End stage renal failure

[spooches610]

Hi I'm new to this forum and stumbled onto it while looking for help with my dog not eating. I have a 15 1/2 year old toy poodle named Chloe. She was my daughter's Christmas present in 1994 but has really become my dog over the years. I have noticed Chloe not eating as much and losing weight but attributed it to her advanced age and problems with arthritis. We had her at the Vet's office 3 months ago and he told me she was in pretty good health for her age with the exception on a slight decrease in kidney function and suggested putting her on KD. She has always eaten dry dog food but did not like the KD and I started mixing it with chicken broth to try to get her to eat better. When that failed, I started trying out different foods. They didn't work much better. After a trip to the Vet on April 12, the Vet called and said Chloe was in end stage renal failure. I saw a different Vet from the one I had seen before. She told me her creatinine level was at 6 and wanted to get it down to 3 so they kept her for a couple of days. I told them she would not eat the dry KD so they put her on canned KD and gave her some IV treatments. When I called to check on her they told me her level was down to 4 and let her go home. I went to pick her up and was given a very expensive bill along with a case of KD. The Vet also told me she had some loose stools and gave me pills for that with the recommendation that she take them twice a day. When I got her home I fed her the KD which she ate a little of and then the pill for the loose stool. She started to heave and I took her outside and she staggered, fell, and vomited. She didn't have any more loose stools so I did not give her any more of the pills as they made her so sick. The following day I again offered the KD but she refused to eat it. I called the Vet and she gave me a prescription for canned Royal Canin. She has only eaten small amounts of that and in fact it has taken 2 days to eat 3/4 of one can. She is not drinking as much water either. Has anyone had any luck with a diet I found on line consisting of ground beef, white rice, egg, and white bread slices? It is breaking my heart to see her starving to death. We have given her thin sliced turkey that I'm sure is not good for her since it is processed just to get her to eat something. Of course she readily eats that. I have read many heartbreaking stories on here and as hard as it will be for me, I know I will do the humane thing and put her down once she is unable to hold anything down. This disease seems hopeless and I am very sad.

[mommy_to_boston]

Hi tony, thanks for your comments. I ve noticed everytime i m on my own i cry more, i think i notice it more when i'm alone as he was my companion and i feel so lonely without him. I'm still breaking my heart over him and don't know if thats natural since it has been nearly 7 months. I long to have him back. how the hell do i get over this yearning for him? It really is 'killing' me, i miss him so much and cant stand my life without him, i feel so empty. God, i wish he was still with me ... x

[tonyb286]

Hello again. It's good to hear from you. I know what you mean, Christmas is a sad time, because memories of yesteryear come back and we long for them to still be with us. BB passed away at this time of the year too, so that first Christmas was fairly dreadful. I don't know about what ways you find to cope, but you will no doubt do so ... for me, well, I managed to find a small Christmas Tree photo frame and I put a picture of BB in it, then ceremoniously hung it on the tree along with other favorite decorations. So, in a way, she was still with us at Christmas - and has been every Christmas since. True, I shed a tear every year when I hang the decoration on the tree, but it's also comforting to welcome her back into the festivities.

Boston will be in your thoughts a lot this year - and every year. But as I've said many times, he sure was a lucky dog to have enjoyed such love and companionship.

My Christmas's are usually fairly quiet affairs. I have no close family remaining alive now, so it's just my partner and our dogs - and we always try to get to the beach (tide permitting) on Christmas Day itself or Boxing Day. The dogs get a good run and we get a little exercise (needed after all the excessive food intake of the period).

Hoping you have an enjoyable, peaceful and contented Christmas ... I'll be here as always on Christmas Day (as there's always someone somewhere in need of a chat and a bit of support), so if you're feeling a bit glum, drop in, it will be nice to be in your company again.

Cyberhugs and best wishes, Tony x

[mommy_to_boston]

Hi Tony
Hope you and yrs are ok, i have been up and down and still miss Boston everyday and have been crying alot more again lately. I think Christmas without him is going to be so hard, he always got excited ripping open the presents and i am going to miss him this year, first one away from us. I still feel devastated but realise that some days i can talk fondly about him but then other days i am a wreck. I never thought i would grieve so much over him but it just shows how loved he really was. I am so proud to have had him as my beautful dog, i just wish everyone would treat all their pets with love and kindness because the love they give back is the best of all. Thought i would drop you a line, hope you have a good Xmas and thank you for all your help this year x

[tonyb286]

Hello. Your experience is so much like my own of 3 years ago. When my faithful and loyal companion, BB the rescued lurcher, was diagnosed with kidney failure, I found the diagnosis unbelievable. She seemed fit and healthy, but off her food, which is why we had taken her to the vet. Within 3 days of the diagnosis, she deteriorated rapidly to the stage she couldn't even stand up, hadn't eaten anything for 2 days, and was telling me with her eyes the time had come to say goodbye. I was utterly heartbroken - and came here by a fluke, and gained so much comfort talking to others who had been or were  in the same situation.

I have never been off this site since - and to be honest, while I do try to support anyone and everyone going through any problems or grief with their best friends, I also get so much more back - in friendship and information about how they might have helped their own dog(s). My time here has been a real learning curve. I hope my words are sometimes helpful. Not everyone replies, which I fully understand, but I am so pleased you did and your comments are so very kind. Thank you.

I am sorry you are going through this. This is a dreadful disease and so many dogs seem to get it, particularly later in their always too short lives. I had a beagle when I was a young man (many years ago) and they are such great characters. They are one of my favorite breeds. I can tell from what you have said that Peanut has had an amazing life with you. Tonight will be so hard, I know, and there will be so many tears tomorrow. You are all in my thoughts right now - and I'm here if you want to come back to chat about your decision or just to talk about Peanut.

Cyber hugs to you both and to Peanut. Tony x

[Teresa247]

I don't normally post but wanted to thank you for this page.  I came on to find info about end stage kidney failure as my 13 yo beagle, Peanut, is going through this now.  Without going into all the details, the vet told us today that her kidneys are failing and since she hasn't really eaten for days and hasn't moved from the bed since I brought her home at noon, we've decided to put her down tomorrow so as not to prolong her suffering.  It's such a hard decision but we want to do what's best for her and not for us. We just went through this 6 months ago with our other dog (different health issues) and I believe the turmoil of that decision has helped to make this one a little easier.  I really think this is a great page and that you are a kind & caring person to comfort all of these posters in their time of horrible pain and just wanted you to know that.  Thank you.

[tonyb286]

Hello. That's actually a great message, because it just goes to prove how extraordinary intervention can be, even with kidney disease, which most of us know can be both fast and tragic. You have clearly done an amazing job in looking after your best friend. These may not be good days, but so far you have managed to gain 3 years of additional life for him - and no doubt create some wonderful memories during that time - and give your dog some exciting extra adventures and pleasures that he may otherwise not have had. My heart goes out to you, because I know how stressful and painful it is to care hour by hour for a dog with this illness. Give yourself a huge pat on the back for getting this far - and cyber hugs to your best friend. Hang on in there. Tony x