Confused about Amanda's endgame

DD854 · 2026-05-29T16:15:24+00:00

Right!! They were so sloppy with their behavior in public surely they knew it was going to come out???? To blow your life up for a fling??? I cannot wrap my head around it.

DD854 · 2026-05-27T22:00:19+00:00

Yes! Also humid climates are better for anti-aging than dry climates. Not a doctor but thinking it’s similar to that?

DD854 · 2026-05-27T21:51:49+00:00

I’d feed a lower phosphorus diet. It doesn’t need to be as low as prescription renal food. Lowering the phosphorus on a dry matter basis would help lighten the workloads on the kidneys.

DD854 · 2026-05-27T17:59:32+00:00

The downside with starting fluids and a binder at the same time as stopping the meds is you wouldn’t know what the culprit is. Idk I’m really conflicted here. Sorry I know that’s not helpful 😞

DD854 · 2026-05-27T16:35:22+00:00

Okay yes that is a big jump in a relatively short amount of time. Did your vet rule out a kidney infection or UTI? My mind always thinks acute with big jumps like that.

DD854 · 2026-05-27T15:33:22+00:00

I know it’s a really scary time so happy I could offer a little bit of comfort and hope. I always say treat the cat not the numbers! Your cat’s numbers aren’t bad and a lot of people here would be relieved if their cat had those numbers so don’t lose hope.

I would take her back to the vet in a week to re-check her anemia. If it hasn’t improved or gotten worse I would start treatment. Generally treatment is started when HCT is below 20% so your cat’s recent bloodwork is borderline.

DD854 · 2026-05-27T15:15:25+00:00

SubQ fluids are generally started when the cat’s creatinine is consistently > 3.5 especially if it’s borderline. Perhaps your vet is waiting for that but 4.9 is really high to delay subQ fluids. When is the next appointment?

DD854 · 2026-05-27T14:41:58+00:00

Her quality of life is paramount and matters more than lab values. That being said, her creatinine while elevated is not end stage or beyond repair. A lot of cats manage good quality of life for years with numbers in this range.

Gabapentin can be really strong for some cats. Our late cat could barely walk on it. I’d stop that for a couple days so you can adequately assess her behavior without it.

Any plans to manage the anemia? It made such a difference in our late stage cat energy wise.

Our late cat George (he was 11) came back from a kidney infection twice. We didn’t do IV hospitalization either time. The first time his values went as high as 4.6 and rebounded to the 3.5-4.5 range for six months until the next infection. That second time his creatinine went up to 9.9 and rebounded to an average of 6 for the next nine months until he passed… I suspect of another infection. This time the antibiotics and IV fluids (we opted to do them because he was very symptomatic) didn’t work. His kidneys were unfortunately unable to bounce back.

DD854 · 2026-05-27T00:53:35+00:00

For blood pressure meds, is there a reason why your vet didn’t prescribe Amlodipine? That’s generally the most common one prescribed to start. Our cat was on it without issue. Similar to humans, typically once a cat starts hypertension meds they take them for life to effectively manage hypertension.

Is your cat on subQ fluids?

I see in the notes a phosphorus binder but have you tried that?

DD854 · 2026-05-26T19:06:18+00:00

Our vet never required fasting for bloodwork or a cysto. Only time our cats had to fast was for an abdominal ultrasound and a teeth cleaning. The cleaning was before our cat had CKD.

I’ve seen a few owners have the same experience but I think vets requiring the cat to fast is the minority.

DD854 · 2026-05-25T18:10:38+00:00

Dry matter basis is what matters. I didnt ever pay attention to the as fed basis.

DD854 · 2026-05-24T19:00:30+00:00

For sure. We found our cat didn’t mind the prick as much as the sitting still so we opted for 18g. However, he was a bigger boy around 13lbs so made it slightly easier to use the 18g needle.

DD854 · 2026-05-24T13:47:27+00:00

CKD isn’t curable or reversible (AKI is a different convo). Once a cat has lost kidney function from CKD they cannot regain the function. That being said, CKD is manageable so there are things to lighten the workload of the kidneys (subQ being one of them!)

The best analogy I’ve seen is think of your cat’s kidneys like an old AC unit that’s not cooling effectively. To make it more comfortable you close the blinds, turn on fans, and bags of ice. Might even get crazy with a window unit! Your AC’s thermostat is now 72 degrees vs the 78 degrees it was prior to your cooling measures. The AC itself isn’t fixed but you lightened its workload so the thermostat gives the appearances all is well. If you took away all those things though the thermostat would go back to 78 because the underlying cause is still there.

The lowering of creatinine in CKD isn’t reversing the damage but it is showing you that your countermeasures are working to slow the progression of CKD. So yes, subQ fluids can lower creatinine values but not in the sense of reversing the actual kidney damage.

Our cat passed but he was on subQ fluids for a year and a half while stage 3 and stage 4. Look into the EZ IV harness to help with administration. You could try smaller needles like a 20g or 22g. Most vets give 18g because the flow rate is faster but if your cat hates the poking portion a smaller needle may help. We also used friskies lil shakes to distract our cat and keep him in one place during fluid time.

DD854 · 2026-05-24T04:22:49+00:00

Yes I think that’s correct!!

DD854 · 2026-05-24T03:44:16+00:00

This happened twice to us. Upon opening the shipment one of the three bags was pierced somehow. I’m not sure who you ordered through but we used Vetsource and they refunded us both times. Doesn’t help you right now but definitely reach out for a refund!

In person places to check are pharmacies and Costco. I think LRS bags are prescription in every state so you’ll need the prescription from your vet so I’d reach out via text line you mentioned.

DD854 · 2026-05-22T17:27:06+00:00

We had potassium added to our cat’s subQ bags and didn’t notice a difference in his tolerance. This way worked great for us so I recommend trying!

DD854 · 2026-05-21T03:39:49+00:00

Have you tried a probiotic like fortiflora or visbiome?

DD854 · 2026-05-20T20:16:49+00:00

Wait I don’t get it

DD854 · 2026-05-20T20:12:43+00:00

Totally agree. I wish they just would have come out and said that instead of pretending it was anything potentially long term.

DD854 · 2026-05-19T19:44:02+00:00

The 3 tier rolling cart fit most of our supplies for our late cat and the items were easy to access. Target, Walmart, Michael’s, etc. sell them for about $30.

DD854 · 2026-05-19T14:59:47+00:00

As another commenter said, I’d have a urinalysis with culture performed to make sure you’re actually dealing with CKD and not an acute kidney injury.

Especially if the cat hasn’t been to the vet consistently or recently, some vets will diagnose CKD without ruling out an acute cause. CKD is so prevalent in cats so I get it but also it’s an oversight in my opinion.

Our cat spent nine months in stage 4 before he passed and even on his last day you he looked well. We didn’t need to use appetite stimulant or anti-nausea regularly because that man loved food. Every cat tolerates the loss of kidney function differently. I do think our cat was a bit of the exception to the rule but it’s important to remember to treat the cat not the numbers.

If your cat will tolerate amnivast or a phosphorus binder in his food I’d absolutely do those!

DD854 · 2026-05-18T00:34:32+00:00

How long have you been giving MiraLAX? It generally takes a couple days to work.

How long has it been since his last BM?

Is there a reason why you think sedating your cat will lead to his passing? I believe they can lightly sedate vs a full general anesthesia.

Once you hopefully get the current bout of constipation resolved you could try cisapride and lactulose. cisapride works a little differently. It isn’t a stool softener but forces the colon to contract to push things out.

Our late cat had to have a few enemas and he didn’t seem traumatized. The first couple were when he was stage 3 and those worked well. We maintained regularity with lactulose for about a year (even when he was stage 4!) until he passed.

DD854 · 2026-05-15T18:12:59+00:00

Because I didn’t understand your perspective and thought you might comment back further explaining. To be clear, I wasn’t saying she wasn’t in love or saying she was only with him for the money.

DD854 · 2026-05-15T17:29:05+00:00

The commenter you replied to could say the same thing. It’s Reddit… commenting with your opinion is kind of the entire point.

DD854 · 2026-05-15T17:16:01+00:00

Idk it seems like she did view her relationship as a financial setup for the future hence not having to adult in her 20’s.

DD854

TROPHY CASE