6 year old Morty isn't doing so well

Mrsty1203

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Unless they say what the most recent emergency vet said, "We cook our food, so obviously they need cooked food." She said this when I mention dehydrated/freeze dried treats and why she thought it was the reason Morty got sick...even though no infection was ever found. :rolleyes: After paying 4000 for a potentially unnecessary vet trip, the last thing I needed was to be blamed for it all.
Yeah, I’ll always respond to a vet with “you think they’re grilling rabbits out in the woods?”
 
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Morty Update:

Morty has been only eating home-cooked food for about 5 days now. At first he was a jerk and did his usual "I want something different" act. After the first day and a half he came around! He really was just holding out on me. The pork should be here Friday so I've been giving him mainly duck. Once the pork gets here I will try only giving him that single protein. I've been adding slippery elm to the cooked food in small amounts as well and I don't think he's noticed it.

We've been keeping Po in our room at night to help with his weight and to see how much Morty is eating overnight. Po has started throwing up white foam in the morning, but I think it's just because he usually snacks overnight and he may be getting some acid buildup after 8 hours. If it keeps up we'll get a timed feeder so he can have a snack at 3am or something.

Morty threw up a hairball and some acid today, and then did something I've never seen/heard. I'm not sure if the acid hurt him or if he was just really nauseous, but after throwing up he let out a number of low groans and looked like he was in some pain. Poor guy. I'm hoping his pain or nausea goes away soon, it's been about 30 min now, although the groaning stopped after the first 5 min. If it goes on more than a few hours I'll be giving the vet a call.

IMG-9180.jpg
 
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Okay that was fast, but he's already back to eating and playing. I guess he just needed a little bit to recover. The hairball wasn't really big or anything, but it's a bit worrisome since he is a short-haired cat. Back when he ate a lot of fish he used to get a lot of hairballs, but I assumed it was from over grooming. At least there wasn't any food in it this time.

I also forgot to mention two things in his update:

His sneezing/scratching/head shaking did get pretty bad a couple days ago. Interestingly enough, it was the same day that my allergies were picking up, so much so that I had to take a Benadryl. I think the tree pollen has been high in our area lately. Nonetheless he was about one sneeze away from an asthma attack. I gave him some homeopet drops and he seemed to get better when I moved him to the living room. Our windows are old and let a ton of air from the outside in, but there's nothing I can do about that.

Secondly, I did email Hound & Gatos and....they didn't return my email. Oh well.
 

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Okay that was fast, but he's already back to eating and playing. I guess he just needed a little bit to recover. The hairball wasn't really big or anything, but it's a bit worrisome since he is a short-haired cat. Back when he ate a lot of fish he used to get a lot of hairballs, but I assumed it was from over grooming. At least there wasn't any food in it this time.

I also forgot to mention two things in his update:

His sneezing/scratching/head shaking did get pretty bad a couple days ago. Interestingly enough, it was the same day that my allergies were picking up, so much so that I had to take a Benadryl. I think the tree pollen has been high in our area lately. Nonetheless he was about one sneeze away from an asthma attack. I gave him some homeopet drops and he seemed to get better when I moved him to the living room. Our windows are old and let a ton of air from the outside in, but there's nothing I can do about that.

Secondly, I did email Hound & Gatos and....they didn't return my email. Oh well.
Hamilton Beach makes an affordable HEPA filter. Affordable enough to buy two or three to take the pollen out of the air for you and your fur kids.

H&G may still write back. They could be understaffed, overworked, or both. Just like everyone else in the times of covid.

You could try to add a little egg yolk (raw or hard boiled) to Morty's diet to help move things along.
How Best to Manage Hairballs
 

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Apologies if this has already been suggested...When my cat was diagnosed with IBD, I found a wonderful and helpful Facebook group with knowledgeable members: IBDKitties and its corresponding informational website ibdkitties.net. I recommend you join the IBDKitties FB group. I learned so much from the posts and experienced members there. Also another good FB group is right up your alley: Raw Feeding For IBD Cats.
 
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Sorry I haven’t read the whole thread but has your vet mentioned using pepcid at all? Long term use isn’t recommended for IBD cats since you’re just treating the symptom rather than the cause, but sometimes when cats are having a flare and stuck throwing up then feeling bad from throwing up which in turn makes them not want to eat so they throw up more acid/bile again it can be helpful to calm their stomach for a few days and allow it to rest.

My vet used to recommend it for that reason for my IBD cat when we hadn’t found the right diet yet.
 
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Hamilton Beach makes an affordable HEPA filter. Affordable enough to buy two or three to take the pollen out of the air for you and your fur kids.

H&G may still write back. They could be understaffed, overworked, or both. Just like everyone else in the times of covid.

You could try to add a little egg yolk (raw or hard boiled) to Morty's diet to help move things along.
How Best to Manage Hairballs
My fiance suggested getting one as well. I've been hesitant because I had one a couple of years ago and it didn't do anything for my allergies, but I think it must have just been a fluke because they seem to help everyone else. Maybe we can start with one and see how it works out.

I've also been thinking about the egg yolk idea, although I swear with our luck he's probably allergic to eggs too. I think the Alnutrin might have egg yolk powder in it actually...

Do you happen to know if egg shell powder helps with hairballs? I'd rather just order that than get raw eggs. We don't go to the grocery store right now and with our apartment's new addition of locked gates, that limits instacart too. We mainly just get food/produce that can be bought online and delivered (like imperfect produce) and I'd be afraid to have eggs shipped in a box.
 
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Apologies if this has already been suggested...When my cat was diagnosed with IBD, I found a wonderful and helpful Facebook group with knowledgeable members: IBDKitties and its corresponding informational website ibdkitties.net. I recommend you join the IBDKitties FB group. I learned so much from the posts and experienced members there. Also another good FB group is right up your alley: Raw Feeding For IBD Cats.
Thanks, I've heard of those! I've been learning a lot from the ibdkitties.net and the rawfeedingforibdcats.org websites as well. I don't currently have a Facebook and (un)luckily many people on this forum have IBD cats as well. The information I've gotten in my own thread from daftcat75 daftcat75 and others, as well as a ton of other past threads has been invaluable for us.
 
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Sorry I haven’t read the whole thread but has your vet mentioned using pepcid at all? Long term use isn’t recommended for IBD cats since you’re just treating the symptom rather than the cause, but sometimes when cats are having a flare and stuck throwing up then feeling bad from throwing up which in turn makes them not want to eat so they throw up more acid/bile again it can be helpful to calm their stomach for a few days and allow it to rest.

My vet used to recommend it for that reason for my IBD cat when we hadn’t found the right diet yet.
Thanks for the suggestion. We gave him Pepcid back in the summer when we were still trying to understand what was making him vomit. It didn't do anything except deter him from his food because he could taste it. Unfortunately, Pepcid is used a lot when cats have an acid problem (like throwing up foam or bile). Generally, Morty will throw up food. Occasionally it will just be acid, but it's usually because of a trigger like a hairball. In addition to this (even in spite of his recent perceived pickiness) he almost always goes back to eating within 5-30 min after throwing up. It's almost like puking is a signal for him to eat again...🤷‍♀️
 

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My fiance suggested getting one as well. I've been hesitant because I had one a couple of years ago and it didn't do anything for my allergies, but I think it must have just been a fluke because they seem to help everyone else. Maybe we can start with one and see how it works out.

I've also been thinking about the egg yolk idea, although I swear with our luck he's probably allergic to eggs too. I think the Alnutrin might have egg yolk powder in it actually...

Do you happen to know if egg shell powder helps with hairballs? I'd rather just order that than get raw eggs. We don't go to the grocery store right now and with our apartment's new addition of locked gates, that limits instacart too. We mainly just get food/produce that can be bought online and delivered (like imperfect produce) and I'd be afraid to have eggs shipped in a box.
Eggshell powder is a calcium supplement. That's not what you want. That will do the opposite and make him constipated.

You want egg yolk powder. The EZ solution to "but my cat doesn't eat enough egg yolk to make fresh eggs worth it."
EZ Egg Yolk

I resisted InstaCart and Doordash for so long because of the gate they installed on the community a number of years ago. But InstaCart is really good about following the instructions: "Get out of the car and dial me at this number on the comm box"
 
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Eggshell powder is a calcium supplement. That's not what you want. That will do the opposite and make him constipated.

You want egg yolk powder. The EZ solution to "but my cat doesn't eat enough egg yolk to make fresh eggs worth it."
EZ Egg Yolk

I resisted InstaCart and Doordash for so long because of the gate they installed on the community a number of years ago. But InstaCart is really good about following the instructions: "Get out of the car and dial me at this number on the comm box"
No, it's not the package with egg shell powder for calcium, I think they use limestone for that. The first ingredient is egg yolk powder.

A Guide To A Balanced, Homemade Cat Food - Alnutrin Supplements

And thank you for the link! Maybe adding some additional egg yolk powder will help. I might try brushing him as well because he seems to be shedding an awful lot at the moment.
 

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I'm confused. You did ask this.

Do you happen to know if egg shell powder helps with hairballs? I'd rather just order that than get raw eggs.
I just wanted to make sure that you realize egg shell powder is not the same as egg yolk powder. Too much of the former will constipate your cat. Too much of the latter and you'll have the opposite problem.

You can supplement egg yolk powder on top of what is already in the Alnutrin. I would take it slowly like a 1/2 tsp per day (unless it makes matters worse) for several days and then slowly work up to whatever that article I linked recommends.
 
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I'm confused. You did ask this.



I just wanted to make sure that you realize egg shell powder is not the same as egg yolk powder. Too much of the former will constipate your cat. Too much of the latter and you'll have the opposite problem.

You can supplement egg yolk powder on top of what is already in the Alnutrin. I would take it slowly like a 1/2 tsp per day (unless it makes matters worse) for several days and then slowly work up to whatever that article I linked recommends.
Oh, I'm so sorry! That was a typo. I reread that before responding to you and still somehow didn't manage to catch that. 🤦‍♀️

And thanks for the tips! I'll definitely do it slowly. The last thing I need is poop problems.
 

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My fiance suggested getting one as well. I've been hesitant because I had one a couple of years ago and it didn't do anything for my allergies, but I think it must have just been a fluke because they seem to help everyone else. Maybe we can start with one and see how it works out.
Another more expensive option is the Dyson purifiers. Those are significantly more expensive. But if you get any of the ones with the smartphone app, you can literally see them pulling junk out of the air. Even the ones that aren't smartphone connected will do the same job. I got my first Dyson with the Camp Fire in Northern California. That fire was blowing smoke for hundreds of miles. I was getting headaches and couldn't focus on work. I got the Dyson and the air quality index (AQI) INSIDE went from 150 to 20. Some was still getting in because the particulates are very small. But the Dyson was doing a fantastic job of keeping it safe. When I had to take Krista to the dentist during another wildfire, I brought one of those Dysons with me to the hotel room to keep the AQI down for Krista. As a bonus, they are much quieter and more effective heaters than the wall units in hotel rooms. I just love those Dyson purifiers! 😻
 
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Another more expensive option is the Dyson purifiers. Those are significantly more expensive. But if you get any of the ones with the smartphone app, you can literally see them pulling junk out of the air. Even the ones that aren't smartphone connected will do the same job. I got my first Dyson with the Camp Fire in Northern California. That fire was blowing smoke for hundreds of miles. I was getting headaches and couldn't focus on work. I got the Dyson and the air quality index (AQI) INSIDE went from 150 to 20. Some was still getting in because the particulates are very small. But the Dyson was doing a fantastic job of keeping it safe. When I had to take Krista to the dentist during another wildfire, I brought one of those Dysons with me to the hotel room to keep the AQI down for Krista. As a bonus, they are much quieter and more effective heaters than the wall units in hotel rooms. I just love those Dyson purifiers! 😻
Ahh, I remember all the smoke from the Camp Fire. I was living in the Sacramento area and actually working at a hotel booked out entirely to firefighters. The smoke lasted for so long, it was crazy. I remember thinking back then it would be a good idea to stock up on N95's when they went back in stock because they were impossible to find at the time.

I would love to get a Dyson purifier but they're definitely out of my price range. With the most recent vet bill basically all but maxing out my CC we're trying to save money as much as possible before the interest murders us. I was thinkng about trying l-lysine powder for Morty's allergies. I had initially purchased those treats that he got into (and returned them) in hopes that they would help with hairballs. After looking more into l-lysine, I'm thinking it might help with seasonal allergies and respiratory symptoms as well. One of the IBD websites recommended it as well as egg yolk powder when seasonal allergies come around. I've read mixed results from people who have tried it, but it's cheap enough that I figured it would be worth a shot. This would make our mixture for home-cooked food: Alnutrin/Fish Oil/S. Boullardi/Collagen/Probiotics/Slippery Elm/Egg Yolk Powder/L-lysine. That is an awful lot of different homeopathic solutions, but I'm not seeing any interactions with these ingredients and Morty and Po don't seem to mind them. Their stool seems normal as well, although we have yet to introduce the egg yolk and l-lysine.

Edit: Fixed way too many typos. Clearly I'm not an English major :p
 
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Another day...another hairball. This one came out in three piles and thankfully didn't seem to hurt so much. Lots of acid. I attached some pictures because...well I don't really know why.

IMG-9194.JPG
IMG-9193.JPG


Edit: Two more piles of acid came out 5 minutes after this session. He still doesn't look to be in pain luckily. He hasn't had his breakfast yet so that may explain all the acid.
 

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Ahh, I remember all the smoke from the Camp Fire. I was living in the Sacramento area and actually working at a hotel booked out entirely to firefighters. The smoke lasted for so long, it was crazy. I remember thinking back then it would be a good idea to stock up on N95's when they went back in stock because they were impossible to find at the time.

I would love to get a Dyson purifier but they're definitely out of my price range. With the most recent vet bill basically all but maxing out my CC we're trying to save money as much as possible before the interest murders us. I was thinkng about trying l-lysine powder for Morty's allergies. I had initially purchased those treats that he got into (and returned them) in hopes that they would help with hairballs. After looking more into l-lysine, I'm thinking it might help with seasonal allergies and respiratory symptoms as well. One of the IBD websites recommended it as well as egg yolk powder when seasonal allergies come around. I've read mixed results from people who have tried it, but it's cheap enough that I figured it would be worth a shot. This would make our mixture for home-cooked food: Alnutrin/Fish Oil/S. Boullardi/Collagen/Probiotics/Slippery Elm/Egg Yolk Powder/L-lysine. That is an awful lot of different homeopathic solutions, but I'm not seeing any interactions with these ingredients and Morty and Po don't seem to mind them. Their stool seems normal as well, although we have yet to introduce the egg yolk and l-lysine.

Edit: Fixed way too many typos. Clearly I'm not an English major :p
I understand. That's why I suggested the Hamilton Beach first. I have/had one sitting in Krista's litter corner. I'm pleasantly surprised with the Hamilton Beach brand. I had nothing but trouble with my Keurig Mini coffee maker. I bought the HB version of the same machine and not a single trouble.
 

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Another day...another hairball. This one came out in three piles and thankfully didn't seem to hurt so much. Lots of acid. I attached some pictures because...well I don't really know why.

View attachment 372289 View attachment 372290

Edit: Two more piles of acid came out 5 minutes after this session. He still doesn't look to be in pain luckily. He hasn't had his breakfast yet so that may explain all the acid.
Poor guy! It's almost lunch time. How come he hasn't had breakfast yet? I think your guys need some timed feeders to stave off the acid barfs.
 
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Poor guy! It's almost lunch time. How come he hasn't had breakfast yet? I think your guys need some timed feeders to stave off the acid barfs.
He just got his breakfast right now. I'm hesitant about cooking big batches and then re-freezing them because I feel like it will affect the taste, so I do half a pound at a time, but the liver and heart are already ground up and mixed in.

I usually wait for Morty to tell me when he's hungry, he's very good about it. If not I'll end up with a lot of wasted food and a fatter Po. Usually if he finishes all his food from the night before (his midnight feeding) I know it's a cue he'll want breakfast by 9am, if not he'll generally want it around 12. :)
 

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You had another acid barfer this week, though. Right?

If you do want timed feeders, sadly, the ones I recommend are not available anymore. But these look to be a very competent replacement:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FT93YM2/?tag=thecatsite

It comes with an ice pack that you can use with wet food. Though I put wet food in those feeders (or similar) without an ice pack and Krista ate it just fine.

I like these clamshell feeders over the wheel feeders. The wheels may contain more meals. But for cats that graze, it's going to rotate any uneaten portions back inside the wheel. With the clamshells, there is no time limit on a portion.
 
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