silly24boxer
Super Boxer
I have not been here for awhile and I am wondering if anyone else has gone through having a Boxer with stage 2 renal failure and now pancreatitis?
Stage 2 renal failure and pancreatitis
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silly24boxer
Super Boxer
Well we have been to a number of vets with Gauge and in Feburary we discovered he had stage 2 renal failure. While trying to maintain a medium protien diet using home cook and low protien kibble he ended up with pancreatitisis.
We are now trying to figure out what do you feed a dog with these health issues. Until we figure something out we have him on Medi cal vegetarian.
He has been on this food for 5 Days along with the meds we can give him that do not effect the kidneys. He has been doing well on this food.
Has and one else had these health issues with there dog? What did you feed them?
We are now trying to figure out what do you feed a dog with these health issues. Until we figure something out we have him on Medi cal vegetarian.
He has been on this food for 5 Days along with the meds we can give him that do not effect the kidneys. He has been doing well on this food.
Has and one else had these health issues with there dog? What did you feed them?
Cami
Boxer Insane
So sorry to hear about your boys diagnosis.
In the past (20 years at least) it was always recommended to lower the amount of protein in the diet to help with kidney issues. That theory has been been proven not as important as it once was. What is now more standard is the reduction of dietary phosphorus in the management of the disease. Of course a lower protein diet (prescription usually) achieves this but when you decrease the amount of protein in the diet you risk (high risk) depleting muscle mass. Not only does their appearance change by losing muscle mass the heart is a muscle and can become affected. Reduced cardiac function can be a result (decreased heart function).
Just assuming here but it would seem as if the pancreatitis issue was a direct result of home cooking and possibly an acute attack (direct result of something) and can be corrected. If it were a chronic issue it could still be managed.
A more advanced way of thinking about the protein issue would be to feed a HIGHER quality protein diet that was also low in phos. This diet would also help with the reduction of fat which can be of great benefit to a patient with pancreatitis.
Kidney issues come with their own set of problems. Usually (but not always) by the time of diagnosis the kidneys have lost about 75% of their function however they can live for YEARS with the remaining 25%. One of the biggest challenges you might face will be a doggy form of anorexia. When the kidney function is reduced the amount of toxins getting filtered by the kidneys is decreased. This allows for those toxins to build up in the blood stream and can make them nauseated. When they don't feel well they tend to not want to eat. Making sure they stay hydrated will go along way in helping this issue. Adding water to food, ice cubes as treats or perhaps even a fat free/low fat (low sodium) chicken broth can be added to food and or their water to keep them interested. At stage 2 you are probably a ways off from these issues but something to keep in your mind. Also be on the lookout for signs of UTI's as these can pop up out of nowhere.
Working towards getting him over the hump with the pancreas issues would be more important today. Once you have that corrected you can concentrate on developing a long term plan (diet wise) for managing the kidney issues.
Their are numerous resources online including forums you can join for dealing with canine renal issues. You can gain a lot of insight from others experiences as well as get questions answered from those that are dealing with the same thing.
Another thing to consider is finding out the cause for the kidney disease. If it isn't an age related thing you might try working with your vet to help determine the cause.
In the past (20 years at least) it was always recommended to lower the amount of protein in the diet to help with kidney issues. That theory has been been proven not as important as it once was. What is now more standard is the reduction of dietary phosphorus in the management of the disease. Of course a lower protein diet (prescription usually) achieves this but when you decrease the amount of protein in the diet you risk (high risk) depleting muscle mass. Not only does their appearance change by losing muscle mass the heart is a muscle and can become affected. Reduced cardiac function can be a result (decreased heart function).
Just assuming here but it would seem as if the pancreatitis issue was a direct result of home cooking and possibly an acute attack (direct result of something) and can be corrected. If it were a chronic issue it could still be managed.
A more advanced way of thinking about the protein issue would be to feed a HIGHER quality protein diet that was also low in phos. This diet would also help with the reduction of fat which can be of great benefit to a patient with pancreatitis.
Kidney issues come with their own set of problems. Usually (but not always) by the time of diagnosis the kidneys have lost about 75% of their function however they can live for YEARS with the remaining 25%. One of the biggest challenges you might face will be a doggy form of anorexia. When the kidney function is reduced the amount of toxins getting filtered by the kidneys is decreased. This allows for those toxins to build up in the blood stream and can make them nauseated. When they don't feel well they tend to not want to eat. Making sure they stay hydrated will go along way in helping this issue. Adding water to food, ice cubes as treats or perhaps even a fat free/low fat (low sodium) chicken broth can be added to food and or their water to keep them interested. At stage 2 you are probably a ways off from these issues but something to keep in your mind. Also be on the lookout for signs of UTI's as these can pop up out of nowhere.
Working towards getting him over the hump with the pancreas issues would be more important today. Once you have that corrected you can concentrate on developing a long term plan (diet wise) for managing the kidney issues.
Their are numerous resources online including forums you can join for dealing with canine renal issues. You can gain a lot of insight from others experiences as well as get questions answered from those that are dealing with the same thing.
Another thing to consider is finding out the cause for the kidney disease. If it isn't an age related thing you might try working with your vet to help determine the cause.
Last edited:
silly24boxer
Super Boxer
Thanks for your reply. The pancreatitis is the result of the low protien food(prescription) they lower the protien in the food and up the fat for more calories.The Home cooked I was doing according to the kidney diet sticky white rice dark chicken turkey (ground up and boiled for less fat) etc weighed measured and all the phos level figured out. Two vets and and internalist all say he is at stage 2 kidney failure. The have put him on Foretekor to help with the protein in his kidney. All vets said he has a good strong heart also so thats good news too. Gauge eats all his foods no problem. I feed him 4 small meals a day. I am awaiting his urine test results to see if he has a UTI we will find out Tuesday, As for finding out what cause the Kidney disease, we are all having a hard time on that one. He has had an ultra sound and alot of tests, the only thing we can figure out is that he has been on and off of metacam for and knee injury. I am now scared to give him and meds or vaccines at all. I have the vets double check everything that is giving to him. I have stopped vaccines along time ago and will titer test him if need be. He is heart worm free but they are pushing me to give him that med too.
Gauge is only 5 years old and he has alot of issues. I highly sugguest pet insurance. He is now a 10 000 dog with out insurance things would be hard!
Gauge is only 5 years old and he has alot of issues. I highly sugguest pet insurance. He is now a 10 000 dog with out insurance things would be hard!
MomtoMaggie
Boxer Booster
feeding a kidney dog with pancreatitis
My Maggie was diagnosed with acute renal failure March 1st. After the 3 day IV flush I started home cooking her a kidney diet. The higher fat triggered pancreatitis and it turned out to be chronic, so I had to put her on a diet that contains less than 6% fat. Our IMS referred us to Just Food for Dogs. They customized a recipe for her and compound the supplements that go in it. I've been really pleased with them. Other choices include Monica Segal or UC Davis. I didn't like Davis' program b/c all of their Balance IT recommendations still add some phosphorous to the diet. I was pretty keen to work with Monica Segal, but the wait was longer than JFFD and being local to me I was able to meet them. They all need blood work and in depth questionnaires.
Maggie absolutely loves her recipe, which has been such a relief b/c the kidney dogs can be so finicky. I wouldn't feed turkey thighs to a pancreatitic dog. The darker the meat, the higher the fat. While I was waiting for the recipe I gave Maggie glutinous rice and poached chicken breast or cod and added pureed green beans. You can use nutritiondata.com to create a recipe and see all of the details of the nutritional information. To calculate the fat in the recipe though you need to subtract the grams of water from the total grams of the recipe so that you have the dry matter grams. Then divide the number of grams of fat by the total and this will give you the correct percentage vs the as fed.
Boxer hugs and kisses,
Heather, mom to
Maggie/boxer/63 lbs/11 yrs/ CKD, chronic pancreatitis, hypothyroidism, arthritis and newly diagnosed with adult onset epilepsy and likely IBD.
&
Gabby/boxer/ 42 lbs/ 5 ½ mos/CaOx crystals and crazy puppy syndrome
Orange County, CA
My Maggie was diagnosed with acute renal failure March 1st. After the 3 day IV flush I started home cooking her a kidney diet. The higher fat triggered pancreatitis and it turned out to be chronic, so I had to put her on a diet that contains less than 6% fat. Our IMS referred us to Just Food for Dogs. They customized a recipe for her and compound the supplements that go in it. I've been really pleased with them. Other choices include Monica Segal or UC Davis. I didn't like Davis' program b/c all of their Balance IT recommendations still add some phosphorous to the diet. I was pretty keen to work with Monica Segal, but the wait was longer than JFFD and being local to me I was able to meet them. They all need blood work and in depth questionnaires.
Maggie absolutely loves her recipe, which has been such a relief b/c the kidney dogs can be so finicky. I wouldn't feed turkey thighs to a pancreatitic dog. The darker the meat, the higher the fat. While I was waiting for the recipe I gave Maggie glutinous rice and poached chicken breast or cod and added pureed green beans. You can use nutritiondata.com to create a recipe and see all of the details of the nutritional information. To calculate the fat in the recipe though you need to subtract the grams of water from the total grams of the recipe so that you have the dry matter grams. Then divide the number of grams of fat by the total and this will give you the correct percentage vs the as fed.
Boxer hugs and kisses,
Heather, mom to
Maggie/boxer/63 lbs/11 yrs/ CKD, chronic pancreatitis, hypothyroidism, arthritis and newly diagnosed with adult onset epilepsy and likely IBD.
&
Gabby/boxer/ 42 lbs/ 5 ½ mos/CaOx crystals and crazy puppy syndrome
Orange County, CA
Roxy had liver issues, and 2 bad bouts of pancreatitis. She was 4 when she was diagnosed and because she had 2 bouts they assumed that her problem was chronic. We have now been feeding her Canidae platinum (low fat for seniors) and she has been healthy for the past 2 years without any issues. She was on a prescription diet recommended by the vet for about a month and a half after she was sick, but the ingredients were all fillers and I was not happy about feeding that to my baby. Good luck.
Boxerhockey
Boxer Pal
So sorry to hear about your boxer having pancreatitis, my Max was diagnosed last October, his belly just kept grawling and I had no idea what was wrong with him, I just thought he had an upset tummy. But it didn't take long for it to get serious, we had adopted a new puppy about six months earlier and Max just kept stealing a little of her puppy food here and there and before we knew it the high fat content took it's toll on him. We treated him for months, changed his diet to low fat prescription food - our vet said that any chicken/turkey was not good for him at all, he said apples and carrots were good to give him as a treat.
silly24boxer
Super Boxer
Veggie Dog
Thanks for the replies. Gauge is now on medi cal vegetarian. We had no other choice due do the double whammy of kidney issue and now the pancreatitis also. He is doing great on the food. Finally better stool and no vomitting. I tried to add some other ingredients last weekend sweet potato and alittle piece of chicken and ended up with a flare up again. So I am done with home cooking and raw food for him now. Sometimes you just have to do what works. I cannot bare to see him in pain during the flare ups. So it is what it is for now.
Thanks for the replies. Gauge is now on medi cal vegetarian. We had no other choice due do the double whammy of kidney issue and now the pancreatitis also. He is doing great on the food. Finally better stool and no vomitting. I tried to add some other ingredients last weekend sweet potato and alittle piece of chicken and ended up with a flare up again. So I am done with home cooking and raw food for him now. Sometimes you just have to do what works. I cannot bare to see him in pain during the flare ups. So it is what it is for now.
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