My vet was unhelpful. They just said she has an "upset stomach" whenever she vomited her food up. It was so many times. Then her sister passed unexpectedly and I learned it was from CKD. Finally they did blood work and found out that Black Kitty also has CKD and she's in stage 2. She vomited due to the kidneys having a VERY hard time processing her food. Eventually they put her on a food diet and she refused to eat it. Cats can be very stubborn no matter how you try to wean them into new foods and she was already small (due to a surgery) and due to muscle loss from her kidneys being very weak. My vets had no alternatives and said just let her eat what makes her throw up.I found out about Epakitin and I credit Epakitin for giving me an entire year more with her. If I didn't learn about this option myself so she would be willing to eat like normal WITH this mixed in, I probably would have lost her earlier than this due to massive weight loss from constant vomiting and destroyed kidneys at a much faster pace that an 18yr old cat would have. This helped her process what she was willing to eat without vomiting and making it easier for her tiny, fragile of old age body.I just lost her today and thought I should write this review for anyone else wanting more time with their beloved pet. I miss her tremendously.
Vet prescribed for my furkids with kidney issues. Seems to be helping.
My cat has kidney disease. When I was searching for something for her to eat, because she doesn't eat kidney food that was prescribed for her. i know she loves fancy feast she has eaten it all her life. I read it doesnt have phosfurus. So I looked on here to find what I could put in her food. I read the positive reviews on this product. Tried it. She loves it & will eat it. She doesn't eat enough of her canned food. The dry food is helping her feel better
—Have two 14 yo cats with Stage One CKD. After 11 months of Epakitin, there has been no change in their blood Creatinine and BUN levels. They don’t mind the small amount of Epakitin in every wet meal they get. I mix it thoroughly to bind more Phosphorus in the ‘high normal’ protein can food, and I stopped giving the kitties any kibble food (with the exception of occasional crunchy treats) - due to toxins being formed during high heat production. Low phosphorus helps protect the damaged kidneys.About 10 months ago, I started giving my cats Azodyl probiotic capsules which seed their intestines with bacteria that break down protein, supposedly leading to less toxic protein derived byproducts in their blood - like urea, creatinine, uric acid, and ammonia.Despite the good news from the lab results, my cats’ appetites have been increasingly (but slowly) waning. They are eating less, and sleeping more which is probably what most cat owners see in their senior cats anyway. Still sad seeing them not interested in playing with their toys and more interested in staying warm. CBD Oil (no THC) and Electric pads wrapped in soft towels keep them and their joints more comfortable.
I think it gave me extra years with my cat. I was told Coot’s levels were elevated and we were looking at pre-kidney disease when she was about 15 years old. She hated the prescription foods so I tried Epakitin mixed into her usual food every day. She passed at 18 years old due to cancer, and her kidneys had outlasted all expectations. She remained quite healthy up until the very end.There’s no way to know for certain what would have happened without Epakitin, but I think it was well worth it.
My dog is eating and doesn’t seem to notice that it has been added to the food.
Great
My dogs normal kidney meds are on backorder. These worked just as good for her.
I am sure it works wonderful, but unfortunately my pup doesn't want to eat anything that touches this binder. I need to find a different brand that doesn't have smell or taste. Too bad. I'm writing this review not to say this product is bad, but to let other owners aware that your dog may not like the smell/taste of this.
Been using this product for years to assist in lowering the amount of phosphorus in cat food for my Chronic Kidney Disease kitty. While it' difficult to measure the effectiveness directly, his levels of phosphorus have been fairly stable. Product is consistent and mixes well with the food. Please consult your vet for consultation before beginning any new product. My personal vet , as well as many CKD cat sites, recommended this product in our case.
We have not had any tests yet to see how it's working, but I wanted to let people know the spoon is too small for the jar. One fix I found is to push the end of the spoon into a straw and cut the straw off, so it adds an extra 1/2 inch of length, works like a charm
My 16 y/o childhood dog’s health suddenly and very rapidly declined from September to November. She went from jumping 10 inches off the ground for food, to barely being able to stand. I was almost ready to say goodbye but decided to take her to the vet to see what our options were. She had ridiculously high kidney BUN levels and was diagnosed with stage 3 kidney failure. The vet recommended this, omega 3 oil, and prescription Hills Science Diet. 2 months later, she is still wobbly, but it looks like the life has returned to her eyes and body. She has enough energy to wag her tail and perk her ears, walk in the yard, and even go down the steps. It’s very easy to add to her food, she hasn’t had any aversions to it at all. I still need to get her bloodwork done to see if the values are lower, but by the amount of energy that has returned, I can assume they are.
It seems to be helping with my 16 yr old corgi mix. He hasn’t had too many accidents since he’s been taking this. Before he was having accidents about 2 - 3 times every other week. We’ve been giving him the recommended dosage for about 4 months now and he’s only had one accident.
The bottle is deeper than the product and as you use it the stem of the plastic scoop is too short for the contents. The company should add more length to the dispenser .. not sure why they use such a large container for so little product and such a short "scoop" making it difficult to product out of the container. A short and more rounded container would be more appropriate. Perhaps they use the larger bottle to try & justify the price & look like more product is there. It is a good product for the cat that has Kidney issues. I recommend it regardless of this inconvenience.
Back in Sept of 2021 I found this through some internet research because my vet at the time had no real alternatives other than changing to specific food but she wouldn't even sniff that stuff. She hadn't eaten in somewhere around a week and was only drinking water. The day before this and the azodyl showed up she wasn't even drinking water.So I got one of those oral syringes and gave her basically a tablespoon or so of water roughly every hour. And thankfully my intuition paid off. By the end of the day she was drinking water on her own again.After giving her this product combined with azodyl for 2 or 3 days she started eating again.Because of the illness she had become such a picky eater that I ended up using the mouth syringe option mixing it with water twice a day with her wrapped in a towel.This stuff worked absolutely great for her. The only trouble was that she was more suspectable to infections that her body couldn't fight off because of the kidney disease. I put her in the hospital one time. And she came out fine. That was the only hospital stay I could afford though. But we somehow got more connected and close the last 6 months before her next infection than we had in the past years and I am so glad I did it because it was the best and we loved each other more than ever. She was about a month shy of 17 when I had to say goodbye to her in January of 2024.With the help of this product and the azodyl I got just shy of 2.5 more years with her after her initial diagnosis.She was just borderline on her blood test numbers by the way but didn't do well without some help.I am so glad that I got the extra time with her. Her name was Georgetta and she was a very beautiful soul and now one of my guardian angels.
I have a 2 year old tabby. He wasn't acting like himself. Vet said his blood work showed Phosphorus at 30 should be < 7.5!! HIs BUN was high over 300 too. They suggested I put him down as he was in Renal failure. I decided to take him home flush with fluids 2xs a day 100 in am 50 pm for a week. His appetite slowly came back with BeechNut Natural Beef flavor baby food jar sometimes thinned out with a little water. I started adding Epakitin to his food as directed for a 6# cat which was half the scoop with am meal other half pm. I also added a little for any snacks as he needs to gain weight. Some days I give him more than one scoop depends. This was in January 22. I haven't gotten his blood tested again yet b/c he's hasn't gained enough weight but at least he's eating and acting more like himself again. We're not out of the woods as you know Kidney disease in cats a tough one to maintain. But we have a little more time with him and he's not complaining either! My 15yo cat is pre-kidney disease so he gets a small sprinkle on his wet food as a pre-emptive strike against CKD. I don't think the cats can taste it so it goes well with any food just mix well. Avoid dry food if your cat has CKD. Good luck!Ok so a quick update here since I forgot to mention some other things I did to help him. So, a year later (Jan 23) my cats is fine! Eats and drinks regularly! Gained weight back! The appetite stimulate prescribed called Mirataz was awful and made him more wired and but could not eat. This is the 2nd cat that Mirataz transdermal did NOT work at all for. Vet suggested another med that works on different pathways its called Ondanesetron. I knew I could not pill him so I asked if it could be compounded. BTW they can compound just about anything. I got the script filled at a local pharmacy. Within minutes of giving this to him orally thru a syringe he was looking for food. And that is how I got the Epakitin in him. I don't give him Epakitin anymore unless he starts withdrawing. Epakitin will get those high numbers down! Hope this helps you with your baby!
I wanted to follow up on this because it has added a year of quality life for my dog Annie. Our vet told me last year that Annie's kidney function was too diminished for effective treatment. We treated her symptoms only; acid reflux, vomiting, some nasal congestion. Basically we tried to keep her comfortable while she died. I did some research and discovered Epakitin. Because of it's ability to transfer the protein load of dog food to the intestines, rather than having it go through the kidneys, Annie continued to live, and has been far less listless. It is rare for her to vomit now. It is still often difficult to get her to eat. I don't think her nose is working all that well.What she has been eating consistently for two months is thin slices of cooked rare beef in organic Peach/Mango Salsa from Whole Foods. She also likes the Chipotle. I add some hot water to this along with some organic kibble and let the kibble absorbe it. I then mix in the Epakitin dose and stir. Then I let it cool and feed her. It takes patience. Before this she was skin and bones, hungry, and slept all the time.Annie has gained six pounds in the past two months, is delighted to be alive, and even tries to play. She just turned 16. I feel that Epakitin has given her the opportunity to go quietly, of old age, in her sleep. I am very grateful.Previous review:My old dog has diminishing Kidney function but a decent appetite. Epakitin takes some of the stress off of the kidneys by allowing protein to be excreted through the bowel instead of going through the already failing kidneys. I mix it with yogurt or a little cottage cheese to add to her meals. This makes life more comfortable for the dog . She is more interested in her life. Prior to this product she was listless and I believe she had a headache most of the time. While this is not a cure, it makes her end of life much more comfortable. She is back to being a happy dog.
Our big white kitty has been in kidney failure for a couple of years now, and this stuff has been her life-saver. At about 14 pounds and eight years, her VERY "cat like" attitude makes it quite difficult at times to tend for her; she won't allow claw trimming, combing, etc without major complaints and scratches.To ensure she gets her dose (little scoop 2x a day), and the other kitty doesn't get it instead - as sometimes happens when I mix it with food - I administer it to her with a baby syringe, like this Baby's Zone(TM) Clear Plastic 5ML Pipette Liquid Medicine Dropper.She gets such a 'boost' of feel-good from this, she actually comes and asks me for it, twice a day, like clockwork.. She sits patiently on a tall kitchen chair and watches as I measure out a scoop, put it in the bulb with a tiny salt & pepper shaker funnel, add a measured bit of warm water via the pipette part of the gadget, put them together, put my finger over the end and shake it all up good and then gently get her to open her mouth and let me squirt it in.For such a fussy kitty, her allowing me (ASKING me!) to give her this stuff is truly amazing. She has outlasted the Vet's prognosis by years now on JUST this product. It must be having a major effect every single dose, too - as indicated by how much better she appears to feel immediately after dosing. Dare I call it "cheering up"?I went out of state for a few weeks, and had someone take care of the kitties for me. They - of course - did not mention that they were not giving her the dose the entire time I was gone. I can't remember which excuse given as reason was more credible: 1) couldn't find it, or 2) she wouldn't let me. In any event, she was in pretty rough shape when I returned. A week of double-dosing her seemed to clear it all up, although I know it didn't help what is left of her kidneys one bit to go without this product. Even missing a day is telling with her, she goes into hiding mode.BUY THIS STUFF, and don't miss too many doses if you can. Kitty will reward you by living much, much longer and being much happier and comfortable.
Our 13 1/2 year old cat suffered a horrible seizure on June 23, 2014. The vet diagnosed him with a heart mummer and the beginning stages of renal failure. She put in on aspirin (a HUGE mistake because it made him SO sick and he had blood in his stool) and she changed his diet to Hills KD wet food, which he refused to eat. 3 weeks later, he was in what seemed to be complete renal failure and on death's doorstep. The vet wanted to put him down. I refused and told her to test his urine sample for an infection, which I brought in on my own for her to test. She fought me tooth and nail but finally gave in. Turns out, I was right. He had a horrible urinary tract infection. He also had high blood pressure which she had failed to initially diagnose so she put him on a daily dose of an ace inhibitor. She put him on antibiotics for the UTI and he did improve but was still very ill. After four rounds of antibiotics and a new vet, I read the post about the Ubiquinol CoQ10 under this Epakitin review. I purchased them both. The turn around was almost immediate. His appetite came roaring back and I started him on Earth's Best organic baby food (2 flavors... Vegetable Turkey Dinner and Sweet Potatoes which he eats constantly... BUT PLEASE NOTE: Be very careful of ingredients which are toxic for cats like onions, garlic and apricots) along with a morning meal of Boar's Head honey maple turkey. Our wonderful new vet isn't thrilled with his diet but she has to admit he is doing great so she says to keep doing what works. She gives him the 100ml. of Sub Q fluids once a week for free via a "tech appointment" with the fluids I purchase. I am delighted to say he is doing FABULOUS! His weight went from 3.6 lbs to 4.8 lbs since the beginning of August. His leg strength is almost completely back. He has mostly good days now but does need daily loving care. I sprinkle a little of the Epakitin in every serving of his baby food along with a pinch of MiraLAX which was recommended by the vet. I give him a small drop of Ubiquinol on his lip at night along with his blood pressure med. Overall, it's a combination of regular vet medication and care along with alternative supplements and lots of love. If your cat is in renal failure, please try the Epatikin and CoQ10 along with organic baby food. I hope this helps other kitties and their families who love them.