Clay- The Constipated Cat

[kschwiesow]

Clay has been having hard stools for awhile now and the vet during his annual suggested increased fluids which I have done by adding more water to his food and purchasing a water fountain that circulates water. The blood work they did on him at that time ruled out anything serious. In addition, they had to express his anal glands for the first time ever at this visit.

At first they, suggested three alternatives: 1) putting him on wet food only -or- 2) putting him on a prescription high fiber diet or 3) putting him on Lactulose, a medication that holds water in the stool and keeps the stool soft; therefore it’s easier for the cat to pass. I chose to go with the third option because he is not a big fan of wet food. And, the second option, well, Angus is already on a prescription diet for his IBD and to be nice to my pocketbook, I don't think I can afford two prescription diets.

I did research of my own after talking to the vet teach about Constipation in cats. Supposedly, lower back pain and neurological problems in cats can also cause some constipation. Clay about two years ago went paralyzed from the waist down. They did blood work and a x-ray at that point in time. The only real conclusion they could come to is that he has bad arthritis in his spinal cord and that may have injured the cord. After six weeks of confinement, many medications and therapy from me at the direction of the vet, Clay was able to regain his ability to walk on four legs with a small dip because one hind leg is weaker than the other.  He needs stairs to get into my bed which he has and absolutely loves. So, I was beginning to wonder if he is having problems with constipation because of pain in his back from the Arthritis and possible neurological issues.
 

I talked to the vet who explained that I was correct in my assumption that the back pain and neurological symptoms could be the cause of the constipation in Clay.  As a result, we have placed him back on Gabapentin once day 50mg/ml and he gets 0.35 ml a day currently.  In addition, he was placed on Lactulose, another medication, to help add moisture to this stools which he takes 1 ml twice a day.  If his stools go to the other extreme and get too moist, I am to decrease it to 1 ml a day.  And, finally, I found out that both Clay and Angus, my IBD cat, can be on the High Fiber diet together.  So, I decided to switch their food of course gradually.  The only downfall of the new food is it only comes in dry and not wet yet.   I am bound and determined to introduce wet food to their diet.

Clay started the two new medications yesterday and I am currently waiting for my vet to get the new food in stock for him.  The good news is that his constipation currently is only hard stools and there is no evidence of a blockage of any sort.

Clay is also on Forti-Flora to help with his GI system which we hope will have an impact on his liver (his ALT enzyme fluctuates) and Cosequin which is a joint health supplement.

I was wondering if anyone else has had similar problems with their cats and if there is anything the vet and I are missing in our attempts to help Clay out of his current problem.

I hope each of you and you fur-children are doing well!

Peace,
Kirsten

 

[ritz]

Sorry your cat is having problems.

You are wise to want to transition your cat(s) to wet food only--much better than dry food.

Meanwhile, have you tried adding plain, cooked pumpkin to his wet food?

Also, FortiFlora isn't the greatest probiotic; it is made of chemicals that manufacturers also put/spray on dry food.  This is a fairly good probiotic.

That said, some people use FortiFlora as a topper--a way to transition cats from dry food to wet food, and/or dry to wet to raw food. 

PS:  A raw diet can also be very beneficial for IBD cats.

Hope this helps, and keep us posted.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Hi Kirsten!  (I know you from another forum

)

I totally recommend the probiotic that Ritz mentioned.  That's the one that everyone in my household takes.  Me, my hubby and our 3 cats.  The cats get one capsule per day, sprinkled in their food.  'Course, they don't eat kibble, so it's a lot easier to give it to them mixed into canned or raw .

Anyway, I would, personally, ditch the Lactulose, AND the high fiber food, mainly because Lactulose is a sticky mess, and by prescription only, therefore expensive, and high fiber bulks up the stools, so if he is already having problems passing them, why make them bigger?.  My Sven was chronically constipated, and used to take Lactulose (although half the time it ended up all over his fur rather than in his tummy), but it quit working.  I started doing research and discovered Miralax, so talked to his Vet about it, and even though he had kidney disease, she gave the ok to use it, and it was like a miracle!  Suddenly he was having regular bowel movements.  We had to give it to him everyday, twice a day, but it has no taste, is not sticky, doesn't gel up, so it was so easy to give.  We just mixed about 1/8 teas. in about 1/2 teas water and added it to anything he would eat (usually Fancy Feast gravy...just a little bit to make sure he got his "medicine".  Then he got his meal.  Easy Peasy. 

As far as his arthritis, have you tried Krill Oil (again, hard to administer if not feeding canned or raw).  It's great for arthritis!  Sven was on Cosequin too, and I do think it helped, but if you don't think it's working, Krill Oil is another option.  See this thread:  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/252790/arthritis-treatments#post_3289542

Just for informational purposes on IBD, here is a wonderful, information filled website run by one of our members:  http://www.ibdkitties.net/

 

[kschwiesow]

Thank you all for your responses and the information! I defeinitely appreciate all the information. I am going with Clay to antoher vet for a 2nd opinion a week from Saturday and to see if I want to switch Clay & Angus to the new vet. I was using a vet that supposedly specializes in cats that is under a mile away from my house but with Clay's most recent bout of constipation and various reccomendations they have made that I do not agree with, I have decided to try a vet that my brother has been using for six years with his dog, Brutus.My main concerns are:1. The prescription diet being fed to Clay and Angus at direction of current vet only comes in dry food. I want to transfer both Clay and Angus over to wet food only. Currently, I am adding water to the dry food, I have a water fountain and I supplement the prescription diet with canned Friskies. Another cat owner who has megacolon cats highly reccomended that I go to a wet food only diet. She transferred her megacolon cats over to wet food only and they are no longer no any medications to assist with constipation.2. The FortiFlora and considering switching to the new Probiotic that was suggested here. (Thank you!)3. Pain management...Clay is on Gabapentin right now at very low dose...I am trying figure out how on earth to determine if pain management is needed because I do not want to overburden Clay with medications since he has a compromised liver. But at the same time, he has bad Arthritis in his spine which must be painful for him and he has a small dip when he walks.Right now, I am working at adjusting Clay's Lactulose (currently 1 mL twice a day)...I am decreasing it at direction of current vet because his stools have gone a bit too much to the opposite extreme now.I sure hope you and your fur-babies are all doing well!Peace,Kirsten

 

[kschwiesow]

Ritz- For the Probiotic you reccomended, should I talk to my vet for dosing reccomendations or is there a reference guide for this information? Thank you kindly! Peace, Kirsten

 

[ritz]

You may talk to  your vet about probiotics; he should not have a problem with it.  And none of us here are vets.

Here is an article written by a vet and another one; this is a good thread.  I know you're not feeding raw, but the principles are the same.

FortiFlora is a pro-biotic marketed to pets; it is sprayed with the same chemicals ("animal digest") as used in dry food.  When my vet suggested prescribed FortiFlora for a tummy upset (a year after starting raw), I gave it to Ritz:  she literally jumped up onto the counter top to lick the foil package it came in.  I did some research, and that's when I settled on a human grade probiotic (a LOT less expensive than FortiFlora, too).

Any human-grade antibiotic is good, one with 10 billion active cell units, with no added sugar, cornstarch, and not in a milk base (cats have a hard time digesting milk).  Your vet could guide you as to dosage.  User LDG recommended 10 billion, after consulting with her holistic vet.  Some people use the kind that needs refrigerated, I don't, but that's a personal preference.

 

[kschwiesow]

Thank ya for the information!  I will check-in with the new vet about the Probiotics when I see them a week from Saturday.  Until then, I will keep Clay on the FortiFlora!  Peace, Kirsten