And how has Indy been?

The day Indy went in for his blood test, we were all kept in suspense and waited with bated breath for the test results the next day. We obviously weren't the only ones kept in suspense as Indy must have read my mind. He spent that whole day in the shrine room and only came down for food. My cats only spend time there whenever they are sick.  


The next day, I had gone to the clinic first thing the morning to wait for the results, but apparently, the clinic had already received the results the evening before and all three vets had sat down to list their differential diagnoses. The diagnoses was inconclusive as Indy's kidney results were all normal. The only "abnormal" results were the slightly elevated albumin and globulin readings.  


So the vet said we can only re-interpret the results after the urinanalysis came back. I went home and found Indy waiting for me at the gate, something he had never done before....

So, how are my test results?

It's "ok", Indy, but we need to wait for one more test results later today, ok?

And Indy went back upstairs to the shrine room to wait all day.

That afternoon, the vet called and I went back for the urine test results.

Based on just those results, it was supposed to be good news as the lab tests showed no presence of protein and the specific gravity was normal (which suggests the kidneys are working fine). But the earlier test at the lab had shown the presence of protein, so this still created some doubt - now, which is the correct? The one done at the clinic with the less-reliable test kit? Or the one done at the lab after a few hours where the protein in the urine could have disintegrated? 

We don't know.

But the recommendation now, based on both the blood test and urine test results would be, actually, to do nothing.

But as usual, we always want to do "something".  

So, what are the safe "somethings" that we could do, I asked?

1. Put Indy on Royal Canin Renal.

2. Give him Omega-3 and Omega-6.

3. Repeat the blood and urine tests in 5-6 months. 

The vet too did not think this was going overboard as Indy did have a bad start in life (found inside drain with severe infections and almost did not survive), and he explained that each time we get sick, it takes a toll on our life and shortens our lifespan. 

So, I wasted no time in purchasing the Renal food and I had already bought the fish oil earlier. 

Indy liked the food (thank goodness!) but absolutely HATES the fish oil. 

As though he could read my mind, after that, he no longer sat in the shrine room, but sat with me in my room instead, which is something he normally does not do as the alphas get my room. Indy's place is always on top of the car in the porch.

Things are normalising back now, and Indy sits on the car top again.

I can only hope that Indy's elevated globulin levels (which is the only worrying reading from his tests) is some "freak" incidence. Excess globulin will eventually lead to kidney damage, the vet said. But nobody can pinpoint what causes the globulin levels to rise. Apparently, even taking antibiotics or vaccinations can cause an increase in globulins, but this is temporary. 

I heard that some people boil misai kucing in water and feed it to their cats with kidney problems, and in some cases, it works. But with herbal remedies, we do not know the concentration or dosage unless studies have been done, verified and documented. So if we opt for these, maybe moderation would be a wise option? I don't really know... Too little might not work, too much might kill? Being moderate might not have any effect? What works for humans might be deadly to animals, and vice versa? 

Life isn't easy, is it?

Maybe the best prayer ever would be to pray that we are all in good health, humans, animals and all other beings.  

Disclaimer: I only heard about misai kucing and am in no way recommending it to anyone. Please consult your vet for proper advice.