Senoir cat on a special diet/medication losing weight

Question
Hi,
I have a 13 year old mixed breed little cat. Last year she started having kidney and constipation issues. She is eating renal health vet food with renal advance mixed in twice a day, also laculose twice, and bupanorifine once a day. Her health as far as health issue have gone well. She just got back her blood and uranalyisis tests which she gets every 3 to 6 months depending on results, and everything looked good.

My question is if you have any advice on helping her to gain some weight back. By stature she has always been a small cat (actually alot of people mistake her for a kitten) but since all the diet changes she is now bone rack thin. The vet doesn't seem to concerned. But she's just so thin. She eats about 3/4 of a can of the wet food per day. Changing the food is also not really an option.

Any suggestions would be much appreciated,
Jade

Answer
Hi Jade,

Unfortunately, muscle wasting is one of the first signs of kidney disease. Protein is lost in the urine, and the body "borrows" it from the muscles to keep more essential body functions running. Sadly, most of what's lost from the muscle won't be replaced, even if kidney values are stabilized. But your cat may benefit from a medication that helps reduce proteinuria (loss of protein in the urine). Most of the time, this is an ACE inhibitor, such as enalapril. Your vet can prescribe this for your cat. This should prevent further muscle loss.

Good luck!
Jessica