FIV and excessive water drinking.

[hcstymie]

Does anyone have an FIV cat that drinks an excessive amount of water? Trying to find out if this is common and what it may or may not indicate.

My cat probably drinks as much water as 4 cats. Does pee a lot as a result. I add water to his wet food and he still pauses eating to drink more water. Eats a litte, then drinks more water. Drinks water when he is not eating too. Don't know if this might be something to do with his digestive system or maybe his kidneys. Vet doesn't know what it could be from after giving him an exam. We assume it is related to him being having FIV.

He does have a little bit of bloating of his organs which is typical for an FIV cat. His apatite is also down. Doesn't eat a lot at a time. About 10 yrs. old. Still likes to play and otherwise seams normal.

[booktigger]

Has the vet done a blood test to check for kidney issues or diabetes?

[bobbys girl]

Not noticed Bob drinking any more that the others - but then he is only four. Gracie slurps a little more than the others, but then there is more of her and it may be a sign that she is pre-diabetic.

As booktigger says I'm surprised the vet hasn't tested for diabetes or kidney problems.

[hcstymie]

The vet did a blood test and x-rays. It was a little over a year ago the last time so I forget the details. There were a couple things that were a little high but nothing that would explain his excessive water drinking. The vet does have an excellent reputation.

I do know it is more than an issue of dehydration. When I have had him at the vet overnight he has had the saline IV and was hydrated. Did have access to water although he didn't really drink I think. When he got home he acted as if he hadn't had a drink in days. Spent over an hour going back and forth to the water dish. Hasn't had any issue with being dehydrated when taken to the vet for normal visits. Has been a heavy drinker for as long as I can remember.

[bobbys girl]

Very strange that.

[fatoutandia]

It's really too strange to read through. I'll gather and share more information regarding this once I get from my vet. Thanks.

[Ehrmann]

It's really too strange to read through. I'll gather and share more information regarding this once I get from my vet. Thanks.

Mine does this too, literally drinks the entire bowl.

[hcstymie]

Very late in getting back to this post but the answers are found. The problem was kidney failure. The reason it wasn't diagnosed at the time is because it doesn't show up in regular blood and urine tests till about 65 to 70% failure.

I also add a lot of water to my cats wet food to keep them hydrated and avoid urinary tract problems. Plus most cats like it. So that might mask him not having to drink water as often till it got worse. It was a slow process over many years with him eating almost no wet food to more and more and then wet food was enough to not have to give dry food. Eventually drinking more and more water. Then drinking the more watery part of the food and leaving what settles out after I stir in the water. And finally not wanting to eat food, just drink water.

Knowing he was FIV added to the problem since it often affects cats in different ways and not always possible to tell what it is doing to them. Defaulting to FIV complications as an explanation without being able to find another. No way to determine if kidney failure was due to FIV, genetics, or something else. He was an outdoor cat for half his life.

When he was eventually diagnosed I had him kept overnight for 2 nights worth of treatments, his body unfortunately did not respond to it and eventually had to be put to sleep.

I have read mixed information about early detection kidney failure testing. If your cat drinks lots of water and no reason is found, try asking your doctor or a second opinion doctor about early kidney failure detection. Maybe they can shed more light as to if it is a reasonable next step for you or not.

[JamieD311]

My cat, which is 9 months old, was just diagnosed with FIV. She came from a colony of stray/feral cats. I took her because she was so little compared to all the others and I was afraid she was going to get hit by a car because they all lived on the side of the road. Anyways, she's been drinking tons and tons of water so it must be the FIV. It's sad they have it.

[hcstymie]

They seem too young to already be having kidney failure. FIV might be a what caused it in my cat, but can't know for sure. It also took years to progress.

I'd get your cat looked at. I think the issue would probably be something else for a cat that young. There is supposedly a test that exists for kidney failure that detects it at a much lower level of failure than the standard tests. I'd look into that if another reason isn't found.

I waited too long to have my cat put down. It was torture for him toward the end. Even with intravenous saline he could not get enough water and was constantly thirsty.

[booktigger]

There is definitely a test for early kidney detection it's called an SDMA (not sure what the initials stand for), it picked up my cats CKD 4 years this month, but I'd be very surprised if your cat had it at 9 months, young cats normally develop acute kidney issues and they are normally more sudden and severe than chronic