Diet for cat with asthma?

[ClumsyBear]

My 1 year old cat has asthma. We've increased his inhaler medication recently since it had gotten worse. However, I'm looking into other ways to help his asthma. We have an air purifier now, and it's helping a lot. I've also been looking into food. Information online is a bit limited..
I was wondering if anyone has looked into this before and might have suggestions?

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi,!
I'm not sure if there will be anything here, but this is a result of a search through the site threads for "food for asthma"

Search Results for Query: Food for asthma

When you type in a search engine, if you didn't already try; best food for cat asthma. I'm seeing everything from food brands to honey to pumpkin.

Information online is a bit limited..

And messy.

If your vet isn't able to help, you might want to talk to a nutritionist so you don't end up accidentally walking a bad path for him

HOME feline nutritionists

 

[iPappy]

My 1 year old cat has asthma. We've increased his inhaler medication recently since it had gotten worse. However, I'm looking into other ways to help his asthma. We have an air purifier now, and it's helping a lot. I've also been looking into food. Information online is a bit limited..
I was wondering if anyone has looked into this before and might have suggestions?

What is he currently eating? I'd aim for low(er) carb, wet food (lower inflammatory) if you can. He might do better with a limited ingredient pate or even cooked/raw food. Could you keep a notepad and write down anything you notice that seems to set off an attack? I would avoid covered litter boxes, anything aerosol (air fresheners, manuel or aeresol spray cleaning bottles, diffusers, incense, etc.), any kind of candles, and strong laundry detergent/fabric softeners. Certain weather conditions could contribute too. And, if you live in an area that has farmland nearby that is sprayed/harvested, keep those windows closed during spray/harvest time. Make sure your furnace/AC filters are changed regularly, as those are constantly rotating air throughout the house and catch dust particles that could potentially make the situation worse.

 

[ClumsyBear]

What is he currently eating? I'd aim for low(er) carb, wet food (lower inflammatory) if you can.

He currently eats Acana dry food, and has a meal of wet food. Dry food was easy when he was a kitten, but now I want to increase it. He used to eat mostly tiki cat but then started wasting it so he's eating Fancy Feast, which isn't my favourite personally and I'm trying to change it. We're trying out new ones.

I haven't noticed much of a pattern in his asthma unfortunately. It spiked when we moved. The new place doesn't have ac and the area is much more green so maybe more pollen? I think it's mostly weather and dust related. Adding an air purifier also helped a lot. Otherwise, we don't really use scented stuff, I buy things that are more natural and less strongly scented with my cat in mind. Hence, why I'm trying to turn to other less obvious, although still obvious, things like diet.

 

[Furballsmom]

now I want to increase it.

I'd aim for low(er) carb, wet food (lower inflammatory)

I agree with ipappy, more wet food would be better for several reasons for your cat

 

[lisahe]

What is he currently eating? I'd aim for low(er) carb, wet food (lower inflammatory) if you can. He might do better with a limited ingredient pate or even cooked/raw food. Could you keep a notepad and write down anything you notice that seems to set off an attack? I would avoid covered litter boxes, anything aerosol (air fresheners, manuel or aeresol spray cleaning bottles, diffusers, incense, etc.), any kind of candles, and strong laundry detergent/fabric softeners. Certain weather conditions could contribute too. And, if you live in an area that has farmland nearby that is sprayed/harvested, keep those windows closed during spray/harvest time. Make sure your furnace/AC filters are changed regularly, as those are constantly rotating air throughout the house and catch dust particles that could potentially make the situation worse.

We have a cat with asthma... And I couldn't agree more with all of iPappy 's suggestions. Low carb wet food is probably most important for diet. We feed a couple homemade meals each day that have extra water, lots of meat, and no fillers or thickeners.

Two things to add. Keeping stress low is very important -- your recent move might be part of the reason for your cat's spike in symptoms. (Our Ireland has always been a very nervous cat and any change in routine can be disruptive for her, putting her on edge!) Second, if you suspect that allergies might be contributing, ask your vet about antihistamines. Ireland gets her inhaler twice a day plus transdermal antihistamine cream twice a day. (Inhaler twice a day is key.) We think Ireland's asthma (and allergies) are likely caused by dust so I make sure to (dry) Swiffer the hard floors once a week after sweeping, with occasional touchups during the week. We don't wear shoes inside, which probably also helps, by not tracking in pollen and the like. One other thing: Throwing away some old and very dusty rugs and upholstered chairs shortly after Ireland's diagnosis seemed to help both her (less coughing) and me (reduced allergies).

And one more! Kitty litter. Every cat is different but Ireland first had symptoms -- the worst coughing she has ever had -- when she was about ten months old. After the second episode, I switched the cats' litter to Dr. Elsey's Respiratory Relief and she didn't cough for (literally) five or six years. We still use Dr. E's litter, now a blend of Respiratory Relief and Ultra. One catmom told me Ultra often works even better for asthmatic cats because it doesn't have the herbal ingredient that's in RR. It's also significantly cheaper. Some people say Dr. E's is too dusty for their asthmatic cats but it works really well for Ireland. And there's the big thing about feline asthma: It can be very hard to sort out causes and improvements trial and error is often crucial. Good luck!

 

[ClumsyBear]

We have a cat with asthma... And I couldn't agree more with all of iPappy 's suggestions. Low carb wet food is probably most important for diet. We feed a couple homemade meals each day that have extra water, lots of meat, and no fillers or thickeners.

Thank you this is very helpful! My cat is also currently taking his inhaler twice a day, we went from once to twice a day a few weeks ago. My vet is supposed to follow up with us soon, so I'll ask him about the antihistamines.
I've seen online that they recommend wet/raw diets for asthmatic cat - I think I'll try switching him slowly and adding more natural things to his diet. He's not a picky eater generally so he might really enjoy it
Definitely no shoes in the house here. I tried washing some of the smaller carpets but might try to do the bigger ones, I didnt think much of it since I vacuum them - but they can definitely still have tons of dust in them!
For litter I currently use World's best cat litter. We had switched him to something different that had triggered his asthma - so we've switched back to this one and it seems to be doing well for him. But I'll definitely check out the one you recommended.

 

[lisahe]

Thank you this is very helpful! My cat is also currently taking his inhaler twice a day, we went from once to twice a day a few weeks ago. My vet is supposed to follow up with us soon, so I'll ask him about the antihistamines.
I've seen online that they recommend wet/raw diets for asthmatic cat - I think I'll try switching him slowly and adding more natural things to his diet. He's not a picky eater generally so he might really enjoy it
Definitely no shoes in the house here. I tried washing some of the smaller carpets but might try to do the bigger ones, I didnt think much of it since I vacuum them - but they can definitely still have tons of dust in them!
For litter I currently use World's best cat litter. We had switched him to something different that had triggered his asthma - so we've switched back to this one and it seems to be doing well for him. But I'll definitely check out the one you recommended.

Just switching the inhaler to twice a day may well be enough... that's the recommended frequency for doses. (Ireland gets two puffs twice a day, for a total of four... and she has relatively mild disease. The inhaler is the medium dose, 120/125 mcg, depending on where the inhaler is sold.) The antihistamine may not be necessary if the vet doesn't see other indications of allergies. Ireland had also licked a spot bare. We don't know if it was due to allergies or stress but when I took her off the antihistamine (after the fur grew back and she was no longer licking) she started the new coughing! And it went away as soon as we put her back on the antihistamine. The antihistamine also has a mild sedative effect, which is a good thing.

If you're back to a litter that works, stick with it! Dr. E's is expensive but we know it works for Ireland so I don't dare change brands.

It can be really difficult to sort out what components of a diet cause symptoms but generally the more natural -- and anti-inflammatory -- the better. And wet diets are a good place to start!

Finally, washable area rugs are almost like a treat when you have an asthmatic (or vomiting) cat! Unfortunately, part of our house is carpeted but the upstairs is all hardwood and area rugs, almost all of which are washable. It's such a help!

Let us know how things go with the increased inhaler dose... and maybe an addition of antihistamines. If you live in an area with a lot of ragweed (as we do) that can definitely cause problems. Ireland and I have similar allergies, which makes it easier for me to know when she might need a bit off extra care.

 

[LTS3]

Finally, washable area rugs are almost like a treat when you have an asthmatic (or vomiting) cat! Unfortunately, part of our house is carpeted but the upstairs is all hardwood and area rugs, almost all of which are washable. It's such a help!

I recently bought a Ruggable which is a popular brand of washable rugs. I haven't needed to wash it yet but so far cat fur is not sticking to it like a magnet and neither cat have decided to something on it (yet). There's a guide on the Ruggable web site with recommended minimum home washing machine capacity for each rug size. A huge heavy duty laundromat washer or a professional cleaning service would have to be used for the largest sized rugs.

There are likely other similar washable rugs that are more affordable on other web sites.

Curtains and other soft furnishings hold dust and allergens so be sure to wash those if possible.

 

[Alldara]

ClumsyBear HEPA filters in your vacuums we found super helpful. I also recently found that Okocat paper was the first litter to actually have no dust.
We got a little dust buster that we could upgrade to a HEPA filter on amazon to use instead of sweeping. We have to keep some rugs down for him now that he's geriatric so we got outdoor rugs with rubber undersides as the dust buster can clean them easily.

We bought covers for the mattresses and such off Amazon that are bed-bug-proof to keep out all allergens and mites. You can get them for pillows as well. In the meantime we usually kept a light sheet on the couches. It catches a lot and then we can simply wash the sheet frequently. Easier than washing the cover too much.