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Old July 30th, 2008, 10:53 AM
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Low Phosphorus Dry Foods?

A little info on my kitties first... Lucy a 3 year old female, Fido a 12 year old male and a young-ish kitten Demon, the new addition adopted from my local humane society.

I switched all 3 of my cats to an entirely canned food diet within the past month. Fido is going through kidney failure so he required a low phos canned diet so I figured heck with it everyone is going on it. It's healthier for them anyway.

Fido is a kibble junkie and while he's eating the canned foods with glee he's acting like he's starving 24/7 and has taken to stealing the ferrets food to satisfy his kibble addiction. I've tried free feeding the canned food but he won't leave any in the bowls. I've already had to seperate him from the kitten since he's not leaving him any food. Lucy is not impressed either. I can always tell when he's been eating the ferret food just by the amount of pee I scoop out of the litter box. :sad:

Now onto my question, lol. Are there any low phos dry foods that I could give him inbetween canned meals? Preferably grain free?
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Old July 30th, 2008, 11:08 AM
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Have you had his thyroid checked too, just in case he has an issue with that.

I don't have any suggestions for kibble, only canned, sorry.
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Old July 30th, 2008, 11:15 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RaYne View Post
Are there any low phos dry foods that I could give him inbetween canned meals? Preferably grain free?
None of the grain-free dry foods are low phosphorus, unfortunately. What is the brand of canned food that your kitties are eating? How much do they get per day?

How is Fido's weight? Is it holding steady? I'd be very cautious about adding dry food to into the picture as it's contraindicated for CRF cats. The lack of moisture and innappropriate ingredients add extra stress on already overworked kidneys. If Fido is always hungry and is losing weight, he may need more blood work to see if something else is going on. If it's just a matter of him being a glutton, it may mellow out some as he adapts to the different food.
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Old July 30th, 2008, 11:50 AM
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Fido is still a bit underweight. He used to weigh 20 pounds. He initially dropped to 6-7 pounds which was shocking but he's back up to about 10 pounds now. He could probably use another couple pounds since he's still a bit boney.

They are getting Wellness usually chicken and turkey sometimes beef and Felidae Chicken and rice. I buy the large cans. Fido and Lucy split one large can in the morning and another can for supper. Lucy doesn't finish hers so Fido eats his and the rest of hers. The kitten is free fed now that he's seperate.

Fido was always a glutton until he crashed and dropped all that weight.. now that he's feeling better his appetite is insane. He's had no more setbacks so far *knock on wood*

I'm not sure if his thyroid was checked. Is it a seperate blood test or would it have been checked at the same time? I call my vet and check but his appetite has been increased since he's been feeling better. He litterally went from lethargic with no appetite to active, playing and eating like a pig.

Thanks, I'll stay away from the dry and I've moved the ferrets food dish in an effort to keep him out of it.
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Old July 30th, 2008, 12:00 PM
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I would definitely have his thryoid checked, and yes it is a separate blood test. Many small clinics have to send the blood out to a lab to have it tested.
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Old July 30th, 2008, 01:20 PM
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Yup, thyroid is an extra test (called a T4 or free T4). Definitely want to make sure that one's on the list, as well as a blood glucose test for diabetes. If possible, you might also want to request a copy of all lab work to keep in your files, for your own reference. Do you know what Fido's latest kidney values are (creatinine, BUN, USG, phosphorus, calcium, potassium)? I'd be interested to see how out of range they are.
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Old July 30th, 2008, 04:01 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RaYne View Post
I'm not sure if his thyroid was checked. Is it a seperate blood test or would it have been checked at the same time?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Love4himies View Post
yes it is a separate blood test.
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Originally Posted by sugarcatmom View Post
Yup, thyroid is an extra test (called a T4 or free T4)
Actually it depends on which test was run originally, if a "Geriatric Panel" aka "full wellness blood panel" was done then the T4 was checked - look for Tetraiodothyronine. If a "Feline Screen" or a "General Panel" was done then the T4 was not checked.

If it wasn't checked then it would be a very good idea to have the T4 checked
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Old July 31st, 2008, 12:41 PM
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Thanks. It was a full panel. Thyroid was checked and the tech said it was normal? I called before I read your replies so I didn't get the values. I'll call back and see if I can get them. I'll also ask about diabetes.

I weighted Fido this morning and he's up to 10.3 pounds so he is gaining! YAY Also since I moved the ferrets food dish up to a unreachable spot in his cage the excessive drinking and urination has stopped. There were only 3 pees overnight compared to the usually 6-7. Lucy shares the 2 litter boxes with him but I can tell who is who's.. I know odd. LOL
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Old July 31st, 2008, 12:45 PM
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At my vet clinic is a separate test, they have to send the blood out to a lab. The full wellness check they do, does not include thyroid.
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Jasper RIP (2001-2018)
Sweet Pea RIP (2004?-2014)
Puddles RIP (1996-2014)
Snowball RIP (1991-2005)

In a cat's eye, all things belong to cats.-English Proverb

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Old July 31st, 2008, 01:01 PM
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Hmmm, I'll have to see if they can print me off the results. The tech said it was done but I also asked them to check for everything that could cause his symptoms. I'm a knob when it comes to the actual values so I just asked what they meant.

Fido wasn't fed recalled food, he was eating Orijen at the time and Felidae before that so I wasn't convinced it was kidney failure. I thought for sure it was something else, I guess I was in denial.. but then the results came back and confirmed it. :sad:
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Old July 31st, 2008, 01:19 PM
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If you can scan it in and save as a PDF file, you can attach it like you would do a picture so that Growler and Sugarcatmom can take a peak at it, easier than retyping everything.
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Rose semi feral, a cpietra rescue, female tabby (approx 13 yrs)

Jasper RIP (2001-2018)
Sweet Pea RIP (2004?-2014)
Puddles RIP (1996-2014)
Snowball RIP (1991-2005)

In a cat's eye, all things belong to cats.-English Proverb

“While we are free to choose our actions, we are not free to choose the consequences of our actions.” Stephen R. Covey
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Old August 1st, 2008, 02:10 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Love4himies View Post
At my vet clinic is a separate test, they have to send the blood out to a lab. The full wellness check they do, does not include thyroid.
hmmmm....I guess they all have a choice as to which values are included in the tests they run would be nice if they standardized the tests and the reference ranges from the labs

Quote:
Originally Posted by RaYne View Post
Fido wasn't fed recalled food, he was eating Orijen at the time and Felidae before that so I wasn't convinced it was kidney failure. I thought for sure it was something else, I guess I was in denial.. but then the results came back and confirmed it. :sad:
Sometimes it's genetic, sometimes it's age & sometimes it just happens :sad:

Canned of course is better than dry & with the dry you need to make sure he is drinking enough water, so to answer your question for the low phos dryfood.....Wellness Healthy Weight has a dry matter phosphorus of 0.79%, Wellness Indoor Health has a dry matter phosphorus @ 0.85%, Eagle Pack Holistic Select Chicken Meal & Rice is @ 1% phos on a dry matter basis, ideally you want 1% or lower.
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Old August 1st, 2008, 06:45 AM
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Growler: my vet is in the small town of Gananoque (pop 5500) so I don't think they have the sophisticated equipment that a hospital would in a larger urban area.
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Jasper RIP (2001-2018)
Sweet Pea RIP (2004?-2014)
Puddles RIP (1996-2014)
Snowball RIP (1991-2005)

In a cat's eye, all things belong to cats.-English Proverb

“While we are free to choose our actions, we are not free to choose the consequences of our actions.” Stephen R. Covey
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Old August 1st, 2008, 11:03 PM
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Out here in the Lower Mainland area of BC all clinic & hospitals except the ER send all blood & urine tests out to the lab (all use the same lab which is also in the area) & results are back in 1-3 days, unless an in clinic snap test is done. I guess because all tests are sent to the same lab the blood & urine panels are standardized within BC.
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