Renal K+ (Potassium Gluconate) Potassium Supplement Powder for Dogs and Cats, 3.5oz

Worked quickly on my dog. Our 16.5 y.o. yorkie was diagnosed in March 2016 with end stage kidney failure. Initially told, a few days, then after IV a few months. After much research we blended a protocol of mainstream treatment with herbal and botanical supplements. This included a special kidney safe diet (homemade), subcutaneous electrolyte fluids, Azodyl and Epakitin. Herbal and botanical included the Canine Kidney Care protocol from Five Leaf Pharmacy, Kidney Support Gold and crushed stinging nettle seeds. after 14 months, she is still here. Last weekend, she crashed, vomited and began to have watery loose bowel movements and became severely dehydrated, then had a 90 second long seizure. I administered 200 ML of electrolyte fluids to bring her back up a bit and then a 4 am dash to emergency vet. Her blood panel was really pretty good, all kidney levels were OK, especially considering her diagnosis. I noticed that her potassium was right at the bottom number for the normal range, in spite of receiving a large infusion of fluids that contained potassium, so I realized she was probably low. Caution is required because potassium levels in late stage chronic kidney failure are tricky, it's easy to get them out of whack because the body doesn't clear them well. I wanted to give her a bump to remedy the listlessness and weakness but also with the knowledge that too much, which can cause the heart to stop 8 (. I decided to get Renal K+ powder because I trust the brand and it is balanced with vitamins and nutrients to maximize effect. It's available as a flavored gel and a powder. I initially ordered the gel, then changed my mind for a variety of reasons. With the powder, it's much easier to control dosage, there is more product for the dollar and the powder was available next day, not several days later like the gel. After receiving the product, I read that it noted not for dogs with end stage kidney disease, so I was extremely conservative with it. For my dogs size, the recommended dosage is 2 scoops a day. Instead, I dosed 2/3 of a scoop and further split that so that I gave her 1/3 of the scoop in the AM and 1/3 in the PM. I mix it with unsweetened organic applesauce and she accepts it pretty well. My goal is only to raise her levels to the lower mid range of normal levels, no more. The first night, no improvement, same on day and night #2. As we went to sleep, we thought that the time may have come for us to say goodbye. She was not in pain, but was zombie like and so weak. This morning, I woke with a broken heart, thinking we only had a few more hours with our beloved little companion, but when I looked into the special box I had made to keep her safe at night during this illness, I saw her looking back at me with what looked like a little life in her eyes. Her energy and weakness were both better though also still there. She climbed the ramp to our bed, which was amazing since a few days earlier she couldn't even start the climb. She became much more aware and even engaged with us a tiny bit, nothing spectacular, but enough to confirm she was aware. I attribute this to the increased potassium level due to very moderate Renal K+ supplementation. This is not the only thing that I have been doing this past week for her, I addressed each of her issues individually and aggressively. Because she seemed to still be fighting, we also fought for her too. She is clearly making a comeback. Would recommend this product to anyone, but BE AWARE and BE CAREFUL with a kidney patient dog, because you could easily get the potassium levels to high, unhealthy kidneys can't regulate it well, so give a small dose, ease back when you see improvement and then get the levels measured to make sure.

One of my cats needs her blood work checked every year to ensure that her kidneys are functioning as they should. She does not have CKD (chronic kidney disease) but she does take two heart medications. Neither are a diuretic but her cardiologist wants us to just keep an eye on kidney function because heart and kidney problems can go hand in hand. Thankfully her kidneys are in working order but, her potassium was low. I asked our regular vet what could be the cause of the low number and she stated that it just sometimes happens. Well, we were "prescribed" Renal K but, the vet only had the choice of pills (horse pills) or the gel. I went with the gel because even though I can easily pill a cat, I was not going to try with a pill the size of my finger tip! The gel has an overpowering syrup smell. I knew for sure that she wouldn't like it straight from the tube and I was right. I was able to get her to eat it with strong smelling fish food but nothing beyond that. Since I rotate her food every day I needed another option. That's when I found the powder. This is SO much better than the gel and lasts a LOT longer! The powder does still have a strong smell but it's more on the fish side than sugary sweet. And I'm happy to report that her potassium level is back within normal ranger after switching the the powder.

My 12-year-old cat very suddenly went into kidney failure this past summer. His vet advised that his potassium level was dangerously low, and he prescribed Renal K+ in gel form. My cat hated it so badly, he would gag and retch when I squirted it in his mouth. He started running and hiding from me, and I couldn't stand tormenting him like that in his final days. I discovered the Renal K+ powder, and decided to see if it was more palatable. It took him some time to accept it, I think because he didn't feel well and had become suspicious of anything medicinal. After a few weeks, however, he accepted it, and now finishes his wet food without hesitation. It took a little trial and error to determine the appropriate daily dose for him, but I'm quite pleased to say that his most recent bloodwork showed that his potassium is back to a healthy level.

Renal K+ did a fantastic job for my cat and really visibly rescued her from low potassium scores. Be sure to consult your vet and DO NOT USE if a cat's potassium score is NOT low because too high of a quantity/score can kill a cat. But when scores are low, it makes a huge difference in energy, muscle tone, etc. My cat has kidney failure and I noticed the low potassium score and asked the vet about it. I'm so glad I did because the visible difference in her is huge. I give probably less than a tenth of a teaspoon per meal, just dipping the end of a standard plastic spoon into the product, leaving a shallow covering about a half inch up the back end of the spoon, and then sprinkling this little bit over the food and stirring it in. My cat is older, just over 10 pounds and also has IBD, requiring 6-8 meals daily, so giving this tiny bit with each meal spaces out the Renal K+ over the course of the day, which is the most effective way to use the product. It really works and is easy to use. She's had a couple of health challenges recently and we've kept using the Renal K+ while also adding potassium to her IV fluids. There's been no complaint about taste of the powder. I think it is likely tasteless. And the tub lasts quite a long time. I have no information about use for dogs.

UPDATE NOV 2022 - We have gotten an update on our cat's potassium level. When we had her on this product she was able to attain just 3.4 mmol/L which is low. With the prescription version, she is now at 4.0 which is at the low end of the normal range. There's little we can do to slow the chronic kidney disease progression, but at least for now she won't be weak and exhausted. UPDATE AUG 2022- This worked fine to tide us over briefly, BUT does not have adequate potassium for a cat with serious kidney failure. We are now switching to one of the prescription potassium supplements that has significantly more potassium - 468 mg per tiny scoop versus this one's 85.8 mg. The prescription kind is just pure potassium gluconate without the flavoring and yeast etc that this product has. Original review: As I write this, I can't yet report on its effectiveness (and will update) BUT - this is far more palatable to our cat than prescription-only RenaKare gel. Our cat was being treated for an illness when low potassium began to show up on her blood work, and her urine became dilute, and she was drinking more water, and peeing more. Yup, she was starting with chronic kidney failure, so common in older cats. Our vet prescribed RenaKare gel, and since we were already syringe feeding other meds twice a day, it was easy to incorporate the gel into the syringe routine. I'd mix the gel with an equal quantity of some runny cat treat like baby food or the food in a tube, along with her other liquid meds, nuke it 8 seconds to melt the gel into the food better, stir like mad, and then syringe it. Still, her distaste was obvious, and even syringing it in, there was a sad, squinched up face, head shaking and strings of spittle, and you knew she wasn't getting it all. Now that she is recovered from her other illness, the only meds she's on are a potassium supplement and a low dose of prednisolone (liquid compounded steroids). This stuff has made syringe-time much easier. She doesn't hate it like the gel, and you can see in her face that she's not suffering to get it down. I mix one scoop of this powder into about a teaspoon of runny cat food (our girl likes Churus) and maybe 8 drops of water, plus her liquid steroids. She still doesn't like being restrained and having syringes poked into the side of her mouth, but she tolerates it MUCH better. Consider the fact that any gel has more volume than a powder, so now we are shoving less stuff down her throat - it is fewer syringes, and less nasty, and goes faster. She then gets 2 syringes of water to chase it all down. We just started using this and have not had a subsequent blood test, so I cannot tell you if this stuff is as effective as prescription RenaKare gel. I'll update when we have her next blood panel done. I don't expect miracles because even before this, getting the gel twice daily, she was barely in the "normal" range. We need to keep her there or better. A few closing thoughts: - In using any potassium supplement, be sure your cat has *an actual potassium deficiency*, and get your vet's guidance on quantity to administer. A potassium supplement is NOT a general purpose pick-me-up, and can be dangerous to pets that aren't deficient. Consider: the active ingredient in this is potassium which is used in euthanasia to stop the heart. -Potassium can be harsh. I see people giving it mixed in water, and wonder if that's ok - I feel much better knowing our cat is getting it along with actual food as a buffer.

If you pet needs potassium this particular one is working very good with my fur baby.

So happy to not have to try and force the gel on my little cat. It does have a little smell to it but clearly some wet food is perfect to conceal it

This is a great product. Don’t bother with the gel for cats; the powder has a slightly fishy taste that my cats loved. I had to buy another brand when the supply chain had problems and it was out of stock everywhere, but luckily it became available then. I had my cats on it for the last 5 years of their lives and their potassium levels were great.