Take the Kidney Kwiz in Honor of World Kidney Day
Take the Kidney Kwiz in Honor of World Kidney Day
World Kidney Day (March 10, 2011) serves to remind us how important early detection and treatment of kidney disease is in our pets. Estimates indicate 0.5-1.5% of dogs and 1-3% of cats seen in veterinary clinics suffer from kidney disorders. The Animal Medical Center’s Renal Medicine Service, headed by Dr. Cathy Langston, has developed a Kidney Kwiz to test your knowledge about your pet’s kidneys and how veterinarians manage kidney disease. To test your Kidney IQ, read the blog below and click on the link to the Kwiz at the end of the blog. Good luck to all.
Cats, dogs, birds and small mammal pets all have 2 kidneys. The kidneys are multitasking organs. It is common knowledge that kidneys clean the blood of the waste products of daily metabolism, but did you know they also maintain normal water balance in the body? Hence, one sign of kidney disease in pets is an increase in water consumption. Much less well known is the kidneys help to regulate blood pressure and produce hormones to simulate red blood cell production in the bone marrow, preventing anemia.
One test to help detect kidney disease is evaluation of a urine sample. Your veterinarian will love you if you collect a urine sample from your pet and take it to you pet’s routine physical examination. If your pet is diagnosed with kidney disease, your veterinarian will want to monitor blood pressure and also will prescribe a kidney friendly diet. High blood pressure (hypertension) is common in pets with kidney disease, 20% of cats with kidney disease and 75% of dogs have hypertension. Kidney disease in dogs and cats can be treated. The most important treatment you as a pet owner can give to your pet with kidney disease is to follow your veterinarian’s prescription for feeding a kidney friendly diet. Kidney friendly diets are designed to decrease the workload on the kidneys and have been proven to lessen clinical signs and prolong survival in pets with moderate to advanced stage kidney disease.
Are you ready to take the Kidney Kwiz?
This blog may also be found in the “Tales from the Pet Clinic” blog from WebMD.
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For over a century, The Animal Medical Center has been a national leader in animal health care, known for its expertise, innovation and success in providing routine, specialty and emergency medical care for companion animals. Thanks in part to the enduring generosity of donors, The AMC is also known for its outstanding teaching, research and compassionate community funds. Please help us to continue these efforts. Send your contribution to: The Animal Medical Center, 510 East 62nd Street, New York, NY 10065. For more information, visit www.amcny.org. To make an appointment, please call 212.838.7053.