Dealing with dogs kidney failure

[gracie_78]

How do others deal about the pain they are going through knowing that their dog only has a few weeks left?
My cocker spaniel who just turned 11years old in Oct. only has a few weeks left, as I was told by a specialist who took his ultra sound in Dec. 26, 2011. He said that his right kidney is destroyed and that his left kidney has about 25% left.
He has a tumor within his bladder and his urine cannot pass thru which goes into his kidney and damages it.

When we had Shaggy checked out in May our vet said that it's UTI...because I mentioned to him that he'd pee and then go to other spots and nothing comes out. So he was given anti-biotics. This went on for several months.

Then we finally took an x-ray and couldn't really see much, except there were little calculi and that his left kidney was enlarged...asked the vet what caused it to enlarge and they did not know.  So we put Shaggy on a special diet food for stones...Royal Canin. We did that for a month and a half until he didn't want to eat that food any longer.

Then I asked vet what can the next option be and he suggested an ultra sound. At this point his urine was having blood it it.

And then the most heart breaking news I got was on Dec. 26. After his ultra sound vet showed us the ultra sound and told me the bad news... which led me to just burst out in tears and tried to fight it. After all of this bad news...I've been trying my best to be strong for him.

Yesturday he got to spend New Years eve with us. He'll eat just a little. I'd give him chicken and rice..but today he'll sniff the chicken.

He still greets me when I come home, and he'll still go up and down the stairs. Vet told me that when he stops eating and doesn't greet me...then I know its time.

I'm just having a hard time dealing with this...and everytime I think about putting him to sleep my heart just aches.

[stefluvspeanut]

The post Ive read have touched me and Im sorry to hear/read of everyone's losses.
Here is mine and Peanuts story...My baby turned 16 on Dec 1, 2013 just 3 days ago and he is in the final stages of kidney failure even though the doctors say he is in stage 2 and his kidney functions are not yet out of control. He is anemic, lethargic, clumsy and he cant hold his head up. He weighs an incredible 3.6lbs and is a very small Chihuahua which causes me a lot of concern.  He stopped eating today and will not take in any fluids. The Sub-q fluids are not helping and he does this yelp type of bark while sleeping or being moved. He also stopped peeing today and that once familiar look of love and admiration he had in his eyes is now filled with a dim stare of emptiness. I've had my, honey bunny, Peanut in my life since he was 7 weeks old and now it hurts me to my heart to think I may have to do the dreaded vet visit. Man, my heart is bleeding right now and I cant control the tears. Ive been crying honestly nonstop for the last 3 to 4 days and now I feel like the walls are closing in on the both of us and it hurts.
This disease is awful and is very hard to watch as a mommy. My baby has gone through every stage of this disease since his diagnosis a little over a year ago. It started when he went in for a routine check up after feeling weak and throwing up, later on I noticed an ulcer on his eye which turned into glaucoma and uveitis with major pressure build up. After a long battle and hundreds of dollars to save the right eye it had to be removed. I must say my darling best friend was really never the same after they took his eye but he tried very hard and gave me lots of wonderful day of seeing his beautiful face and experiencing the love that only he can give. But now this kidney thing is literally taking him from me.
He had 4 seizures on Thanksgiving morning, the vet says it was due to his calcium being low and they gave him intravenous calcium and told me to give him 1/3 of a tums tablet 2 to 3 times a day. That was 6 days ago. Today he has taken a turn for the worse and I fear it is finally time for me to make that decision and it's sooooo hard for me to let go of someone that has literally been my best friend for 16yrs. He is truly my rock and I need him so much more than he needs me which makes this decision really hard. I look into his eyes and he doesn't appear to be there any longer but I can call his name or touch him ever so gently and his ears raise up but he is unresponsive other than that. He's stumbling over now and cant walk very well at all, his breathing is labored, raspy and heavy with a snoring like scruffy sound to it and he is barking inadvertently while laying down. Im not sure if this means he is in pain but the fact that he stopped peeing leads me to believe he is indeed in some pain. I don't know what to do. Im feeling really selfish right now trying to hold on to a portion of the loving baby that once followed me everywhere including the restroom. He watched my every move and stayed under my feet 24/7 so yes it is hard to make the decision to let go and I feel guilty about even considering it. God please help me, my heart is broken into a million pieces. I need this puppy in my life but I know he is in pain and needs to be released but I cant make myself do it. Please Dear God help me, what do I do????  

I had false hope because the uremia went away, he began to eat like crazy, his stool got solid again and he was drinking regularly. He even started licking my other babies eyes again as he always did. He was walking better and then BAM in 2 days he turned into a completely debilitated puppy. I prayed that his improvements werent the calm before the storm and here I am writing you all with a heavy heart and tear filled eyes. My blood pressure has skyrocketed and I haven't eaten in 2 days. IM A MESS!  Im alone, confused, depressed and hopeless as my better half just started a new over the road trucker job and can not comfort me through the pain or help me make a decision. Jesus please take the wheel, my head is about to explode. I feel sick and worn out. Guys im literally in peril and feel like the weight of the world has landed on my shoulders. Im not sure if I should wait another day or if I should lay down my selfishness and let go while my baby still has some level of dignity and coherence. Lord God, I keep thinking if I do this or do that or get this test done or give him this medication eventually something will work however I am hundreds and  hundreds of dollars into this and nothing has worked yet. I've just been buying time one moment after another and it's like putting a Band-Aid on a bullet wound. I feel so helpless and hurt. Ive lost weight and my appetite is almost nonexistent. This has effected me in so many ways but it has effected my honey even more. Watching him go through this has been torture to say the least and he is so small too. He tries so hard to be strong for me and yet Im falling apart in front of him. 3.6lbs of pure lover and protector he still is. He's laying next to me right now and every so often he lets out this muffled little bark and moves around in pain and Im nearing my limit of what I can deal with and I know the decision has to be made one way or the other. I cant help but think he has already made the decision for me and all I have to do is finalize his journey but I just cant. Please God give me strength, I need help. I need divine intervention !!!

[mariety]

I would so have to agree with your comment. I had to put my Boxer down today from kidney failure. He had been losing weight for quite sometime and his breath smelled horrible. My vet mentioned his weight on a visit back in January and said he needed to lose some weight so that wasn't a bad thing. I mentioned the bad breath and the vet tech said it was from him drooling they get an infection around their mouth. They gave us an antibiotic. my dog was just diagnosed with failure on Wednesday we chose to do 3 days of iv therapy to see if his numbers improved they were off the chart. I feel as if routine blood work and urinalysis should be a part of a pets yearly visit. My dog was healthy as a horse for the 3 years we had him. We had rescued him and the vet kept saying he might have been older than what they told us but I don't believe that he had no gray hair. I am second guessing doing everything so quickly. We would have done anything we could to save him. I just somehow knew when I tried to love on him he didn't seem to want it. Boxers are extremely people lovers and I think he was distancing him from us. From other peoples comments I almost feel like we put him down too quick because he still was eating some and he could still walk on his own but he looked so miserable like he just could not get comfortable. I hope I find peace with my decision because the pain is unbearable. He was 4.5 to 5 years old so young.

[tonyb286]

Hello Nika. It sounds to me as if you are doing everything you can for Max and that you already know there isn't (sadly) a great deal anyone can do once kidney disease reaches this stage. It's a waiting game. I assume you have asked the vet about anti-nausia medication, which will encourage Max to continue eating despite the toxins; and about IV fluids to keep flushing the kidneys out and maintain hydration. If Max has reached the stage when his breath is smelling, then he is likely to be at stage 4 of this dreadful illness, so I would feed him whatever he wants rather than a specific diet. It sounds like you have had a wonderful relationship with Max. If he could speak, he would say a huge thank you for giving him so much love, so much care and attention, and for providing so many adventures during his lifetime. He has been a lucky dog. My thoughts are with you. Tony x

[nika2005]

Hi.

I am in tears reading about Shaggy's ending. I have rottweiler Maximus ( Max), he was a keeper from my rottie Beatrice I had for 9 years and brought her with me from Russia. He was born here on Junly 2, 2002, he is 10 and a half now and was diagnozed with splin tumor in march. I decidded not to have it removed, Vet said in his age it can aggrovate cancer growth or his heart may give up. So now its January 7, 2012, my Russian Orthodox Christmas adn I brough Max to teh vet because he was throwing up all the food I gave - buckweat, chicken, oatmel - he has appetitie but vomits after a ew horus. Doc said his blodd cell are 11 ( very low) and kidneys are giving up rapidly. He is anemic, his gums are pale, he is dizzy and lthergic now ,He was a ball of energy two weeks ago, I got pian killers and appetite enchancing pills. Treated him to mcdonalds # 4 burger. He was happy! Brough him home, he peed, ate some chicken, had water, played with the rock and now snoring next to me ( I am sitting on his bed i bought for his arthritic bones). I will be sleeiping next to his bed to watch him and let him out when he starts vomiting. His breath today started smelling with this urine smell, I know its toxins. I had to put him Mom down at the age of 8 ( cancer), she still played with a stick right before the end and the look of shock when the needle when into her was like a knife to my heart. I dont want to do it again. I cried for a year, her puppy, my Max kept me going. I want to make Max comoftable and be with him longer.

I read so many good advices and supporting statements, I want to be strong for Max and nobody around me understand how i feel, they dont have to make this decision. I have no family, no children, max is my child and he was born in my hands, I am being selfvish for tourturng him to live longer because I dont know how i will get over it. I want to make his last days as comfotrable as possible.

help please........

[Misfits4Me]

Welcome jlbell.....Here's this forums largest thread on kidney disease.....Maybe it will help you w/answers.....

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Dogs/4th-stage-renal-failure-in-my-dog/show/425814?page=1

[jlbell74]

I have a boxer that is 6 years old and we were told she had kidney damage a year ago.  She got sick this week and they did a blood test.  Her kidney's show more damage.  The vet said that they didn't know if she would last the year or not.  We have started her on a new diet with rice, hamburger,eggs, and bread.  She seems to like it very much.  But she has gotten loose stools from change of food.  I am new to this forum.  Just wanted to see if i could see how other people deal with this.