Holistic Treatment for Kidney Disease in Dogs

By: Ellie Hansen

When a senior dog is diagnosed with kidney disease, it is easy to fear what may lie ahead. Traditional or conventional veterinary medicine has little to offer other than prescription diets which are lacking in the nutrition a dog with kidney disease actually needs.

My beagle Marty was diagnosed with kidney disease last year. He is now 14 years old. I admit, I was afraid of what this meant for him. He showed no symptoms other than drinking more water than my other dogs. However, his bloodwork showed that his kidneys weren’t functioning properly. Understanding the seriousness of this diagnoses, I decided to reach out beyond the conventional veterinary resources available to me in Billings and booked a remote consultation with a holistic veterinarian in North Carolina who is highly trained in Traditional Chinese Medicine and natural healing for pets.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is thousands of years old. Its basic concept is that a vital force of life, called Qi, surges through the body. Any imbalance to Qi can cause disease and illness. This imbalance is commonly thought to be caused by an alteration in the opposite and complementary forces that make up the Qi. These are called yin and yang.

Balance between health and disease is a key concept. TCM treatment seeks to restore this balance through treatment specific to the individual. It is believed that to regain balance, you must achieve the balance between the internal body organs and the external elements of earth, fire, water, wood, and metal. (1)

Following a one-hour consultation over a Zoom call with this holistic veterinarian, we developed a treatment plan for Marty.

I wanted to share what I’ve learned with you, if not for any other reason than to give the reader hope that there is much that can be done to naturally assist the kidneys in doing their important job of filtering toxins out of the body. As a result of the supplements and foods listed below, Marty’s kidney values have all improved and he is a thriving senior dog.

Marty’s Tailored Diet and Supplements

Here is a list of what Marty takes every day:

*Please Note: Treatment plans are different for every dog.  The products listed below have been professionally prescribed for Marty. They are listed just as an example of what a holistic treatment plan looks like. These supplements are only available by prescription from your veterinarian, with the exception of Pet Wellbeing Kidney Support Gold and Adored Beast products which are all available over-the-counter at Lovable Pets.

 

SUPPLEMENTS:

• Traditional Chinese Herbs: “Eight Treasures” and “You Gui Wan”
• Phos-Bind for Pets
• Pet Wellbeing Kidney Support Gold
• Standard Process Canine Renal Support
• Adored Beast: Phyto Synergy, Fido’s Flora, and Healthy Gut

 

MARTY’S DIET:

• 1 Cup Answers Raw Goat Milk daily
• Answer’s Raw Diet—1/2 the recommended feeding amount on package
• Raw Green Tripe—replaces the raw meat as the other half of the necessary daily calories
• A bit of high-quality canned food for taste

 

You can also make your own food. To do this properly I highly recommend purchasing the book Yin and Yang Nutrition for Dogs by Judy Morgan, DVM. It has a whole chapter on kidney diets for dogs.

The most important thing for dogs with kidney disease is moisture, so it is important to never feed any dry kibble if possible. If you must feed kibble, be sure to soak it in a lot of water, bone broth, or goat milk.

 

References:

(1) https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/chinese-medicine