Please List Your Dog's Kidney Failure Symptoms & What Happened? (border collie, lab)

[SusanG_O]

I am so sad today. Our bichon, age eleven, has 99% of kidney failure symptoms . He is such a nice, gentle dog unlike his female companion who is a loud bully but we love both of them.
His symptoms are: a shaking back leg when he stands up, way increased thirst followed by vomiting it all back up, no barking or energy at all, cataracts in both eyes so he runs into some tables, urinates all over the tiled den, lack of interest in going in the back yard, no tail wagging and won't eat anything at all. I made him some oatmeal but he wouldn't touch it.
He has already lost some weight in 2 days.
I do not want him to be on medications to give him an extra few months since I have no way of knowing how HE feels about life now. Thinking strongly of taking him , all 32 pounds of him, to the animal hospital tomorrow where I guess he'll be given blood testing and , if I allow it, days of IV fluids and possible X-rays and maybe other tests. What did you go through with your dog with renal failure? Does my dog sound like yours?

[NJDevil]

I am SO sorry, I know how heartbreaking this is and how helpless you feel. I would take him to the vet ASAP (tomorrow) and let them assess. Since he is not eating and can't keep water down....he needs help fast. I had a dog with congestive heart failure but she had kidney issues also; I had to give her fluid from an IV at home. She had occasional seizures but I don't know the cause of them.

[SusanG_O]

Thank you, NJ Devil . I would not be medicating him at home; my husband is disabled and I can't imagine having a second patient. Plus, it would prolong his life and who knows for how long or if he would want that? Oh, how I dread tomorrow. I think after answering a half dozen questions they know for sure what's wrong then make you feel guilty (or I'd feel guilty) if you don't jump in and do it all regardless of cost or increase of life expectancy. I'm just tired.

[NJDevil]

I was hoping someone else would respond. We always said when our dogs stopped eating, then it was time to let them go. But if a vet can give them something that would make their quality of life better again, it's sometimes worth it, but in this case it doesn't sound like it's possible - sounds like he's too far gone.

[Dashdog]

When Phoenix my deaf Border collie got old she developed Kidney disease her blood work showed it but at the time we discovered it she was acting fine. I put her on a kidney diet that was home made and got help from a Yahoo group that was for people with dogs with kidney issues. She would not eat the kidney diet that vets tell you to do as thanks to her years of living with my dad she was a very picky eater. She did well but my vet warned me it would not take much to push her over that edge into Kidney failure and that once that happens it is hard to turn a dog around.

All her lab work remained stable for about a year and she acted fine. Did have an ablation to kill the one eye as she had developed glaucoma in it and we could not get the pressures down with eye drops. The eye doctor felt surgery to removed the eye would be too risky due to her kidney issues and the ablation is just a very light sedation as they just need to inject the eye. She did great and on we went.

Then months later she suddenly started acting very depressed not eating not wanting to go out with me and the other two dogs so I took her to the vets. Lab work showed her kidneys were the same but and X-ray showed she had a bad pneumonia so she was put in the hospital for a few days and survived the pneumonia but all the drugs it took for that pushed her over the edge into full blown Kidney failure.

She was lethargic not eating or drinking .For a week I dropped her off at the vets in the AM where they gave her fluids via IV and tried to turn the kidney failure around and I would pick her up in the evening and before bed give her a big bolus of fluids to get her through the night. It was costing over $500 a day and by the weeks end her lab values had not gotten worse but they had not improved so the vet and I discussed it and I decided to take her home and spend a day with her and bring her in after one more night at home and put her down. It was very sad but we tried and I could not see dragging her through any more.

There was not a dry eye at my vets as they all loved her.My vet told me she was the sweetest dog he had ever met. She was a homozygous merle dog from a merle to merle breeding thus was born deaf with poor vision and despite my vet asking me "why did you adopt her as deaf dogs tend to be biters" . There was not an aggressive bone in her sweet body. As we were putting her down I reminded him of what he said when I first got her and he laughed and said "I was so wrong as she was the best and sweetest dog I ever met and it is breaking my heart to be saying good bye to her. To this day I feel we did her right as we gave her that week to try turn her around and when she did not show any signs of improvement we let her go.

[cheesenugget]

My cat was diagnosed with renal failure at age 16. The symptoms that you described are almost identical. However, some of those symptoms are merely old age: weak back legs, cataracts, etc. The thirst, the lack of appetite, the vomiting, the nausea.... that are certainly from the failing kidneys that couldn't clean out the toxind anymore. The toxins build up quickly, making him feel terrible, dazed, confused, etc. If nothing is being done to slow down tp flush out the toxins, in addition to the liver failing from lack of food, your pet will turn yellow (jaudice).

If your dog is this far gone, there is nothing else the vet can do other than to flush out the toxins and help him feel comfortable for another day. Kidney transplants can help if it's something that is accessible and affordable to you. However, considering his age, it might not be feasible.

He is dying. His quality of life is no longer there as you had described how he lacks interest in what he used to enjoy doing and has incontinence. My cat was at 77% failure and he was suffering. At 99%, your dog is at a point of no return.

I understand it is a difficult, heartbreaking choice. I had to make that decision not too long ago. Talk to your vet for his most honest professional opinion. More than likely he will suggest humane euthanasia as there is no cure for CRF and your dog is suffering. Imagine what your dog was 5 years ago and the last 3 days. Look at the pictures of when your dog was younger, stronger, happier and enjoying life. Now look at him now. It is no longer about prolonging his life but the final gift of relieving him from the starvation, the daily nausea, etc.

Good luck.

[shadowne]

The vet will need to run bloodwork. 32# has him at 10# over the high range for a Bichon. There could be something else going on. Yes, I would run bloodwork on my dog.

Vets will often work with a customer to keep costs down. I went through pancreatitis with my dog this summer and he needed fluids. Normally going for daily fluids cost $37. They sold me a bag of fluids for $20 and allowed me to bring it in every time charging me only $18 for a tech to administer the fluids. There were a few ways they kept the costs down for me.

The second thing for those going through this is there is an amazing yahoo group, the one dashdog mentioned, K9kidneydiets. That group has been a lifesaver for hundreds, if not thousands of dogs.

[SusanG_O]

Thanks everyone. He refused to look at me, would not drink water or eat anything whatsoever, his back leg was shaking violently, he had dark red blood coming out of his rectum and he woke up with what looked like molasses in his pen. He would turn his head away from me if I got close. No sign of life except breathing.
I took him to the vet on Oct 17. He said he either had pancreatitis or kidney failure at eleven. And that he could "run tests to let me know which one it was" which I refused. He said, "ok so you just want to put him out of this misery he's in?" and I said yes. So he called him "little guy" and kept patting him while I stood there with him while he put him to sleep. I cried for half an hour and , while kissing his head and petting him, his head tilted over and he was gone. Tomorrow I pick up his ashes in a lovely box to keep.
I woke up crying this morning but feel better tonight. I miss him; sweet doggie.

[shadowne]

I'm sorry for your loss. As I read your initial post I suspected possible pancreatitis. Both pancreatitis and kidney failure are miserable for the dogs and their owners. With a very poor prognosis you did the kindest thing to release him from his pain.