Chronic Kidney Disease in Cats

Dr. Sandra Wu

Have you noticed that your cat is drinking a lot more? Do you scoop more urine clumps out of the litterbox than you once did? Is your cat looking a little skinnier? These aren't old age changes, but rather they can be signs of chronic kidney (renal) disease. Some people think, “My cat is drinking and urinating a lot, so the kidneys must be working well.” On the contrary, these are signs that the kidneys are not working well.

The kidneys' job is to filter out the waste into the urine, but keep in fluid and other important nutrients to maintain hydration. If there is a lot of urine produced, the kidneys are letting too much fluid out into the urine and not keeping it in the body. Then, your cat drinks more in an effort to keep her hydrated, and this water just goes straight through the failing kidneys. This cycle repeats itself and what you see is a cat that drinks and urinates a lot. Over time, the kidneys are not only letting fluid out, but also protein. This loss becomes more obvious as your cat starts losing muscle and looks old and skinny. Again, this “old age” change can actually be kidney disease.

By the time you bring a cat in with these clinical signs, it is already in chronic renal failure. We diagnose them with bloodwork and a urinalysis. At this point, the cat has already lost 75% of kidney function! That means she is working with only 1/2 a kidney!

Fortunately, a newer blood test has come out that detects kidney disease much earlier. So how do we take advantage of it? We recommend annual examinations for all our kitties, no matter if they need vaccinations or not. During our physical exam, we can detect changes in weight and assess body condition. We also perform bloodwork (including this newer test) and a urinalysis each year to track these kidney values and catch them as they go on the rise. If the changes are caught early, there is a lot that we can do to intervene and slow down the progression of the disease, thereby buying us years onto their lives.

Treatment for kidney failure has many facets. We can offer a specialized diet to protect and reduce the strain on the kidneys. There are many nutraceuticals you can also give to keep the elevated values in check. And when it gets worse (as it always will unfortunately), we can train you to give fluids to your cat on a routine basis in the comfort of your home to keep her hydrated. All of these measures can increase the lifespan and comfort of your kidney failure kitty.It is definitely easier and more effective to treat chronic renal disease early in its course; that is why we are proactive with our recommendations at Crawford Dog and Cat hospital, but we can only help your kitties early if we see them every year. 

There are many excuses for why owners are reluctant to have their feline friends seen .We know kitties get stressed coming to see us, but we love to see them and keep them healthy. We offer cat only appointments on Thursday evenings, house calls, and medications to give before an appointment to help take the edge off. Please don't let your older cat fall into the kidney failure trap too late; we can do so much to help them early! Schedule  an appointment or message us for more information more information.