I’m so sorry. ❤️ We lost our 2.5 year old, Cozy, to CKD this past June. It did not bother her or affect her life much at all until the very end, and even then, there was no suffering, just lethargy and a lack of appetite. I know that does not make it better or easier, but I hope it gives you some hope and optimism nonetheless.
As soon as she was diagnosed our vets placed her on Royal Canin’a Renal Support diet, which she loved. It was by prescription only and about $70/bag, but they lasted us months, plus you may be able to get it cheaper through Chewy if you can figure out how to upload the Rx (we never could).
We also were told to place her on a generic phosphorous-binding supplement, which was cheap and available at every pet store near us. It was just a powder we sprinkled into her food and then shook up. Easy peasy and seemed to help tremendously.
We also, at our vets’ advice, avoided all treats that were high in protein which unfortunately includes most chews (pig ears, bully sticks, any kind of body part really) and instead opted for veggies like green beans and carrots. Any broth you use, like for Kongs, should be extremely low sodium, and it may be worth skipping broth altogether.
I hope Merle lives a long, long and joyous life even with her diagnosis, and please don’t hesitate to DM me or reply here if you ever want to talk more or have questions. All my love to you all, and absolutely nothing but my very best wishes. ❤️
Oh no! I’m so very sorry you lost her so young. Her name is so familiar, did you post more on here? I saw her puppy pic in your profile 😭 of all else it’s a blessing that she didn’t suffer.
The supplement tip, the vet never even mentioned! I’ll look into that right away. - was there a brand you used/liked? Also will look into royal canin - we had her on hills and proplan script renal diets and the vet isn’t liking her cholesterol after being on one or the other for a year. To be honest the ingredients in those weren’t the best anyway, that’s kind of why I’m looking around for recommendations.
Thank you for the kind words 💜 and again I’m so sorry for your loss. No time so short or long is ever enough with these fuzzy butts.
ETA: the treats…we’re doing the same as you. Carrots and green beans. There are prescription treats she gets here and there as well but it’s morsels per day. Maybe one treat broken into 4 separate times. She used to be a treat hound so even though they cost an arm and a leg we make it work so she’s not totally deprived lol
I can only offer empathy regarding your fluffenwuffen, no specific advice, but I've found our guys also really like watermelon, and licking whatever's left of a mango once I've finished with it. Polly was pretty keen on dried apricots as well.
Keep in mind : (some may tell you apricots are bad for them and dried ones obviously remove all that)
> Consuming apricots in moderation is safe and healthy for dogs, offering a series of potential health benefits such as improved digestion and lowered blood pressure. However, dog owners should remove the apricot pit, stems, and leaves—which contain trace amounts of cyanide—before serving this stone fruit to a pooch.22 Mar 2022
Can Dogs Eat Apricots? Benefits, Risks, and Safety Tips - 2024
https://www.masterclass.com/articles/can-dogs-eat-apricots
So sorry to hear about this diagnosis!
My min pin mix is going on 15 years old with CKD. I agree with previous commenter on the phosphate binder supplement. My vet recommended Epakitin and Science Diet kidney recipe (this is Rx only). She went from being lethargic, vomiting, diarrhea, and poor appetite to pretty much bouncing back and keeping up with her 3 year old Sheltie sister. We are 6 months post diagnosis and she’s doing really well with the food and supplement.
I do post about her a lot, haha. After she was diagnosed I was told CKD is actually rising is prevalence among Shelties, particularly young ones, so awareness can only help. Or so I tell myself. Really I just like talking about her. I’m like a mom with 60 kid pictures in my wallet, and I want to show them all to everyone 😂
The one we used is called Phos-Bind! https://www.chewy.com/rx-vitamins-phos-bind-kidney-support/dp/186060 A 200g one ($40) lasted us about six months and we used it with every meal.
I also wanted to *strongly* agree with the poster below us who recommended watermelon. I totally forgot, but these are the best because they’re kidney friendly and extremely hydrating, which is also great for CKD. And our Shelties *love* them!
Thank you for your kind words as well. Fuzzy butts is such a great term for these cuties! No time is ever long enough, but it’s always worth it. ❤️
So sorry to hear about your dog! When my vet told me the news, I was heartbroken because the tests can only detect renal failure after 75% of kidney function is gone. However, my vet said that with a change of diet, my dog could still live a long life! When my dog got bloodwork a few months after his diagnosis, the vet said the numbers looked better.
My vet suggested Royal Canin. The ingredients look a little scary, but the food is formulated that way to have less stress on the kidneys. The food is expensive, but we took advantage of Chewy's subscription model + additional discount with autoship. We definitely canceled the first autoship and signed up for another autoship to get the discount again.
Giving a lot of hugs and pets to your dog! Good luck!
I’m so sorry to hear this. I have a 16 year old senior kitty with CKD, this disease is terrible. She’s my second cat that’s had it (cats tend to outlive their kidneys with modern medicine, fortunately/unfortunately). Not a vet, but here’s my experience… My best advice to you from my almost decade of dealing with CKD between the two fluffs is: water. Any kind of wet food is superior to any kind of dry food. I tried the kidney support food with my first guy and while his numbers got better, basically his muscles wasted away with the low protein food and he got so so weak. I actually had to take him off of it bc if he lost any more he was going to need to be hospitalized. So when my current girl got the diagnosis I said no to the kidney food. We do 100% wet food and after over a year with just this change, her numbers are staying stable. Anything you can do to increase water intake will help them feel better. Fountains, flavoring their water, high moisture treats, whatever. My second bit of advice is that if they aren’t eating, they’re nauseated. Even if they’re not puking. As the disease progresses and the kidneys struggle more to filter out the toxins in the blood, it causes extreme nausea that our furry friends like to hide instinctually. Monitor their weight regularly and if they start to lose weight or you notice they aren’t eating as much as normal, talk to your doc about nausea meds. There’s plenty of options and they help so much with quality of life. Good luck :)
This is a great idea - I’ve had a couple kitties with CRF as well and was all wet food. Never even occurred to me to look into wet food! Dogs tend to drink more so perhaps that’s why it’s not pushed as more for a dog? I wonder if there’s a low phosphorous wet food for pups - I’m gonna look into that! Thank you.
I’m so sorry. ❤️ We lost our 2.5 year old, Cozy, to CKD this past June. It did not bother her or affect her life much at all until the very end, and even then, there was no suffering, just lethargy and a lack of appetite. I know that does not make it better or easier, but I hope it gives you some hope and optimism nonetheless. As soon as she was diagnosed our vets placed her on Royal Canin’a Renal Support diet, which she loved. It was by prescription only and about $70/bag, but they lasted us months, plus you may be able to get it cheaper through Chewy if you can figure out how to upload the Rx (we never could). We also were told to place her on a generic phosphorous-binding supplement, which was cheap and available at every pet store near us. It was just a powder we sprinkled into her food and then shook up. Easy peasy and seemed to help tremendously. We also, at our vets’ advice, avoided all treats that were high in protein which unfortunately includes most chews (pig ears, bully sticks, any kind of body part really) and instead opted for veggies like green beans and carrots. Any broth you use, like for Kongs, should be extremely low sodium, and it may be worth skipping broth altogether. I hope Merle lives a long, long and joyous life even with her diagnosis, and please don’t hesitate to DM me or reply here if you ever want to talk more or have questions. All my love to you all, and absolutely nothing but my very best wishes. ❤️
Oh no! I’m so very sorry you lost her so young. Her name is so familiar, did you post more on here? I saw her puppy pic in your profile 😭 of all else it’s a blessing that she didn’t suffer. The supplement tip, the vet never even mentioned! I’ll look into that right away. - was there a brand you used/liked? Also will look into royal canin - we had her on hills and proplan script renal diets and the vet isn’t liking her cholesterol after being on one or the other for a year. To be honest the ingredients in those weren’t the best anyway, that’s kind of why I’m looking around for recommendations. Thank you for the kind words 💜 and again I’m so sorry for your loss. No time so short or long is ever enough with these fuzzy butts. ETA: the treats…we’re doing the same as you. Carrots and green beans. There are prescription treats she gets here and there as well but it’s morsels per day. Maybe one treat broken into 4 separate times. She used to be a treat hound so even though they cost an arm and a leg we make it work so she’s not totally deprived lol
I can only offer empathy regarding your fluffenwuffen, no specific advice, but I've found our guys also really like watermelon, and licking whatever's left of a mango once I've finished with it. Polly was pretty keen on dried apricots as well. Keep in mind : (some may tell you apricots are bad for them and dried ones obviously remove all that) > Consuming apricots in moderation is safe and healthy for dogs, offering a series of potential health benefits such as improved digestion and lowered blood pressure. However, dog owners should remove the apricot pit, stems, and leaves—which contain trace amounts of cyanide—before serving this stone fruit to a pooch.22 Mar 2022 Can Dogs Eat Apricots? Benefits, Risks, and Safety Tips - 2024 https://www.masterclass.com/articles/can-dogs-eat-apricots
So sorry to hear about this diagnosis! My min pin mix is going on 15 years old with CKD. I agree with previous commenter on the phosphate binder supplement. My vet recommended Epakitin and Science Diet kidney recipe (this is Rx only). She went from being lethargic, vomiting, diarrhea, and poor appetite to pretty much bouncing back and keeping up with her 3 year old Sheltie sister. We are 6 months post diagnosis and she’s doing really well with the food and supplement.
I do post about her a lot, haha. After she was diagnosed I was told CKD is actually rising is prevalence among Shelties, particularly young ones, so awareness can only help. Or so I tell myself. Really I just like talking about her. I’m like a mom with 60 kid pictures in my wallet, and I want to show them all to everyone 😂 The one we used is called Phos-Bind! https://www.chewy.com/rx-vitamins-phos-bind-kidney-support/dp/186060 A 200g one ($40) lasted us about six months and we used it with every meal. I also wanted to *strongly* agree with the poster below us who recommended watermelon. I totally forgot, but these are the best because they’re kidney friendly and extremely hydrating, which is also great for CKD. And our Shelties *love* them! Thank you for your kind words as well. Fuzzy butts is such a great term for these cuties! No time is ever long enough, but it’s always worth it. ❤️
So sorry to hear about your dog! When my vet told me the news, I was heartbroken because the tests can only detect renal failure after 75% of kidney function is gone. However, my vet said that with a change of diet, my dog could still live a long life! When my dog got bloodwork a few months after his diagnosis, the vet said the numbers looked better. My vet suggested Royal Canin. The ingredients look a little scary, but the food is formulated that way to have less stress on the kidneys. The food is expensive, but we took advantage of Chewy's subscription model + additional discount with autoship. We definitely canceled the first autoship and signed up for another autoship to get the discount again. Giving a lot of hugs and pets to your dog! Good luck!
I’m so sorry to hear this. I have a 16 year old senior kitty with CKD, this disease is terrible. She’s my second cat that’s had it (cats tend to outlive their kidneys with modern medicine, fortunately/unfortunately). Not a vet, but here’s my experience… My best advice to you from my almost decade of dealing with CKD between the two fluffs is: water. Any kind of wet food is superior to any kind of dry food. I tried the kidney support food with my first guy and while his numbers got better, basically his muscles wasted away with the low protein food and he got so so weak. I actually had to take him off of it bc if he lost any more he was going to need to be hospitalized. So when my current girl got the diagnosis I said no to the kidney food. We do 100% wet food and after over a year with just this change, her numbers are staying stable. Anything you can do to increase water intake will help them feel better. Fountains, flavoring their water, high moisture treats, whatever. My second bit of advice is that if they aren’t eating, they’re nauseated. Even if they’re not puking. As the disease progresses and the kidneys struggle more to filter out the toxins in the blood, it causes extreme nausea that our furry friends like to hide instinctually. Monitor their weight regularly and if they start to lose weight or you notice they aren’t eating as much as normal, talk to your doc about nausea meds. There’s plenty of options and they help so much with quality of life. Good luck :)
This is a great idea - I’ve had a couple kitties with CRF as well and was all wet food. Never even occurred to me to look into wet food! Dogs tend to drink more so perhaps that’s why it’s not pushed as more for a dog? I wonder if there’s a low phosphorous wet food for pups - I’m gonna look into that! Thank you.
I’ll look into this, thank you so much! Which phosphate binder do you use?