Kidney problems in dogs are prevalent, especially when they enter their senior years. Pet owners are adamant that dog kidney problems need to be prevented.
Kidney failure is a major concern. Unfortunately, when undetected or left untreated, kidney problems can become irreversible. Hence, your pet could be forced to live with a reduced quality of life due to chronic disease.
Fortunately, you can take comfort in the thought that there are preemptive measures you can take for kidney problems in dogs. What’s more, these are easy actionable steps.
Before diving into that, let’s understand first what kidney problems or kidney failure does to your dog. The more you know, the more you will want to prevent dog kidney problems.
What Kidney Failure Does to Your Pet
Kidney failure (or renal failure) occurs when there is a compromise in your dog’s kidney function. Various factors affect the kidney such as medication, diseases, aging, genetics, dental disease, and toxicosis.
Kidneys play a vital role in the body. Here’s a list of what they do:
- Eliminate toxins and waste
- Regulate hydration
- Maintain normal electrolyte balance
- Release hormones
There are two categories of kidney failure: Acute Renal Failure and Chronic Kidney Failure.
Acute Renal Failure is usually associated with toxins or infections. What differentiates it from the latter is its timeframe. In this case, the kidney function decreases within hours or days.
When detected, it’s important to treat the condition right away. Treatment is usually aggressive.
On the other hand, chronic kidney failure is when the condition becomes irreversible. Moreover, there is no known treatment yet that can entirely cure the condition once it enters this stage. Fortunately, it can still be managed.
Signs and Symptoms of Kidney Problems in Dogs
If you detect a combination of the symptoms below, contact your vet immediately. This way, an accurate diagnosis can be made and your vet can design a treatment regimen as soon as possible.
- Weight loss
- Significant loss of appetite
- Blood in urine
- Lethargy
- Seizures
- Sudden increase or decrease in the volume of urine
- Sudden increase or decrease in water intake
- Nausea and vomiting
- Pale gums
- Unbalanced gait or loss of balance
- Chemical odor in the breath
4 Actionable Steps to Prevent Dog Kidney Problems
Because you, as a pet parent, want your dog to have the best quality of life possible, it’s natural to concern yourself with their lifestyle.
One important thing is to prevent dog kidney problems. It’s pretty easy, but some pet parents often miss out on these preventive measures.
Prevent dog kidney problems with these four actionable steps:
1. Be mindful of the products you have at home
Human table food is not dog food. While there are certain food products that are perfectly fine for your dogs, it’s always best to be mindful of what can be toxic to your dog.
For example, grapes, lemons, and chocolate are extremely harmful to your dog’s kidney (and health in general).
2. Organize your stuff and keep toxic substances out of reach
If your dog hasn’t been trained, you can expect that they’ll nibble anything in their sight. The last thing you’ll want them to be tasting are toxic products, such as antifreeze or human medications.
3. Regular wellness exams twice a year
Regular visits to the vet are always ideal especially when your dog enters his senior years. This helps you detect early onset of kidney problems and other conditions.
4. Invest in nutritional supplements
Investing in nutritional supplements goes a long way. Consider buying kidney treats and kidney-supporting formulas such as Rehmannia Assist Kidney.
These formulas keep kidneys healthy and correct any malfunctions your dog is experiencing.
Rehmannia Assist Kidney
Rehmannia Assist Kidney is a kidney-empowering herbal blend that helps kidneys function to their fullest capacity.
This formula is deeply rooted in Eastern medicine practice to prevent dog kidney problems. Composed of 6 ingredients, this formula is a kidney Yin tonifier that helps bring back disrupted Qi in the lower back (lumbar mansion) where the kidney resides.
The best thing about Chinese medicine is it treats the root of the condition, whereas Western practice addresses only the symptoms.
If you’re considering adding this formula to your pet’s diet, check with your veterinarian to make sure it’s a good fit.
Chinese Theory for Kidney
In Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM), the kidney is the flame of life. Because aging comes with organ deterioration, you can expect that an imbalance of Yin and Yang occurs from time to time.
When this happens, pets suffer from certain conditions (or “patterns” in TCVM context).
More often than not, the kidney develops Yin depletion or depletion of the fluids of life. Supplements such as Rehmannia Assist Kidney defy the aging process in your dog’s kidneys.
Because the kidneys remain functional, you can support your dog’s quality of life and renal failure treatment.
Conclusion
Indeed, raising a pet is a lot like raising a child. Where health is concerned, pet parents always see to it that their dogs will have the best in life.
And because organs have a limited timeframe in terms of functionalities, you mustn’t underestimate preventive measures.
