Rubenal Supplement?

[Guest EmergencyOps]

Our senior gal had bloodwork done during a teeth cleaning back in March. Her kidney values were up; apparently she was "bleeding protein" into her urine? She was prescribed a low protein diet. We did follow-up bloodwork this past month, only do discover those values (Creatinine) had increased. The Vet (who has experience with Greyhounds) said we should try Rubenal. It is relatively new, but allegedly has shown good results in some cases. It is a "nutritional supplement for supporting renal function in dogs. Slows progression to End Stage Renal Disease."

 

Has anyone had any experience with it? We are on Rubenal 300. One tablet is given twice daily. We just want our girl to be happy and healthy; according to my wife, kidney function is not something you can gain back after losing it.

[greyhead]

I don't have experience with Rubenal, but I do have some experience with cats & dogs & kidney stuff. One of our dogs takes rehmannia to keep his iffy creatinine in line, and it works. Give me a minute and I'll check a forum for chronic kidney failure and see if it's mentioned. I'll get back to you.

[greyhead]

http://www.felinecrf...nts.htm#rubenal

 

This is a link to a discussion of rubenal on an excellent feline kidney info site. I recommend it. One thing it mentions is the phosphorus content, and it suggests you monitor that level in your animal.

 

There is also mention of it, though not a lot of outcome information beccause it's so new, on the K9KIDNEYS group on Yahoo. That would be a great forum for you to join and you should get right to it, because you have to be approved by the moderators before you can participate actively.

 

Wishing you greyt luck in keeping your pup as healthy as possible!

Mary

 

ETA: Let me just add that going to a low-protein diet is the old, traditional response to this. However, it was discovered later that going to very low protein too fast actually makes things worse overall and is best saved for much later in the progression of the disease. I know your gal is leaking protein, so maybe this is a good move for her. But not all vets are equal in their knowledgeability about kidney disease. You might want to consult an internist about this if it's within your means, or perhaps Dr. Couto for free.

Edited September 29, 2010 by greyhead

[Guest EmergencyOps]

I don't have experience with Rubenal, but I do have some experience with cats & dogs & kidney stuff. One of our dogs takes rehmannia to keep his iffy creatinine in line, and it works. Give me a minute and I'll check a forum for chronic kidney failure and see if it's mentioned. I'll get back to you.

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[Guest EmergencyOps]

[Mis-keyed earlier reply]

 

Thanks for the links. We had read somewhere on here about the over-tendency to prescribe low-protein foods...and that some Vets don't really look at Greyhound blood values differently than most other breeds (hers were high for a Grey). We got her off the Science Diet K/D in favor of a better-quality OTC food with only a little more protein. Plus...even though the food costs more than most foods, it is still MUCH cheaper than K/D.

[greyhead]

We got her off the Science Diet K/D in favor of a better-quality OTC food with only a little more protein. Plus...even though the food costs more than most foods, it is still MUCH cheaper than K/D.

I hear ya! I've had problems with Science Diet too numerous to even mention here. Had better luck with low-residue foods made by others, like Eukanuba, when we had this issue with cats.

 

As to dogs, we don't use SD either. Like you, we get OTC stuff for our IBD dog (because he can't have chicken, and the prescription diets all have chicken!) and for our dog with the elevated creatinine.