Need knowledge on possible kidney failure in dog?

I posted about my dog being anemic. Took her to the vet (just thought it was severe case of fleas) when they did her blood panel she was at 7 percent. That was bordering on having a transfusion. Vet said she had regenitive blood. Which means her blood was already repairing itself and a transfusion can cause problems so we opted against it. After a week she had not gained any weight so we took her back. Her new blood panel showed she was at 20 percent (normal is 35) so she is doing great building her blood back up. She has not gained any weight at all. First time she weighed 5.13 pounds when we took her back she weighed 5.11 pounds. She eats but just not like we want. She has ulcers in her mouth and occasionally has bad breath so the vet says she has kidney failure. I have to take her back in a week with a urine sample as long as she doesnt get worse. She acts perfectly normal just not a big appetite. Its like she has trouble chewing. I thnink its something with her teeth (her baby fangs never fell out so she has double fangs) but the vet thinks otherwise. Does anybody have any experience with kidney failure that they can tell me signs and symptoms? Looking it up online doesnt help b/c she doesnt have any of the symptoms. Shes not excessively thirsty or lethargic. Nothing she barks, drinks, eats a little, wags her tail we just cant get her to gain weight. Hes got her on something to help coat her stomach and on pepcid for the ulcers. Shes only 3 so shes young. Im doing everything i can to help. I bought a bunch of different brands of food to find what she likes best and feed her whatever i can get her to eat. Im just at a loss and frustrated b/c the vets wont listen to me. I go to a clinic that has 5 dif vets working there and am very happy except for confusing cases. They jump to wanting to put the dog to sleep instead of taking the time to definitely get a diagnosis. Thanksthey say its her kidneys b/c of the bad breath and ulcers on her jowls. They tried to express her bladder at the vet but it was empty so that's why I have to go back in a week with a urine sample. They did a basic blood panel this trip and didn't find any thing that when they told me her blood had rebuilt to 20%. They ran a full blood panel the first trip and noticed a slight infection so they had her on broad spectrum antibiotics for a week. They did not run a full blood panel the second trip b/c they want to see what her urinalysis is. They did not notice (or tell me anything) amiss her with her first full blood workup. They said there is no blood test that will tell anything about the kidneys that's why I have to get a urine sample. She is getting better everyday (more vocal more energy) from when she was anemic so we are hoping that once shes at 35% she will be back to normal. That's why this is so confusing. Shes not ACTING sick she just wont gain weight or eat lik

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that anemia is profound i'm surprised she's not dead. i've never seen a dog alive with a pcv of 7%. anyway, your definitive answer is going to require diagnostics. ultrasound, biopsy, blood chemistries, urinalysis. i didn't see anything in your post about what her creatinine and BUN amyl phos were? people always want to blame teeth when dogs don't eat but it's RARELY the case. 3 is young for kidney failure but some dogs are born with insufficient kidneys or develop polycystic kidney disease. there has also been a recent rash of toxic kidney failure due to food contaminants. also the blood parasite ehrlichia(which is what it sounds as if you had) can cause kidneys to fail. but if she doesn't have the classic signs what makes them call it kidney failure? what meds is she on?so, sorry to say nobody here will be able to tell you what is wrong with your dog. unusual cases require more expensive and involved diagnostic tools to diagnose. vets aren't psychics. good luck with your dog.is she on prednisone for the anemia? pred can cause digestive problems and ulcers. and antibiotics can cause loss of appetite. i would not even consider euthanasia if she is getting better every day. the urinalysis will tell you if there is infection in the bladder or kidney, it will tell you if she is throwing protein and if she's able to concentrate her urine. if her BUN and creatinine were normal on chemistry then they will be looking for glucose in the urine. glucose in urine without an elevated crea/BUN indicates the filters in the kidney have been damaged but that wouldn't cause the ulcers. the BUN has to be pretty high in the blood chem to start seeing mouth and stomach ulcers. idk what to tell you. it does sound very confusing. start with the urine and see what you get. i don't have the whole case in front of me but from what you describe it doesn't sound like kidney failure to me.

Other Answers:

• Idk, but if she has trouble chewing then you should feed her wet food
• Breath will have a stong ammonia odor. Dog won't want to eat and will become less active because of all the toxins building in its system from the kidneys not functioning. At age 3, its hard to believe it is kidney failure. The blood tests should confirm where it is kidney failure or not. Maybe go get a second opinion from another vet.
• Please sign up for the K- 9 Kidney disease group on Yahoo. They helped me a lot when my girl came down with it. Granted she was old, but they are a caring group and help with support, diets, etc. Best to you. Oh, my girl had a odor about her, like a metal smell.
• I consider feeding wet food and adding water to that. Most dogs can't resit wet food and the extra water is an added bonus. Blue Buffalo Freedom canned is a great canned option, grain free and a medium protein - healthy ingredients. Food is super important, I suggest a 4 or 5 star food on this website: http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/dry/ Food is what helps heal both dogs and humans a like, most kibble out there is only harming them. (Don't bother with vet prescription diets, they don't do much, have crappy ingredients, and are over priced) Keep up with daily exercise, for now do a minimum amount - say two 15 minute walks. Try to get her drinking water, leave it out, make sure it is cool and fresh. You can also add a supplement onto her dry/canned food: http://www.amazon.com/Milk-Thistle-Liver-Kidney-Supplement/dp/B0047MSHACConsider trying a new vet.
• If it is kidney disease you can put her on some natural remedies that will help her. I know because a friend of mine had her bull terrier on this stuff now. The vet told her that he would not live a week and that was 6 months ago. First Milk Thistle.-Get the capsules that you can open and then sprinkle on her food. Next Cranberry tabsEchinechea works wonders tooB12 will help to give her a boost in energy without harming her. My friends Bully never showed any signs of kidney disease except peeing a lot. They did the blood work and found it. We researched and decided to try this that we are doing now. Its been 6 months and the dog is doing great. And if nothing else none of the stuff I listed will hurt her in anyway. Its all natural stuff that is good for you. You can get all of this at Kroger.Oh and I should add that all of the stuff I listed will flush any toxins out of her system which will help her feel better.