Mild Kidney Failure

About 8 years my EH and I were adopted by the cutest little gray tabby kitten.  We thought she was very young but once we took her to the vet we discovered she was about 6 months old and started growing like a weed.  We took her in to get her spade, they were doing the routine bloodwork and discovered she had kidney and liver disease.  Aparently born with it.  We didn't care, we did everything we could for her.  Got her blood counts back to normal and got her spade.  At least once a year she would relapse and we would go through it all again.  But there was never a moment we regretted keeping her.  She was a very loving cat.  Due to the disease she put on a good bit of weight which made her conditions worsen.  We couldn't keep the weight off her.  She was on a prescription only food for a long long long time (can't remember what it was now), but it didn't keep her from gaining weight.  Eventually she did succumb to the diseases and it was very painful for her and us.  But she is in a wonderful place now.

The only suggestions I can think of are treat her as normal as possible.  Once she comes back to "normal" she will be fine until/unless she relapses.  Watch her all the time.  Luckily we were both very intune to our animals and knew from the very onset of a problem.  Make sure she gets exercise, try to keep her weight normal, and learn her routines so you catch any abnormalities.  A relapse for Gidget was very painful.  You couldn't touch her much at all.  Not even to pet her.  It just hurt her to much.  Towards the end she started getting aggresive with the pain.  Probably she was just tired of going through it.  We understood.  Make sure she has her own bed or place to curl up in.  When she would relapse she would leave little droppings that we never wanted our other cat to come in contact with.

I have rescued some kittens about a month ago.  They were only 2 1/2 wks old when I found them.  I was able to adopt out 2 of them and I kept one for myself.  They are all doing good now, but the one I kept (haven't heard of any problems with the others yet) the vet thinks she may have kidney disease as well.  I will take her back soon to get the blood work done.  Even if she does I will keep her, I have already been through it once and know how to deal with it.

I wish you and your husband and your adopted kitty all the best. If there is anything I can do let me know and I will do my best.

Acupuncture has actually been shown to be quite beneficial to animals with kidney issues. Mechanism is still unknown, but it seems to work!

I'd *slowly* transition her to a food with higher quality protein sources (more digestable = easier on filtering organs) BUT, make sure the protein level does not get too high. High protein does not *cause* kidney problems, but it will certainly make them worse if they already exist. Is she on wet or dry food? Wet food is generally better for kidney cats because it helps them take in more water, which keep the kidneys more "flushed".
 

Let me offer myself as an example and what I learned.

I had a cat we named Misty (after the song by Harold Arlen.) "Look at me ... I'm as helpless as a kitten up a tree. Never know my hat from my glove ... I'm just misty and too much in love..."

Anyway, I fed her Delicat by Purina. For 16 years. When she was 16, she looked a little weak and kept coughing up. I thought it was hairballs. I took her to the vet and analysis showed that she had diminished kidney function. So, the vet had me feed her Purina NF. NF stands for Nitrogen Free. Here's why.

The by-product of consuming animal protein is the release of nitrogen from the source meat. All animals have nitrogen in their bloodstreams because we breathe it in the air. The earth's atmosphere is mostly nitrogen with some oxygen, plus a few trace gases like argon. Anyway, the released nitrogen is filtered out by the kidneys and passed out in urine. This happens whether you feed kibble or raw meat. Maybe even moreso with raw meat as you get the full load of nitrogen in the blood that's in the meat plus whatever residual that's in the cells of muscle tissue.

As any creature ages, organs tend to decrease in function. It's called getting old. When the kidneys don't do their job as well (as I said, not always a result of improper food but can be a result of being ancient) the nitrogen backs up into the system, creating nausea (the coughing up and vomiting) and lethargy (the lack of energy). They don't feel pain like you and think of it. They just don't feel as well. The reason for the special diet of Purina NF is that the protein in it (and the animal still needs protein) is from grain and vegetable, which do not haev nitrogen in the protein chain molecules that they provide. So, the animal gets the protein without the nitrogen load. This takes a burden off of the kidneys. My cat lived one more year. By the way, when a cat has had failing kidneys, they will eventually have drastic kidney failure. That is inevitable. An NF food can delay the inevitable for a while. At just about 17 years old, Misty had drastic kidney failure. I had her put to sleep in my arms as I will not allow a pet of mine to suffer needlessly. That was 02-17-05 and I still get a chill from that. If I were 119 years old, I'm betting that my kidneys might be slowing down, too.

Anyway, if I were you, I would trust the vet. And there are other kidney formulas on the market if you don't like Science Diet. If you go out and try to feed her raw or high animal protein food, you will increase the problem. I know cats are obligate carnivores. And they can consume the non-animal protein in a special kibble because kibble is not like eating a breast of chicken. All ingredients are ground to a fine powder or paste before being pressed into the extrusion machine. And not one source has all the required proteins, either.