IBD flareup

[FriendofFerals]

UPDATE: A week after ending the metronidazole (which was preceded by 10-day Clavamox for an early URI) the spastic litter box trips, butt wiping and poopy buthole stamping of every flat surface in the house has stopped. Now, he still isn't making a proper poo, more like peanut butter but a least it isn't worthy of a whole-house disinfection twice a day.

Full Bucket Health with S. boulardii twice a day, RAWZ wet food with no gums or PBAs, Young Again Matture ZERO LID hydrolyzed dry (as much as he'll eat...which isn't more than 1/4 cup a day) and we're back to "good as it gets" baseline given he's on prednisolone every other day, B vitamin liquid supplement, and Omega 3 oil.

I'm guessing the Clavamox knocked out the URI, but the rest of the allergy/inflammation flare manifested as an IBD flare. While the metronidazole helped the spastic poo and inflammation, it wiped his gut out too beyond what the S. Boulardii pre/probiotics could overcome,

Now the pre/probiotics are taking hold again and it's better. He's still gassy in the litter box but he has no teeth, swallows lots of air and burps like Homer Simpson after eating, so I can't blame the gas on anything he's eating if he's swallowing that much air.

 

[guarua]

So, my IBD cats have been on the probiotics for a while now. I haven't noticed any drastic changes except in appetite. Where Pangur used to inhale all his food, he now eats like a regular cat. I'm not sure what to think. I was told by a vet previously that Pangur's absurdly huge appetite (he's had it since I first brought him home) might be related to his IBD since he's not able to absorb his food properly and so never feels full. I am slightly concerned but he seems to be doing great and this would help his weight loss if he's not constantly looking for food. He only has had a reduced appetite before or during a flareup but this isn't like normal. He's eating all three meals and taking treats, it's just like he's not constantly ravenous anymore so maybe it's fine or even good?

 

[FriendofFerals]

I know how you feel.....Mine is on prednisolone every other day, metronidazole when spasms hit, hydrolyzed dry food and even when he doesn't eat his wet food he still has molten poo incidents once a day. When it's more than that, we up the prednisolone and take another round of metronidazole but it doesn't last. He's on S. Boulardi probiotics, seem to be the same no matter what protein he eats. The saving grace is the hydrolyzed dry food (Young Again LID Mature Zero) that has no carbs or additives that trigger him and it fills him up to hold weight but not gain any. He needs wet food for his Cosequin, B-vitamin liquid, and Omega 3 but he's slowly rejected everything...RAWZ, Weruva, Koha...


Today he had a really bad out-of-the-litter-box accident in the morning. Like....it took 45 min to clean and disinfect the laundry room, clean up his tracked prints and clean him up. His diet was no different from the day before so I have no idea what happened. Only it was once a day, not 20 times a day.

I can't get his supplements in unless he has wet food. And in the morning he goes for the wet before the dry and I'm able to give him his 2-3 pills by interrupting him. If I don't do it that way, he immediately pukes the pills up.

I'm at my wit's end and don't know what else to do. All food seems bad, medications don't work, prednisolone doesn't help appetite or diarrhea, and metronidazole wipes out the gut reducing inflammation but making the diarrhea the same until the probiotics kick in again Then the cycle starts all over.

 

[Astragal14]

I can't get his supplements in unless he has wet food

This is a very helpful video with several ideas for medicating cats and I think some of these could also work for supplements as well.

I'm at my wit's end and don't know what else to do. All food seems bad, medications don't work, prednisolone doesn't help appetite or diarrhea, and metronidazole wipes out the gut reducing inflammation but making the diarrhea the same until the probiotics kick in again Then the cycle starts all over.

I'd recommend two changes in your routine. One, you need a different (or additional) probiotic. I looked up the Full Bucket probiotic you're using and it's nowhere nearly strong enough for your needs right now. It's a single strain probiotic using S.Boulardii, which is GREAT for diarrhea.... but it won't do much else. And right now, your boy needs an extra amount of good bacteria since his is wiped out from the antibiotic. The gold standard for pet probiotics is Visbiome Vet; this is what I use daily for my boy with IBD and it's fantastic. The cost per dose is the same as most others but the website has a minimum purchase of two bottles (it's also identical to the human version if you can find that, Costco sells it for much less than anywhere else). Another good option I've used is Proviable DC; it's not as strong but it has 7 probiotic strains that are known to support gut health (you can also double the dose to equal Proviable Forte, which is their version only sold through vet offices). There is also Nexabiotic, this is not one I have personal experience with but I know many others who recommend it and it is easy to find on Amazon. It also has S.boulardii already in it.
Visbiome® Vet
Proviable DC
Nexabiotic

The second thing you need is B12 injections because cats only absorb the tiniest fraction of oral B12; they absorb so little of it that it truly will not have any effect at all. And they absorb even less when their GI tract is in poor condition.

But sick cats may not be able to absorb enough of the B12 that’s in their food. The absorption of this vitamin is a complex process that involves the stomach, pancreas, small intestine, and liver, so if any one of those organs isn’t functioning well, less B12 gets absorbed.

Vitamin B12 Deficiency in Cats: The Role of the Gut

B12 injections are very easy to administer yourself (we just started administering them to our cat, after 4 years of monthly in office injections). And office appointments only require a vet tech, our vet office charged $17 per appointment. A common routine is 4 weeks of weekly injections, 8 weeks of bi-weekly injections and then maintenance injections on a monthly basis.

 

[FriendofFerals]

This is a very helpful video with several ideas for medicating cats and I think some of these could also work for supplements as well.



I'd recommend two changes in your routine. One, you need a different (or additional) probiotic. I looked up the Full Bucket probiotic you're using and it's nowhere nearly strong enough for your needs right now. It's a single strain probiotic using S.Boulardii, which is GREAT for diarrhea.... but it won't do much else. And right now, your boy needs an extra amount of good bacteria since his is wiped out from the antibiotic. The gold standard for pet probiotics is Visbiome Vet; this is what I use daily for my boy with IBD and it's fantastic. The cost per dose is the same as most others but the website has a minimum purchase of two bottles (it's also identical to the human version if you can find that, Costco sells it for much less than anywhere else). Another good option I've used is Proviable DC; it's not as strong but it has 7 probiotic strains that are known to support gut health (you can also double the dose to equal Proviable Forte, which is their version only sold through vet offices). There is also Nexabiotic, this is not one I have personal experience with but I know many others who recommend it and it is easy to find on Amazon. It also has S.boulardii already in it.
Visbiome® Vet
Proviable DC
Nexabiotic

The second thing you need is B12 injections because cats only absorb the tiniest fraction of oral B12; they absorb so little of it that it truly will not have any effect at all. And they absorb even less when their GI tract is in poor condition.

Vitamin B12 Deficiency in Cats: The Role of the Gut

B12 injections are very easy to administer yourself (we just started administering them to our cat, after 4 years of monthly in office injections). And office appointments only require a vet tech, our vet office charged $17 per appointment. A common routine is 4 weeks of weekly injections, 8 weeks of bi-weekly injections and then maintenance injections on a monthly basis.

Thank you so much. I will check out these probiotics right away. While S. Boulardii is touted as being great and Full Bucket has been great for my other two, my IBD boy needs more. I also think he needs the b-12 shots. I thought the oral solution *while it smells like bacon* isn't consistently eaten since his appetite depends on how his tummy feels. He used to do 4 week Depo so 4 week B-12 is no big deal and I think I could do it if it's no harder than an insulin injection.