As an update to this thread on Duffy's fight with CRF & Lymphoma - Duffy was back in on the 10th April for a urine sample which did show the UTI had returned. The vet, homeopath and I decided to go with antibiotics again to fight the UTI and help with the sepsis (overall infection) she was fighting due to the lymphoma. The vet was still concerned about the chance of the UTI progressing upwards from the bladder into the kidneys as pyelonephritis, this time we went with ClavaSeptin the vet formula of Clavamox in pill form.
Duffy had a good couple of weeks on a combination of antibiotics and homeopathic remedies, still being force fed but otherwise doing well, until this past week where she got weaker and the tumor was visibly larger, as it metastasized in her colon, into her spleen and through her lymph nodes.
I brought Duffy in to the clinic on the 21st April to check her blood electrolyte levels as she had become much weaker especially in her back legs, her leg sliding out from under her while walking across the floor & on carpets when sitting and was starting to walk with a very very slight plantigrade posture (where the animal walks on the entire hocks not just the feet). Plantigrade posture is often seen as a symptom of muscle weakness, potassium deficiency, diabetes among other causes. I decided to run a full blood panel not just electrolytes, with the results due the following day. Her weight showed an increase to 4.8kg from 4.6kg a week & a half earlier, however it was evident this was due to the increase in tumor size, not from eating.
That afternoon & night Duffy was given pain remedies to cope with the pain/discomfort she was experiencing especially when being picked up or moved, she did perk up a bit as the remedy worked though she was still very tired and I was seeing signs that she was ready to go.
I made the decision early in the morning of 22nd April that it was time to let her go, she was ready & I accepted that it was what she needed. I called the homeopath on her cell phone a couple of hours before the clinic opened for advice on dosing for pain at that point as Duffy seemed a bit worse, and told her that it was time. I got a call from the clinic as soon as they opened and we discussed my decision and how I wanted things and a time that was suitable. Duffy had a nice afternoon snoozing in the sunshine and was peacefully let go at home.
Duffy ~ 9 May 1991 - 22 April 2010
**I would like to point out that CRF and Lymphoma are not directed related, so if your cat has CRF they are not necessarily/automatically going to get cancer.**
Anyone who has questions or experiences they wish to share on Chronic Renal Failure in cats please do post them, I would like this thread to continue to help others who are dealing with this condition.