Kidney failure + tongue tumor

[Stephanie7]

My 11 year old dog has been losing weight consistently. We took her to the vet and he said she is having kidney failure, and there is a tumor on the back of her tongue that is making it hard for her to eat.
Right now the kidneys are the focus, because there's a huge chance she will die. BUT, there's a small chance she won't, and she'll get through it. Her creatinine levels are at 11.5, which is extremely high.
Our focus is to help her get her weight back so she can gain some strength and hopefully fight this. Right now she is literally skin and bones. But she is eating, drinking, urinating, and defecating, which is all very good. She's not gaining weight though, and shes very weak.
What can I give her that will help her gain weight, and that is low in protein and is easily digestible?
If she can gain weight, the doctor will remove the tumor. But not until then. We're trying to jumpstart her kidneys again. Does anyone have any advice?
The doctor gave her a week, today is the deadline, but she's still fighting. He said he is surprised that she still has the drive that she has to live, so I think she has a chance.

[bubbatd]

I'm so sorry !!! Please keep us posted !! Good vibes are being sent ..............

[GlassOnion]

What type of dog, how big is she, how much does she eat, what does she eat?

Just off the top of my head you could try heating the food in the microwave. It will make it smell better and be a bit more palatable and she may eat more.


Edit: Is that her in your avatar?

[elegy]

Do they know *why* she is having kidney failure? If she has a tumor on her tongue and it's cancerous, it's possible it has metastasized to her kidneys. Have they done xrays of her? Ultrasound?

The best thing to get her kidney values down would be to have her in the hospital on IV fluids to try to flush her system.

Good luck with her. Poor girl.

[Stephanie7]

She is naturally a slender medium sized dog. She should be about 60 lbs, but she's probably way under 50. She eats in the morning and in the night by herself, and in between I make her eat. When she eats, she eats about a handful of soft organic dog food (Innova), and I also feed her turkey and rice and things like that. She does not eat willingly often.
Yes that is her in my picture.
She had IV's for three days continuously and her levels did not go down. So thats why the doctor thinks she is beyond help.

[goldiefur]

What about satin balls? http://theherbs.info/Pets/satinball.html I would wait to get others opinions on this though. People here have way more knowledge about these things. Good Luck!

[doberkim]

Unfortunately if she was on IV fluids for three days and her values didn't budge, then her kidneys have pretty much shut down beyond any help at this point and unfortunately there probably isn't much more time. I would let her eat anything and everything and enjoy whatever time you have left, but I fear it is very little, as her values will only get worse - they are extremely elevated as is.

[bubbatd]

So sad !!!! My thoughts are with you ...............

[Stephanie7]

If her kidneys have shut down how come she is still eating and drinking and then going to the bathroom? Something must be going through for her to urinate and defecate.

[GlassOnion]

The kidneys just filter the blood and remove toxins to put them into the urine. You can still have stuff going in one end and out the other without the kidneys necessarily working.

[Boreayl_Chinooks]

Did your vet prescribe a special kidney diet? This is not a problem I've had previous experience with, so I can't share direct experience. However, I would recommend researching to see if there is are dietary options for easing the effect of compromised kidneys to make sure you're not feeding anything that would aggrevate the condition. Best wishes and so sorry...

Debbie

[Stephanie7]

I want another blood test to see if her levels have risen even more. If so, then I suppose there's not much to do. But I think its possible that she has a chance.
What do you guys think of giving her pate? Its fattening, and she loves it. Maybe it could help her gain weight? Or maybe those satin balls? (thanks for the suggestion Goldiefur) =)

[goldiefur]

Could you ask the vet what he thinks about the satin balls? I just wonder would it cause her more problems. If the vet thinks it is okay I would give it a shot. Hopefully someone here has some more info on the satin balls.

[Stephanie7]

Emma passed away last night. I suppose I will post now in the rainbow bridge section. Thankyou for all your help guys.

[bubbatd]

so sorry !!! Run free Emma !!!

[goldiefur]

I'm so sorry for your loss.:( GOD bless you and precious Emma.

[Boreayl_Chinooks]

I'm so sorry to hear... Hope you're doing OK because I know too well what you're going through.

Debbie