Harley has had all the symptoms of IBD for awhile, and is now on his second type of antibiotics to see if it will help. He was on Albon and probiotics for a week, which didn't help, and is now taking Metronidazole, which also doesn't seem to be helping. We had another cat that had IBD really bad, and nothing helped him, so I'm assuming IBD is an uphill battle, and hard to control. Harley is on Natural Balance Salmon and Pea, grain free food, because our other cat has allergies and that is the only food I could find without chicken, and we just give them both the same thing. My question is, is that an okay food for a cat with constant diarrhea, or is there something better, and more beneficial I could be feeding him. My vet doesn't like grain free food, for dogs or cats, and hasn't recommend
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Is This Food Good For A Cat With Ibd
- Thread starter leo12
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When my cat had IBD she would throw up 24/7 and not eat. Diarrhea was not a problem til she started taking fortiflor A
very bland diet was recommended so she was on nature's variety duck LID. Has your vet suggested a specialist to confirm it?
very bland diet was recommended so she was on nature's variety duck LID. Has your vet suggested a specialist to confirm it?
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Harley occasionally throws up, but mostly hair balls. His major problem is diarrhea, and he has lost about two pounds. Hes been on Natural Balance canned for about two years, doesn't particularly like it, but will eat it. Now, hes not eating much of it at all. I'm wondering if he had food with grain, instead of grain free, if it would help the diarrhea. My vet has taken blood tests, examined him, and now has tried two different meds. He said the only way to diagnose would be a biopsy, and at his age I wont do it. When he finishes the Metronidazole I'm going to call him and ask what food he recommends, but I found out with my last cat he wouldn't eat what his vet recommended, so I'd like to come up with some options on my own. I will keep the Natures Variety in mind. Is it grain free? How long did you have your cat on the Fortiflora, Harley was only on it a week and maybe I should have given it longer?
She was also only on it for a week. She had an ultrasound. Not as risky as a biopsy.. Her weight dropped, a lot. She also was on prednisone. Doesn't have to be nature's variety. Another person on here gives her cat with IBD Rawz Turkey. Check out the catfooddb.com. It might be the fish that is causing him to have diarrhea.
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I would be suspect of the peas. Peas aren’t a natural part of a cat’s diet. Neither is salmon for that matter. Your cat is probably going to be sensitive or allergic to the most common cat food proteins depending on what diet he has been eating. I’d avoid chicken, salmon, and tuna. And peas. There’s a Cat Food Ingredient Google Sheets page in the Cat Nutrition forum to avoid those ingredients. In my Krista’s case, she doesn’t like red meat so most “novel protein” foods are out. Novel protein only has to be novel for your cat, not all cats. She likes and tolerates (no reactions) rabbit and duck. But turkey is her favorite and she thrives on that. Krista eats Rawz Turkey and Turkey Liver Pate. Rawz makes the best food for IBD cats short of making it yourself.
But food trials are not likely to be successful until you can heal his gut. And the BEST way to do that is not steroids or novel proteins or limited ingredient diets. The best way to heal any gut (or butt) problems is a collagen and gelatin rich meat stock. The gelatin and other collagens will literally heal, they provide the materials and the nutrients to heal the gut.
Here’s a real “meaty” article on what feline IBD is and why a homemade meat stock is the best medicine.
https://feline-nutrition.org/health/feline-inflammatory-bowel-disease-nature-and-treatment
And here’s a video and transcript on how to make a meat stock:
Bone Broth Is Excellent Nourishment for Older Pets
If you follow along in that video or the transcript, meat stock is the strained liquid after round 1. It is the nutrients from the meat and the connective tissues. It is not necessary to continue to round 2 which is boiling the bones until they fall apart. That is bone broth. Bone broth is a stronger flavor, not all cats like it (my Krista doesn’t care for any bone broth), and it can be difficult for some individuals to digest. All the good stuff is in the connective tissues anyway.
That link has instructions for chicken. But I told you to avoid chicken. I make turkey meat stock by placing uncooked bone-in with meat and skin cuts with joints like wings and thighs. Cut the joints with a knife and fill a stock pot or crock pot about 1/3 of the way with the meat and bones. Fill just to cover the meat with filtered water. With a crock pot on low, 10 hours is perfect. Set it at bedtime. At morning, strain it, cool it, cover it, and come back 8 hours later. Scrape the fat layer off and portion your meat jell-O into ice cubes and freeze. These stock cubes can be thawed to serve in a warm or hot water bath. My Krista will eat it cold from the fridge but you can warm it to lukewarm. I wouldn’t go hotter than that. You can mix it with food but I wouldn’t mix it with anything he won’t finish in 30 minutes. Stock is wonderful medicine but old stock can make him sick. I would aim for one or more ice cubes worth per day. I don’t think you can overdo it but start slow like anything else.
But food trials are not likely to be successful until you can heal his gut. And the BEST way to do that is not steroids or novel proteins or limited ingredient diets. The best way to heal any gut (or butt) problems is a collagen and gelatin rich meat stock. The gelatin and other collagens will literally heal, they provide the materials and the nutrients to heal the gut.
Here’s a real “meaty” article on what feline IBD is and why a homemade meat stock is the best medicine.
https://feline-nutrition.org/health/feline-inflammatory-bowel-disease-nature-and-treatment
And here’s a video and transcript on how to make a meat stock:
Bone Broth Is Excellent Nourishment for Older Pets
If you follow along in that video or the transcript, meat stock is the strained liquid after round 1. It is the nutrients from the meat and the connective tissues. It is not necessary to continue to round 2 which is boiling the bones until they fall apart. That is bone broth. Bone broth is a stronger flavor, not all cats like it (my Krista doesn’t care for any bone broth), and it can be difficult for some individuals to digest. All the good stuff is in the connective tissues anyway.
That link has instructions for chicken. But I told you to avoid chicken. I make turkey meat stock by placing uncooked bone-in with meat and skin cuts with joints like wings and thighs. Cut the joints with a knife and fill a stock pot or crock pot about 1/3 of the way with the meat and bones. Fill just to cover the meat with filtered water. With a crock pot on low, 10 hours is perfect. Set it at bedtime. At morning, strain it, cool it, cover it, and come back 8 hours later. Scrape the fat layer off and portion your meat jell-O into ice cubes and freeze. These stock cubes can be thawed to serve in a warm or hot water bath. My Krista will eat it cold from the fridge but you can warm it to lukewarm. I wouldn’t go hotter than that. You can mix it with food but I wouldn’t mix it with anything he won’t finish in 30 minutes. Stock is wonderful medicine but old stock can make him sick. I would aim for one or more ice cubes worth per day. I don’t think you can overdo it but start slow like anything else.
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I would be suspect of the peas. Peas aren’t a natural part of a cat’s diet. Neither is salmon for that matter. Your cat is probably going to be sensitive or allergic to the most common cat food proteins depending on what diet he has been eating. I’d avoid chicken, salmon, and tuna. And peas. There’s a Cat Food Ingredient Google Sheets page in the Cat Nutrition forum to avoid those ingredients. In my Krista’s case, she doesn’t like red meat so most “novel protein” foods are out. Novel protein only has to be novel for your cat, not all cats. She likes and tolerates (no reactions) rabbit and duck. But turkey is her favorite and she thrives on that. Krista eats Rawz Turkey and Turkey Liver Pate. Rawz makes the best food for IBD cats short of making it yourself.
But food trials are not likely to be successful until you can heal his gut. And the BEST way to do that is not steroids or novel proteins or limited ingredient diets. The best way to heal any gut (or butt) problems is a collagen and gelatin rich meat stock. The gelatin and other collagens will literally heal, they provide the materials and the nutrients to heal the gut.
Here’s a real “meaty” article on what feline IBD is and why a homemade meat stock is the best medicine.
https://feline-nutrition.org/health/feline-inflammatory-bowel-disease-nature-and-treatment
And here’s a video and transcript on how to make a meat stock:
Bone Broth Is Excellent Nourishment for Older Pets
If you follow along in that video or the transcript, meat stock is the strained liquid after round 1. It is the nutrients from the meat and the connective tissues. It is not necessary to continue to round 2 which is boiling the bones until they fall apart. That is bone broth. Bone broth is a stronger flavor, not all cats like it (my Krista doesn’t care for any bone broth), and it can be difficult for some individuals to digest. And anyway, all the good stuff is in the connective tissues anyway.
That link has instructions for chicken. But I told you to avoid chicken. I make turkey meat stock by placing uncooked bone-in with meat and skin cuts with joints like wings and thighs. Cut the joints with a knife and fill a stock pot or crock pot about 1/3 of the way with the meat and bones. Fill just to cover the meat with filtered water. With a crock pot on low, 10 hours is perfect. Set it at bedtime. At morning, strain it, cool it, cover it, and come back 8 hours later. Scrape the fat layer off and portion your meat jell-O into ice cubes and freeze. These stock cubes can be thawed to serve in a warm or hot water bath. My Krista will eat it cold from the fridge but you can warm it to lukewarm. I wouldn’t go hotter than that. You can mix it with food but I wouldn’t mix it with anything he won’t finish in 30 minutes. Stock is wonderful medicine but old stock can make him sick. I would aim for one or more ice cubes worth per day. I don’t think you can overdo it but start slow like anything else.
But food trials are not likely to be successful until you can heal his gut. And the BEST way to do that is not steroids or novel proteins or limited ingredient diets. The best way to heal any gut (or butt) problems is a collagen and gelatin rich meat stock. The gelatin and other collagens will literally heal, they provide the materials and the nutrients to heal the gut.
Here’s a real “meaty” article on what feline IBD is and why a homemade meat stock is the best medicine.
https://feline-nutrition.org/health/feline-inflammatory-bowel-disease-nature-and-treatment
And here’s a video and transcript on how to make a meat stock:
Bone Broth Is Excellent Nourishment for Older Pets
If you follow along in that video or the transcript, meat stock is the strained liquid after round 1. It is the nutrients from the meat and the connective tissues. It is not necessary to continue to round 2 which is boiling the bones until they fall apart. That is bone broth. Bone broth is a stronger flavor, not all cats like it (my Krista doesn’t care for any bone broth), and it can be difficult for some individuals to digest. And anyway, all the good stuff is in the connective tissues anyway.
That link has instructions for chicken. But I told you to avoid chicken. I make turkey meat stock by placing uncooked bone-in with meat and skin cuts with joints like wings and thighs. Cut the joints with a knife and fill a stock pot or crock pot about 1/3 of the way with the meat and bones. Fill just to cover the meat with filtered water. With a crock pot on low, 10 hours is perfect. Set it at bedtime. At morning, strain it, cool it, cover it, and come back 8 hours later. Scrape the fat layer off and portion your meat jell-O into ice cubes and freeze. These stock cubes can be thawed to serve in a warm or hot water bath. My Krista will eat it cold from the fridge but you can warm it to lukewarm. I wouldn’t go hotter than that. You can mix it with food but I wouldn’t mix it with anything he won’t finish in 30 minutes. Stock is wonderful medicine but old stock can make him sick. I would aim for one or more ice cubes worth per day. I don’t think you can overdo it but start slow like anything else.
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What does the ultrasound do, show problems with the intestines? This vet and another one we had for another cat never recommended an ultrasound, but it definitely sounds like a good idea to me. The steroids will probably be the next thing the vet will try, although I hate to start them. I'm going to check out the site you posted, thank you.
Dont remember exactly, but an ultrasound shows problems. A biopsy is accurate but risky. A specialist can determine what the cause might be from an ultrasound. He first suggested science diet Z/D which made her go diarrhea. Then she was on rabbit or duck til natures variety added peas. So she was on Koha duck. Josie lived to be 17, my avatar. True, the can does not have to say LID. Just check the indredients
An ultrasound will show the signs of inflammation. There is also a specific blood test that measures levels of B12 and folate in the blood. There is no definitive test for IBD short of a full depth intestinal biopsy which is a major invasive procedures. The ultrasound and specific blood tests are very strong indicators.
What works for a cat with IBD differs from cat to cat. When my IBD kitty flared he would have the vomiting, anorexia and constipation. I never found a diet that would work so he was on a steroid for about 8 years.
What works for a cat with IBD differs from cat to cat. When my IBD kitty flared he would have the vomiting, anorexia and constipation. I never found a diet that would work so he was on a steroid for about 8 years.
Grain-free food is controversial as there are some studies that raise questions that might have bad effects especially with the substitutes. But several sources also state IBD cats do well on grain-free. My own cat is on a mostly grain-free diet because others didn't work well for her. IMO short-term result is more important than longterm risk as short-term damage will also lead to longterm problems. (You can continue to try grainy foods that feel safer every now and then and see how it goes.)
You can try grain-free wet food. Some of them don't have grains AND they also don't have substitutes. Like Naturea chicken.
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To be clear, what's controversial is feeding obligate carnivores anything other than meat, moisture, organs, and supplements. "Grain-free" usually means there's something else that you're going to object to. "Limited ingredient" often isn't or it's limited to the wrong ingredients. And "novel protein" only needs to be novel to your cat and not novel to all cats.
In other words, get used to reading labels and being frustrated. Most of the foods are marketed to you rather than your cat. Don't fall for it. Garden vegetables are not healthy for cats. It is very likely that all these inappropriate ingredients in cat food are at the root of the bacterial overgrowth that leads to the leaky gut that begins the IBD inflammatory process. This is why so many IBD cats find relief on a raw food diet. It's finally the correct diet for them.
Make a meat stock and heal and seal the gut first. Any food trials with a leaky gut are likely to fail. You'll switch proteins but partially digested pieces of that protein leak into the blood stream. If the immune system weaponizes against the new protein, your cat now has a new sensitivity.
In other words, get used to reading labels and being frustrated. Most of the foods are marketed to you rather than your cat. Don't fall for it. Garden vegetables are not healthy for cats. It is very likely that all these inappropriate ingredients in cat food are at the root of the bacterial overgrowth that leads to the leaky gut that begins the IBD inflammatory process. This is why so many IBD cats find relief on a raw food diet. It's finally the correct diet for them.
Make a meat stock and heal and seal the gut first. Any food trials with a leaky gut are likely to fail. You'll switch proteins but partially digested pieces of that protein leak into the blood stream. If the immune system weaponizes against the new protein, your cat now has a new sensitivity.
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Daftcat75, your post about making meat stock makes sense, it is doable but will take awhile, so I gave my husband that job. Harley is his cat. Is Rawz food what it sounds like, raw meat? Harley has no teeth, so if it is I don't think he could swallow raw meat. He definitely is not liking the Natural Balance canned anymore, will eat the dry version but can't chew it so it doesn't stay down all the time. I'm going to get only one can of whatever the vet recommends, because I know from past experience that it won't be liked. I hate to keep switching foods, because that definitely won't help his gut, but he has to eat
It is like pate. A little runnier than other brands I have. No meat chunks
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Maybe I will skip the vets brand, and just do the Rawz, I hate to keep switching. If Harley is anything like my other cat I had with IBD, he will try everything once or twice, and then quit eating it. The only thing he would eat was boiled chicken, which wasn't good, but at least he ate it. I never tried the Rawz.
Here's a thread with bland-ish food suggestions for IBD cats:
Possible Ibd And Food
A raw food diet doesn't have to be chunks of meat. You can use ground meat but not store bought already ground up meat. It's preferred to buy a cut of meat and grind it yourself (store ground meat likely has bacteria mixed throughout it from who-knows-how-clean store grinders. Cooking kills the bacteria) or buying raw meat from a pet food supplier such as Hare-Today.com.
A cooked diet is an alternative. You can use ground or chunked cooked meat and add in a pre-mix for the necessary vitamins and minerals. EZComplete is a popular one.
This chart is helpful to find chicken-free foods:
Check This Out.... Chart For Cat Food Ingredients
Possible Ibd And Food
A raw food diet doesn't have to be chunks of meat. You can use ground meat but not store bought already ground up meat. It's preferred to buy a cut of meat and grind it yourself (store ground meat likely has bacteria mixed throughout it from who-knows-how-clean store grinders. Cooking kills the bacteria) or buying raw meat from a pet food supplier such as Hare-Today.com.
A cooked diet is an alternative. You can use ground or chunked cooked meat and add in a pre-mix for the necessary vitamins and minerals. EZComplete is a popular one.
This chart is helpful to find chicken-free foods:
Check This Out.... Chart For Cat Food Ingredients
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When I was feeding raw to Krista, I didn’t mind sourcing ground meat from the frozen section. My objection to using raw meat from the refrigerated section is that they want to sell old meat. Unsold meat loses money. Sometimes they add chemicals to the packaging to make it last just a little bit longer. They expect any harm that might come of this to get cooked off. When the meat is sold frozen, there isn’t the same motivation to sell old meat. You can find some fairly exotic meats to try in the beef burger alternatives section in the frozen aisle. In my local Sprouts, they have venison, bison, elk, and lamb. They also have beef liver in the frozen section. If Krista would just eat red meat, we’d be set. You just want to make sure nothing is added to the meat. No salt, spices, or preservatives.
Krista is a turkey girl and all the turkey in the frozen section is salted and/or seasoned. My local raw food coop is getting the duck patties back in that she likes.
Krista is a turkey girl and all the turkey in the frozen section is salted and/or seasoned. My local raw food coop is getting the duck patties back in that she likes.
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So If I was to buy frozen hamburgers, nothing added, I could just thaw one out, break it in very tiny pieces, and let Harley eat it, raw? Also, where do you buy Rawz cat food from, I looked up on Chewy and the don't have it, and PetSmart also doesn't have it? I could order a case from Amazon, but would prefer to try one can first to see if Harley will eat it, because its too expensive to buy if he won't.
Rawz has it's own page online
Its $52 for 24 5.5oz cans. Maybe they'll give you samples. My cat didnt like it
