If their kidneys are failing, what happens?

[StillMedusa]

I'm taking Portia to the vet tomorrow. I returned home 10 days ago from a 2 month trip abroad (dh looked after her!) and was shocked at home much thinner she looked, and somehow straggly (she is a long hair and has always been immaculate in her self care). But she IS old (nearly 18) so I decided to monitor for a week and see if it was just my perception, from being away.
Its not... she's thin, looks tatty and she is drinking LOTS... goes out to the pond multiple times a day as well as her water bowl. She is also peeing round the house. Yesterday she peed on DD2's boyfriends coat.. she was only in the next room to her litter tray. SHe has peed in the hallway and in other random places.
She has had the odd protest pee in the past (she hates Obie and pees on the bath mat if he comes upstairs!) but not like this. And she just looks tired..I know that's daft but she does.

I strongly suspect it's her kidneys :( She is NOT a cat we can get pills down..never have been able to as she is terrified at being picked up and she is brilliant at spitting them out, so I can't see long term medication being an option .

Obviously I'm not a vet, but I have had cats all my life and her decline looks familiar :(

What can the vet do? What can WE do? As DS2 said yesterday (he's 20 but autistic)' Portia WILL live forever won't she?' :(

[Kion]

Hi, sorry to hear your kitty is poorly. It’s heartbreaking. Her symptoms sound the same as what my cat had earlier this year and it turned out to be diabetes, diagnosed from a blood test.
Obviously your vet will keep you right though and run the necessary tests. Good luck op.

[Lottie509]

They can give medication I believe but they will probably suggest putting her to sleep also. We have a similar situation at the moment although with a dog.

[Lottie509]

My response was in return to you thinking her kidneys were failing, Obviously the vets will be able to diagnose her accurately.
I hope its curable whatever she has.

[StillMedusa]

Just found her peeing in DS2's room just now. :( She has a bewildered look as if she isn't quite sure why she was doing it :(

Any tips for de-peeing carpets before my house stinks, gratefully welcomed.

[RamblinRosie]

We had this, we were advised to give a low protein diet, boiled rice with a hint of chicken, he hated it, so we gave him chicken and raw liver until he stopped wanting it, at that point he was pts. We may have shortened his life, but I valued quality, he died happy.

[LineysRun]

Fireworks have been a major problem round here this year, and one of my cats has been badly affected - could this have exacerbated the peeing problem in the past few days?

[Oops4]

I was going to suggest diabetes too. I'd be more worried about kidneys if she wasn't peeing .

[Lindylove14]

Kidney and thyroid both cause cats to get thin, scruffy and drink lots. Peeing can just be a way of saying “Mum, I don’t feel so good”. I have two cats, the same age, one with each disorder. Obviously they won’t go one for ever but the right medication can be transformative pretty quickly in my experience. If, of course, you can get it down their throat!

[Justbookedasummmerholiday]

My dm spent pennies off 1k on tests to confirm kidney failure. Then the vet charged her another £100 to pts. Dm was touched they sent her a sympathy card - I suggested she sent it to her bank account....

[StillMedusa]

Well we had the vets tonight.
The vet said we could run blood tests but she is certain it's kidney failure from how she looks/is behaving... defo not thyroid. Pills aren't an option for Portia as she will NOT take them..nor is a special diet as she is mega fussy and barely eating, so she has given her a steroid injection which may make her feel perkier for a couple of weeks and we are to give her anything she wants to eat (we are anyway!) and just love her.
I did ask how long she has left, and of course she couldn't give a definite answer but said she didn't think it would be much past Christmas :/ If the steroids help I can take her back for another injection .
Portia purred as the vet stroked her. She has never done that at the vets. I really hope my feisty beasty can make it to her 18th birthday, but I am going to make sure every moment counts until she lets me know she has had enough ...

[Wolfiefan]

I'm so sorry. Hoping she reaches that milestone.
Why did the vet rule out thyroid? Bloods?

[SeraphinaDombegh]

So sorry still. My darling cat was 15 when she had kidney failure and her symptoms were exactly as you've described. We made a huge fuss of her and made her as comfortable as we could for a few weeks, but it was very clear when the time came to have her PTS as she had lost her dignity. She died quietly in my arms knowing she was loved to the very end. I hope you are able to have happy and loving times with Portia over the coming weeks x

[ToadTheVampireThreadKiller]

The vet can run an IRIS test to find out which stage she is at and you can work out what to do from there.

If you can get meds into her food she can possibly last longer. There is one that helps the kidneys.

An infection is likely to cause the peeing, infections are quite frequent in kidney disease and can be treated with anti biotics.

This site will tell you all you need to know about kidney disease and how to deal with it. www.felinecrf.org/

[StillMedusa]

She is absolutely a no meds cat. She was a semi feral kitten and while she is gorgeous, purry, and loyal she cannot be picked up (she panics) and getting a pill into her is a comedy sketch affair... in 18 years we have never managed it and even at the vets they have struggled.
The vet felt we didn't need to check what stage she is at, simply because it's very obvious she is failing, and as she won't take meds and won't eat a special diet (currently only eating deli turkey!) and is now down to 2.3kg so we are just glad when she eats anything. And she is 18.
She seems a little perkier today after her steroid injection, but has peed in several places...including over DS2's work shoes :/ I think I am going to have to steam the entire house after she is gone, but for now she is still purring and still coming for love, so we go on :)

[Cactusjelly00]

With regards to her health your guess is as good as mine, sorry op.
But to de-pee your carpets I would suggest immediately rubbing in some white vinegar, throwing bicarb on it and hoovering it off when dry, then giving it a quick scrub with either A - some diluted zoflora B- standard disenfectant or C- a spot of washing up liquid mixed with 3tbsp of water and half a tea spoon of fabric conditioner, then dab up with paper towel.
It's foolproof.

[Tedster77]

Bless you. I had a young cat with kidney failure, an autistic son totally bonded to him and had to make the decision to have him put to sleep. It's so hard. X