I won’t sugarcoat it or keep anyone in suspense here, Tabs has early kidney disease.
I’m shocked.
Tabs’ previous blood test results was done this September. It was just three months ago and everything was still normal. If I had not taken Tabs today, I would only have done the next blood test NEXT September (yes, next year!).
But the vet checked back all her previous blood tests results and yes, the creatinine and urea readings have been creeping up every time, slowly but surely, increasing at every blood test.
Today’s readings:
Creatinine 285 (136 is high)
BUN 14.2 (10.7 is high)
Phosphate 1.72 (2.74 is high)
So, Tabs has early kidney disease.
I almost didn’t believe it because in just three months, she now suddenly has kidney disease.
But granted, thankfully, it’s caught early and we can start treatment now.
Tabs’ PCV is 38% (no anaemia).
So, the treatment is to start with 200ml subcut for four days until this Sunday, then continue with 200ml subcut twice weekly. I can also start her on Indy’s kidney supplements, which are:
Renal-N
Astro’s fish oil
Astro’s NC-Scrub
Kidney Support Gold
The vet recommends that Tabs go on a renal diet. Well, as though Tabs knew, she’s been asking for RC’s renal kibble for months now. So that’s just as well and good that she already likes the kibble.
On hindsight now, I know Tabs’ appetite has decreased over the months. Perhaps this is the first indication of kidney disease in geriatric cats. Indy had this symptom too which I thought was just he being choosy. That’s the thing, right? When our cats get older, we think they aren’t keen to eat so much anymore so we tend to brush it off. Well, I’ve learnt my lesson now – we should not.
Come to think of it, Cow Mau, at 17 years plus, still has a great appetite and he has no kidney issues so far. Lucky him. Touch wood, touch wood, touch wood.
Indy also actually lost weight before his CKD was diagnosed and again, it was my mistake to think that losing weight is “okay” for geriatric cats. Well, no, it’s not.
Tabs’ appetite has definitely dwindled over the months and now we know why. But luckily it’s caught early. There’s lots we can do to help her. But Tabs hasn’t lost any weight so far.
Her weight is stable at around 5kg. But just to be safe, the vet recommends that I take Tabs for a kidney ultrasound at our regular clinic to check if it is the usual kidney degeneration or something else like cancer. Best to check and know. Also, Tabs would need a Doppler check for her blood pressure too.
Now, Tabs has another issue of concern. She was detected with a galloping heart rhythm in December 2020. The vet checked today and it is still there. The heart can also affect the kidneys. So today’s vet highly recommends that I take Tabs for proper heart scan done by a veterinary cardiologist. This vet has sessions in several different clinics so I am to make an appointment at the nearest clinic to us. He is a specialist and only does heart scans.
We came home and immediately did the subcut. I did it with husband holding her, but Tabs was cooperative and was not aggressive. She did not even flinch when I poked the needle. But I’m not confident if I can do her single-handedly yet. Will try tomorrow.
Next, I sent a message to the whatsapp number of the vet cardiologist and voila, I’m super impressed. Immediately, there was an auto-reply with a google form where I filled up all of Tabs’ details. After submitting the form, an assistant replied, identifying himself/herself and gave me two dates to choose from next week and a link for more available dates and slots. I clicked on that link and found a suitable date and time. It’s at a new place, so I don’t trust myself and/or Waze going there. Tabs and I would need to be driven there so I had to find a day where husband would be free. It’s not urgent, but it will be done this month itself. From the heart scan, we would know what other treatment Tabs would need.
So, we have another kidney patient in our clan now. It’s Tabs.
Don’t worry, Tabs. We are in this together.
The vet says I must monitor Tabs’ breathing now that we have started her on 200ml subcut. If her breathing is elevated after the subcut, then I should reduce the amount or the frequency.
The SRR (sleeping respiratory rate) monitoring can only be done when the pet is in DEEP sleep. Tabs’ is 20, which is borderline normal. I’ve also been monitoring Cow Mau’s SRR. His has reduced from 24 to 22 nowadays. That’s good.
Tabs is not a “chill” cat as she gets stressed very easily. Oh, the vet cardio’s assistant also sent me a prescription to get Gabapentin for Tabs before the visit. So efficient!
Even during blood taking at the vet’s today, she was so stressed. Poor thing. I’ll Gabapentin her before another vet’s visit.