Feline IBD

[Catmom1234567890]

The biopsy from my baby's endoscopy confirmed IBD. She has significant inflammation and thickening of the intestine and stomach. I am extremely worried about this. Vet suggested 12 weeks of corticosteroid budesonide and a limited ingredient diet. Is this something she is going to be suffering rest of her life because it seems like there is no cure for this.

 

[Antonio65]

The biopsy from my baby's endoscopy confirmed IBD. She has significant inflammation and thickening of the intestine and stomach. I am extremely worried about this. Vet suggested 12 weeks of corticosteroid budesonide and a limited ingredient diet. Is this something she is going to be suffering rest of her life because it seems like there is no cure for this.

I'm truly sorry for your kitty, I know how sad having to deal with this is.
My cat had IBD. We never confirmed that with a biopsy, or specific tests. So we didn't have a corfirm for this, but all the clinical and physical signs would lead to it.
She had been on prednisolone for some time, but we tried to manage it as best as we could with a proper diet and supplements.

I changed her diet completely, from her renal wet and dry food, to a monoproteic wet only food. She didn't have CKD, the renal diet was on the wake of what she was eating when I had another cat with CKD and I couldn't be sure they wouldn't swap their dishes.
The monoproteic food worked fine, and she stopped vomiting and having belly aches.
I would also add some vitamin B supplements and give her sub-Q's every other day.

It seems there is no cure for that, you can only control it with a high quality diet and cortisone when needed.
I also removed all grains from her diet, so I made sure that her monoproteic wet food didn't contain any grain.

 

[Catmom1234567890]

What is the cause of this disease? I’ve always Fed her high quality wet food like tiki, nature’s feline, wellness and I always rotated source of protein.

 

[Antonio65]

It seems you did a great job with your cat.
Someone told me that high carb and grain foods might be at the origin of the problem, or feeding the cat always the same protein that could make them sensitive or intolerant to it.
I believe that the definitive cause of the disease is still unknown, and it can be partly in the nature and genetic of the cat.

 

[Catmom1234567890]

It seems you did a great job with your cat.
Someone told me that high carb and grain foods might be at the origin of the problem, or feeding the cat always the same protein that could make them sensitive or intolerant to it.
I believe that the definitive cause of the disease is still unknown, and it can be partly in the nature and genetic of the cat.

It seems like once you are diagnosed, it is a lifelong disease and no cure. How long cats with IBD live?

 

[Antonio65]

It seems like once you are diagnosed, it is a lifelong disease and no cure. How long cats with IBD live?

They can live a long life as long as the disease is kept under control.
What happens is that the cat may go through a period of good condition with no or very little symptoms, and then have a bout of inflammation which will need treatments.
A strict control of the disease and a good follow up check plan is important to keep an eye on it in the case it may change from IBD to a lymphoma.

 

[Catmom1234567890]

Thank you so much. How do I know which food caused IBD? I got her last year as a rescue, and she was eating wellness chicken pate with little bit of dry kibble and she seemed fine.

I then introduced different protein source, gave her lamb and different chicken from tiki, nature’s feline etc.

Do you think IBD was brought on by new food introduction? I feel like I should have just left the food as it is, just wellness chicken pate.

 

[Antonio65]

Please, don't feel guilty, you don't know it for sure you did something wrong.
As a matter of fact, I would say you did nothing wrong at all. You had her one year, it's very unlikely the problem arose from what you fed her. If the food is the origin of the problem, it takes some time to show up, so if the food was the cause, I would say that one could blame whatever she was eating before you adopted her.

I don't think you could ever know what made her sick, but you might correct the issue by giving her something that doesn't make her feel bad.
Unfortunately I think it's a trial and error thing. You try a food and see what the reaction is, and then you act accordingly.

In my case we found out that fish and poultry were the problem, so we tried something new, and we were lucky to pick the right one at the first attempt, Pork.

 

[Catmom1234567890]

Thank you, she just had an endoscopy procedure for hairball obstruction. Took a sample of her GI tissue for biopsy. That’s how we found out. Our fist kitty passed away two years ago and she suffered from many medical conditions and now this one too. I can’t seem to get a break.

I know lot of people would opt for euthanasia because the procedure alone was in thousands. We were going to get pet insurance but now this is pre existing condition and none of it would be covered. Major stress both financially and for our little girl. We love her so much. Breaks my heart

 

[Antonio65]

I think I missed the bit of info about her age.

I can understand you, when you say you can't have a break after the other cat passed.
I, too, had two cats, one with lots of ailments and the one with IBD (and was hyperthyroid too). The first one passed away, while the second was in trouble with her intestine.

I know that in the US (I guess you are based there) vet bills and scans can be very expensive and some people would choose to put their pets to sleep rather than spending thousands.
I'm italian, and live in Italy, and here we have very affordable vet fees when compared to the US ones.
It's much easier for us to take care of our pets.

I hope you can find an effective treatment and diet for your cat.

 

[Catmom1234567890]

She's a young kitty, about 3 years old. Yes, I'm in the States and they take us to the cleaners. Thank you for your support, really appreciated.

 

[Antonio65]

I think it's the first time I read of such a young kitty with IBD, and I wonder if this can be an acute form of inflammation rather than a chronic one. The difference being that the previous one could be treated for good.

 

[fionasmom]

IBDKitties – Helping Save Lives…One Paw at a Time
Inflammatory Bowel Disease In Cats – TheCatSite Articles

I am sorry that you are facing this diagnosis, but don't give up or get depressed. The two website/articles above might help you, especially the first, to learn about and understand the condition. They may also have a FB group that you can join.

Don't even start to think about what you fed your cat that might have played a hand in this, or if you are in any way to blame. You aren't. You have been a great cat guardian and need to focus on moving forward with this.

You can get a lot of support here as you need it. Euthanasia should not even be brought up as this condition can be managed with diet, medication, and care. Your vet already took samples of her GI tract, so I don't see where you need to consider a hugely expensive vet bill at the present.

I also wondered if this might be acute and not chronic, as Antonio65 just mentioned, given her age.

 

[daftcat75]

It could be just about anything that caused the inflammation: proteins, grains, starches, thickeners, or gums.

It's good that she's starting with budesonide. That is more of a local action corticosteroid rather than a systemic steroid like prednisilone. That should avoid many of the more insidious long-term side effect risks of prednisilone.

However, diet will be her best medicine.

My two best recommendations would be Rawz single protein pates which will help you eliminate all the other suspect ingredients including the thickeners and gums, and/or a homemade diet starting with a supplement premix like EZ Complete.

Rawz
Where to Buy | RAWZ

They will send you samples if you write them. Some of their online resellers also sell by the can and the case making it easier to sample different recipes. I recommend the turkey and the rabbit as something different from what she has been eating.

EZ Complete
EZComplete Premix Information

They will sell you a sample for $1.
Samples

What I like about EZ Complete is that you can start with either raw or cooked chicken (poached or baked retaining the cooking liquid to mix with the powder) chicken and add the required amount of water and powder to make a complete food. You can balance as little as a single serving or larger batches. What I don't like about EZ Complete is that it contains chicken liver and green lipped mussels. Many IBD cats are sensitive to chicken (likely because that was what they were eating when their immune system went crazy e.g. the developing process underneath IBD rather than anything inherently bad about chicken itself.) And many cats have a reaction to green lipped mussels. You'll likely see that reaction in the litter box.

If chicken (or green lipped mussels) is one of her triggers, then you may need to look at a different protein and a different vitamin premix. Alnutrin is a popular supplement mix that is fairly protein-agnostic. It does contain egg in the ingredients. But not every cat who is sensitive to chicken is also sensitive to egg. The drawback to Alnutrin, and why I recommend EZ Complete first is that you have to bring your own liver to the mix. But if you can get past that, you have more flexibility in the protein (and liver) you use.

Alnutrin also has a samples program. You'll want the one with eggshell calcium.
Know What You Feed Your Cat - Alnutrin Supplements - Free Samples

If you try commercial raw with her, another excellent recommendation, look for a boneless preparation. Bone is harder for IBD cats to digest and pass. These boneless raw foods are harder to find because most commercial raw does not even list bone in the ingredients. It is assumed that "chicken" or "whole chicken" refers to bone-in unless otherwise specified. Stella and Chewy's Selects and Darwin's Lamb (only the lamb!) recipe are two boneless commercial raw foods that I know of.

I recommend starting with one. Rawz or EZ Complete and give it several weeks (unless it's really obviously not agreeing with her) before trying something different.

Make food transitions gradual.

Smaller portions and more meals through the day can also be effective with managing IBD symptoms.

Find single ingredient freeze-dried proteins for treats like freeze-dried turkey or turkey hearts. Try to match the protein with whatever food you are trying. Or just cut out treats for the duration of the food trial. You can't cut out chicken from her food, for example, but still give her chicken in her treats.

Finally, if she's eating any kibble, that's the first thing you'll want to eliminate. Just way too many ingredients to figure out what works and doesn't work for her. Maybe after you've got her stabilized on known good foods, you can trial dry food with her to see how she reacts. But if you can get her off it completely, I wouldn't try to add it back in later, if you can help it.

 

[Catmom1234567890]

Hi guys, my kitty had an endoscopy procedure to remove the hairball LAST WEEK, and TODAY she was admitted again for second hairball obstruction. Dr insists first hairball was completely removed. Tissue biopsy confirmed IBD. The vet said her GI motility is not working properly due to inflammation. How can she have another blockage in 5 days since the first blockage. My vet bills are in 5 figuers.

 

[Antonio65]

If the inflammation is slowing her bowels down, you should fix this inflammation first, with steroids or natural treatments.
My younger kitty had a bout of inflammation in the final tract of her bowels, of unknown origin, and she was a bit off food (not herself).
The vet prescribed nothing, but I wanted to try with Aloe Arborescens juice, which worked a treat.
I would try this as well, it won't hurt your cat. Do not use Aloe Vera.

If your kitty tends to form hairballs often, consider brushing her more often and using one of those pastes for hairball removing.

I would also look for another vet that might have more passion and less greed. Bills in 5 figures are crazy!

 

[Catmom1234567890]

Thank you, I brush her daily. She’s a ragdoll. It seems like GI motility stopped working. Any hair ingestion builds up in the stomach and she can’t pass it.

This second obstruction is too big to pass even if her motility is working. She stopped eating and stays in fetal position all day. That is why I took her to vet again. Dr said it has to be removed. Vet will be shaving her down completely.

I know most people will opt for euthanasia than be stuck with 5 figure vet bills.

 

[Antonio65]

Thank you, I brush her daily. She’s a ragdoll. It seems like GI motility stopped working. Any hair ingestion builds up in the stomach and she can’t pass it.

Is there anything that you/the vet can do to boost her GI motility?
There are meds to help this. Does your vet think they can be used in this case?

Vet will be shaving her down completely.

This sounds like a good idea at the moment, until things settle.

I know most people will opt for euthanasia than be stuck with 5 figure vet bills.

It seems to me that you're not among them

 

[Catmom1234567890]

I will be addressing boosting GI motility. She will be on steroids. She was on cisapride but that didn’t work, is there any other med to help aid motility.
Don’t want to gross you out but that’s how much hair was taken out on the first endoscopy.

 

[Antonio65]

Yes, I think that shaving her can save you both lots of hassle and trouble!

I had a cat that was treated with a med to boost his motility, it was about 10 years ago, I can't remember the name. It was human grade, a white powder to be dissolved in water, I can't remember anything else.