Kidney Disease

Normal kidneys filter the blood, removing wastes and excreting them in the urine.  Kidneys damaged by infection or inflammation lose some of this filtering ability, and waste products accumulate in the bloodstream.  Continued re-circulation of this material results in illness.  About three-fourths of kidney tissue must be damaged before signs of illness appear.  For this reason, kidney disease is often considered chronic (present for a long time) even though the affected pet may not have shown signs of disease for very long.

Signs of chronic kidney disease include vomiting, diarrhea, increased thirst, increased urination, decreased appetite, depression and bad breath.  Continued illness results in collapse, seizures, coma and death.

Though chronic kidney disease is not curable, it is often controllable.  Many pets can live reasonably normal lives when properly managed in a cooperative effort between owner and veterinarian.

Important Points in Treatment

In many cases, initial treatment involves flushing the animal’s blood with intravenous fluids until kidney function improves.  Usually this is done in the hospital.  When the values of the kidney function tests are more normal, treatment can continue at home.

A combination of diet, water intake monitoring and medication may help to improve the kidney function.  In some cases where the water intake is not sufficient, patients may require  regular fluid therapy.?