This year’s theme for World Kidney Day (March 13) is “Are your kidneys OK? Detect early, protect kidney health.” The veterinary staff of the Schwarzman Animal Medical Center supports that sentiment entirely. Inspired by my colleagues’ work on protecting kidney health, today’s blogpost provides a “kidney primer,” curated from previous blogposts, to help pet families understand kidney disease and its treatment.
Understanding Your Pet’s Kidney Test Results
Detecting kidney disease early requires testing urine and blood samples. Veterinarians tend to talk about these tests in doctor shorthand. Sometimes the shorthand slips into our conversations with pet families, which can be confusing. This blogpost on how to talk to your veterinarian about kidney disease explains common tests used in kidney disease diagnosis.
Diagnostic Imaging for Feline & Canine Kidneys
In addition to kidney blood tests, AMC radiologists have four different types of diagnostic imaging modalities for detecting kidney disease: x-ray, ultrasound, CT scan and MRI. You can see an example of each of these imaging modalities in a blogpost from World Kidney Day 2023.
How to Protect Your Pet’s Kidneys
The theme for this year’s World Kidney Day mentions protecting kidneys. This can be done by simply avoiding toxins that negatively impact kidney function, and here’s where pet families’ vigilance can be lifesaving. Common substances damaging to the kidneys of dogs and cats include: lilies, grapes, raisins, antifreeze and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Many medications can damage your pet’s kidneys, so prevent your pets from getting into medications, yours or their own.
The Importance of Special Kidney Food for a Pet with Kidney Disease
In a recent blogpost, I highlighted why it’s important to feed cats with chronic kidney disease (CKD) a special diet. Dogs develop CKD too, but not as often as cats. Veterinarians recommend feeding a kidney friendly diet to a dog with chronic kidney, just like we do for cats.
Subcutaneous Fluids for Dogs and Cats with Kidney Disease
Administration of fluids at home is a common treatment for pets with kidney disease. Fluid administration combats dehydration, and well-hydrated pets feel better and eat better. The procedure is a bit intimidating at first, but most pet families find subcutaneous fluid administration very beneficial for their pets.
To help pet families understand kidney disease, AMC’s Usdan Institute for Animal Health Education has two Pet Health Library entries focusing on kidney disease: one entry for acute kidney disease and the other for chronic kidney disease.
Tags:
acute kidney injury, chronic kidney disease, diet, kidney, kidney disease, radiology, subcutaneous fluids, world kidney day,
