Diet For Elevated Liver Enzymes In Fiv+ Cat?

[laurene1017]

Hi everyone!
I have an FIV+ boy, Winston, who's about 13 years old and 17 lbs. He's a big tom cat, but we just got blood work results back from my vet saying his ALT liver enzyme is at 370. He's already on a low dose steroid for asthma, and the vet said it'll help the liver too but we need him to lose some weight.
I currently feed him Chicken Soup for the Soul weight management and Wellness wet food (sometimes a little bit of Tiki Cat, but he doesn't get full from it), and for dry food a mix of Chicken Soup, Merrick, and a little bit of Orijen when I can.
The vet suggested a diet that's low in fat and high in fiber, but I have such a difficult time finding affordable food with high quality fibers in it. Any suggestions on brands that might be better for his needs? I'm even willing to make homemade food if that's best.
Any supplements that could help too? I already give him fish oil, a pro-biotic, and L-Lysine.
Any suggestions are welcome!

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. Did your vet say anything about the possibility of the steroids causing the elevated ALT? I have heard of that before.

Did your vet talk about anything like: milk thistle, SAMe, Phosphatidyl choline, NAC (N-acetyl cysteine) or SOD (superoxide dismutase) - all of which are supposed to be detoxifiers for the liver, especially when the ALT level is elevated? Don't know whether there are any contraindications of taking these with the other meds your guy is on, but you could ask.

Hopefully, other members on this site will see your post and offer some first hand tips/advice!

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Yes, there are definitely supplements for the liver, like the ones mentioned above. You can also get prescription ones, like Denamarin, which is a 30 day treatment.

As far as losing weight, I found the best thing for that is to feed wet only. It seems to be more satisfying, and truly was the only way I got my little pudge to lose. Is your boy constipated, is that why he needs more fiber? If so, dry food might be a lot of the issue, as it's drying to their systems. Wet food, particularly if you add even a teeny bit of water to it, helps quite a bit with constipation, and if you can add a little bit of pumpkin to it, say one teaspoon per meal, that really helps as well and is a great form of fiber as well as helps them feel more full.

When helping cats lose weight, it's important to look at calories, just like with us humans. Ask your Vet how many calories he should be getting and go from there. Of course, try to pick a food that is high in protein (pending any other health issues that would preclude that) and that will also help him feel more full. Be aware that cat foods can vastly vary in calories, as you are probably already aware with the Tiki vs the Welness. Pates are usually highest in calories.

OH, BTW, my old girl used to have raised ALT every few months. Higher than your guys. Our Vet would give her an antibiotic and her ALT would go down for awhile, then after a few months it would go up again. This was her cycle for awhile, but we didn't check further as to why, since she already was about 15 at the time and had chronic kidney disease. We figured since the antibiotic trick worked, why put her through more invasive procedures when she was already in "hospice care". My point here is, you might discuss the use of antibiotics for your guy.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi! Could you work with him to increase his activity? Placing a bowl on a "shelf" of a cat tree at first if he's not been doing much play to get him started, then eventually working up to a laser light possibly