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Old June 28th, 2010, 02:06 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PumpkinPal View Post
I have elevated all the food dishes (he tends to eat from the others' bowls
often ) and the water dish.


Quote:
Originally Posted by PumpkinPal View Post
The canned stays out all day. He tends to eat the majority of the first
feeding in the morning. I put out one 3 and a half ounce can split between
the 3 of them. I will open another can as they get hungry during the day
and into the evening.
How much is each cat eating per day?

As a rough guideline from Wellness http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/produ...ng-guidelines:

Quote:
Feed according to the age, size and activity of your cat.

For 3 oz. can:
For adult cats, feed 2 cans per 6-8 lbs. of body weight per day. Feed at room temprature and refrigerate unused portion. Your cat should always have access to clean fresh water.

For 5.5 oz. can:
For adult cats, feed 1 cans per 6-8 lbs. of body weight per day. Feed at room temprature and refrigerate unused portion. Your cat should always have access to clean fresh water.

For 12.5 oz. can:
For adult cats, feed about 1/2 can per 6-8 lbs. of body weight per day. Feed at room temprature and refrigerate unused portion. Your cat should always have access to clean fresh water.
What this very basically means is an 11 lbs cat should be eating roughly around 7-10 ozs per day, with allowances for age/activity level/caloric content of food etc.

Quote:
Originally Posted by PumpkinPal View Post
I have used treats to give him his meds. So few are soft and I'm sure the one
I have been feeding (Whiskas) most likely isn't the best. I will get a package
of the PureBites.
Are you putting the meds into the treats or giving the treat after?

If you are putting the meds into the treat Greenies Pill Pockets might be a healthier alternative, or you could try cheese whiz - mould some around the pill

The Purebites are not a soft treat, it's freeze dried that allows it to be crumbled nicely to use as a topper on food or given as a treat not crumbled

Quote:
Originally Posted by PumpkinPal View Post
The URG was 1.017. His T4 was 1.4. That's about what it was last time.
The vet is happy with his thyroid levels.

At the vet's, I weighed him before fluids were given. He was 11 pounds, 6 ounces. I've since been weighing him at home. He showed 11 pounds, 5 ounces early yesterday evening.
The USG is quite low, good thing he's already on fluids, help him to replace what he is loosing in urine.
T4 results are good, glad that is staying stable

Could be your scale, some may be calibrated differently or not as sensitive, or he might have had an empty stomah or bladder dropping the results a bit.

Quote:
Originally Posted by PumpkinPal View Post
I began administering his fluids at home on Tuesday. I don't want to put
him through the stress of so many vet visits. He tolerated it ok, I think I
did alright. I used the pink, smaller needle. He sat well for most of it,then
decided to jump off at the end! The fluid sprayed everywhere. I'll keep trying,
he did get the full amount.
Excellent Be sure to warm the fluids before administering & run the fluid out a little bit to remove any big bubbles - not to worry though if there are a couple of small air bubbles in the line

The pink ones are 18 gauge, you could go smaller either 19g or 20g depending on how comfortable you & Sampson are with the 18's. I felt the 18's were a bit big & the poke to hard on her skin, so I went with the Terumo Ultra Thin Wall 20g needles - the tip is sharper & the walls are thinner making the poke less noticable, but the flow about the same. Most vets use the 18g Monoject, some may have the Terumo, but a medical supply company/pharmacy is a cheaper alternative for purchasing supplies.

I always use "you're not done yet" or something along that line when requiring patience of an animal who would rather be somewhere else, for fluids or nail clipping or whatever. They sometimes tune out repeated "stay" command, then saying "that's it or okay you're done" will also give them a signal that you are really finished and they are allowed to leave.

Duffy was very good getting her fluids & would lay still on my lap, but she always seem to know when we were nearly done even when we changed the volume of fluids. When they get used to having fluids consistently their bodies will tell them they've gotten what they need and you may see some signs of antsyness, though some cats just don't like being restrained for the few minutes it takes .

Quote:
Originally Posted by PumpkinPal View Post
I have tried to stay away from the fish varieties. I noticed SCM posted
a link to some other foods the other day.

http://sites.google.com/site/felineh...kidney-disease

The pet store mostly carries the fish ones, but I did find the liver and
chicken. He seemed to enjoy that.
You can always see if a food can be ordered in for you - though many stores will require a commitment to at least a full case.

There is another list here: http://binkyspage.tripod.com/CanFoodNew.html for this particular one looking at the phos (mg) per 100 kcal column you want a food that is around 230max and lower but still has quality ingredients.

Quote:
Originally Posted by PumpkinPal View Post
So sorry about your kitty. I'm happy to hear you were able
to share 3 additional years with her.
Thank you she would still be here if not for the cancer

Quote:
Originally Posted by PumpkinPal View Post
I've ordered the Renafood.
Are you working with a holistic vet?

If this is not coming through your vet be sure to mention it to them so they are aware of the additional supplements.

Quote:
Originally Posted by PumpkinPal View Post
I didn't notice him going to the box straight away before, but I won't be
concerned if it's not a big deal.
Just depends on how their day is scheduled

Quote:
Originally Posted by PumpkinPal View Post
I also wanted to ask if there is anything I can do to keep interest in the
food.

With it sitting out during the day, he loses interest. So much of it gets wasted.
I'll open another can, he will eat a bit and then not want anymore.
The unused food can be refridgerated, best if put into a glass dish not kept in the can. This way you can buy the bigger sized cans to save a bit $ that way, some cats are okay with straight from the fridge, other prefer it warmed a bit first - I wouldn't put it in the microwave though, place the dish in a bowl/sink of hot water for a couple of minutes.

Have you tried adding a 1/2-2 tsp of warm water to the food? Amount depends on how much food there is, and how the kitties like it w/water added. Adding a bit of warm water will "freshen" up the food that's left out & releases a bit more flavour which most kitties will follow their nose to the food, if it doesn't smell interesting they won't eat it. Also good for a kidney cat to get that little extra water in their food.

Quote:
Originally Posted by PumpkinPal View Post
I've heard about VitaGravy and baby food ( no onions or onion powder ). Are
these options or is there something better.

Now that it's gotten warmer out, the three of them have been eating less.
I don't want him losing any more weight.
Don't know anything about the VitaGravy, but no onion babyfood is okay, no salt chicken broth is another option - this you can make yourself by boiling chicken in a pot of water do not add salt or anything else, if using bone-in it's done when the meat falls off the bone, remove chicken from water - any little pieces are fine to stay, allow stock to cool & add a bit to the canned food - you can always try a couple of small chunks of boneless chicken to start to see if that would entice them.

Just adding warm water, Purebites mentioned earlier, little sprinkle of parmesean cheese, teensey tiny pinch of catnip (doesn't work with all cats, but some it will stimulate the appetite a bit), bits of shredded cooked chicken - can use the boiled chicken from above stock receipe.

Some will respond better to bigger early morning & late night meals when its cooler with some canned left out during the day for snacking
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