Stimulating appetite

Hi
I have a male cat who is 16 years old.  I know that his kidneys are not working well and he drinks a lot of water all day.  He is otherwise behaving normally and seems happy enough just sleeping around the house in his favorite spots all day.  He does not eat much and has become very thin.  His bones are very noticeable when we pet him.  He has always been a fairly thin cat and never ate a lot, but not this thin.  I want to keep him comfortable and help him to eat more. I stopped the sub Q fluids several about 4 years ago because it was causing him much stress and I made the decision to keep him happy and comfortable as long as possible without all the needles and stress it was causing him.  My vet said she understood and told me she would support my decision.  I don't want him subjected to lots of tests and stressfull trips to the vet just to add a year or two to his life. I know others may dissagree.  Anyway, he loves to eat treats (yummies).  Is it OK to give him a lot of those sometimes? Like a whole bowlfull?  He has a history of urine infections and bladder stones and my vet had said long ago to avoid any food with fish.  Since I have done that, he has not had a problem.  But I was wondering if it would be OK to give him some fish to get him to gain some weight since he loves it so much. I don't want him to get a urinary tract infection though. I was told about three years ago that he also has a first degree heart block (if that has anything to do with your answer).  Thank you very much for your help.
Oscar's mommy

[Savas]

I hate to say it, but you'd have to check with your vet. For one thing, i'm not sure what brand of treats you're referring to, and it sounds like your cat has a delicate constitution anyway.

However, since you've gone the route of letting him live out his life without vet interference (which in some cases is the absolutely right thing to do, I'm sure this is one of them) you may just want to go ahead and give him a very small bowl of treats daily. As you point out, you want his last days, regardless of how many, to be happy days. And yummy foods do make kitty happy. :)

[Savas]

BTW, your cat looks like my cat Bumperus Maximus... about 10 pounds ago. :)

[Ghilly]

It's extremely important to keep the kidneys working to whatever capacity they are capable of, and subQ fluids are the best way to do that.  Even though they stress him, it's worth it to do it even every other week just to keep those kidneys working as well as they possibly can.  

The other thing you want to do with kidney problems is to make sure the diet is as low in protein, phosphorous and sodium as possible.  Because of this, chronic renal failure is often more successfully managed with a diet of home cooking, because that way you know exactly what your kitty is getting.  If you Google "feline chronic renal failure" you will come up with thousands of links, many of which have home-cooking recipes.  Cats (and dogs) almost always LOVE the home cooking because it gives them the opportunity to eat "people food", something that most of them love, but don't get on a regular diet.

Check with your vet before starting any dietary regimen, and perhaps s/he will have some information that s/he can give you on home cooking.  Something else that you can offer your kitty, though, that might help with putting weight back on, is giving him NutriCal.  NutriCal is available at all well-stocked pet stores, from your vet, or even online.  It's excellent for cats and dogs that are not eating as much as they should, or who are convalescing from illness.  Again, check with your vet before giving it, just to be sure it's something that s/he wants your kitty to have.

Ghilly

[lindsay78]

have no fear ! theres a cream center treat "temptations" now with vitamins ! and have  you consider phosphate binders? I hear they can make a cat feel better and live longer!

[HelpinUtah]

I had a male cat (Magnum) who had renal problems from age 13 until he died at 16 years of age.  We did Sub Q for the last 3 years of his life and he did fine.  In the beginning it was stressful, but whenever hubby and I would do this at home we would make this a special time for him, loving him and giving him treats and eventually he came to enjoy that time with us.  Of course, all cats will react differently to things just as humans do.  

I also fed a special diet for him and his brother (Robear, who died at 17) and the food was from the vet and was special for renal issues.  Maybe check with your vet about prescription foods, etc.  

Good luck - I know how difficult it is to want to keep your cat happy and at the same time knowing that they will die eventually from their disease.  

Lots of hugs,
Janet