Boy Kitty's CRF Story

Boy Kitty had been a very healthy cat until late last year when I took him to the vet because of a urinary tract infection. He was treated for weeks with antibiotics until it cleared up and then I had his teeth cleaned for the first time. I had not realized how bad his teeth had gotten until the vet showed me the back of his teeth and saw the gunk had been fused together. So he had his teeth cleaned and made it through the procedure very well. Afterwards, he stopped pooping and eating. The vet had to give him an enema because, as she said, he was so backed up that he filled up their litter box. He seemed to be very relieved after that visit but not regular. Over the next few weeks, giving him laxatone regularly, he began to poop on his own again. His appetite picked up to a normal level too. This all occurred Oct-Nov 2007. He weighed 10.2lbs

I brought him back to the vet for regular urinary checks because of howling and spraying. My vet also ran bloodwork and that is when it was discovered that he was in the beginning stages of CRF. I immediately switched him to KD food and administered sub-q fluids twice a week. He did not have UTI but vet said that he could get them regularly as a secondary problem associated with CRF.

We went back regularly to have his bloodwork rechecked and though he was losing a lot of weight - about 4lbs - his bloodwork had improved to normal levels (but high on the normal side) in January '08. The vet and I were so excited! This was great news as it meant that what we are doing is working. He was still on KD food, with a squirt of welactin twice daily, and sub-q fluids administered 3x per week.

This high didn't last long. Over the last three weeks Boy Kitty began to howl again, he turned his nose up at the KD food, and he seemed ravenously hungry. He also stopped drinking out of his waterfountain water dish and preferred the dogs' water bowl. So back to the vet for a recheck. My vet said his creatinine level is normal, his BUN is 55 (higher than last visit), and his red blood cell count was low. She also said he was dehydrated. They gave him fluids and told me to increase the sub-q treatments to 5x a week (100ML). She told me that although it's important to get him to eat anything, keep trying the KD food too. So I ordered different food online last night in hopes that he would like this renal food better (reviewers are raving about it). We'll see!

Anyway, I was really upset. When I spoke to my vet on the phone about his bloodwork I thought she was hinting about putting him to sleep though she didn't come out and say that. Maybe it's just what I feared after hearing that his numbers declined since the last visit. When I picked him up after work I asked her straight out if it was his time and she said no. She said he's still spunky and not lethargic. He doesn't exhibit all of the symptoms of other CRF cats. I had posted on a message board for parents of CRF cats after the phone call for their advice and all of the responses were positive. They also told me to get his blood pressure checked because that could be the cause of howling.

Oh, one other thing, the vet tested his thyroid and it appears it is high. She is having the test sent out for confirmation and will call me in a few days with the results. He will most likely be put on hyperthyroidism medication. This could also be the cause of the howling.

Whew!

On a positive note his weight is pretty stable considering he's been really picky about the food I give him. He was 6.4lbs in Jan and he weighed in at 6.2lbs yesterday. This could be a scale glitch or accurate. Either way, it's much better than losing a significant amount of weight as he had been regularly doing.

I moved his waterfountain water dish to a different location and he's drinking out of it again.

It's been very emotional. I've had my boy since he was about 6-8mos old. He's always been my loving and fatty (he used to weigh about 15lbs) cat. I know he's 18 years old and his life is shorter now than it is longer. I am somewhat prepared for the day when he will die but I am just in tears when I think it could be anytime soon. Still, if he declines to a point where he's uncomfortable and in pain and his quality of life has suffered, then I will do the right thing. Til then, it seems like he is doing well for an 18 year old cat with CRF. We still have more time.