Creatinine in blood and kidney failure

[th1rston]

Does anyone here have experience with this or could any of you shed some light on the situation?

My furry, 4 legged boy Dominik is just four and a half years old now and may have some issues with his kidneys. 3 blood tests (taken in 03', June 04', and Nov 04') have shown increasing levels of creatinine in his blood (1.6, 2.0, 2.06) which has made my vet inform me of possible problems with his kidneys. The problem was described as a "mild elevation" and I have been told about special diets, phosphorous binders, administering under skin fluids, and diuresis. Only the dietary change was to be done at this time.

Have any of you dealt with these issues and do you have reccomendations for diet change (Science Diet KD was reccomended by vet) or other tests or questions I should bring up with the vet? I would appreciate any advice you have to offer.

Thanks in advance,
-Andrew

[BostonRott]

There are a few people on here who have had dogs with kidney failure. Use the search function, you should be able to find plenty of info and also dietary suggestions.

[th1rston]

I did search the forums and got oodles of information about kidney failure, and several dietary suggestions thank you. I still have a question or three though.

With the creatinine being only 2.06 at it's highest lvl so far, what measures have others taken at these early stages? I read that at about 2.5 is when others were alarmed and took action, however my vet suggested starting a prescription diet soon.

Would the (BUN) lvl be found in these workups I've had done or is it a urine test? The vet made no mention of the blood urea nitrogen at all, should I double check the results myself?

At $70/40lbs. for the Science Diet K/B I have started researching BARF diets but is it possible to make my own foods as low in phosphorous and proteins as the prescription kibble available? I would imagine the raw beef, chicken backs, raw eggs, fish, and other main ingredients that folks generally use are all high protein. I noticed the crummy ingredients in the K/B...
"Brewers rice, pork fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), dried egg product, flaxseed, corn gluten meal, chicken liver flavor, soy fiber..." and so on. These don't look like the items that have always been suggested I find in a quality kibble.

Thanks again for any help you may provide,
-Andrew

[rottnkidd]

Andrew - I'm sorry to hear about your boy. Check out the site below for comprehensive information. The author is not a vet, nor does she claim to be, however, she's done extensive research into the subject. Many of your questions and concerns may be answered by thoroughly reading this site and the links provided. It may also give you the knowledge on the subject to comfortably and confidently discuss options with your vet.
Wishing you and Dominik the best -
kathy

http://www.bowchow.com/kidney.html

[macho rottie]

Sorry your dog is sick.

I think Moondog may be able to help you. She seems to know a lot about diets and sickness.

[Judy Chrusch]

Hi Andrew, my boy was diagnosed 2 years ago with kidney disease due to lyme and he just battled it again this for weeks. He's doing well right now and but his creatinine this time was 3.4 and it never got higher then 2.5 before so it indeed has gotten worse. All his kidney levels were elevated but Potassium was low.

What other tests has your vet done if any and did he say why his kidneys were failing at such a young age? Be very very careful if you do the raw diet and I personally don't recommend anything w/o the advice of your vet. Do alot of research on kidney disease yourself and ask LOTS of questions. A prescription diet isn't a bad idea then have bloodwork retaken to see if his levels came down but it looks to me like they're increasing rahter rapidly.

Has he ever gotten into any poisons or has he ever had lyme? There are many reasons for this disease including genetics. Has he had an ultrasound?

My boy just recently had fluids and just a few weeks ago we didn't know if he was going to be able to fight this again but he has had a remarkable comeback and like I said is doing well now.

Has your boy had any of these signs, lethargic, lack of appetite, vomiting, and diarrhea? All of these signs is what we saw in our boy which prompted me to get him checked and found out his levels have increased so keep in touch with your vet and be very careful your boy doesn't get dehydrated. I wish you all the best and hope they can help your boy. Please stay on top of things and if he isn't eating or starts to vomit, get him seen right a way.

Judy

[Judy Chrusch]

Andrew, how is your boy doing, please update?

Judy

[th1rston]

I haven't had any new bloodwork done, seems too soon for that as I just had some done 1 week ago. I have looked into BARF, homemade diets for him though instead of the K/D diet, just have to run it by the vet. I found more information than I could digest at bowchow.com so I'm going over all of that and trying to formulate a diet that may work as a substitute for the Science Diet. It's a little slow going trying to figure out all the '/kcal' and 'dry 'or 'as fed' formulations but I'm getting there.

There have been no signs of vomiting, diarreah, or appetite loss (he still finishes his meals in 2.5 nanoseconds flat), and Dominik has always been a lower drive - likes to nap a lot - dog He still runs around with his kongs taunting his little sister (a basenji mix, rescue pup) all the while her nipping at his ankles :) And seems happy all around.

Thanks to everyone who has replied and I'm sure I'll post again soon with whatever diet recipe I come up with to get some second, third, and fourth opinions.

-Andrew

[Judy Chrusch]

Thank you Andrew for the update and I'll say it again as far as the raw diet, be very careful bc it has to be balanced properly bc it can and will affect the levels. Czar was on raw when he was first diagnosed and his levels were worse so talk to your vet and work together and I wish you all the best but in the meantime I'd try to find out what may have caused it and especially if it may be genetic, and if it's long term, that way you can let your breeder know, unless of course he was a rescue.

I'm very glad his appetitie is good and he has energy, as soon as that would change get him to the vet for more bloodwork.

Judy