Indicators of renal insufficiency in dogs and cats presented at a veterinary teaching hospital

Laboratory findings and clinical records were reviewed to obtain data on the use of renal function tests and the apparent prevalences of renal insufficiency in dogs and cats presented at the University Veterinary Centre, Sydney. Relevant data were available for 153 (of 989) dogs and 137 (of 437) cats presented in a six-month period. For these 290 animals, palpable renal abnormalities were found in no dogs and 18% of cats, dehydration in 5% of dogs and 7% of cats, azotaemia in 24% of dogs and 57% of cats, and urine specific gravity compatible with primary renal insufficiency in 56% of dogs and 55% of cats. Combining these data, indications of renal insufficiency from renal disease were present in 7% (11/153) of dogs and 20% (27/137) of cats. This corresponds to 1.1% of all. dogs and 5.8% of all cats presented during the study period.