4th stage renal failure in my dog

[aggieone]

I have a nine year old lab  "Sandy Grace".  She is in fourth stage renal failure-Of course she has seen her regular vet for fluids-ultra sound revealed she has one kidney which is failing.   Creatine was 13-subs at home-now using hollistic and homepatic treatment.  Recently more bad days than good.    I am giving her ice chips which seem to work better for her than lapping.  Pedialyte ice is also better.  She throws up until she staggers and falls-I am continuously trying to hydrate her and giving her baby food-At times, she is able to keep it down,  other times the vomiting is horrible.  She continues to try for us, and we are fighting so hard for her-LIke others, I tuck her in at night (she sleeps on the loveseat with her "bankie" covering her).  I am sleeping in the den with her so I can give her support throughout the night.  Neither of us are getting much sleep.  I have her spoiled now with hand feeding other than her baby food, and I hold her plate while she licks it up.  I am using a recipe of egg yellow / whites, honey, and whole yogurt with a touch of dry powdered milk.  This works sometimes.  Sandy Grace is not ready to leave us-she continues to try-we try for her twenty-four hours a day.  Is there any over the counter medication that I can give her that will help with her vomiting?  We love her so much and she loves us so much-my husband and I feel like we will know when she is ready to go.  We went to grocery store yesterday to  buy more food supplies and liquids for her, when we got home, there she was looking out the window-barking for us to hurry and come inside-you open the door and there she is  - -so excited, still wagging her tail for us.  What can we do, this is our baby, she is so, so sweet-I know her days are numbered, but she is just not ready to leave. Help.    Aggieone

[BaileyGirlMom]

Hello everyone,
I am new to the community and need some help with questions regarding my 11 year old chocolate lab "Bailey" and her kidney failure.  
We initially took her to our vet in July because she was always groaning because she was having arthritic pain. Our vet said that she would have to do some blood work first. Bailey was then diagnosed in with a BUN 55 / CREA 3.1 which our vet listed as high.  We were told to put her on the K/D diet which we've done.  At first she wouldn't eat it at all but now it's like she can't get enough food.  She constantly wants to eat and asks like she is starving.  She doesn't seem to be drinking as much water as she used to and still loves to eat ice.  In addition to her insatiable appetite she is constantly shivering now.  She continues to groan all the time but still seems so happy.  I work from home so there is always someone home with her.  I notice that she stumbles sometimes and tries to gag but I haven't actually seen her vomit.
I know we need to take her back to the vet but I'm scared that it will be our last trip.  
After reading many of your posts it sounds like our Bailey isn't at that point yet because she is still eating but her constant hunger makes me feel like she is starving.  We just gave her a can of wet K/D food and she finished it in 14 seconds.  She never used to be like that!  
I'm worried that she is suffering but she still seems so happy!
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Nicole

[tonyb286]

Hi. The first thing you need to do is get her to the vet and have both bloods and urinalysis tests undertaken. When the results are back, get a copy and post them here. The results will tell you and us what stage of kidney disease Bailey is at. This is very important, because there is different management for different stages of the disease.

You are - in a perverse way - very lucky to have a dog that wants to eat. This disease usually inflicts the opposite response. Labs are typically quite greedy, so maybe it's not as unusual with labs. I would however suggest changing how you feed Bailey. Big meals (as in a full can of kd food) is too much all at once and will produce more stress on the kidneys - because it releases lots of by-products that the kidneys would have to deal with. The best way is to feed small amounts (the total of these small amounts equalling a normal full day's intake for the size and weight of your dog) and feed 4 times a day. These smaller amounts will satisfy Bailey's appetite over the 24hrs and will not stress his kidneys nearly as much.

Shivering is a sign of kidney disease progression. These tremors are linked to neurological damage. You may want to read an article I wrote about it, the link is here: http://www.infobarrel.com/Tremors_and_Shaking_in_Dogs_with_Kidney_Failure

I agree with you, the time has certainly not come yet for any horrible decisions. Bailey has more time with you yet, I'm certain of it.

Tony

[BaileyGirlMom]

Thank you so much.  We will take her to the vet and keep you posted on what we find out.

[tonyb286]

Thank you Rachel.

Tony

[luvmyshihtzupups]

Thanks for starting this group and sharing the knowledge. Sorry to hear you lost a pup in the same way. Good for you for creating something positive to help others after your experience.

Thanks again for your support.

Rachel

[tonyb286]

Hi. Those results are very high. The first priority right now is IV fluids given by your vet. This will help get these numbers down. What have you and your vet been doing up to this point? Have you started diet changes? Has the vet checked blood pressure? Has the vet prescribed any medication?

Tony

PS You should join our CANINE KIDNEY FAILURE IN DOGS User Group here on MedHelp. There's lots of good support there.

[capnash]

I have a 13 year old Schnoodle with these lab results.  Can't keep food down.  Is it close to the end?

Bun 171
Creatine 6.9
phosphorase 12.8

[tonyb286]

Hi. My entire involvement in canine kidney disease on this and other websites came about from losing a dog in exactly the same way. I realised I knew so little about the disease - and things I might have been able to do, I learned about too late. So, this is a learning curve for me too, even after 4 years. We can never know enough about all the things that affect our best friends ... so a good vet is crucial as is our ability to research any diagnosis, once we know what illness has affected our dogs. It's easy with hindsight, but in times of emotional trauma, we can only do whatever we are able to do at the time and often with limited klnowledge.

Don't beat yourself up over it. We are (all of us) only human and we do the best we can.

Tony