Devastated. Kidney disease, please advise

[spottea]

So, I took Piko to the vet on Wednesday, for the third time in as many months. Not eating etc. This time, he drew labs and the results came back as high PO4, which is indicative of renal disease.
He was surprised as he thought she looked pretty good, although she'd lost weight of course. I'm shattered, and feel helpless, guilty, heartbroken.
I'm to try Mylanta 1 drop twice a day, which is a phosphorous binder, and he said she will either improve or not, but I don't know how long it will take, if it works at all.
I've been working so hard to try and get her to eat,,ordering silkworms, growing dubias, mantis', flies, crickets, all for nothing. I don't want to go anywhere for long anymore, just stay home and watch her.
She is happy to be outside again in her cage, after two days cooped up in the bathroom because of the excessive heat in Socal, and she did some white urates for me, which made me happy.
Also, I will keep up with the Repta boost, which she quite likes, after I've tricked her into drinking.
Any advice welcome. Just don't yell at me, I'm pretty fragile right now.

 

[carol5208]

Why would we yell at you? Sounds like you love your chameleon and are doing everything to help her. Any ideas as to what caused the renal failure? What is your supplementation schedule been like and for how long?

 

[spottea]

No, no idea what caused it. My vet was surprised, he thought maybe she had an infection or something. When she was eating, I would supplement with plain calcium a couple of times a week, vitamins once a month, and calcium with D a couple of times a month. As she lives outside I was always a bit nervous about the CA with D because of all the stories on here about edema etc.
The vet, who is a well known herp vet round here, did say he sees it a lot, even in 6 month old chameleons, with no apparent cause.

 

[croastbeast]

Are you seeing any edema or swelling?

 

[Djturna4thakidz]

I am sorry to hear about your cham. Could you post pictures of her enclosure?

 

[werecat]

I'm sorry you got bad news about Piko. I was really hoping she would turn around and I still am. You don't have to feel guilty. I know you take very good care of her and love her very much. I hope the Mylanta helps her and I'll keep you in my thoughts!

 

[spottea]

Thank you werecat, for your kind thoughts. I'm hoping that she gets better too, I haven't given up yet!
No edema seen yet, and she really doesn't look any different. She did in fact pass some urates while stuck in the bathroom over the weekend. That surprised me.
She was pleased to get back outside, and tomorrow I'm going to get her out for some shrubbery time, as that is her favourite thing to do. It's also her favourite place to poop!

 

[laurie]

I am sorry to hear that sad news. The way you have always cared for her, and tried so hard to keep her happy, I can't believe anyone would blame you. You have taken trips to the vet, I just don't see anything else you could do.

Does anyone on here need to see your cage, lights, supplements etc? No, all we need to do is offer support and hope your girl turns around. We are here for you.

 

[Carlton]

No, no idea what caused it. My vet was surprised, he thought maybe she had an infection or something. When she was eating, I would supplement with plain calcium a couple of times a week, vitamins once a month, and calcium with D a couple of times a month. As she lives outside I was always a bit nervous about the CA with D because of all the stories on here about edema etc.
The vet, who is a well known herp vet round here, did say he sees it a lot, even in 6 month old chameleons, with no apparent cause.

Sometimes things just happen despite great care. I had a beautiful cbb fischeri from the Kammers who should have had the best quality of life...parents were well cared for, his siblings were fine and we all were keeping them basically the same, I'd kept fischeri before, etc etc. He ended up dying of renal failure at just about a year old. The necropsy showed a lot of scarring and necrotic kidney tissue that may have resulted from an infection. There would have been very little we could have done for him.

 

[sandrachameleon]

So, I took Piko to the vet on Wednesday, for the third time in as many months. Not eating etc. This time, he drew labs and the results came back as high PO4, which is indicative of renal disease. ..... Any advice welcome. Just don't yell at me, I'm pretty fragile right now.

Youre obviously doing all you can, so my advice is not to blame yourself, and keep hopeful, keep trying what you are trying and keep her hydrated.

 

[bugboy]

Sometimes things just happen despite great care. I had a beautiful cbb fischeri from the Kammers who should have had the best quality of life...parents were well cared for, his siblings were fine and we all were keeping them basically the same, I'd kept fischeri before, etc etc. He ended up dying of renal failure at just about a year old. The necropsy showed a lot of scarring and necrotic kidney tissue that may have resulted from an infection. There would have been very little we could have done for him.

I agree wholeheartedly, sometimes there is virtually nothing you can do. How old is she approximately? I lost my male Jackson to a similar fate, despite being hydrated constantly. He passed around a year and a half of age. My vet told me my boy had the highest uric acid content he'd ever seen in any animal he'd ever worked with. He also told me this animal was "the healthiest dying chameleon" he'd ever seen. Contrary to your situation, my female lived as long as a female should, at around 2 1/2 years of age before I made the decision to put her down.

You can offer them the best life possible, but sometimes fate calls the shots. No one here will tell you that you've done nothing to help her, and if they do then that's their problem. Good luck with her.