For the past three years we have been feeding an all raw diet to our cats and dogs.
I'm very glad that I had switched them over, I'm sure that this has helped Mr. Peeps with regard to his kidney failure. My guess is that he would have went downhill much faster if he had been on a dry kibble diet.
This is a shot from back in April 2006 - skip ahead to August 2008. Mr. Peeps is not eating well and seems to be loosing weight slowly.
He has had his teeth cleaned in the past and I noticed that his breath smelled foul. One of his upper molars had a bit of plaque and I ASSUMED this was his issue. I finally got him into the vet to have the tooth pulled if necessary.
The vet examines him and says his tooth is fine, just a bit of plaque, no pain, no gum issues, but if I want them to clean it/pull it they can get a better look under anesthesia. Sure, why not, I don't want him getting sicker with an infection of his teeth/jaw bone.
The vet says, well, since he's only about 10 years old we'll just do a small blood work up...I say, wait, he's more like 15-18 years old maybe- we just don't know. Oh, he looks like he's only about 8 the vet says. Anyway, he stays overnight at the vet to await blood work results (it's better than driving him home).
The next morning is when we get the news that he is in Chronic Renal Failure.
Here comes the issue of feeding.
I'm informed that he needs to be on a low protein diet, taught how to administer subcutaneous fluids at home, handed some information from online and we set up a follow up appointment in 3 weeks.
I dive into reading about diet change. Man there is a lot I didn't pay attention to in school!!!
On August 13th when he came home, his very first meal consisted of cooked white rice, canned pumpkin and ground chicken bogie-very little bogie. He eats a tiny bit then wanders off to be left alone
By the next day, he is eating only very little. Chris (AKA The Man) gets him to eat some quail.
Two days later he is refusing to eat any of his normal diet (except quail) - I need to find something else - we only get so many quail per month. I bring in some ground turkey-not the best choice but it's a start, and some ground beef (70% lean)
I don't normally feed beef to the cats and the dogs only ever get meat bones or freezer clean out beef. Turns out he LOVES ground beef. But, alas that wasn't going to last but a day....
I now (4 days after diagnosis and 2 sub-q treatments) notice that he burbs when you pick him up and he is licking his lips a lot, his breath smells again (it did not at the vet) - I remembered reading about slippery elm for stomach/appetite in cats.
Day 5 - gets me to the local CO-OP to buy some slippery elm. I mix two of the capsules/powder in with his ground beef- he eats good - mind you this is no easy feat - I have to roll the meat into perfectly round, tiny balls and toss them to him, ensuring that everyone else keeps their distance. Oh yeah, the really good part is....it's 2am!!!! (when I get off of work) but it's cool outside - all the cats have a better appetite when it's cool and it's been pretty hot around here.
By the next day his appetite is better- I'm still feeding him by hand.
I have mixed in a weak infusion of dandelion with his afternoon meal. I did this with much trepidation...as dandelion is very acidic and actually causes bile. I figured it couldn't hurt to trust and try to help is appetite out. This along with the slippery elm seems to have really helped. He is now eating twice a day, still drinking A LOT of water from his watering spot.
I only used dandelion for two days. I used slippery elm since August 20th. So, for five days he
got slippery elm mixed in with his ground beef. Since August 23rd he has been eating twice a day and eating a decent amount.
His burbs have subsided and he is licking his lips (sign of anemia) less. His appetite has increased to the point that he comes for food at the afternoon dinner and when I get home in the morning. He is also eating quail again...but nothing else.
August 26th - ahhh!!! he will be needing vitamin help too?
For more on RAW diets visit:
BARF World
or our supplier
Feed This, Inc.
Listening to: The Heads - johnette napolitano - The- Damage I've Done
via FoxyTunes
1. If the cat has recently urinated on the carpet, first absorb as much of the cat urine as possible using paper towels or an old towel. Place clean paper towels over the cat urine area and tread on them so as to absorb as much of the urine as possible. Repeat with dry towels until no more moisture can be absorbed.
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