Kidney Failure in Cats?I just read an update on a cat I used to sponsor at a shelter. It said she has been diagnosed with kidney failure, has undergone blood testing, placed on fluids and a special diet...etc. Is kidney failure always fatal? If yes, how long can a feline survive upon diagnosis? This is just such a sad story. This beautiful Himalayan dumped in a parking lot of a shelter, found to have tumors. They have been caring for her in foster care for years and now this kidney failure diagnosis. This really saddens me.
Posted by old cat lady
Kidney failure is a frequent cause of death in cats if they do not succumb to other things first. Many cats have decreased kidney function as they reach the high teens and it does not cause death immediately.
My cat lived to be 22+. Her kidney function slipped downhill for at least four years before she finally died from it and she did not "suffer" from it till the very end. Tumors are an entirely different type of diagnosis. Most tumors in elderly cats are cancerous.
Posted by UK Girl
My cat died from kidney failure when he was about 8. It is very sad. His was very sudden and he was put down a few days after he was diagnosed. I am guessing as your sponsored cat is on fluids and a special diet that she will live for a while to come.
Posted by Yoko
Kidney failure is not reversible and only gets worse. But a cat can live for years with it if in early stages - called- CRF. chronic renal failure. Subcutaneous fluids are neccessary - they act as dialysis for a cats kidneys. Some vets prefer a diet without protein, other vets say a all natural organic regular wet food diet is best so that the cat's body does not absorb it's own muscle.
Posted by catiators
Some lines of Persians/Himalayans are prone to a disease called polycystic kidney disease, PKD. It causes kidney failure. For many years, it was very difficult to diagnose and was essentially unknown, and because it occurred later in life in cats, it continued to be perpetuated. Now there is a DNA test for the disease, so it is being removed from the Persian/Himalayan genepool. PKD is, unfortunately, fatal for the cat, as the cysts destroy more and more of the kidneys.
Posted by Janice M
I have had 2 cats die from PKD. It is fatal. You can have the cat get a kidney transplant, but it is very costly, and you need to find a donor cat who is compatible, but you must adopt the donor cat. It's not full proof. U.C. Davis Calif. has been studying this disease for many years.
My first cat with PKD died in 2000 at 12, and I just lost a cat last year to this disease at 8 yrs.
I would suggest going online under PKD and finding out as much as you can about this disease.
It is devistating and sad.
Jan
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