Treatment and Prevention of Kidney Disease in Cats

Once your cat is diagnosed with kidney failure, you must change the diet. The remaining kidney tissue cannot be overworked by being forced to continually filter unnecessary toxins out of the blood. Stop feeding any dry food, and buy a premium canned food to mix with some chicken stew that you can make by chopping up chicken and cooking with mixed vegetables and some brown rice. Much of the nutrients will be in the stock, which will also add some extra fluid to the meal, something your cat really needs now.

Don't be fooled by "prescription" diets that claim to help reduce the load on the kidneys by containing lower percentages of protein. It is the quality of the protein, not the quantity, that is at issue here. Any commercial food, even prescription brands, contain lower-quality protein and many more toxins than any food you can cook for your cat. You are much better off supplementing a regular premium canned product with your own cooking (if you don't feel comfortable supplying a completely homemade diet) than buying these prescription brands.

Supplements are also in order. Buy a quality pet vitamin, or make up your own. Don't be afraid to give a little more than the label calls for, since your cat is not absorbing much of what he is ingesting at this point, and needs a little extra. Vitamins A, B and C are especially important. Also, make sure your cat gets a taurine supplement, as well as extra calcium. Dr. Pitcairn suggests calcium supplements that do not have too much phosphorus, as this element is difficult for the kidneys to handle in their weakened state.

Resist any prescription drugs your vet may press on you. Cortisone and acidifiers will not help the problem, and probably hasten decline. Instead, make an herbal tea for your cat, a teaspoon of which you add to his food twice a day: Steep about a quarter teaspoon of uva-ursi, cornsilk, horsetail and marsh mallow root in 4 oz. of boiling water. Let it set for several hours before straining. Keep any leftover in the refrigerator, and make a new batch every 4-5 days.

This regimen worked very well for Sweet Pea, extending her life by about 9 quality months. When she came out of remission, however, it was time to let her go. Remember that there is no cure, just palliative care until the kidneys give out entirely.

Prevention, as you may have guessed, rests entirely with nutrition. Stay away from commercial foods, or at least supplement with some homemade, as well. Give quality supplements, and add a bit of warm water to each meal to make sure your cats stay hydrated and flushed. Start this regimen from the day you bring them home, and your cats will very likely be some of those fortunate enough to escape this dreadful disease.
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Nutritional Therapy for Hyperthyroid Disease in Cats

It makes sense that, if the diet your cat is eating is making her sick, then you must change that diet. What else is there, you ask, besides dry and canned cat food? Homemade, of course! Sorry, but there is no way around it: Even prescription canned cat foods contain additives that will continue to weaken your cat's health. Will nutritional therapy really work? Here's a story to illustrate just how important nutrition is to a cat with hyperthyroid disease.

I have lunch occasionally with a former co-worker and friend who owns many pets, including dogs, cats, geese, ducks, rabbits, goats and pigs. One day she told me how one of her dogs was not eating well, so I brought her a pint of the food I make for my cats so that she could tempt her with it. A week later she called me to ask for as much of the food as I could spare. When I asked if it got her dog eating again, she said: "She's fine, but I gave some of your food to my 15-year-old cat with hyperthyroidism and for the first time in 7 years, he didn't immediately vomit, nor did he have bloody diarrhea!" Well, as you can imagine, this was music to my ears. She began feeding the food to this cat exclusively. Within 2 weeks, he had gained weight, and continued to do so (he was down to 6 pounds). By 6 weeks, he looked like a completely different cat, and my friend reported that she had cut his daily dose of Tapazol down by 2/3. He no longer vomited or had diarrhea, and he was much less agitated. He continued on with this recovery for several months until the years of illness took its toll and he became ill with a cancerous tumor. My friend credits the remission entirely to the homemade diet, which she said even the expensive prescription diet couldn't rival.

In addition to the homemade diet, be sure to add a good multi-vitamin and digestive enzymes to your cat's nutritional repertoire. Do not try to go back to the commercial diet, or the symptoms will return. Be sure to add a few sprinkles of kelp powder to your cat's meals, as well. The change you will see in your cat's health within a few days will convince you that all this effort is worthwhile!

Prevention of thyroid disease? A homemade diet, from day one. You should also rethink the need for multiple and too-oft repeated vaccinations. Find a holistic veterinarian with whom you can freely discuss these matters. As it happens, there are more and more vets that are realizing that the conventional vaccine schedule can be hazardous to pets' health.
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Treatment of Feline Hyperthyroidism

As you may have noticed, the symptoms of hyperthyroidism are the same or similar to those of other serious diseases that affect older cats, namely, kidney failure and diabetes. Since it is very important that you know what you are dealing with, the first order of business is to take your cat to your holistic veterinarian for a thorough checkup. It will be expensive, since blood work will be needed to diagnose the problem, but it is a necessary step. The information you discover from this initial visit will help you to decide which course of treatment to pursue.

Standard veterinary protocol offers several treatments for hyperthyroidism (it should be noted that these are essentially the same as those offered to human sufferers by their doctors). A drug that inhibits the production of thyroxin by the thyroid gland is often prescribed first. The most commonly prescribed, Tapazol (generic: methmazole) can cause side effects such as vomiting and loss of appetite, however, which could prove lethal to a cat already in a weakened state. Surgery to remove the gland will mean that the animal must take synthetic thyroxin for the rest of its life, which entails constant monitoring and adjustment of the dose. The third option is the nastiest: The animal receives a dose of radioactive iodine to destroy the thyroid gland. This results in a radioactive animal (for a period of time, at least) that is a threat to everyone around it, and whose waste materials must be disposed of according to federal guidelines. This treatment, amazingly, is recommended more often than one would think!

As Dr. Pitcairn points out, however, destroying the thyroid gland only takes care of part of the problem. The underlying issue, a malfunctioning immune system, has not been addressed. Most likely, too, it will not be. Owners want to relieve their pet's suffering, so they accept one of these treatments and hope for the best. It is possible, of course, that an immune system so debilitated by years of unnecessary vaccinations may be permanently weakened. In the case of food allergies, however, nutritional therapy could very well save the day. As a matter of fact, it will serve to support the entire animal's being, including an immune system once thought to be beyond help.

Therefore, it won't surprise you to know that tomorrow's post will address alternative therapies for this disease, as well as prevention. Can you guess what the primary treatment will consist of? Tune in tomorrow to see if you are correct!
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New Year's Resolutions for Pet Lovers

As much as we love our pets, there is always room for improvement in the ways we understand and care for them. Therefore, with 2009 drawing to a close, I have thought of a few resolutions for the new year that will help both pets and their owners glide through the next year and beyond with less stress, better health and more fun!

Wean your cat off of dry food. If there is just one nutritional improvement you can implement, make it this one. It may take some time, as your cat will complain about this, but stand firm. This type of "food" causes more health problems in cats than anything else, since it so foreign to a cat's metabolism that it sets the stage for other health issues. Want to see urinary problems, skin rashes and dry coat problems disappear? You'll see a difference within 3 months, guaranteed.

Buy only premium canned food. Spend a little more and forgo the "supermarket" brands that are full of dyes, fillers and toxins. Homemade food is really the way to go, but if you can't manage it, this is the next best thing. Supplement with home cooked food (some of your own dinner, perhaps?) and a good daily vitamin. You'll be amazed at the results!

Keep your pet's weight in the normal range. If you follow the above suggestions, your pet's weight will probably not creep up. Dry food creates fat cats, and fat cats don't like to exercise, even if they go outdoors. You won't need to entertain your indoor cats to get them to exercise if they are not overweight. They'll move around plenty, particularly around feeding time (since they won't be snacking all day on dry food).

If you have only one cat or dog, think about getting another. A puppy or kitten will be more acceptable to an adult pet, and there will be an introductory period, no doubt. But everyone wants a pal, and your solitary pet may get lonely while you're at work. Once they get used to each other, you'll wonder why you didn't do this sooner! Some shelters let you bring your pet so that you can "test" applicants to see if they are compatible. I do believe, though, that as long as you introduce them correctly at home, any two animals will be able to co-habitate happily.

If you currently have no pets, now's the time to adopt. If you've been thinking about getting a pet, or yours just recently died, wait no longer. Shelters are full of dogs and cats that need you! Remember, the breaking-in period is much less traumatic when you bring them both (or all) home at once!

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Preparing a Homemade Diet for Your Cat

Now that you have decided to start feeding your cats a homemade, cooked food diet, let's talk about exactly what this entails.

First of all, many people make the mistake of assuming that since cats are obligate carnivores, all they need to eat is meat, and nothing else. This is a mistake that can cause multiple health problems for your cat. Whether you decide upon a raw food or cooked diet, cats need more than meat in their diets. Of course, the cat food manufacturers tell us that cats love meat (true, of course) and then go on to create dry cat food which is anything but meat. When you open a can of cat food, it looks like meat and nothing else, right? But we all know all of the nasty additives that are found in these products, many of which are not even related to food (like melamine!). Therefore, we need to take our cue from nature, as well as those who understand cats and their nutritional needs, rather than corporations.

That said, let's talk specifics. How much of this diet should be made up of meat? Most texts will tell you to use 60% protein (meat), 20% vegetables and 20% grains. The protein portion can be made up of mostly meat (recommended) as well as eggs and organs. You can be a little bit loose with these percentages, but they are all necessary. I'm not sure that my recipe follows them all that closely, but it works very well, so I keep on keepin' on.

By taking one bit of advice here and another there, I figured out the recipe I now use. I buy whole chickens, since this is the best and most bio-available protein for cats (turkey runs a close second). I put approximately one pound of another type of meat in each batch just for a bit of variety: Beef, pork, gizzards, heart, liver, etc. Of course, all the "guts" that come with the bird go in the pot, as well. I usually toss in a few eggs, as they are a good, cheap protein that really helps thicken the broth, too. Brown rice, barley, oatmeal--these are good, easily digested carbohydrates that need to be added into the mix. Cover with water, simmer on low heat for about 50 minutes--hey, it's chicken stew! Last thing, I throw in a bag of frozen mixed vegetables, just so they are lightly cooked.

Once I remove the bones, the whole pot of goodies goes into the food processor, then freezer-safe containers. I take them out to thaw as I need them, so they're always fresh. Easy as pie!

Tomorrow, I'll discuss more cat nutrition tips to go along with your new homemade cat diet!
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Is Raw Food the Best Diet for Cats?

If you have done any research into alternatives to commercially prepared cat food, then you have probably heard of the BARF diet. Alternately described as "biologically appropriate raw food" or "bones and raw food", this diet has been touted as the most natural diet for cats. The idea is based upon the notion that in the wild, cats (and dogs) tend to eat live prey, i.e., mostly meat. Any grains or vegetables they consume are incidental, for the most part comprising the contents of the prey's digestive tract. Since much of this type of diet consists of eating small bones or actively gnawing meat off of larger ones, bones are prominently featured, unlike in other diets.

Dr. Ian Billinghurst, an Australian, is credited with first promoting this type of diet. He claimed that the wild ancestors of domesticated dogs ate raw prey and therefore this was the most natural and healthful diet for dogs. According to Wikipedia, the BARF acronym was not coined by Billinghurst, but by Debra Tripp. It originally meant,"born again raw feeders". After meeting Billinghurst at a seminar, she supposedly gave him permission to use the acronym as he saw fit. He thanked her, and the rest is history, as they say.

Naturally, this regimen has proponents and detractors. Those who favor its positive effect on animals point to the well-known Pottenger studies on cats. Between 1932 and 1942, Dr. Francis Pottenger fed one group of cats cooked food, and another raw food. Those in the first group showed signs of decreased immune function and various diseases that the raw food group did not. It took three generations of raw-food dining to bring that group's immune systems back up to snuff.

Pottenger's study was a long one, and involved nearly one thousand cats. Lest you think him an admirer of felines, know that these were lab cats that he was using for other, unrelated research. He wanted them to live longer and healthier in order to validate his results. Also, despite the claim often made that the cooked diet was well-balanced, this time frame was long before commercial cat diets and therefore any real research on feline nutrition, particularly the roles of proteins and the amino acid taurine. Despite these caveats, it does seem to show that raw food is beneficial to cats.

Tomorrow we'll take a look at the pros and cons of the bones and raw food diet.
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Skin Disorders in Cats: The Role of Nutrition

Another common source of skin problems in cats stems from food allergies. Cats are quite sensitive to toxins of any kind, and their systems often react negatively to the slightest provocation. Many cats have allergies to additives in commercial cat food, even though their owners don't realize this. The allergies cause skin and hair problems that owners often attribute to other sources.

A lackluster coat, dandruff and constant scratching and shedding are signs of nutritional problems, particularly if the cat is young and otherwise healthy. If you've read other posts here on nutrition, then you are familiar with the laundry list of additives that pet food manufacturers put in cat food to make it more acceptable not only to cats, but to their owners. Colorants, artificial flavorings, emulsifiers, stabilizers, preservatives, even massive doses of vitamins and minerals can all cause allergic reactions in your cat. Add to this the poor sources of protein used in these foods (especially dry food) and you can see where problems are inevitable. What are skin and hair made up of, for the most part? Proteins (keratin), of course.

To counter these negative effects, try changing your cat's diet, a little at a time. Take her off of dry food, entirely. Feed a premium canned diet, and don't be afraid to supplement with food that you have cooked, as well as a natural pet (or portion of a human) vitamin tablet daily. Add a bit of kelp powder and a 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of good-quality olive oil to the food each day. I guarantee that you will see an enormous change in your cat's skin and coat within six weeks!

Healthy skin is more resistant to injury, infection and, yes, flea infestation. Keep your cat indoors, as well, since this will prevent them coming into contact with both fleas and sources of injury such as cat fights. If your cat has fleas now, give him a bath in a natural shampoo (yours is fine). Keep him indoors from now on, and use a fine-toothed comb to groom him until you are sure there are no more fleas. Feed him the diet recommended above, and you can very possibly say "goodbye forever" to skin problems!

Book of the Week: A Confederacy of Dunces, by John Kennedy Toole. Ignatius J. Reilly, self-proclaimed arbiter of "taste and decency" is an over-educated, obese, and lazy 30-year old whose adventures will make you laugh out loud. It is unfortunate that Toole did not live long enough to write a follow-up to this Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Don't miss it!
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