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Originally Posted by Tommy Cuddles
As mentioned before he gets amlodipine (liquid) for the HBP.
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Has he ever had an echocardiogram to diagnose the nature of his heart murmur?
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Originally Posted by Tommy Cuddles
We have not needed to do the sub-q's yet, becasue he was drinking well.
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A cat with CRF can drink plenty and still be dehydrated. The decision to use subQ fluids should be based more on Tommy's lab values rather than how much he's drinking, although having a heart murmur and high blood pressure certainly complicates this.
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Originally Posted by Tommy Cuddles
2) Dexamehtosone: We give him this for the enteritis he has. he had an episode once where he did not poop for 4 days.
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Ah, sorry, I missed the enteritis part. Does he have any other symptoms? Typically enteritis (aka IBD) results in diarrhea and/or vomiting. Rarely, constipation may be seen, but in this case it could also be attributed to dehydration from the CRF. Here is more info on IBD if you're interested:
http://www.moggies.co.uk/html/ibd.html
http://maxshouse.com/inflammatory_bowel_disease.htm
http://www.catnutrition.org/ibd.php
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Originally Posted by Tommy Cuddles
it seems he has developed arthritis (at least sever arthritis) recently,
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How old is Tommy? Has he ever had any x-rays to see the extent of the arthritis? I'm a bit worried about it coming on so suddenly and wonder if there might be something else going on related to one of his other conditions. For instance, dehydration can cause a cat to appear weak and stumbly, as can the lack of food intake that you already mentioned. A heart condition can also cause weakness, lethargy, and a lack of appetite.
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Originally Posted by Tommy Cuddles
3) we have started him on adequin for the arthritis, shots. I know it takes time. the funny thing is there are days where he looks better and then just looks bad the next day. We do syringe feed him everyday, to ensure he gets nutrition.
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Cosequin or Dasaquin can also be very effective for arthritis, especially when used in conjunction with the Adequan injections. Some other supplements to consider would be Omega3 fish oils, Green-lipped mussel (Perna canaliculus) extract, and MSM. If you have access to a holistic vet, they should be able to come up with a treatment plan that involves other modalities like acupuncture, osteopathy, or homeopathy. If it truly is the arthritis that is causing Tommy's current decline, then you might want to consider pain meds, although these can be tricky in a cat with compromised kidneys. However, consider Tommy's quality of life over quantity.
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Con...?P=A&A=587&S=1
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Originally Posted by Tommy Cuddles
The problem, i put the wet food down in front of him and he either just licks it or walks away. I do not know if this is part of the various illnesses he has or just being picky.
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What happens if you leave the wet food out? Does he come back later to eat it?
Growler would also recommend raising the dishes a couple of inches to prevent stomach acid from gurgling up while his head is down.
To make the wet food more enticing, try dusting the top of it with powdered freeze-dried meat treats like Halo Liv-a-Littles or Real Food Toppers. Parmesan cheese works for some cats. The juice from a can of low-sodium tuna or salmon might help, although normally you want to stay away from fishy foods for both IBD and CRF reasons. But the dude's gotta eat! Whatever it takes, don't limit yourself to just cat foods. Try plain yogurt, plain chicken baby food (no onions), freshly broiled or boiled chicken breast. Leave stuff out for him to snack on when he feels like it. Don't worry about canned food going bad, you can safely keep it out for many hours.
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Originally Posted by Tommy Cuddles
We also leave out dry food (innova).
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Innova EVO? If it's the only thing he'll eat, okay, but dry Innova is waaay too high in phosphorus for a CRF kitty. Same with the Innova EVO Cat & Kitten canned (the 95% meat varieties are excellent though). A better choice would be Eagle Pack Adult dry food, although I'm sure you know it would be ideal if he didn't eat any dry.
What food are you syringe-feeding Tommy with? Has Tommy had his T4 value checked recently?