Indy responded really well after the first subcut of 250ml. His demeanour improved instantly and his appetite came back. It was really very encouraging.
Then, after 2 days (because the earlier instruction by the vet was 250ml on alternate days), I saw him go down again. So I figured he probably needs daily subcut to flush out the high level of toxins (creatinine and urea) from his body. The vet agreed, so now we are doing a daily subcut of 150ml.
But I still don’t see that improved wellbeing that I saw after the first subcut, so is his body falling back to what it was before or perhaps the 150ml per day isn’t enough.
This morning, I gave him 170ml.
The vet wanted to play it safe and start on a small dose because too big a dose might affect a cat’s heart, especially a geriatric cat.
I remember a long time ago, a senior vet told me the maximum subcut fluids that can be administered to a cat is 8% of their body weight. But most vets go with a maximum of 5%. But then again, another senior vet told me it should be much lower than that. A check online also shows conflicting views.
In any case, a healthy cat requires 60ml/kg per day. Indy is 4.5kg, so that means he needs 270ml of water per day for his hydration. But no, I’m not going to give him 270ml. That would be too much.
I’m thinking of gradually increasing it to 200ml first and see how he response. In any case, the revisit to the vet’s is next week.
His appetite is just so-so. It’s not fantastic, but it’s still better than before.
Subcut for today. 170ml. Tomorrow I will try for 200ml.
Mr Indy taking a nap.
Cleo’s appetite has improved after the subcut increased from 200ml thrice-weekly to 150ml daily.