to cause serious medical issues that will either kill it or require medical treatment for the rest of the animal's life, then maybe you shouldn't own this animal. "poor people deserve to have animal companions too" yes absolutely i agree, but maybe not at the expense of the animal's health.

[iheartvmt]

When the two sweet, adorable little kitten siblings come in for their s/n surgeries, but the pre-anesthetic blood work shows mild renal dysfunction, so you do a U/A and it's chockablock full of renal cells and no sign of infection, and then the doctor finds out their breed is predisposed to polycystic kidney disease...

[meatsound]

its cool that god saw me struggling and said hey. one more thing ok

[doodlemeariver]

Gotta remember this for when my bf and I get a living furby.

A reminder for those of us with cats at Easter that lilies of ANY kind are BAD for cats. Some species such as Calla, Peace and Peruvian do not cause kidney damage or death like Easter and daylilies, but they can still cause irritation and gastrointestinal issues if ingested...

[aw-bean-s]

Im housesitting for our neighbours and they got me a smoothie?? That's so nice??? Queer solidarity at its Finest

[schrodingersvibecheck]

sorry no i can’t come into work today yeah didn’t sleep at all again. yeah no i was kissing my darling evil baby cat over and over again on her stupid little head right between her tiny triangle ears. very important business

[devsquared]

My soul-cat, twenty years old, my little gentleman, who went blind last week and immediately started adapting to, now he lies dying in my lap

[ms-demeanor]

If you're new to me yelling about this: my neighbors feed a feral cat colony but provide no other care to the colony like neuter/spay or vaccination. They free feed the cats, which attracts skunks, and they have (at the moment) about 20 cats in the colony, which attracts coyotes.

My dog has been skunked twice, she can't be outside in our yard unsupervised for even a minute because otherwise she'll try to eat cat shit because there's cat shit everywhere in my yard because the neighbors also haven't provided litterboxes or a sandbox for their ferals (their entire yard is paved) and if she has to go outside at night I need to clear the yard for coyotes before I let her out even in the small fenced area by our bedroom.

Also there are fleas fucking *everywhere* and even though my dog is on medication to prevent fleas I need to de-flea her twice a week in the summer; this is the case for every dog owner on the street.

The street I live on has a speed limit of 25mph but I hear cats getting hit frequently, so frequently that we have a resident group of crows who hang out and wait for them to become roadkill.

I have a collection of photos on my phone that show kittens with broken legs, kittens with missing eyes, kittens with horrible ear mite infections, and I have a dedicated shovel that I use for moving cat corpses that show up on my property. The cats that die on my property die from abscessed wounds from fights with other cats, respiratory infections, renal failure, and injuries from being hit by cars.

My spouse is immune compromised, and while toxoplasmosis is not a serious risk for most people, it IS a serious risk for people who are immune compromised (as are all the other infections that cats can potentially carry), which means that it's unsafe for me to grow vegetables in my yard for us to eat and it's unsafe for him to work in the yard.

I'd love to maybe open my windows at night and keep down the electricity costs of using the AC, but I can't because the entire side of my house that faces my neighbor's yard reeks of cat shit and piss year round.

Those are my next door neighbors.

Last week I was walking my dog as a neighbor around the corner was pulling out of her garage; she paused and rolled down her window and pointed at the cats on her lawn and said "Head's up, my cats are weirdly aggressive about small dogs and they just got let out so they're full of energy right now" and I nodded and crossed the street and didn't yell at my neighbor but *the temptation was there* because A) why are you letting your aggressive animals roam and B) Why are you letting your cats shit all over the neighborhood and C) Why are you exposing your owned cats to the risks of the large and territorial feral colony that is a literal stone's throw away from your house?

Anyway, and as always, Keep Your Fucking Cats Indoors.

[simplykaren]

There's been some evidence of remdesivir working for FIP cats too, but it can cause formation of bladder stones (completely made of remdesivir on chemical analysis, but they're unsure why only some cats on the med form these stones). Probably wise to monitor any cats on remdesivir or GS-441524 for urinary issues during and after treatment, as bladder stones can cause urinary blockage which is a medical emergency.

Do y'all ever think about how wild it is that for years there's been this heartbreaking incurable disease that kills thousands of cats. And Gilead Pharmaceuticals found a drug that treats it but won't actually sell it to veterinarians because of patent bullshit? Because I do.

Anyways. I'd never advocate for acquiring drugs illegally to save your cat's life. Which is why if your cat has FIP you should check out the organization I've put in my tags. So that you remember to avoid getting GS-441524.

Capitalism is evil in general. But capitalism in medicine is cartoonishly monstrous.

[chrisatola]

We're having to put Suzie to sleep this afternoon. She had a kidney infection on Monday, which she's been on antibiotics for, but also went from mid-Stage 3 (IRIS) to late Stage 4 in about three months. We haven't actually had a checkup to see what her creatinine looks like, but if we treat the cat instead of the numbers, I don't think she's really enjoying life anymore.

She's drinking OK on her own, but the only thing she'll eat without a syringe is turkey rolls (as in the meat you generally serve at an English Christmas dinner). That's not remotely sustainable, because a) salt and b) lack of basically anything that makes food complete for cats. I start a new full-time job on Monday, so the syringe is no longer an option and a feeding tube would get expensive fast.

She's had a pretty good life so far, certainly an improvement on the hoarding situation she came from, and having had five days to watch her progress (or lack thereof), I don't think I have any regrets.

[fedoraspooky]

Well... Today I had to make the hardest choice in my life, but Clarence's kidneys were in full renal failure and it would have been cruel to hospitalize him for days just to wring a few more days or maybe a week out of him. Today he went peacefully, surrounded by loved ones who gave him kisses and scritchies until the very end. He even licked my nose before the nurse came in.

What can I say about Clarence? That cat was a legend, between his beautiful singing at night that would promptly stop whenever anyone walked in the room, his tendency to lay on food, and even banging out the tunes on Dad's little toy piano. He loved cat yogurt and whatever it was I happened to be eating at the time, and his nice little sunny spot by the window. We moved back and forth across the country together, and he always snuggled up next to me at bedtime or whenever I was feeling sick. He was always there for me in the hardest times of my life over the past 16 years, and today I was there for him when he needed it most. I'm gonna miss my little tuxedo boy so much. My room feels so much emptier without him there.

Rest in peace, Clarence. Love you forever, bud.

[chaifootsteps]

Karras just turned a year old and is a healthy, happy young man but looks like an elderly cat on medication for the first signs of renal failure.

[boyswanna-be-her]

Day-drunk death vigil for a big dumb Siamese cat with renal failure who I love 💔 may he pass easily and soon 🙏

[likeadog]

actually im just burnt out not by school alone but by work and also my girlfriends cat is undergoing renal failure and. naturally ive been like, trying to be there for her but it does mean ive been running around like crazy and also i love that cat also like

[millerflintstone]

I think Gigabyte might have had a seizure while I was asleep. I woke up at 5 ish to her wiping out down her ramp. She couldn't seem to get up due to her right hind leg collapsing. I helped her and she awkwardly walked to her water area and then just gave up again. I presented her watered down wet food and she had some and then we chilled for bit.

I heated up her rice pad and gave her some transdermal Gabapentin. I applied some heat and tried to see if she had range of motion in her hind legs but she wasn't having it. I offered her water but she wanted to drink it normally so she arranged herself to drink. She also successfully peed in the litter box without falling over or falling down when she got out.

She came back to bed with some difficulty. I put on her Assisi loop for pain and watched her for a bit. She was drooping her head to the right and looked uncomfortable. I went to the kitchen to heat up her rice pad some more and fix her breakfast. I've been trying to break her out of the food-in-bed habit that she got into after the ER visit but was going to make an exception. Well, when I went to head back to her she was already in the living room waiting for breakfast. She walked a little better towards her food but still lost her balance. No total collapse.

Then she came back to bed and wanted cuddles and was purring REALLY LOUDLY. She seems to be improving, but it was an unsettling way to start the day.

I was reading up on post seizure symptoms from people with cats that have renal failure. Based on that and how she was post ER visit after the big seizure, it tracks. Her right side is showing general weakness based on how she moves and sits /lies down She has had more focal seizure twitching this morning, too.

[noodlenumber]

[EMERGENCY]

Ive never made a post like this before, but our little man is in trouble. A dear friend of mine just got dinged with $4700+ medical bill to treat Toker's renal failure.

Toker is only 7 years old and the light of Max's life and an absolute delight of a cat, we're both utterly heartbroken at the prospect of losing him.

If you can boost this chip in even a little we'd both be eternally grateful.

Here is the PayPal fundraiser if you're able to donate.

Please help us save our silly boy 🥺