Experience with metoclopramide (Reglan) and cyproheptadine?

[jack_and_gin19]

Sorry for two posts in two days! My cat Ginger had gone into the vet with breathing issues, but now we're doing with lack of appetite and bowel movement. She had a lot of vet visits in a short time and we are worried some of it is just stress related as she's young and her blood work and other exams didn't seem to find an underlying cause. It has been super stressful as its been over two weeks now of trying to figure out what is wrong and hoping every day she'll eat a bit more.

She just got prescribed Reglan and cyproheptadine to try and stimulate her appetite and get her gut moving. She's also currently on a dose of prednisolone every other day (for the potential asthma lung inflammation) along with cerenia and pepcid. Fortunately she's doing great with the pill pockets. Unfortunately, she seems to be not responding as expected to most of the meds she's been given. I was hoping someone may have experience with either of the new meds to let me know how it worked for them and if there is anything I should be on the lookout for. Thanks in advance

 

[fionasmom]

You are welcome to post any time that you like! I don't have any really insightful answer except that cyproheptadine can take a day or two sometimes; however, I am a little surprised that the combo of cypro and pred is not making her hungry. She is on a lot of meds but I am not questioning your vet's assessment of the situation.

Cypro and pred, given alone, have always made my animals eat. Pepcid is famotidine and I have had unfavorable reactions to that with my dog.

 

[jack_and_gin19]

You are welcome to post any time that you like! I don't have any really insightful answer except that cyproheptadine can take a day or two sometimes; however, I am a little surprised that the combo of cypro and pred is not making her hungry. She is on a lot of meds but I am not questioning your vet's assessment of the situation.

Cypro and pred, given alone, have always made my animals eat. Pepcid is famotidine and I have had unfavorable reactions to that with my dog.

I just got the cypro & Reglan today so I'm hoping it does its job (she'll get her first dose in a few hours). The pred has done no stimulating of her appetite. We tried mirtzapine last week for an appetite stimulant, but it really seemed to agitate her more than it stimulated her appetite. I'm definitely a little anxious about adding more meds into her system as it seems like an awful lot for such a small creature!

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I had a cat on both Reglan and Pepcid several years ago, but not on the other meds. He was on them NOT to stimulate his appetite though. He had tummy issues (over acidic stomach) due to kidney disease. I don't recall him having any side effects from either med.

For Ginger, did you discuss the loss of appetite as a possible side effect from the Cerenia or the Pred as mentioned in your other thread? Loss of appetite is actually a common side effect of Cerenia, and it seems Ginger may be one of those cats who is very sensitive to meds as you said she had bad results with the Mirataz. She might have the same issues with the Cypro

You said (in your other thread) that she is eating baby food fairly often, so I would keep up with that, and try some non-stinky cat foods. I have found that Nutro Real Chicken Pate (sold at Petco and Petsmart usually) is very mild in the odor department and that might help when a cat isn't up to eating a lot. Also, try feeding her many small meals rather than her usual meals. Also, maybe try using some toppers. Does she have any favorite treats that she's still eating? If so, use those as toppers or mix them into her food. And add some water directly into her food to help keep her hydrated as dehydration will definitely cause lethargy and loss of appetite, as will constipation. How long has it been since she had a bowel movement. If she might be backed up, try giving her some miralax dissolved in a little bit of water. Our Vet had us give 1/2 teaspoon Miralax dissolved in about 1 teas. water twice per day for both our cats when they were constipated, and one cat weighs 9 lbs ad the other weighs 15 pounds, so I would think that amount should work basically for any size cat. We did this until they produced a couple good movements. You could mix this with her baby food if that's the only thing she'll eat, or you can use a needleless syringe and put it right into her mouth (cheek area so she doesn't aspirate) It has no taste or odor and doesn't gel up so shouldn't be a problem.

 

[jack_and_gin19]

I had a cat on both Reglan and Pepcid several years ago, but not on the other meds. He was on them NOT to stimulate his appetite though. He had tummy issues (over acidic stomach) due to kidney disease. I don't recall him having any side effects from either med.

For Ginger, did you discuss the loss of appetite as a possible side effect from the Cerenia or the Pred as mentioned in your other thread? Loss of appetite is actually a common side effect of Cerenia, and it seems Ginger may be one of those cats who is very sensitive to meds as you said she had bad results with the Mirataz. She might have the same issues with the Cypro

You said (in your other thread) that she is eating baby food fairly often, so I would keep up with that, and try some non-stinky cat foods. I have found that Nutro Real Chicken Pate (sold at Petco and Petsmart usually) is very mild in the odor department and that might help when a cat isn't up to eating a lot. Also, try feeding her many small meals rather than her usual meals. Also, maybe try using some toppers. Does she have any favorite treats that she's still eating? If so, use those as toppers or mix them into her food. And add some water directly into her food to help keep her hydrated as dehydration will definitely cause lethargy and loss of appetite, as will constipation. How long has it been since she had a bowel movement. If she might be backed up, try giving her some miralax dissolved in a little bit of water. Our Vet had us give 1/2 teaspoon Miralax dissolved in about 1 teas. water twice per day for both our cats when they were constipated, and one cat weighs 9 lbs ad the other weighs 15 pounds, so I would think that amount should work basically for any size cat. We did this until they produced a couple good movements. You could mix this with her baby food if that's the only thing she'll eat, or you can use a needleless syringe and put it right into her mouth (cheek area so she doesn't aspirate) It has no taste or odor and doesn't gel up so shouldn't be a problem.

She is sadly avoiding the baby food today. She has eaten a tiny amount of fancy feast and some temptations. I hate giving those to her, but right now I'm trying to make sure her stomach isn't empty. The vet said that the Reglan is also supposed to be anti nausea so I could skip the cerenia, which is sounding like it may be a good choice. I asked about whether the pred could be causing any of this, and the vet felt fairly confident that wasn't the case. Her dose is down now to the every other day, but they didn't want to stop it yet. It definitely has felt like a roller coaster of trying to figure out what is working and what isn't and not really knowing why its happening. I brought up constipation with the vet today, as the last confirmed bowel movement was Thursday. My understanding was that they're hoping the Reglan will address the nausea she seems to have and get her GI system moving and the cypro to convince her to eat. If not, it seems pretty clear we'll be heading back to the vet Monday likely for an ultrasound and at a minimum some more fluids. I wish kitties didn't have the response that lack of eating makes you lose your appetite even more! Her brother however has been happy to eat any can or jar of anything I've opened.

Thank you for ideas to keep trying

 

[jack_and_gin19]

So fortunately the cypro and reglan were very helpful in getting Ginger to eat something. I was absolutely shocked the first evening after she had the meds that she came in to the kitchen looking for food. The vet was surprised the cypro worked so well for her, it definitely made her one groggy kitty but a hungry one. We are still figuring things out as she just came off the cypro a few days ago and I'm working to keep her appetite up. Just wanted to update in case anyone searches the forums like I did to get some info.

 

[fionasmom]

Glad to hear that. I have usually had the same response to cypro.