Annie, I used to have those leg cramps, but it was every month when I had my period. In the 1970's I started reading Prevention magazine, which was not the slick mag it is now, and they talked about calcium deficiencies. One part of it was caused by using non-fat dairy (which I used to do) and they claimed it was necessary for you to digest fat with calcium to utilize it. The other part was an imbalance of calcium, magnesium and phosphorous, caused in part by drinking diet soda (an excess of phosphorous in those drinks leaching magnesium and calcium from your system). I always struggled with my weight, so both those things were part of my diet. They claimed that even calcium supplements, if they contained phosphorous (if you had excess phosphorous intake from soda) would not help the imbalance and your body would not utilize the calcium. I don't know if it's true or not, but what I did cured my leg aches every month. I found a liquid calcium, magnesium supplement (without phosphorous) and began taking it, along with switching to 1% dairy. If I would run out, or get out of the habit of taking it, I would get these terrible aches in my legs at the onset of my period. I remember several times when my legs would start this terrible aching, during my 1 hour commute, stopping at a health food store to get my calcium and chugging a bit of it in the car, then continuing on my way home. By the time I reached home the aching had stopped. It happened enough times that I became a true believer in their theory. So, even if you take calcium, read up on the best kind to take, see if it contains magnesium and phosphorus and if you drink soda, try to find a supplement without the phosphorus. And if you use only nonfat dairy, try switching to 1% for some things and see if it makes a difference. Here is a link that might be useful: one article on calcium supplements

lee676, What I am about to tell you is going to sound a little unconventional, but because your experiences and symptoms are almost identical to mine, I would be very interested in talking to you directly. From what youve written here so far, I am almost certain your problems are much less associated with the serious mental illnesses you describe than you think. I too struggled mightily with irregular sleeping patterns, opiate dependency, ADD, back pain  the whole gamut. Every one of the problems youÂve described is related. I do believe you have a touch of an anxiety disorder, combined with a tremendous amount of repressed stress. The memory loss is almost certainly a byproduct of continued opiate use. Find yourself a doctor to prescribe "Subutex" or "Suboxone", and get off of that stuff as soon as you are able. It ainÂt easy, I know it  but these medications will elminate the physical withdrawal symptoms. The best way to rid yourself of anxiety (you will certainly sleep better when you do) is through education. All of the therapy in the world will get you nowhere unless you learn all about the physiology behind the disorder, why it happens, what is actually happening to your body, and the toughest one  why. I was able to overcome a severe panic disorder with these tools alone, and able to rid myself of back pain forever through the work of Dr. John Sarno. He has written several books on the subject, with the latest titled "The Divided Mind". IF YOU DO NOTHING ELSE, READ THIS BOOK. You have nothing to lose but $12 on Amazon or Half.com. It will change your life, and you will see yourself on every page. I too had a zillion half-finished projects  everything you described. It is all attributed to repressed stress. Once you learn to "think psychologically" and discover all of the reasons your mind is causing these problems, you will be able to quickly rid yourself of nearly all of your symptoms. I am not affiliated with this doctor in any way; I am just one of the thousands of patients that have benefited from his work. It is written in laymans terms, and you donÂt need a psychology degree to apply his theories. Reducing sugar, nicotine (all stimulants), improving your diet and exercising regularly are of course all-important pieces to the puzzle. Your mind cannot be healthy without the rest of your body in balance. The interesting part you will discover, if you read his book, is that the mind plays tricks on your body  when there are particular experiences your subconscious mind does not want to deal with, it will use a "triggerÂ, and take a past injury or malady that can mask the new physical symptoms that develop. Why is it that we accept life-long back injuries, but expect a broken arm to heal up, good as new? The back-pain industry is HUGE  and has become almost fashionable. Your pain and psychological symptoms are very real; but they are rooted in the psychological. Investigate this  you will find the solution. Please feel free to write me privately if you would like to learn more. devilz67

JJ, Renal failure is extremely common in elderly cats (and often in not-so-elderly cats). Unfortunately, it is as variable a disease as are the number of cats who endure it. There really are no "norms" where renal failure is concerned. There are cats who live for years after diagnosis, and there are cats who fail very quickly. The only thing you can "expect" with renal failure is the inevitable end. It is a terminal diagnosis. As lf mentioned, many of the symptoms of CRF are manageable. The keys to management of CRF are education and vigilant caretaking. You have already been given the URL to one CRF website, but the website which I consider to be the "CRF Bible" is linked below. If you spend as much time as possible reading through these sites, you will learn a tremendous amount about this disease, its associated ailments, and its management. There is nothing more important you can do for your cat right now than to educate yourself about CRF. To answer your questions, at-home subQ fluid administration is a critically important skill to acquire and practice. Your vet can and should teach you how to do the fluid administration, and the websites offer pictorial tutorials to reinforce the procedure and offer helpful tips that your vet might not mention. You'll probably find it a bit nerve-wracking at first, but you'll get the hang of it, and your cat will become more and more cooperative as you become more proficient. It really is a life-saving procedure that provides considerable health benefits to the CRF cat with negligible (if any) discomfort. Perhaps the most difficult aspect of CRF is that a cat's condition can change from day to day, sometimes hour to hour. A cat who is critically ill one day may rally to relative health the next ... or not. We CRF caretakers tend to hold out for the next rally because it's so difficult to tell when a bad day will turn around or when it really does mark the end. If your cat does require hospitalization at some point, you will just need to trust your instincts and your knowledge of your own cat to help you decide whether to give him a chance to rally or to let him go. I, too, have a cat who is in the early stages of CRF with slightly elevated BUN and CREA values. He's my fourth CRF cat, and I know that he could become critical at any moment, or he could live in reasonable health for years. I've been down this road before, so I know what to watch for. I'll be having bloodwork run on him every 3 mos or more frequently if he becomes symptomatic. When his brother developed renal failure a year ago, I couldn't get his condition stabilized and was having to run bloodwork every couple of weeks to keep up with his changing blood values and symptoms. Unfortunately, I lost Bitsy just 3 mos after diagnosis. My first CRF cat, though, lived quite happily for 4 yrs after diagnosis. That's how variable this disease can be. I know you must be feeling overwhelmed right now, and you'll probably feel even moreso once you start reading the CRF websites. Don't let all the info make you crazy. I had to read the same info many, many times before it sank in and stuck. Just remember that the more you know about this disease, the better you'll be able to manage your boy and keep him comfortable and reasonably healthy for as long as possible. I wish you and your cat the best, Laurie Here is a link that might be useful: Tanya's CRF Information website

Most important thing on any pet food label are not the ingredients but the actual nutritional analysis. These lawsuits are a dime a dozen. Animals get cancers, seizures and all types of illnesses for any number of reasons just like people do. I see a lot of people posting on these lawsuit sites that have dogs that are 12 - 15 u years old. Well sheesh those are senior dogs. Younger pets get sick too. Could be genetics, could be environmental,could be viral. People in their grief want something to blame. Pet food is a convenient scapegoat. I wonder how many of these owners gave their dogs people food. I wonder if they know that there are some foods that could be toxic to their pets that are perfectly safe for humans. What toys did their animals play with? Where were they walked? I've lost dogs to cancers. My last dog had a seizure a few months back. I didn't blame his food. he was old. It was his time to be helped across the bridge. I miss him but I sure can't blame his food. Beneful has a large market share due to its availability and price. So it gets more of the blame than a food less widely used. Just like China gets blamed for everything because a lot of things come from there. So people ignore all the US recalls on our organic produce and such and focus on Chinese products due to the sheer volume.