SIGNS OF KIDNEY FAILURE IN A OLDER BEAGLE

[jon cornett]

IVE HEARD AND READ WHERE KIDNEY FAILURE IS THE NUMBER ONE KILLER OF OLDER BEAGLES. WHAT ARE SOME SIGNS OF THIS IN A OLDER BEAGLE. THANKS FOR ANY INFO!!!

[Bev]

Jon, sometimes they go down in the hips like, sometimes they'll either lose weight or they get bloaty looking. Either congestive heart failure will get them or uremic poisoning. Most I've seen lose their appetite. I'm sure there are other signs and symptoms - those are just the ones I'm familiar with.

[New York Hillbilly]

Bev,
You pretty much hit the nail on the head but let me add. In renal failure you will notice weight gain as the kidneys are unable to filter toxins from the blood and the body craves water to try and neutralize itself. Eventually the kidneys fail and urine output decreases or ceases altogether. All of this fluid on board does what is known as third spacing which you see as congested heart failure and generalized edema. Often people mistake the end sign as "getting better" as the body all of a sudden again puts out large amounts of urine. This is the result of pressure becoming so great that it forces its way through the urinary tract, unfiltered. It is an ominous sign. There are also neurological signs that can manifest as a result of the septicemia (toxic blood stream). No matter how you look at it it is a rough way to go! Short of dialysis renal failure is if uncorrectable a death sentence.
Wish the news was better,
NYH aka (Michael J. Perry R.N.)

[Beagleman973]

I have lost several older beagles to this and loss of appetite is a sign as has been said, along with tenderness in the abdomen. Also check the pigmentation of the gums, change in color is a BIG sign. Press the gum and see if the color changes. Unfortunately, this is one the end signs. In many cases you don't know you have a problem until it is too late.