I posted a few weeks ago about my 13 year old cat who was constipated. 2 trips to SPCA and $500 later, he is back to square one. They gave him an IV with fluids, did a $200 x-ray to see that he had no obstruction, and gave him Cat Lax. I mixed the Cat Lax with wet food (Fancy Feast) and that helped him go for the 5 days he was on it. It gave him have mushy paste-like poo. He went on his own for about 2 days after that, and I started him back on his regular dry food (Canidae). Now he is again only pooping a small pellet once a day or skipping a day entirely. Called the vet and they want me to bring him back in...pay another exam fee, etc. I love my cat but as a single parent of 2 with a newborn, I cannot keep spending money like this with no end in sight. I called the SPCA and asked to speak to a doctor over the phone instead of going in. I asked what the CAUSE might be, instead of continually treating the constipation. All she could recommend was a medication for him to take 2x a day, or to buy their expensive prescription-only Royal Canin GI food. No thanks...... Aside from taking him to another vet and starting over which I really cannot afford, I feel helpless here. I'm alternating the dry and wet food and mixing in coconut oil which he hates. I have to feed him with a spoon for him to even eat it. I can't do this forever. Any ideas for a more natural resolution?
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Cat Still Constipated
- Thread starter Ella Gold
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See if there are any suggestions here: Everything You Need To Know About Constipation In Cats
Adding pumpkin to the food can be helpful. You want to use either 100% pumpkin puree (not pie filling) or one of those little packets sold at pet stores such as Weruva Pumpkin Patch Up.
Ask the vet if you can use Miralax or generic equivalent daily to help with the constipation. The vet should give you a starting dose, usually no more than 1/4 teaspoon up to twice daily. You mix the powder into some water to dissolve it and then mix it into canned food.
Adding pumpkin to the food can be helpful. You want to use either 100% pumpkin puree (not pie filling) or one of those little packets sold at pet stores such as Weruva Pumpkin Patch Up.
Ask the vet if you can use Miralax or generic equivalent daily to help with the constipation. The vet should give you a starting dose, usually no more than 1/4 teaspoon up to twice daily. You mix the powder into some water to dissolve it and then mix it into canned food.
I wouldn't feed any dry food for a long time at least (if not forever). Hydration is always key for constipation. I think you were right to forgo the prescription food-loading up on fiber is not a great solution and can make things worse.
I struggled trying to treat my cat's constipation for months with various remedies, and the solution was probiotics (not floriforta-a brand with lots of acidophilus). She gets half a capsule sprinkled on each meal and she's great. Skip it, and the constipation starts to come back, even years later. Specifically, I use PB8 nutrition now acidophilus and bifidobacteria in the blue bottle and keep it refrigerated as much as possible.
It's important to know that constipation can get dangerous the longer the cat goes without emptying their bowels, so at a certain point a vet visit is necessary if any of the following apply: if the cat has gone more than 4 days without a bowel movement, if the cat is not eating, or is lethargic.
I did use slippery elm bark once, and that did clean out her colon, but she was terrified and panicked while it went through her system so I've never used it again. Probiotics probably won't do a great job if she's too far backed up already though, so if she is pretty backed up right now you can look into it. I used this "recipe" (from Tanya's CKD website):
I struggled trying to treat my cat's constipation for months with various remedies, and the solution was probiotics (not floriforta-a brand with lots of acidophilus). She gets half a capsule sprinkled on each meal and she's great. Skip it, and the constipation starts to come back, even years later. Specifically, I use PB8 nutrition now acidophilus and bifidobacteria in the blue bottle and keep it refrigerated as much as possible.
It's important to know that constipation can get dangerous the longer the cat goes without emptying their bowels, so at a certain point a vet visit is necessary if any of the following apply: if the cat has gone more than 4 days without a bowel movement, if the cat is not eating, or is lethargic.
I did use slippery elm bark once, and that did clean out her colon, but she was terrified and panicked while it went through her system so I've never used it again. Probiotics probably won't do a great job if she's too far backed up already though, so if she is pretty backed up right now you can look into it. I used this "recipe" (from Tanya's CKD website):
- Take a glass container which holds two cups.
- Put one cup of water in the cup.
- Add 1 to 1.5 tsp of slippery elm bark powder.
- Heat in the microwave on high for about 1.5 minutes.
- Remove from the microwave and stir, then put it back in for about another 30 seconds.
- Keep an eye on it because you do not want it to boil over.
- Remove from the microwave and stir again.
- Allow to cool and give ¼ - ½ (0.25 to 0.5) teaspoon up to 4 times a day.
- This will keep at room temperature for a day or in the fridge for up to five days
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The dry food is the cause. You said he was pooping fine on his own for two days while he was on Fancy Feast. Then you restarted him on the dry and he got constipated again. Any reason why you can’t feed him Fancy Feast only? There just isnt enough moisture in dry food. It’s constipation today and worse problems down the road.
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You can mix MiraLax (1/4 tsp) into Fancy Feast to bring more moisture into his colon. You can also give him a pat of butter or a raw egg yolk to help things along a bit more aggressively before returning to vet. They each will take 12-24 hours to work so don’t double up until you’ve given one its due time.
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Hi! My cat was recently constipated as well.. I understand your struggle.
One thing I would suggest is ask how much the second exam fee is. It may only be a follow-up exam since you were just there. Generally, those charges are significantly cheaper than a standard exam fee. If you're comfortable with the cost, then you could bring him back for that and the vet can try to feel his colon to get a feel for how things are.
I would definitely try adding the Miralax as others have suggested. My cat was constipated a number of years ago and just doing that helped immensely.
If you can get him to eat it, I would also recommend trying to feed wet food only because that should help a lot as well as long as he will eat it. It will help his hydration and keep things moving.
What is your kitty's name?
One thing I would suggest is ask how much the second exam fee is. It may only be a follow-up exam since you were just there. Generally, those charges are significantly cheaper than a standard exam fee. If you're comfortable with the cost, then you could bring him back for that and the vet can try to feel his colon to get a feel for how things are.
I would definitely try adding the Miralax as others have suggested. My cat was constipated a number of years ago and just doing that helped immensely.
If you can get him to eat it, I would also recommend trying to feed wet food only because that should help a lot as well as long as he will eat it. It will help his hydration and keep things moving.
What is your kitty's name?
