Jill Bowen

Jill Bowen has practiced veterinary medicine in England and Texas and has taught at Texas A&M. She lives with her veterinarian husband and two cats in Blacksburg. If you have a question, please write to her in care of The Roanoke Times, P.O. Box 540, Christiansburg, VA 24068, or send an e-mail to mjbowen@radford.edu

Recent columns

• Invisible fences aren’t best option for every dog
• Wrap pets in protection this holiday season
• Take treats so horse associates you with something good
• Illness or change in environment may cause cat to stop using litter box
• Column archive

I was wondering about kidney failure in dogs. In all the warnings about contaminated dog food recently, kidney failure is mentioned as one of the symptoms. Why exactly is this so important?

The kidneys play an integral and important function in your dog’s and cat’s health and survival. The recent pet food recall prompted by kidney failure and death in dogs and cats that ate contaminated pet food has raised awareness about this condition.

Kidneys assist in the maintenance of blood chemicals and act as a filtering system for waste products. When the kidneys fail to work correctly, toxins remain in the blood. Toxins, infections and hereditary problems can cause kidney failure in dogs and cats, and the consequences can be life-threatening. Some of the symptoms commonly associated with kidney failure in dogs and cats are:

• Dehydration, with increased water drinking
• Increased urination
• A lack of urination or less urine production
• Blood in the urine
• Loss of appetite
• Vomiting
• Lethargy
• A stiff gait with pain over the kidney region
• Diarrhea

If you see signs of kidney failure, contact your veterinarian immediately. Keep your dog or cat hydrated. It is essential that your pet drink as much water as possible if the kidneys are not functioning properly.

Once a diagnosis of kidney failure has been confirmed in your pet, your veterinarian will make recommendations about diet and supplements that may be appropriate in helping to treat kidney failure.

I n the case of acute kidney failure, a stay at the veterinary hospital may be necessary to monitor the animal’s condition, assure proper hydration, administer medications and make changes to the diet.

In the recent pet food recall, a toxin called melamine, used in the manufacture of plastics, was apparently added to wheat gluten, a common protein in many commercial dog foods to boost the nitrogen content.

Additional problems have now been discovered in contaminated corn gluten and rice protein. If your pet has eaten any commercial food subject to recall or shows any symptoms of kidney failure, contact your veterinarian immediately. Time is of the essence and your pet’s health and life is at stake.

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We have just moved into a new house, and I kept my cats inside for two weeks with a litter box. Although they now go outside again, both rush back in to use their litter box. Why?

Many cats discover that it is much easier to use a litter box indoors than it is to find a suitable spot outside. This is especially so if your cats are still feeling a little insecure and vulnerable after the move to the new house and yard. The new yard may be in the territory of a stronger cat that may well have threatened and intimidated your cats. Cats feel especially vulnerable when attending to the calls of nature. Maybe your neighbors are not cat lovers and have shooed them away as they explored looking for a suitable area to use, especially if the new yard does not have some nice newly mulched flower beds.

To encourage them to use the outside again, select a spot in the yard and put down a mixture of earth and sand with a little of the old litter. However, I suspect that they will always prefer to use the boxes provided indoors since it is so much easier and safer.