Why does a cat's kidneys fail?

What causes a cat's kidneys to fail and why is the problem difficult to diagnose in advance of the final stage?

Hi education1963,

Chronic kidney failure is one of the most common conditions affecting older cats. It's often a progressive disease, getting worse with time.

Chronic renal failure occurs where there is long-standing, irreversible damage to the kidneys that impairs their ability to filter and remove waste products from the blood. In most cases where chronic renal failure is diagnosed, the exact cause of the disease is unknown.

These are some causes of the kidney failure:
- Kidney disease (inherited)
- Kidney tumors
- Infections
- Other causes such as malformation at birth, damage to the kidneys by toxins.

The disease is so difficult to diagnose because the symptoms are not specific. Any symptoms the cat has can be caused by something else. Usually urinalysis is used to diagnose it, but in the final stages, blood concentration in the urine is low. This makes it even harder.

I hope this helps.