[Carolyn P]

Hello. I have a 13 year old, 6lb chihuahua who has stage 4 kidney disease. It has been a journey from being a stage 4 to a stage 2/3 after using Hills rx renal food (which I said I would never, ever feed any of my dogs). After a month on this food, she had to be admitted to the ER and put on IV fluids for 48 hours (I am aware of the concerns all over social media currently about this brand and another well known brand and will no longer feed it). She had pancreatitis, and her BUN and Creatinine were off the charts. Upon her release from ER, she is now a stage 4 in the disease again. She is inappetant, and extremely picky. She will eat canned food from the pet store, but much of it is too high in fat. She needs low fat, moderate protein. I am looking for suggestions. I was a raw feeder / home cooked feeder always, but she won’t eat it. Hoping to find some solutions within the group from others with similar experience (only thing I will not feed, is kibble). She gets SubQ fluids four times a week and a B12 injection weekly. Thank you.

[Leonard B]

I came here looking for information for similar reasons. We have a puppy (an old English Sheepdog now 54lbs) named Hannah. She was born with Bilateral ectopic ureter and Bilateral kidney Dysplasia. She is also a picky eater. Her creatinine values were as high as 2.9 (she is eight months old) and average around 2.4. She has also experienced some significant GI issues, which now appear to be under control. We have since had a procedure done at UoP to (PENN Vet Hospital) to address the Bilateral ectopic ureter; between the procedure and Proin, that issue seems to be under control, and we reduced the dose of the Proin.

Now we have the picky eater and the Kidney issue to work with. This week, we started a new food that Penn suggested we try. Justfoodfordogs.com (I came here today to see if there was any other information). They have a specific Renal offering and will also create a custom food. Hannah has eaten with no coaxing, toppers, or peanut butter (dog version) at all.

Today, if successful, will be day three, and we just ordered two weeks’ worth and are hopeful we found something she likes.

Additionally, we began giving Hannah a medication called Azodyl. We used this with an aging girl several years ago, and it reversed her kidney disease; I shared the information with friends, and it worked for them. This is not something Penn has endorsed or has any reports on. My wife is a Dialysis nurse, and a friend in the field recommended it. this is the product: https://www.vetoquinolusa.com/products/azodyl. you can get it from 1800petmeds or other places. We will have Hannah checked in a month to see how well we are doing. I came here looking for some advice, and hopefully, I have given you something to consider for your family member.

Best Wishes

[Carolyn P]

Thank you! Kidney disease is no fun. It’s hit and miss with food, as I am finding out. I am in Canada, which makes choices even harder.

Trying to figure out a good quality protein with low fat is very difficult.

I have heard of Azodyl, but since my girl won’t eat and when she does, she can detect if there is a supplement of any sort in there, there is no point in me trying to give her anything.

She’s on SubQ fluids 4 times a week and she gets a B12 injection weekly, and she seems to be doing well, back to her playful self. Just with I could get the food sorted out. rx foods are what I feel, sent her to the ER, so I won’t be returning to feeding her those.

Good luck with your loves!!!

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