ORIGINAL POST:
Does anyone have any experience with or knowledge of kidney disease most likely as a result of genetic immune system problems? My 4 year old male is in the stages of kidney failure and is on IV fluids at the vet's while tests are being run. There may not be enough live kidney left to sustain his body and his prognosis does not look good. If anyone has experienced this or knows of any treatments I would be grateful for any information. He was diagnosed with diabetes insipidus a couple of years ago and has also had thyroid problems. This is quite a shock as he went from being his normal self to near death in 2From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
days.
Kathy Platt
Bloomington, Indiana<<<
RESPONSE:
I'm so sorry to hear about your boy, Kathy. I could have been in your shoes a couple of years from now, but fortunately we caught Maddie's severe kidney failure very early through a "baseline blood screen" -- otherwise, my vet said we would have probably lost her by the time she was five. As you've also discovered, there are rarely symptoms of kidney malfunction or failure until the kidneys are pretty well irreversibly damaged. I sincerely hope your boy has enough function to respond to appropriate treatment.
My vet recommended immediate medications and switching to a prescription kibble (stating that she'd be on medication and special kibble for the rest of her life), which I refused to do. Against her dire warnings that I was going to kill my dog, I consulted with a Berner-owning canine nutritionist and ended up putting Maddie on a modified BARF diet, the premise in my mind being that it would provide superior protein sources and I could control the necessary ingredients. After one year, Maddie's kidneys had returned to normal function and she's now on a "normal" BARF diet. My vet has now had a turnaround in her thinking, and marvels at Maddie's good health. You may wish to consider whether or not a BARF diet could be beneficial to your boy.
To everyone else, I strongly urge you to have full blood tests run on your puppies by the time they're a year old to make sure there are no kidney (or other) problems, then have an annual blood screen thereafter. That first screen (assuming there are no problems) will serve as a "baseline" so you can catch problems early, before they cause permanent damage or require radical treatment.
Again, Kathy, I hope your boy is okay -- give him a big hug from all of us.
Vicky Whitney in Bozeman, Montana, with
Blackcoral Divine Miss "M" (Maddie) CD NDD CGC Delta/ITA Therapy Dog and
Sascha's Ursa Major CGC Delta/ITA Therapy Dog
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