Greatly appreciated if any vets/ techs are able to comment on this!!! Will attach photos.
So my eldest dog Baxter ( 11 years old ) is a Shih Tzu x Bichon mix. He has had symptoms of diabetes or something going on for over a year but never showed “ medical signs “ so the vets said to wait it out. I stopped the urinalysis that I was doing every few months as nothing ever changed. Here we are over a year later. As if the past 2 months he has gone downhill. He tried to attack me the other night multiple times ( has always been reactive due to an incident when young but started thriving months ago on anxiety meds, has not attempted to bite since. ) I was trying to look at his skin and he was obviously in discomfort when I moved his one leg. Warning nip. He has patches on his ears, chin, feet, and underarm of raw skin, many spots look black. I decided to check them out more thoroughly as I noticed the past 2 weeks he has been nibbling at his one leg nonstop. Used to do it out of anxiety but has had no anxiety since the meds. Turns out he has a bump on the underside of this leg now ( suspected scab ) and is biting it open. It doesn’t look awful.
That being said, I sat down and put two and two together. The past few months he has been screaming at me whenever I go to get water, excessively thirsty. The past month he also started having urinary accidents in my room. Daily, nightly, around the clock. Now he has them multiple times a day. If he has more water and drinks as much as I will let him ( as he will stand and drink loads ) he will have nonstop accidents in my room if in there or around the house. He whines to me still to go, I think he can control it, but just constantly had the urge to go.
Fast forward. My vet tech friend recommended an at home urine test kit. I have an appointment scheduled for the end of this month ( soonest available ) and they are going to do a urinalysis and possibly other testing. As I won’t trust anything for certain unless it comes directly from their vet. But I figured these might give me peace of mind. Tested my other dogs also and some plain water and those were accurate.
The results, if accurate, do greatly concern me. I tested each urine output multiple times, followed the directions to a T, and tested his urine at different times throughout the day. A photo is attached of the most recent results and the most accurate as far as he hasn’t been drinking nonstop since I try to lessen it around bedtime.
The results from what I see; protein in the urine, ketones, and a concerning amount of something gravity? I had no clue what any of this means other than ketones and protein are not good. I did some research ( I know I know Dr. Google sucks ) and I have come to the conclusion that it all looks like possible kidney disease. It said the gravity whatever is often a telltale sign for kidney disease and indicates a further work up, and his are off the charts if I read it right/ high as high can be. Ketones I know are often associated with diabetes but every strip has shown perfect glucose so I am not concerned about diabetes. Again will let vet further evaluate.
what is your guys take? Can anyone read this test strip better than I can? Can someone elaborate on what these individual things mean and your assumed possibility for a diagnosis? If it is possibly kidney disease, what are the typical steps for care and the average lifespan? I want to know all the info I can get! Dos and donts food wise etc etc etc.
Thank you.