My CRF patient has a poor appetite

[cat man do]

Hi all.
This is my first post here, and am hoping I can get some ideas for feeding my old buddy. Ms Kitty is a Turkish Angora, approximately 19 yrs old, and has been suffering some health problems of late. She has had recurring urinary tract infections, and has been fairly recently diagnosed with kidney disease. As I understand it, the tests revealed that her kidney function is
fairly poor, but not yet critical. The vet prescribed her Hills Science Diet k/d. She originally liked the canned, and seemed to be doing pretty well. She has become increasingly disinterested in the canned, and doesn't care for the dry k/d at all. Kitty's appetite has been poor for the past week, and most of what I have been able to get her to eat is junk (kitty treats, yogurt, cheese, ice cream, lunch meat, etc.). I know this is not good for her at all, but she must eat something.

I have heard of appetite stimulants, do they work? Also, what would be some proper alternatives to the Science Diet (this may be a moot point if I can't get her appetite up)? I understand a CRF cat needs a low protein diet, low sodium, and it seems that a certain mineral content needed to be low. My vet, of course, will not recommend anything outside the realm of commercially available foods. Ms Kitty is doing fair, at this point, and I'm not ready to give up on her yet. Any help or advise would be much appreciated.
Thanks!
T.A. Cowan

[laurief]

Originally Posted by cat man do

This is my first post here, and am hoping I can get some ideas for feeding my old buddy.

Welcome to Cat Forum, T.A. Several of us here have experience with CRF caretaking, so we should be able to provide you with some useful information. First, I will offer a couple of links. This first one is to the website that many of us consider our "CRF Bible". It provides information on virtually every aspect of CRF, its associated conditions (including inappetance), and their management. I strongly recommend you bookmark it and spend some significant time reading through the pages that are relevant to Ms Kitty's current condition:

http://www.felinecrf.org/

Second is a link to the CRF Support Mailing List, which I also strongly recommend you join. It is a large and active list whose members have incredible knowledge of and experience with CRF. Even if you don't wish to post to the list (which you are more than welcome to do), you'll be amazed at how much you'll learn just reading the daily posts or searching the message archives:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Feline-CRF-Support/

She has had recurring urinary tract infections, and has been fairly recently diagnosed with kidney disease.

CRF cats are prone to UTI's because their urine becomes more dilute and less acidic. This, in turn, makes the urinary tract a more inviting environment for bacteria.

As I understand it, the tests revealed that her kidney function is
fairly poor, but not yet critical.

You'll find it extremely helpful to request and keep copies of all of Kitty's test results so that you can refer to them when requesting guidance or doing research online about her condition. "Fairly poor" and "not yet critical" are far too vague to be useful. Get the specific blood value numbers from your vet (along with the lab's reference ranges), so that you know exactly where Kitty stands.

Kitty's appetite has been poor for the past week, and most of what I have been able to get her to eat is junk (kitty treats, yogurt, cheese, ice cream, lunch meat, etc.). I know this is not good for her at all, but she must eat something.

The golden rule for CRF cats is that if you can't convince them to eat what you want them to eat, then feed them whatever they WILL eat. You are absolutely correct; she much eat something. That said, dairy products are not a good choice because they are very high in phosphorus, and phosphorus is very hard on the kidneys. Reducing phosphorus is much more important than reducing protein in the CRF diet. Also, make sure that lunch meat does not contain any onion or garlic - both of which are toxic to cats.

The following links will provide you with a lot of tips and tricks to help get food into Kitty:

http://www.felinecrf.org/persuading_cat_to_eat.htm
http://www.assistfeed.com/
http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/Feline ... ed-Feeding

I have heard of appetite stimulants, do they work?

For many cats, yes. I give my CRF boy cyproheptadine twice daily to help stimulate his appetite. It is an antihistamine that has an appetite stimulant effect in many (but not all) cats. You can read about cypro and other appetite stimulants at the link I provided above:

http://www.felinecrf.org/persuading_cat_to_eat.htm

Also, what would be some proper alternatives to the Science Diet

The "right" foods are the foods that she will eat. The "perfect" foods will be low in phosphorus and have high quality protein sources (meat proteins, not plant proteins).

There are many supplements and medications that can help stabilize and maintain a CRF cat, but you need to know exactly what her blood values are in order to determine which, if any, supplements or meds she needs. For example, if her potassium level is in the lower half of the reference range or lower, she would benefit from a potassium supplement. If her phosphorous is in the upper half of the reference range, she should probably be receiving phosphorus binder. If her blood values indicate dehydration or her creatinine is above 3.0, she may benefit from supplemental fluids. You need to get her test results so that you know exactly what her blood values are.

Please post again if you have any further questions.

All the best,

Laurie

[missy]

My almost 18-year-old Oriental Shorthair died on April 5 of kidney failure. I miss him so very much. I loved him so dearly.

He did not at all like the Hills k/d.

But he did love a food made by Royal Canin called Renal LP. It comes in 3 ounce cans. It is more expensive than the Hills k/d and worth every penny. I'll bet you that if Ms. Kitty is still eating that she will eat this food.

I have lost three to renal failure: one at the age of 12 in 2006, one at the age of 18 in 2006, and now this latest one in 2010. He ate two cans of food up until almost the very end. Friday he ate fine. Saturday he only ate three bites. Sunday he ate nothing. Monday I rushed him to the vet and his BUN was over 200 out of nowhere. He was euthanized. My vet said the downturn can happen very fast in some cats.

I found my kitty really loved the way the Royal Canin Renal LP tasted. The appetite stimulants really did not work on him. He had to like the taste of the food. It is in larger chunks and I did not think he would eat it because normally he doesn't eat chunks, but to my surprise, he did. They recently reformulated it to make it more tasty, and it really is tasty (at least, he thought so!)

Good luck with Ms. Kitty.