Leesburg Veterinary Hospital, Ltd. - Health Forms

What is Kidney Disease?

The kidneys play an important role in filtering waste materials from the blood and helping to regulate the body's fluids. As the kidneys begin to fail, waste materials accumulate and clinical signs begin to develop. There are different stages of kidney failure that depend on how much of actual kidney function has been lost.

Once 66% of kidney function is lost, the kidney is no longer able to concentrate urine appropriately and we will begin noting abnormalities on urinalysis. At this time, you will likely note that your pet is suffering from increased thirst and increased urination.

Once 75% of kidney function is lost, the kidneys will be unable to adequately filter toxins from the blood and we can begin noticing abnormal blood values. Besides increased thirst and urination, other clinical signs at this stage may include: loss of appetite, poor hair coat, vomiting, diarrhea, weight loss, and depression. With time, severe kidney disease can cause increased frequency of urinary tract infections, anemia, constipation, and high blood pressure. In most patients, kidney failure will ultimately lead to a decreased life span.

What causes Kidney Disease?

There are two types of kidney disease: acute and chronic. Acute kidney failure involves a rapid decline in kidney function and can be caused by poisoning, shock, infections, or other diseases. Chronic kidney failure occurs over a longer period of time and can be due to similar causes as acute kidney disease as well as age,
nutritional factors, and breed or hereditary tendencies.

How can I prevent Kidney Disease?

All pets should be offered fresh water at all times. Also, many cats may benefit from being offered canned food. Cats do not tend to drink as much water as dogs, and the canned food increases their daily water intake. This can help to support kidney and bladder health. Cats may also be more inclined to drink water out of water fountains or tall "stadium" cups. Otherwise, besides keeping your pet away from toxins such as grapes, antifreeze, rat poisons, and lilies, it is very difficult to prevent kidney failure from occurring in most pets. Therefore, it is important to run yearly blood work on your pet once they reach the approximate age of 6 or 7 years. You should also monitor your pet for any of the clinical signs listed above. Early detection of kidney disease can give your pet a much longer and better quality of life.

How can Kidney Disease be treated?

For pets that are in the earlier stages of kidney failure, treatment may be as simple as changing their diet to a product such as Hill's K/D or Purina N/F. These diets are formulated to be more "kidney friendly" and therefore help to slow the progression of disease. You should never immediately change your pet from one type
of food to another. Instead, you should mix increasing amounts of the new diet with decreasing amounts of the old diet over a 7 day period. If your pet is initially reluctant to eat a kidney friendly diet, you can try warming the canned product to body temperature, hand feed, or mix the dry food with warm water. You should also
make sure that your pet has constant access to fresh, clean water.

As kidney disease progresses, we can offer various medications to help combat the side effects and we can also teach you to give your pet fluids under their skin to help act as a "dialysis" and flush out some of the toxins from the blood. If an underlying infection, toxin, or other disease causes the kidney failure, we will also
target our treatments to combat that cause.

What long term monitoring should be done?

Most patients with kidney disease will need to have their blood work and urinalysis frequently monitored. This will help to alert us to worsening problems. We will also need to monitor your pet's blood pressure as kidney failure can lead to high blood pressure.

Your first re-check appointment will be on

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for the following tests:

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Please call if you have any questions or problems prior to this appointment.

In summary, kidney failure can be treated but not cured and it may well decrease your pet's lifespan. Treatment of kidney failure will require that you maintain a constant line of communication with us. Therefore, please call if you note any of the following problems:

Decreased appetite, vomiting, or diarrhea
Constipation
Weakness or lethargy
Changes in urination frequency or amount.

Thank you very much for entrusting your pet to our care. It is our goal to help provide both you and your pet with the longest and happiest life possible. Please feel free to call anytime with questions or concerns!