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So had my 2 gorgeous lovely Labs at the Vet this week for annual exam. My female is 13.5, and has been doing some stuff lately that seemed maybe she isn't feeling 100%, and has also been wanting to eat dirt, shedding excessively, more than spring shedding, but also eating fine, and wanting to play daily, and swim when given the opportunity.

Well labs came back and she is has some renal impairment. I have been making her food since last fall due to developing a second food allergy that was causing ear infections, and skin sores. So she couldn't have chicken or corn, even kibble that was free of it, was causing some issues. So I did my research and started making her food, which consists of lean ground beef, rice, peas, broccoli, green beans, an egg in the evening and scoop of yogurt in the am. She lost some weight, but with increased volumes of this concoction she stabilized. I make batches for 3 weeks at a crack, and freeze in individual servings.

Now to my question. Anyone have any experience with making food for a renal/kidney diet for an elderly dog, and if so do you have recipes?

TIA.

My dad is on a restrictive diet for his kidneys.

Anything high in potassium, phosphorus, and sodium.

Potatoes, even sweet potatoes, brown rice, dairy.

I'm sorry your pup isn't feeling well.

I read that dogs with kidney problems shouldn't have peas.

Food is so tricky. Hope your pup is feeling better!!

Zeb- Read that too, seems to be mixed messages on that because even though they are high in phosphorus (which you need to avoid) they also have a chemical in them that prevents absorption of that phos. Her phos level was good too right now.

We have to get a urine sample on her to be sure it isn't an infection that is causing it, but based on the slow steady progression of her changes we both think it's probably just old age.

As long as she is happy and enjoying life we will do what we can to keep her happy. She is currently sleeping on her bed next to me while I work.

Granted, this was 11 years ago, so advice may have changed, when our miniature schnauzer developed kidney issues, I began to make her food at home, because prescription food wasn't cutting it any longer. I don't remember the proportions, but it included cooked ground meat, rice, bread crumbs, hard-boiled eggs, and finely ground up eggs shells (not all of the eggs shells from the hard-boiled eggs). I think each morning I would add a tablespoon of pumpkin and mix it in.

I basically quadrupled the recipe and made enough to last a month. I would freeze it in individual bags and take out a bag each day and put it in the refrigerator so that it would be thawed out in two days.

My vet's office actually provided us with this recipe, so I felt like it was throughly vetted.

Number 4 - interestingly I started feeding her home made last fall when she suddenly developed a chicken allergy that resulted in ear infections and skin issues, and switched her to home made concoction very similar to that, I included sweet potatoes, but they were a PIA to cut and she was not digesting them, coming out the same way they went in..... so I do make up 3 weeks worth of food for her at a time, and from my research it is pretty kidney healthy.

I was giving her a fresh raw egg or two daily, because we had them, and she loves them, and they are full of good stuff. It appears that more recent data says no, to the yolks but the rest is ok. I'm going to spend some time researching this weekend, and probably Wed's next week as I am off work.

Just did a google search and found a recipe using the ingredients I shared. This is for senior dogs with kidney issues:

1/4 pound ground beef, (do not use lean)
2 cups cooked white rice, (no salt)
1 hard cooked egg, , peeled and chopped
3 slices white bread, , crumbled
1 teaspoon calcium carbonate, (blend a bottle of calcium carbonate in the blender until it's a powder then keep in a resealable plastic bag)

Again, I used eggshells in place of the calcium carbonate, as recommended by our vet.

I don't have any advice, but wanted to send prayers & healing vibes to your girl. You're a good mamma. (((HUGS)))

I tried googling to see what I could find out but there is a lot of mixed reviews.

What did the vet recommend?

Tushnurse, I have not dealt with renal issues, but was just wondering whether your vet runs thyroid hormone levels as part of senior tests? Because our former vets never had, absent any indications. But sometime last year, our then 13-year-old Labrador/Shepherd started doing that same kind of dirt eating (or better yet, cat toosie rolls!) Likewise, we noticed excessive, clumpy loss of his glossy, soft coat; he got to looking downright shabby and low energy, to boot.

We took him to a new vet who ran a T4 level test on him and found he was a few points below the low cutoff value. Started him on synthyroid, but it revved him up to where he was panting and drinking all the time, like it was too hot inside his body. I cut his 2 daily pills down to 1 and added an herbal blend of Thyroid wellness online, and after a year he is running normal T4: mid-to-high range. Coat is s.l.o.w.l.y. coming back in thick.

Maybe these issues are part of the aging process? But we're all about maximizing quality of life, so I hope you get helpful answers to keep that Playful Girl happy and healthy!

I sure hope your baby improves.

Supresse- yup she had thyroid levels this set of labs and a year ago, and the year before. It's all good. Just seems to be old lady kid ey issues. But at 13.5 in a large dog this is like treating a 100yo person.
Just going to do the best I can to keep things at bay and keep her happy.

Well, that's good news! With our old boy - 14 now - seems there are overlapping symptoms between his pancreatitis and his thyroid, but no kidney issues have been flagged. Yet he does that same weird eating thing for the last 2 years. I'm sure all these kind of senior malfunctions interact.

Balancing the food for these different issues is the tricky part! I would guess lowered protein for a kidney issue, right? We have farm-raised ground beef our butcher packaged when we bought a hind quarter, so have no idea what its fat-to-lean ratio is. If store bought ground beef controls that input, the other food I'd wonder about is eggs. Because of my own experience eating different eggs: the local farmer's eggs never cause me any issues, yet oftentimes, those fast food breakfast eggs tear me up. Wonder if it might be the same with dogs...

We are going for a 3 day Silver Anniversary RV trip with the fur kiddos, and since you camp and are making her food, how do you manage packing her rations? Take the raw ingredients or make ahead?

Lab lover here too; have had four since 1999. I started feeding homemade raw fresh food in 2002. The most helpful book I found for making homemade meals for dogs with a variety of health issues is Raw and Natural Nutrition For Dogs: Revised by Lew Olson. Also, I rotate between making totally homemade meals, and using a premix that I purchase from a company in NJ called Dr Harveys. Dr Harveys makes a premix called Canine Health, which is for dogs with kidney issues. You just add water, meat and oil - recipe book is included with every bag of food, and helps you calculate how much to feed based on dog’s weight, age, and activity level. I used Canine Health exclusively with my yellow lab for his kidney issues while he was age 13 and 14. His kidney issues stabilized, and he made it to 14 1/2. Dr H also makes a kidney health supplement but we didn’t try it.

[This message edited by PowerWithin at 4:26 AM, Sunday, June 5th]

Oops…

I decided I was thread hacking.

Sorry.

[This message edited by WhatsRight at 5:54 AM, Sunday, June 12th]