Bell and I have been through it all. And recently, she was diagnosed with kidney disease. On 4/22, to be exact. She's had kidney problems before. Last may, we took her to the beach in Corpus, and she got into something, salt water or something else, and her body just couldn't handle it. Her kidneys started to fail, she was vomiting and couldn't hold anything down. After 5 days in the vet, her being hooked up to an IV, and multiple medications, she survived. I'll never forget how the doctors spoke in "what if" terminology, things like "well IF we can turn this around, " and "IF her kidneys take to the medication.." It was horrifying. Heartwrenching, and I didn't know if I could personally make it through it. Thank God she survived that, and that was almost exactly a year ago.
So you can imagine my distress when they diagnose her with kidney disease. And I feel the need to write about it, because it turns out this is something she could have had for a long time. I take her to the wonderful people at Banfield (In your local Petsmart), who I HIGHLY, HIGHLY, recommend. They are fantastic. And we went to get a routine heartworm test, which they draw blood for. They found in that blood sample that her kidney levels were elevated, so they had us wait a week and bring her back in. Well we brought her back, on 4/22, and they said it was Kidney disease, or at least that was the underlying thing. They said they don't know how long she's had it, she could've been born with it or it could've developed over time. They see it usually when a dog gets into something toxic, like over the counter medicine, or toxic plants. Things like that can fry their kidneys. They said her event last May more than likely wasn't the cause of the kidney disease, it was just a crisis in reaction to it. And now we are taking steps to avoid any further crisis'.
So where we go from here:
1) Change in diet. She is on special diet, kidney/renal disease diet, and she has to be eating and drinking a lot daily. Her body can't break down the protein, and it's getting stuck in her kidneys. So she is now on a less-protein diet.
2) Making her comfortable. The doctor's keep using this term. After her body adjusts to the food it's all about keeping her comfortable. Keeping her hydrated and making sure she eats regularly. Dogs with Kidney disease can become lethargic.
3) Making sure it doesn't get worse. On a scale of 1 - 4, she is a 3. Not good, at all.
4) Bacteria infection. Today, they called and said they found traces of ecoli in her urine, basically a bacterial infection in her kidneys or bladder. From here, we go to antibiotics. This should hopefully clear up this bacterial infection, which has been agitating the kidney disease. They also found high levels of protein in her kidneys, which is not good. But the doctor said this could be skewed due to the bacteria.
5) Once the bacteria is gone, we retest her urine. They said that hopefully the bacteria being gone will allow her urine tests to come back normal. If so, we just keep maintaining her diet and keep things up as they are now. However, if they come back with high protein levels again, we have to switch her onto enzyme educed medication. Her kidneys can't bind the phosphorus in the protein properly, so she will get binding enzymes to help with that process.
6) Possibilities: If things start looking bad, she may have to have a fluid "flush", or another stint in the hospital where she has to be hooked up to a drip for a few days. Also, I could possibly have to administer fluids to her at home. As of now, this doesn't look like it's going to be necessary.
7) A Sonogram. I'm planning on getting her one of these as soon as I can come up with the $. This will allow the doctor's to see if one kidney is swollen, if there's kidney stones, or of a kidney needs to be removed. The doctor's said this isn't an immediate need, but will help us to diagnose the direct problem easier.
Lots & Lots of water. And food for this little lady.
Overall, her temperament is good. She's still loud and happy and running around. So that gives me hope. I'm really scared, and really emotional about the whole thing.
The reason I'm writing this whole blog is to tell you, if you have a dog, to get some preliminary bloodwork done. The doctor's asked me when the last time she had "good" bloodwork, and I didn't know. I've had her on heartworm medicine for years, but apparently my old doctor's office in Corpus didn't look at her bloodwork closely for any kidney level issues. And luckily, Banfield did. This could have been treatable a long time ago, if only I had known. And now that's guilt that I have to live with. They said that it's unusual for Yorkie's to have this kidney disease, they usually have liver issues. And any article you read on the internet will say that kidney disease is usually discovered only when it's already in the worse stages.
So:
1. Get your dog some bloodwork tests. It's expensive, but trust me when I tell you it's worth it. Ask your doctor to specifically look at kidney levels.
2. Get your dog on a wellness plan at Banfield. I pay $33 a month, and i have unlimited doctor's visits, all her shots are included in that price as well as some routine examinations. worth it, trust me. especially when you end up in a crisis, like I am now.
3. Look for signs. Frequent urination and drinking of water, lack of appetite, lethargy. There are tons of articles on the internet that discuss kidney disease in great lengths. Kidney disease takes years off of the dog's life span.
Kidney disease is not curable, but it is treatable. I'm trying to view it as being one of those parents who has a child with a livable disease, something that takes maintenance and caution. If you're reading this, pray for us. My little Yorkie is a trooper, but she could use all the help she can get. We are going to get through this.
XoXo
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