Help with food for elderly cat with kidney failure

[BIWI]

He is 15. He has a tumour behind one eye, but his kidneys are also failing, so no operation/treatment for the tumour. Basically we're just monitoring him and ensuring he has a good quality of life, before we accept the inevitable and have to go down the 'PTS' route

Since around March he has been on a prescription-only diet from the vet. First brand of food (can't remember which it was) he really didn't like, despite us introducing it very gradually. Currently feeding him Royal Canin; chicken and tuna varieties.

He doesn't really like the food though. He eats it, but he doesn't eat very much at any one time. Rather than feeding him just twice a day, as we used to, now we feed him a little bit several times a day, to try and encourage him to eat more. But he leaves a lot, and often just licks the gravy off the chunks. (He always has plenty of fresh water alongside his food)

I'm a bit worried about how little he is eating, and he is definitely thinner.

I know that with failing kidneys that he needs a low protein diet. The Royal Canin is 6.5% protein. I had a look at the various different foods in the supermarket today, and a lot of them are around 11-12%, so obviously not great. But I bought a couple of sachets of Sheba Fine Flakes today, which are 8%. I fed him one of those this evening and he wolfed almost the whole 85g pouch down.

So - am I doing the wrong thing by feeding him this? I can't help feel that if we're going for quality of life, that he ought to be enjoying his food. But obviously I don't want to be feeding him something that might be making him worse/feel worse

If he's old, got a tumour and kidney failure might it be better to feed him his favourite foods until the time comes to make the decision?.

Dcat has had kidney failure for a year (she's now 13). Out vet always said it's more important to get food into her even if it's not kidney food as they can be so stubborn about not eating!

Ours now has a sachet of meat (highly expensive a la carte food of course) and royal canin biscuits.

I would feed your boy what he wants to eat now as you know it'll make him happy for the time that remains.

Thank you both - that is kind of my thinking too. I just don't want to think that by doing this, I'm making things worse for him.

Mine is supposed to eat the Royal Canin - sone days it's yes and some no. I feel the same - want her to be happy but do her the most good I can, bless her - esp as she takes her pills in her food. So far, mixing the Canin with about 1/4 of a sachet of some ordinary food has got it down her, especially if its smelly! If she goes off the food its hard to get her back on so i give her the normal stuff. Try giving your boy a mix maybe. Good luck

Thankfully don't have to worry about getting pills down him!

I'm glad to see this thread. My 18yo cat has hyperthyroidism and renal failure. Point blank refuses to have anything to do with the special food for either condition. I've agonised about it, but in the end, let's face it, its not like I'm going to get her through this pinch point to another 10 years of chasing butterflies in the sunshine. The thyroid thing means I'm fighting to keep the weight on her in any case so really don't want to put her off eating. I've ended up deciding that the best thing is to make sure she enjoys delicious food and lots of cuddles for as long as possible. The alternative is a starving miserable bag of bones yowling round my feet every time I open the fridge.

I regularly worry and rethink this so its good to see others have reached the same conclusion.

Could you leave some royal down for whenever he fancies. And 2 pouches a day. I say whatever he fancies. I didn't know about the high protein thing with cats

Trouble is, I don't think he ever does really fancy the Royal! I think he only really eats it on sufferance because that is all we've been giving him.

You could try mixing a small amount of royal into the Sheba. I do this with dried applaws as my cat doesn't really like it on its own but fine mixed in with some wet stuff. I am trying to feed her up she is 20 and skinny.

20?! That's amazing!

I think I will start mixing the food (although not dried stuff as that's not good for the kidneys)

My mistake thought the royal was dried food.
I know my beautiful grey girl is an old Lady- currently scratching at the back door so I better let her in!

My cat has lymphoma and it's hard to keep weight on her as she's fussy anyway. But she really likes Royal Canin senior stage 2 high calorie. It's for older cats and is high calorie (which is quite obvious from its name!)

BIWI with clients in your situation I always say it is great if the cats will eat the food, but actually it is far more important that the cat eats than what it eats.

Darling Twoago had renal failure at 13 and my most difficult task was to get anything inside him.

You'll be well aware that with all of his problems, the outlook for your lad is...... not good and that's pretty much in the shorter term as well. I think that in your position, I would give him whatever tasty nosh he'll eat and be hanged to the consequences. (If he likes any 'sensible' food, great of course.)

Some people might regard that as foolhardy but thinking back to my own old boy - who loathed and detested 'special food' - I would want to ensure that he had a little while of enjoyment and not necessarily drawn out weeks/months of a grimmer struggle.

As I said, that's having regard to his overall situation. It's truly hard seeing a cat you love just gradually go downhill like that.

Take care.

x post.

Thank you both - yes, I am only too aware that he won't be with us for very long. Actually I'm surprised he is still so well/healthy. But I feel awful feeding him with stuff he clearly eats only on sufferance.

I fed him one sachet last night and the other thing morning (Sheba not Royal Canin) and he wolfed both down, just like his old self. Finished and then wanted more! This hasn't happened for months now.

I will scour the back of packs and make sure I go for low protein stuff, but frankly I'd far rather see him enjoy his food (and put a bit of weight back on) than keep him for longer, but less happy.

We went for quality of life not quantity. Our boy loved hi life indulge me chicken and ham. He had hyperthyroidism, heart murmur, arthritis, kidney failure, anaemia, dry eyes and inflamed gums. He was 16. He was put to sleep yesterday. So sad. Are your vets treating the kidneys with semintra? It really perked our boy up and we had more time than we thought we would. We had him for 13years and I really miss him.

My cat is nearly nineteen with kidney failure. The steroid injections helps with the appetite and I avoid dry food as recommended.

She is very fussy and I've taken the stance of feeding her what she will actually eat and enjoys. She loves salmon, tuna and chicken. I'd rather she be happy than miserable. She lost a lot of weight but seems to be holding steady at the moment as she's eating so I'm happy.

spanky2 - he's not being treated with anything, other than a specialist diet.

Sorry to hear you had to have yours PTS yesterday

I might give our vet a call and just chat some of this through with them.

BIWI, I'd definitely ask about treatment. I didn't want anything harsh or aggressive as she's simply too old. The injections are over in seconds, one is a vitamin and the other a steroid. They make a huge difference and she forgives me as soon as they are over.

Thanks, Daisy. I'll ask about those.

It is semitra 4mg/ml oral solution for cats. Boehringer Ingelheim. It stops protein loss in urine. Thank you. Steroid injections cause stress on the kidneys, although we had to have them for his mouth. You can have a multi vitamin injection instead to stimulate appetite. It worked like a charm with our boy.

One warning.

When Seniorboy came to live with me at 14, it was more or less assumed that, due to circumstances, he wouldn't be of this world for more than a week or two. I determined, therefore, to make his life lots of fun for that short time including (within responsible limits) giving him what he wanted to eat.

Now - nearly 6 years later (!) - he lives in the lap of luxury on a diet which he's become accustomed to and some elements of which, I'd be almost ashamed to admit to here.

Watch that rod for your own back!

Tell us everything. You will feel better for it.

It would be lovely if we could have him with us for that long!