A Comprehensive Guide to Understanding and Preventing Kidney Disease in Dogs
My Dog Won't Eat?
"Doctor, my dog hasn't eaten for a week and keeps vomiting. In the past, I just gave him cold medicine and he got better. Why is it so serious this time?" Whenever I hear a case like this, my scalp tingles, and a voice often sounds in my heart: "Don't tell me it's another kidney disease case. Oh God! Not this again." But whenever the blood test report comes out, nine times out of ten it confirms my suspicion, and I can't help but ask, "Why didn't you bring him in sooner?"
Whenever winter comes, cases of upper respiratory infection increase, and at the same time urinary system diseases also begin to rise. This is because in cold weather, dogs' drinking habits change and they drink less water, so the concentration of toxins in the urine rises. These toxins place a greater burden on these organs. The most commonly seen diseases are cystitis and urethritis. At this time, dogs most commonly want to urinate frequently but only pass a little urine, and the urine may even contain some blood (this symptom is similar to urethral stones or bladder stones and needs to be carefully distinguished). If treated early, there should be improvement, but because most owners are busy, they ignore this warning sign (especially in male dogs, where cases are even more easily overlooked). Often a small infection slowly affects the kidneys, so the kidneys shut down, and the body's toxins cannot be excreted (the symptoms triggered at this time are called uremia). It first causes stomach discomfort, so the dog stops eating and may even vomit violently. By the time the owner seeks treatment, it is already very troublesome.
When the kidneys are damaged, beware of triggering uremia.
In addition, with the upper respiratory infection mentioned above, that is, what is generally called a cold, some people think it is nothing and neglect it. But if the dog does not drink enough water to help the body eliminate the cold virus and excrete it through the kidneys, the kidneys will often be harmed by these substances (toxins produced after the virus is eliminated). In order to eliminate these substances, the body's white blood cells often accidentally damage the kidneys even more severely, causing impairment of kidney function and thereby triggering uremia.
Next, let's talk about the kidneys. The kidneys are the main organs for eliminating toxins from the body. In a dog's body, the positions of the kidneys are not symmetrical: the right kidney is located below the liver, roughly above the waist area; the left kidney is in the middle section of the waist. This is somewhat different from humans. The main toxin eliminated by the kidneys is called urea, which is produced by cells in the body and then transformed through processing by the liver. The kidneys work in three shifts. As long as one third of the kidneys is functioning normally, good health can be maintained. This is only because what they process is unwanted toxins from the body, and to prevent the kidneys from being damaged, the body often keeps two thirds of the kidneys in a resting state. If the kidneys suffer even slight damage, it will increase the burden on the normal portion, and may even cause the entire kidney to necrose, so it must not be taken lightly.