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Reversible Renal Failure?
We were told yesterday that our wonderfully spirited Jack Russell terrier was somehow poisoned and has been diagnosed with acute renal failure. Our Bailey is only 4 years old. The vet kept her overnight, flushing her system in the hopes of lowering her B.U.N. level, which is 91. We were contacted today and told we could bring Bailey home. She still has a catheter in her forearm with some kind of medicine drip that we were told we could take out tomorrow. The vet also gave us a syringe with vitamin B in it and instructed us to inject her with it before 12 noon tomorrow. The vet could not determine what caused Bailey's kidneys to shut down so he sent a blood sample to a univeristy lab for analysis. The vet told us he would call us with the results but that there could be a five day turnover. My questions are:
Why would the vet send our precious little one home when she is still unable to keep anything down? Did he send her with us to die at home where she is well loved? This is devistating to watch and know that there is nothing we can do to help her. Or is there? Can renal failure be reversed?
Why would the vet send our precious little one home when she is still unable to keep anything down? Did he send her with us to die at home where she is well loved? This is devistating to watch and know that there is nothing we can do to help her. Or is there? Can renal failure be reversed?
Very sorry to hear about your most difficult situation, I wish for you and your little friend a hopeful and successful recovery...you are in a challenging situation, but I have only experienced this issue one time over rat poison, we pulled thru, very hard....had large dog who got into barn area and chewed up a bar of rat poison, my understanding the faster you get on the problem the better the outcome, we had to get the Vit K into system quick to stop the liver damage....also, tip, whenever you believe your dog has been poison, use, hydrogen perixode, syringe down the throat until the dog starts vomiting to get it out quick and run to vet for the shots...but, sometimes people are unaware of whats wrong w/their pet...if someone poisons an animal out of cruelty, well, that goes unspoken, there is evil everywhere, and one must go out of there way to give extra protection against the fallings of evil...
I wish you the most of luck and prayer...the advice of prior comments are excellent!
I wish you the most of luck and prayer...the advice of prior comments are excellent!
Thank you so much for your response. I needed to hear what you had to share.
Our vet is rather old, but I believe him to be a kind and decent person. He did not give us any instructions regarding emergencies or any anti-nausea medicine. He told us he would call us in the morning. Which he did. He informed me that Bailey's B.U.N. levels did not go down after flushing her system. Her level is very high (still at 91) and he believes her to be in total renal failure. He suggested that we give her very small amounts of water and or low fat milk when I informed him that I stayed up all night with her because of her shaking tremors and vomitting. She could not even keep water down. Before he hung up he also stated that he would call us when he received Bailey's lab report and I asked him if Bailey was dying, if renal failure is reversible, and if she was in any pain. He replied: Yes, she is dying; renal failure is not reversible - it's fatal - and that she cannot recover from it; and that Bailey may have some small amount of pain but we would never know it because the JRT is a very tough breed and would probably not show us any outward signs of pain. I believe that no animal should suffer - not even a little bit - when there is no hope of recovery.
All my family does around her is cry and I think this reaction is causing sadness in Bailey, I can see it in her eyes. I think that my husband needs to try to keep things more normal around the house so Bailey would be happy and not appear to have "given up the fight". But he won't eat until she can eat and when he starts crying the rest of the household follows. Except me. I am trying to remain strong and only let it out behind the closed bathroom door. I take Bailey outside and have her walk around a little. Exercise can't hurt her. She is a avid swimmer and swam laps in our pool along myself or my grandson every day, weather permitting. The vet said if Bailey wants to be in the pool that I should let her. But my husband thinks that maybe she was poisoned by the chlorine in the pool water. I don't know what to do. I am trying to stay positive around her.
My mother stopped by last night, bringing some holy water blessed by the church, and we sprinkled some on Bailey and said a few prayers to St. Francis of Assissi (sp?), the patron saint of animals. But this made my husband upset.
Is there any way of knowing how long Bailey will still be with us? Our vet only said that the time varied. But what does that mean? And if Bailey isn't showing any outward signs of pain is euthanasia still a kindness or is it a cop-out?
I don't know how to "copy and paste" my post in the Ask a Vet Forum. But I will give it a try.
Again, thank you so much for sharing your insights.
Our vet is rather old, but I believe him to be a kind and decent person. He did not give us any instructions regarding emergencies or any anti-nausea medicine. He told us he would call us in the morning. Which he did. He informed me that Bailey's B.U.N. levels did not go down after flushing her system. Her level is very high (still at 91) and he believes her to be in total renal failure. He suggested that we give her very small amounts of water and or low fat milk when I informed him that I stayed up all night with her because of her shaking tremors and vomitting. She could not even keep water down. Before he hung up he also stated that he would call us when he received Bailey's lab report and I asked him if Bailey was dying, if renal failure is reversible, and if she was in any pain. He replied: Yes, she is dying; renal failure is not reversible - it's fatal - and that she cannot recover from it; and that Bailey may have some small amount of pain but we would never know it because the JRT is a very tough breed and would probably not show us any outward signs of pain. I believe that no animal should suffer - not even a little bit - when there is no hope of recovery.
All my family does around her is cry and I think this reaction is causing sadness in Bailey, I can see it in her eyes. I think that my husband needs to try to keep things more normal around the house so Bailey would be happy and not appear to have "given up the fight". But he won't eat until she can eat and when he starts crying the rest of the household follows. Except me. I am trying to remain strong and only let it out behind the closed bathroom door. I take Bailey outside and have her walk around a little. Exercise can't hurt her. She is a avid swimmer and swam laps in our pool along myself or my grandson every day, weather permitting. The vet said if Bailey wants to be in the pool that I should let her. But my husband thinks that maybe she was poisoned by the chlorine in the pool water. I don't know what to do. I am trying to stay positive around her.
My mother stopped by last night, bringing some holy water blessed by the church, and we sprinkled some on Bailey and said a few prayers to St. Francis of Assissi (sp?), the patron saint of animals. But this made my husband upset.
Is there any way of knowing how long Bailey will still be with us? Our vet only said that the time varied. But what does that mean? And if Bailey isn't showing any outward signs of pain is euthanasia still a kindness or is it a cop-out?
I don't know how to "copy and paste" my post in the Ask a Vet Forum. But I will give it a try.
Again, thank you so much for sharing your insights.
I'm so sorry to hear about your poor pup. Kidney failure, whether acute or chronic, is one mean problem to deal with. The problem with kidneys is that once the tissue is damaged, it doesn't heal. New cell growth doesn't happen like say, with the liver or skin.
With an acute case, obviously you have to treat the underlying condition to stop further damage. The idea is to keep the damage from getting worse. Depending on the toxin, it may not be possible to stop. Without at least some idea of what she may have ingested, i can see why it would take several days to complete the lab work.
If your dog can keep water down, then I can understand sending her home. Dogs can go a few days without food, but not water. It does seem a bit much to ask you deal with catheters and injections at home though. On the other hand, some dogs just seem to recover better at home than in a hospital setting.
Did your vet give you any instructions as to what constitutes an emergency? For instance, if she can't keep water down for X hours or has excessive vomiting to call him? Is he giving her anything for nausea or does he want to wait until he knows exactly what he's dealing with?
Nausea and vomiting are very typical for dogs in kidney failure, and it can get pretty extreme. In fatal cases, the textbook patient will also have some mental changes. When the unfiltered toxins get to very high levels, they cross the blood-brain barrier and the dog may not even be aware of anything at that point. I so wished my old dog had been granted that blessing, but she was fully aware until the end.
The only "good" thing about kidney failure is that it really isn't a painful condition. Miserable, but not painful.
I wish I could be more encouraging, but the truth is that your dog is very seriously ill. I pray the vets get to the bottom of it very soon and stop the damage in its tracks.
Please consider copying and pasting your post in the Ask a Vet Forum here at Med Help. I'm sure Dr. Cheng can give you much more detailed information than I have, and she'll probably have some good ideas regarding supportive care for you.
With an acute case, obviously you have to treat the underlying condition to stop further damage. The idea is to keep the damage from getting worse. Depending on the toxin, it may not be possible to stop. Without at least some idea of what she may have ingested, i can see why it would take several days to complete the lab work.
If your dog can keep water down, then I can understand sending her home. Dogs can go a few days without food, but not water. It does seem a bit much to ask you deal with catheters and injections at home though. On the other hand, some dogs just seem to recover better at home than in a hospital setting.
Did your vet give you any instructions as to what constitutes an emergency? For instance, if she can't keep water down for X hours or has excessive vomiting to call him? Is he giving her anything for nausea or does he want to wait until he knows exactly what he's dealing with?
Nausea and vomiting are very typical for dogs in kidney failure, and it can get pretty extreme. In fatal cases, the textbook patient will also have some mental changes. When the unfiltered toxins get to very high levels, they cross the blood-brain barrier and the dog may not even be aware of anything at that point. I so wished my old dog had been granted that blessing, but she was fully aware until the end.
The only "good" thing about kidney failure is that it really isn't a painful condition. Miserable, but not painful.
I wish I could be more encouraging, but the truth is that your dog is very seriously ill. I pray the vets get to the bottom of it very soon and stop the damage in its tracks.
Please consider copying and pasting your post in the Ask a Vet Forum here at Med Help. I'm sure Dr. Cheng can give you much more detailed information than I have, and she'll probably have some good ideas regarding supportive care for you.
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