Linear Granuloma treatment for outdoor cats.

Hi all,

A couple of months ago my foster cat (9 months then) was diagnosed with linear granuloma. We switched to hypoallergenic Royal Canin food, and a course of antibiotics, he responded to that, but not entirely. The vet then prolonged the treatment, until it was all cleared out. 

I had to then leave the country (Tried taking my 3 fosters along, but I failed) and I moved them to a horse barn, where they are very well taken care of. I sent someone to check on them, and the allergy was still fine (a month ago).

I flew over yesterday to check on them, and realised that the allergy is back, more severe than the first time (as in spread in more areas than it was the first time). I took him to the vet today, and he gave him a shot for the allergy, but food wise, it won't be possible to control that he will only eat hypoallergenic food. 

Any advice? 

Here is the photo of baby Qays and his linear granuloma. It is not visible unless I sort the hair aside. this is only one of the lines, he has about 6 of these. 

So is the issue that he needs to eat the hypoallergenic food, and when he's in the horse barn, you can't control WHAT he eats?  Is that why it's back with a vengeance? 

That's what the vet says. 

He first said it is an allergic reaction to plastic. I switched all the plates to stainless steel and removed all plastic toys. 

But now it's back even though there is no plastic around, so the vet said it is the food, and he thus needs to be switched to a hypoallergenic dry food for one year! 

1- he does not like it

2- he eats with his brother and sister and sometimes other cats, so his food can't be separated, unless he is himself isolated, or else, all the cats will have to go with him on the diet which is insanely expensive.

3- I can't control that he doesn't eat other things when in the farm!

Is there any other treatment that maybe the doctor is overlooking? could the cause be something other than food?

I did some research online, and it all requires further testing, which I am not sure will be possible until I am  back again in a few months. 

@djoe

Steroids are a common and effective treatment and given your feeding issues may be a better way to go.

The quote below is from:

http://vetbook.org/wiki/cat/index.php/Eosinophilic_granuloma_complex

Identification and treatment of any suspected underlying disease should be performed when managing the various forms of feline EGC. Immunosuppressive therapy is the most common treatment and systemic glucocorticoids are often effective. Cats have fewer steroid receptors on their cells and thus require higher doses of glucocorticoids than most other species. Prednisone or prednisolone may be given orally (4.4 mg/kg every 24 hours) until the lesions are healed. Alternatively, injections of methylprednisolone acetate (20 mg/cat subcutaneously every 2 -3 weeks until lesions resolve), or oral administration of glucocorticoids (dexamethasone at 0.4 mg/kg every 24 hours or triamcinolone at 0.8mg/kg every 24 hours) may be effective^[10].

I feel your pain @djoe .

My almost 1 year old kitten started to have ECG when he was around 7 months. It started with the one on his lips. He was given prednisolone for it for about 2 months (1 a day for 7 days then every other day after that) and all was well till they were discontinued. Around ten days after the medication was removed he showed new symptoms, and they happen to be the same ones as what your kitty is having now.

I started with the removal of grains in his diet. This I could afford to do and still be able to feed both cats the same food. I can't afford to pay a lot when it comes to cat food but I found that the fancy feast classics wet food were all grain free so that was a start. I am still not sure if grains are an issue since he is still getting a few break outs from time to time. (even though he is on prednisolone again). I changed the cat litter to an unscented one and I also have all pets eating out of stainless steel or porcelain bowls. We are also trying to introduce a little raw foods into the diet as well. If diet is the cause of the problem, I could see raw foods likely being the better food to feed in the long run since there are no fillers and you could likely find a protein that your kitty likes that he has never had before. Vet foods usually never do work from what I have heard and it is expensive. I also only use hypoallergenic laundry detergent on all the pet items and things he might come into contact with and I shampooed the carpets with a hypoallergenic carpet cleaner.

The problem with this allergy is that it is hard to find out the cause without doing further testing. There is a cheaper test that can be done by checking the blood to find out if it is environmental. Then there is this other one that requires testing under the skin for a period of time. I assume the latter test would be quite uncomfortable for the cat and is more expensive. I have not gone this route yet because I am strapped for cash these days.

The cat could be allergic to anything, right down to a flea bite. Vets will usually suggest the cat to get a flea medication to rule out a flea allergy followed by a diet trial first. If this fails, then your only options are long term steroids to keep things under control or you could visit your holistic options. (I have not tried this yet) I am sure there are a few other things you can try but a lot of us end up having to use steroids. Some vets offer surgery to remove the problem but I have also heard that they do return and in my opinion I don't see the point in that unless it was maybe inside the cats mouth or throat. Management is the best you can offer.

Again, it might be ANYTHING causing this. Dust, mold, fleas, food, plastic, smoke, detergents, cleansers, you name it. I get frustrated too for my little kitty. I don't like the idea of having such a young cat on steroids possibly for the rest of his life but at the same time I hate watching him lick and scratch himself like crazy. He seems to be feeling better on the medication, and they also heal up better. He still gets break through sores at the site, but they are few in number so the steroid is certainly helping out a little.

At the end of the day it all boils down to quality of life, so if steroids is the only option my kitty is given then I suppose that is what we will do for now. I keep my fingers crossed that I will one day find the trigger to his problem, but for now we just do what we have to to keep him comfortable.

I wish you and your kitty the best of luck while dealing with this. I totally can relate. It is very frustrating to try to narrow down the trigger if at all possible and avoidable. Please let us know what you end up trying out and if it works for your little kitty.

Oh no
This is bad news for my baby. What makes it worse is that I am not there to ensure adequate treatment.

Trying To be positive about this, the best option ahead is to keep him on his current diet rich with friskies pate wet food to minimise dry food (his dry food has more meat than grains)

In addition, every time I visit - which I will do as often as possible -I will get him a shot.

This way he is not exposed to so much steoids but at the same time is allergy isnt left long enough to really harm him.

I dont know if that makes sense...


I dont know what else I can do....

I am freaking out at the thought that I could maybe do more... I will absolutely run the blood test on my next trip home.

Really frustrating

Steroids like Prednisilone are generally very well tolerated in cats (unlike dogs and people) provided the cat doesn't have underlying kidney or heart disease.  Many cats take it with no negative effect, and as a short term way of helping your cat it could be very helpful.

StephenQ said:

 
Steroids like Prednisilone are generally very well tolerated in cats (unlike dogs and people) provided the cat doesn't have underlying kidney or heart disease.  Many cats take it with no negative effect, and as a short term way of helping your cat it could be very helpful.

Click to expand...

I just checked your facebook page of jenny.... it almost made me cry!!!! what a sweetie ! beauty! I am so touched .

djoe said:

 
I just checked your facebook page of jenny.... it almost made me cry!!!! what a sweetie ! beauty! I am so touched .

Click to expand...

@djoe

Well that was the sweetest   post about Jenny, THANK YOU!  She is right now next to me as I type this, and she is the happiest cat ever!  She likes it when I "print" things so right now I'm sending this page to my printer and she is going to paw at the paper as it comes out.

By the way, my older cat Simon is on Pred for IBD and doing super well on it!

Thank you for the tip. K will discuss this with my vet. How often does he get an injection?

djoe said:

Thank you for the tip. K will discuss this with my vet. How often does he get an injection?

Click to expand...

He takes the Prednisilone as a pill, the most common way of giving it in cats.  I give it to him in a pill pocket (hollow treat) and he mostly doesn't know he's getting it

Okay good to know thank you. Qays is very easy when it comes to pills; he opens his mouth and swallows without a slight resistance. My adorable kittybear!!!!!!!

Thr vet is on vacation. I will call jim when he is back and see how it goes.

Is this a life long treatment? I will google the side effects.

If the allergy never clears up, then usually the prednisolone can be used as a life long treatment to keep it under control. Depending on the severity, the pred is given at the lowest possible dose for maintenance. For example, my Simon takes a 5mg dose every other day and does quite well so far. He still gets little outbreaks but it does not seem to trouble him like it did without any treatment at all. Most cats do handle this drug pretty well, but there can be side effects when given long term. From what I have learned, this usually occurs when the medication is given at immune suppressant doses. It is wise from time to time to get blood work done just to make sure all is well.

I have family who have cats who have to take prednisolone for life, they cats seem fine on it and have not had any issues, that I know of the cat has been on it for more than 5 years with no problems.

By the way, my vet offers the prednisolone in a chewy tablet that comes in salmon, chicken or beef flavors. My little guy thinks he is getting a special treat when it is pill time. They are a little bit more pricy but it works out to be about the same after having to buy pill pockets.

2crazykittens said:

 
If the allergy never clears up, then usually the prednisolone can be used as a life long treatment to keep it under control. Depending on the severity, the pred is given at the lowest possible dose for maintenance. For example, my Simon takes a 5mg dose every other day and does quite well so far. He still gets little outbreaks but it does not seem to trouble him like it did without any treatment at all. Most cats do handle this drug pretty well, but there can be side effects when given long term. From what I have learned, this usually occurs when the medication is given at immune suppressant doses. It is wise from time to time to get blood work done just to make sure all is well.

I have family who have cats who have to take prednisolone for life, they cats seem fine on it and have not had any issues, that I know of the cat has been on it for more than 5 years with no problems.

By the way, my vet offers the prednisolone in a chewy tablet that comes in salmon, chicken or beef flavors. My little guy thinks he is getting a special treat when it is pill time. They are a little bit more pricy but it works out to be about the same after having to buy pill pockets.

Click to expand...

Funny both our cats are named Simon and are on Pred.  My guy is a tux!

@djoe, as 2crazy says, low doses don't generally have side effects but long term that can be issues if their immune system is suppressed, again it depends on the dose and in your case, perhaps he could be weaned from it in time.

Okay simons' momies, thanks loads for the advice.  Qays is currently outdoor in the farm and he will remain there until I live in a place where I can take him, so immunosupressant is risky. I will discuss with the vet asap.

djoe said:

 
Okay simons' momies, thanks loads for the advice.  Qays is currently outdoor in the farm and he will remain there until I live in a place where I can take him, so immunosupressant is risky. I will discuss with the vet asap.

Click to expand...

Low dose Pred is not very immunosupresant. Cats do really  well on Pred as a rule.

And i'm my Simon's DADDY

I am Momma to my Simon.  @StephenQ your Simon looks like my Simon's little buddy !

@djoe Usually the vet will prescribe 1 tablet every day for the first 7 days, or at least till it clears up. Then the dose is given every other day for around 2 months and sometimes in cases like "ours" a lifetime. Some cats also do well with a dose at every three days if the problem stays under control. Like I mentioned before, My Simon is on 1 chewy prednisolone tablet every other day now. He still get minor breakouts but it is much less bothersome than it was before the medication. He seems way better and is not constantly going at himself. Hopefully once your little kitty gets into see the vet, the medication will calm down the skin too. You should notice improvement in at least  a week or two. Simon's last breakout took a little longer to heal up (around 2 weeks) but it is way better than it was.

Awwww @StephenQ He is beautiful!

This is my Simon!

They're both super duper beautiful