Yay! I'm so glad!
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Yay! I'm so glad!
A fantastic end to the year for you. Hope she continues to improve.
We are trying diet first, the vet said her levels are still elevated but not like they were. The only one I remember is BUN is now at 38 they want it at 27 max but it was at 96 Monday.
She now gets canned Science Diet KD which is angering Heidi because she still gets dry CD. The vet did say if diet wasn't enough but she wasn't into hardcore failure subcutaneous fluids might be recommended. I didn't even ask about those but he supplied that.
Jes- They are treating her for Lepto just in case. He said the blood pathology test for it is pretty expensive so we would just treat but not test. It was funny, I forgot to ask him about Lepto he just prescribed the treatment plan. He has won my confidence.
Maggie is home and way better now, hopefully this is how she will stay.
Ah, how nice.
A number of us have given subcu fluids to our animals for long periods of time and it can keep them happy and going for quite a while. So just know that this can be done and work...not forever, but for a goodly amount of time depending on what's happening with the individual.
I'm glad Maggie's back. This stuff matters!
Here's a hint if you want to give Maggie some treats that are still kidney-friendly. Slice the can of k/d down the middle and slide it out of the can. Then slice each half into thin slices and put them on a paper plate. Cook them on high in the microwave for about 10 minutes, or until they're crispy. They go from done to burned very quickly. Stinks to high heaven also.Quote:
Originally Posted by Aggie_Ama
One of my dogs lived with kidney disease for 6 years before I lost him in June. He loved the k/d treats.
So glad your little one is coming home. Big Kitty and I are thinking of him always.
Another trick to help kidneys is something I'm doing with my cats- feed only canned (wet) food, and mix it with enough water to make it like a very wet sloppy stew. This increases their water intake and thus may help avoid having to give subcutaneous water injections. The idea is to get more water into their system one way or another to help flush the kidneys and keep them healthier.
Yay!!!!!!!! Congratulations!!!! Enjoy each and every minute with her (that's what we're doing with our kitty!).
CA
There is 10 minutes left in the UK until 2009, am sending lots of prayers across the pond, that she will see 2009.
Bigs hugs to all
Clock
I'm so glad she gets to come home. You just never know with kidney disease, but that doesn't stop you treasuring every day, as I know you will. Tell Maggie she has lots of folks pulling for her.
Pam
So happy to hear that Maggie Bear is home! Hope that her levels continue to
improve. It's so frustrating when the furbabies get sick.
Well I hope the blood test on Tuesday confirms Maggie is doing well. She is so loving, playful for her and eating like a piggy. She is drinking on her own and pottying well. She seems to be feeling much better.
Yeaaaaaaaa! Happy dance!
That has made me smile, I am so pleased for little Maggie Bear. :)
Clock
Yay Aggie_Ama and Maggie! Please cross your fingers we get similarly good results when our kitty goes back to the vet on Monday (blood work should tell if he has cancer or just had some sort of infection).
CA
Excellent news! Enjoy your weekend with her and we'll all keep our fingers crossed for Tuesday.
So happy for Maggie!
Keeping her and CA's kitty in my thoughts.
Oh CA I hope it is just an infection!!!Quote:
Originally Posted by CA_in_NC
Everyone else- thanks for all the well wishes. My kids have been sick before but not so severe, how stressful!
Today my cell phone rang and immediately recognized the number as the vet. I figured he was other checking on my little bear or they were calling to say they realized the bill was too low. Nope, it was one of the techs saying Maggie had been chosen Pet of the Month for their website. They choose one a month and after her ordeal they felt she was quite deserving. She will be a star with her photo on the site all month and a nice little gift certificate to the vet. :p It made her Mommy and Daddy quite happy.
Yay Maggie Bear!!!:D:cool::D:cool:
That's pretty cool! You'll have to post the website for us to check her out!
Wow Aggie, Pet of the Month, how cute is that, still little Maggie Bear deserves it and more besides.
Clock
linky!
I haven't emailed the vet yet (they want a little write up) but once it is up I will let you guys know. I don't have many good pictures of Maggie Bear. :( Heidi is in constant pose but Maggie not so much. She won't have the best close up but she still is deserving.
Vet check was okay today. Phosphorous is still too high for his liking. He wants to put her on a phos binder first. If that doesn't bring it down he will move to subcu fluids. I was relieved to hear the subcu is not too pricey.
BSG- We are putting water in the canned food per your suggestion and the vet suggested it as well. We told him we were already doing that and he said "what am I here for? You're already a step ahead, good job." :)
I was giving Erin kitty subQ fluids for a while, 100 cc daily. People gave me a funny looks when they saw the IV bag hanging on the kitchen wall. For the most part it isn't that difficult - all things considered. Only once did I have to bundle kitty, IV bag stuff and head back to the Vet for help. They had told me that if I ever had trouble to come in and the techs would help me. As I recall, one of Erin's Vets checked in when they found out we were there, and I wasn't charged for the visit. The cost of the IV bag and needles is pretty minimal.Quote:
Originally Posted by Aggie_Ama
Glad to hear Maggie is doing better. Maybe eating sloppy wet food will get enough fluids in her.
Oh Aggie,
I didn't realize what this post was all about. Sorry to chime in so late. I wish your Maggie Bear good health, and happiness. Sounds like both of you have gone through a lot. And sounds like she's getting over it so more good thoughts for the two of you.
take care,
smilingcat
Sorry to jump in on this late. I feel for you immensely with your puppy. This group is all the kept me sane after all the hell I went through with Hank this summer.
I am blessed to work for one of the largest natural pet supplies companies in the world. We have a lot of homeopatic kidney support supplements that might work wonders for you. Here is a sampling of what we have available for your conundrum: http://search.onlynaturalpet.com/sea...ms=kidney&mf=0
If you're interested please PM for a coupon code to order with. Also, if your vet wants to give you a "prescription diet" run like hell. Ask them specifically what sort of nutritional balance they recommend. Such as protein, fat, fiber, etc. I promise you can find something like that in a quality natural food that will be less expensive and better. I helped a gal switch off nasty Hill's K/D food tonight. The first few ingredients in that food are brewers rice (by product of alcohol production) corn gluten meal (awful and useless for cats or dogs) and pork fat (ummmm). The rest of the ingredients were byproduct this and byproduct that. Ick. My dogs get a grain free salmon formula that runs $45 for 30lbs. The average 35lb Science Diet bag costs that much and that's not even the "prescription diet."
I agree with Smurf. My elderly American Eskimo, Kimo has Cushings and Diabetes. My vet tried to put her on Science Diet food, and I looked at the label - the main ingrediant was soy protein isolate. WTF? I basically said, "There is no way I'm feeding my dog this." I research home cooked foods for her condition, and I make her a batch once a week in my crock pot. The vet is astounded at how well she is doing for her age and her condition. If Smurf can get you a diet similar in break down to the Science Diet, but that is all natural, I would definitely take her up on that.
Hi Christine,
One of our dog is getting up there. 13 or 14 year old golden. Such sweetie... We've been feeding him California Natural and we have thought about feeding real home made food food. But we worry about getting him a balanced diet.
Recipes we find on the internet is iffy or just plain bad for the most part. And the pet supply store we go do carry frozen raw food for the dogs.... But we are just bit weary.
It sounds like the recipe is working for your dog (been feeding him for some time and he is doing well so it must be right). Can you post the recipe. I may want to give it a try.
California Natural is over a $1.00/pound ($2.50/kilo). and cat food for our cats is now running over $2.00 pound. We have 12 cats including fosters so its straining our budget. We supplement the cat food with cooked chicken at just over a $1.00/pound.
thanks,
smilingcat
I appreciate the thoughts but no offense, I eat processed crap so I am not opposed to giving it to the dogs. The girls have been eating Science Diet all their lives no issues.
Our vets (the two now and the one we had before moving here) have all expressed that Maggie's history as a backyard breeder is very likely influencing her health. They cannot say for sure but they all felt it wasn't helping anything along. We do not know how many litters she had before being sold to us because "she just won't take". Heidi had a bladder stone which is why she is on special diet. She is pretty healthy otherwise for an inbred dog that is 7 years old.
Here she is featured as pet of the month:
http://www.premieranimalhospital.com/petofmonth.html
Of course my husband's delightfully tacky boss said "Oh she is that because you spent more than everyone else and they feel sorry for you". Probably true but oh well she deserves it. :p
How cool you work there! I am soooooooo grateful for your herbal incontinence meds. I got a spay incontinent dog at age 3 and the only alternative to this stuff was synthetic estrogen (you do not want a dog on this their entire life!) or the crap they put in diet pills that makes you hyper (she's hyper enough!)! Her incontinence was pretty bad, but these pills work great and she eats them up like candy. I even told my homeopathic vet in Boulder about it, and he was pretty happy to hear about an alternative to what he does.Quote:
I am blessed to work for one of the largest natural pet supplies companies in the world. We have a lot of homeopatic kidney support supplements that might work wonders for you. Here is a sampling of what we have available for your conundrum: http://search.onlynaturalpet.com/sea...ms=kidney&mf=0
Sorry for the thread drift, but this company makes and sells good stuff.
Sorry - haven't been on here for a few days.Quote:
Originally Posted by smilingcat
My dog has to be a low fat diet, low sugar diet according to the vet, so this is what I feed her on a daily basis (spread out over 3 meals):
1 cup chicken breast
1 cup brown rice
1/2 cup green beans
1/2 cup - mix of broccoli*, cauliflower and carrots (light on the carrots because of the sugar, but they are so good for the dogs)
1/2 cup fat-free cottage cheese
*Some dogs have issues tolerating broccoli - so use carefully.
She also gets knuckle bones to chew on (she has a liver tumor that is inoperable, and pushes against her nerves in her back so she has a lot of difficulty walking. Chewing bones is the only thing she can still do that she really enjoys - and it's good for her, too).
Kimo has been on this diet for about a year now and has done better than our vet thought she would (he gave her 3 months to live a year ago).
This works for us. I can point you to user groups where there at vets who can tailor a diet to your dog's specific needs. They do charge about $100, but it can be so worth it.
Smiling Cat - the reality is is that there is no perfect formula for a dog. Most kibbles do not provide a balanced diet, believe it or not, and are very inferior. In my opinion - you do better with switching foods around so that he is eating a different kibble every month or so, in order to get more balance in his diet. Dogs, like us, actually do better with variety. But, if your dog has been eating the same thing most of his life, changing things up frequently can cause digestion issues so move very slowly - and not often. I feed my Aussie some of Kimo's food and a high quality kibble that I switch with every bag (right now he's eating Canidae salmon, but I like Wellness, Solid Gold, and others). I also get him raw food from Whole Foods on occasion, as well as the high quality canned stuff. He's used to having his food switched, so he tolerates it well. He also gets certain table scraps (in moderation and only of foods that dogs can tolerate). He's a healthy high energy Aussie who can hike 11 steep miles and still get the zoomies in the evening. (Then again, maybe I should feed him something else :rolleyes:)
First of all, love your new avatar, now I wonder who that might be? :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Aggie_Ama
Little Maggie Bear looks really proud in the Newsletter feature, thanks for posting it, not bad for a 63 year old. ;)
Clock
So has Maggie gone Hollywood now that she has the spotlight on her? Does she give autographs? And have you told her it's only for a month?
And ONE more question.... is she feeling better?? :confused:;)
She is trying the aloof approach to her 15 minutes.Quote:
Originally Posted by bmccasland
From the outside she seems to be feeling much better, she is a little bloated from eating her canned food too fast. She is still boney but all pot bellied. The vet wants to try this phosphorous binder 7-10 days and recheck. Then it will be continue on that or go sub-cu. The pharmacy that fills her binders is a people pharmacy that compounded it there, it is pretty funny the label says Last name, Dog "Maggie". :p
She's darling! Hope she continues to feel better.
Hi Amanda,
How wonderful. Sounds like she is doing well. She is cute.
smilingcat
Amanda, she is absolutely precious! I am glad to hear she seems to be feeling better.