My kitty isn't well, advice needed

[IceAlisa]

One of my cats has been having digestive problems. I can't find the general pets thread so here goes. It's a bit gross so if you are squeamish, you should probably stop reading.











About 3-4 weeks ago he started pooping 2-3 times a day instead of every other day. It's loose and light colored exactly the color of Feline Pine litter. He is also constantly hungry and has lost some weight. He is four and is otherwise healthy.
The vet says it's likely a newly developed sensitivity to food. He was eating mainly chicken based Weruva and Tiki cat wet food. So we tried a new protein source, rabbit and he puked it all up.

Now I am trying fish and venison. I also got some pork-based food. The vet says it will take a few weeks for him to start feeling better.
I would also like to try CBD oil for cats for the inflammation.


Any experience with food sensitivity with your kitty? Please share.

 

[Garden Kitty]

The garden kitty developed a food sensitivity and he was puking a lot and scratching at his fur so much that he was chewing off patches of fur. He's been on a duck food only diet for a few years now and it's definitely helped. No more scratching and much less vomiting. But it's a strict prescription food and if he gets even a little taste of something else, he reacts to it. I feel bad that he has no variety in his food, but clearly his skin is less irritated now since he's not biting at his fur anymore.

I hope you find something that works for your kitty (it did take at least a couple weeks for the symptoms to go away after I started him on his restricted diet).

 

[IceAlisa]

The garden kitty developed a food sensitivity and he was puking a lot and scratching at his fur so much that he was chewing off patches of fur. He's been on a duck food only diet for a few years now and it's definitely helped. No more scratching and much less vomiting. But it's a strict prescription food and if he gets even a little taste of something else, he reacts to it. I feel bad that he has no variety in his food, but clearly his skin is less irritated now since he's not biting at his fur anymore.

I hope you find something that works for your kitty (it did take at least a couple weeks for the symptoms to go away after I started him on his restricted diet).

Thank you and I am so glad garden kitty is doing well. That's what the vet said, takes a few weeks for the symptoms to go away. Fingers crossed for venison.

 

[meer]

My cats had these issues and I got sensitive food (single protein if you can no shell fish) or a limited ingredient food and Purina FortiFlora Probiotic that seemed to clear it up. Might try Slippery Elm as well. Make sure the kitty is all dewormed, but I'm sure the vet made sure of that.

Good luck with your kitty. I hope something works.

 

[IceAlisa]

My cats had these issues and I got sensitive food (single protein if you can no shell fish) or a limited ingredient food and Purina FortiFlora Probiotic that seemed to clear it up. Might try Slippery Elm as well. Make sure the kitty is all dewormed, but I'm sure the vet made sure of that.

Good luck with your kitty. I hope something works.

Thank you. We did talk about the possibility of parasites but it's unlikely as they are strictly indoor. It's on the table if replacing the protein doesn't help.

 

[Japanfan]

Aw, poor kitty.

Let us know if he is doing better and hopefully picking up a few pounds, Ice Alissa.

Pet thread is here:

https://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/th...rom-cats-to-toads.99282/page-104#post-5553144

 

[IceAlisa]

Oh and it's not diabetes, I am fairly sure because he doesn't drink much and doesn't pee more than usual.

 

[Japanfan]

It's good that diabetes isn't the issue.

I knew someone who managed to keep a cat with diabetes alive for a number of years, but we didn't have the same luck with our diabetic cat. We did manage to keep a dog with diabetes alive for four years, though we were sure she was down for the count on a number of occasions. And lucky to be at home to administer syrup on the rare occasions when her blood sugar crashed.

But we failed to properly regulate the cat despite giving it our very best effort - it was harder to give him shots than it was with the dog - and sadly lost him just a few months after diagnosis.

 

[vireo]

I had a cat with food sensitivities. He would do better when I switched him to a new protein source, then after a while develop a reaction to the new food. Bison meat was the food he tolerated best and for the longest period of time. I cooked ground bison for my kitty, just as one would cook hamburger.

You didn't mention if your vet has done a blood panel, but if your kitty's thyroid levels haven't been checked, you might want to consider it. The frequent pooping and weight loss could be symptoms of hyperthyroidism.

Hope your cat feels better soon.

 

[IceAlisa]

I had a cat with food sensitivities. He would do better when I switched him to a new protein source, then after a while develop a reaction to the new food. Bison meat was the food he tolerated best and for the longest period of time. I cooked ground bison for my kitty, just as one would cook hamburger.

You didn't mention if your vet has done a blood panel, but if your kitty's thyroid levels haven't been checked, you might want to consider it. The frequent pooping and weight loss could be symptoms of hyperthyroidism.

Hope your cat feels better soon.

The vet didn't mention hyperthyroidism but thank you, I will keep it in mind! I should email her about that.

 

[Jenny]

When I've had older cats with digestive issues, canned pumpkin worked wonders. Mix it in with their food, put a dab on their noses so they will lick it off, or get a fat syringe.

Another thing I read that helps humans and seemed to help a very elderly cat was apple cider vinegar. I'd put a teaspoon mixed into his water bowl and he'd lap it up.

Also recommend the bloodwork - pricey but often shows numbers that can help pin things down. Surprised the vet didn't suggest it.

We (as in me and the cat ) like Weruva canned food too, and for dry, our cat loves Orijin and I like that it's minimal on fillers and the always skary "meat and meat by products."

 

[Scrufflet]

Oh dear! We have 4 cats and were feeding them Royal Canin dry for sensitive tummies and Dick Van Patten's moist. Recently, a lot of barfing so we switched to Purina Pro anti-furball and BestFelineFriend. They sreemed happy. Then we added a probiotic, Fortiflora as one was having runny turds. It's all better but not perfect. I guess you just have to keep trying different things and persisting with the vet. So glad it is not diabetes.

 

[IceAlisa]

I've been using pumpkin which he loves but nothing has changed. Today is day 2 of venison. Fingers crossed!

Oh and his sister is still eating the chicken based Weruva and I noticed that halfway through the meal, they try to switch bowls. I have to police them. Thinking of getting two SureFeed bows but Winsie is such a wuss, it will take him a month to get used to the whirring.

 

[sk8pics]

I had a cat, Mickey, who was 13 when I got him. He started having accidents and puking a lot, and the vet put him on some medicine, which seemed to help, but then when he finished the meds, it started up again. I put him on a grain free diet and he never had another problem. So, you might try that and see if it helps. One caution is that some cats have trouble if their food is changed too quickly, so you might want to transition from one food to another instead of switching abruptly. (I’ve always switched abruptly and my cats have not had an issue, but I just wanted to mention it.)

 

[Scrufflet]

^^
Good advice about the food switching.

 

[IceAlisa]

Thanks everyone. My purrbabies don’t have trouble switching foods. They are adventurous eaters. I had to stop the potentially offending poultry protein cold because he lost weight and was headed towards being malnourished. I am thinking celiac disease but for cats and involving animal protein. He didn’t mind. He is begging less, and is acting less starved, maybe a good sign?

Fingers crossed!

Still going to ask the vet about the possibility of hyperthyroidism

 

[Aussie Willy]

Good luck with it. Hope puss will be okay.

When you wrote that puss was losing weight I was thinking diabetes but it is more drinking lots of water and peeing at lot that you have to worry about. My puss has been diabetic for about 18 months now. His diabetes is complicated by having Cushings Disease which was diagnosed because he has a enlarged adrenal gland. It does mean that he is on very high doses of insulin as well as Trilostane.

 

[Rob]

My Turkish has all kinds of sensitivities. Anything with cheese, egg, creamy looking gravy, she has the kind of poop you describe above. When I give her Cosequin for her arthritis, same thing. I have to give her 1/2 doses, every few days. If I put Frontline on her, her skin turns red and she gets bad poop. Fortunately, I can avoid all of the above. But I was considering raw diet for a while, not sure if that would help.

 

[IceAlisa]

My Turkish has all kinds of sensitivities. Anything with cheese, egg, creamy looking gravy, she has the kind of poop you describe above. When I give her Cosequin for her arthritis, same thing. I have to give her 1/2 doses, every few days. If I put Frontline on her, her skin turns red and she gets bad poop. Fortunately, I can avoid all of the above. But I was considering raw diet for a while, not sure if that would help.

That's an interesting point. What do people think of the raw diet? I don't trust myself to correctly "assemble the mouse" every time and risk malnutrition, and/or salmonella for the cats and my household.

 

[PrincessLeppard]

The pet food store where I bought Finley's food (since he had all kinds of food issues) has a whole raw food section and they would tell you how to do it properly. I tried it briefly with Finley, but he didn't like it, and then as the end neared, I just let him eat whatever he wanted. But pumpkin always cleared up whatever issues he was having; I'm sorry it didn't work with your kitty. And best wishes for him and hope he's improving.

 

[Aussie Willy]

I give my kitty raw chicken and occasionally chicken necks for his teeth. Because he is ravenous due to the diabetes and cushings he eats everything. But I supplement it with a small tin of one of the better foods. I buy quite a few fillets, cut them up and put them in the freezer. Just take them out a couple of days before I use them. He has very few dietary problems and chicken is good for them because of the protein.

 

[Japanfan]

What do people think of the raw diet? I don't trust myself to correctly "assemble the mouse" every time and risk malnutrition, and/or salmonella for the cats and my household.

SFAIK, the raw food diet is considered best for dogs and cats. But it is extremely expensive.

We don't feed raw, but instead use a high quality kibble (Acana, second tier of the Canadian brand Orijen, produced by Champion). And that is quite expensive as well.

 

[IceAlisa]

The pet food store where I bought Finley's food (since he had all kinds of food issues) has a whole raw food section and they would tell you how to do it properly. I tried it briefly with Finley, but he didn't like it, and then as the end neared, I just let him eat whatever he wanted. But pumpkin always cleared up whatever issues he was having; I'm sorry it didn't work with your kitty. And best wishes for him and hope he's improving.

I am sorry Finley is gone. I remember you talking about him through the years. Hugs.

My Winsie (Mini Ice invented this nickname for Winston, pronounced Win-zee) seems to be less hungry and a little bit better in the poop department, so hopefully this means we are on the right track

 

[Rob]

I didn’t do the raw diet for the same reason as you, making sure there was taurine, right balance, etc.

 

[IceAlisa]

I am cautiously optimistic. My purrbaby boy seems to have a bit more flesh on his bones and isn’t begging nearly as much. So it seems the venison is getting absorbed.

My purrbaby girl needs a kitty dentist but they are booked until June in three places in the Bay Area I checked. It’s urgent because she’s broken off part of her canine and if we want to save it, she needs to be seen sooner...

 

[Japanfan]

Is there an emergency animal hospital in the area? I would think there must be.

The cost is of course, but it's emergency service.

 

[MacMadame]

I didn’t do the raw diet for the same reason as you, making sure there was taurine, right balance, etc.

There isn't actually any scientific evidence to support that though. It's definitely popular these days and people make all sorts of claims about raw diets but they don't have good studies to back up those claims.

 

[IceAlisa]

Is there an emergency animal hospital in the area? I would think there must be.

The cost is of course, but it's emergency service.

Emergency hospitals do not have a vet dentist on duty. But there’s an animal hospital where I am on waitlist. I am thinking of contacting the medical director and explaining my situation and why it’s medically necessary for her to be seen sooner.

 

[Karina1974]

There isn't actually any scientific evidence to support that though. It's definitely popular these days and people make all sorts of claims about raw diets but they don't have good studies to back up those claims.

Raw is more species-appropriate than kibble and even the vast majority of canned foods.

And keep in mind that most food studies are funded by the pet food companies themselves, so they will be extremely biased against raw.

My favorite sources for feline nutrition info:

catinfo.org
feline-nutrition.org