My kitty has hepatic lipidosis...

[Mamanyt1953]

Well, the longer she kept it down, the more she absorbed, so that's some good news, even if a bump in the road!

 

[eva21513]

Good luck with your appointment tomorrow! Please keep us posted. She's definitely a ham, and she looks so sweet!

 

[sstrat23]

Just checking in to see if you had any updates on how she’s been doing these last couple days?

 

[-Cory-]

She's been doing pretty well. We've worked our way up to about 200 calories. I'm hoping we'll get to 300 in the next couple days. The last 2 days she has eaten 70-80 calories on her own, so that's fantastic. Her energy levels aren't consistent yet. Yesterday she was pretty energetic and acting like herself, today she was definitely a little more lethargic. I'm still at the point where I'm afraid she's going to vomit or just quit tolerate the feedings, but i'm hoping that anxiety will calm once we've been at it a little while. Went to her primary vet yesterday and it went well. They're pleased with how she's doing and are pretty encouraging about her prognosis and how I'm handling things (which is nice to hear).

I hope we can get down to 4 feedings per day. I'm doing 7 now and it is very time intensive. I'm definitely willing to do it for her, but it feels like my life has shrunk down to work and tube feeding her.

 

[sstrat23]

That’s great to hear! It sounds like everything is moving in the right direction. And I totally understand the time issue, and I’m sure you’ll get it back soon! But it’ll all be with it

 

[-Cory-]

Pudge update for the day. Things are still going pretty well right now. So far she's continued to keep everything down. We've got one more feeding left today and I'd say we'll end up somewhere in the 240-260 calorie range. It's kind of a relief to be there because that's got to be close to her daily requirements. She's continued to eat 70-90 of those calories on her own as well.

 

[-Cory-]

Wanted to give an update on Pudge. She has actually eaten more on her own than I have tube fed her the last couple days. Still not ready for the tube to come out, but she's improving shockingly quickly.

 

[sstrat23]

That’s great news! And just think once you get through this the condition is fairly rare to come about again.
Keep at it! Sounds like she’s out of the woods.

 

[-Cory-]

Little bit of a down day. Her appetite seems a bit diminished, she seems a little more lethargic, and she might have a little diarrhea (can't tell if it's her or my other cat). She still ate about 100 calories on her own, but it's hard not to be a little discouraged. It's my understanding that recovery is not linear and the ups and downs are to be expected.

 

[-Cory-]

Alright, got a question for the people who have walked this path before. She does have diarrhea. It seems to coincide with when we ran out of metoclopramide, which I know can cause constipation. My understanding is that diarrhea can be caused by the fatty liver. How long is it generally before that goes away? Is it an indication that she still needs more food, or just something we have to handle until her body is further into recovery? I do have a vet appointment tomorrow and I'll talk to them about it as well. I've read so much about this condition at this point, but there aren't many resources to give you an idea of what recovery looks like other than long.

 

[daftcat75]

Can you add saccharomyces boulardii to the portion she eats by mouth? That might help with the diarrhea. Actually, you'll use so little that it probably could go down the tube if she has no interest in eating it.

Perhaps there's other ideas here too that might be helpful.
https://www.foodfurlife.com/my-cat-has-diarrhea---what-do-i-do.html#/

 

[-Cory-]

Can you add saccharomyces boulardii to the portion she eats by mouth? That might help with the diarrhea. Actually, you'll use so little that it probably could go down the tube if she has no interest in eating it.

Perhaps there's other ideas here too that might be helpful.
https://www.foodfurlife.com/my-cat-has-diarrhea---what-do-i-do.html#/

I appreciate the link. She did have a long lasting antibiotic shot about 10 days ago, so that could be contributing. I've got some forta flora. Is that substantially different than saccharomyces boulardii?

 

[daftcat75]

I appreciate the link. She did have a long lasting antibiotic shot about 10 days ago, so that could be contributing. I've got some forta flora. Is that substantially different than saccharomyces boulardii?

Fortiflora contains bacteria strains (and not enough of them to be effective on a good day) that will be killed by the antibiotic. The antibiotic is likely what's causing the diarrhea. It is indiscriminate and will kill beneficial strains as well as the not so helpful ones. Saccharomyces boulardii is a yeast based probiotic that won't be affected by the antibiotic. The best s. boulardii to buy is the Jarrow brand which also contains MOS: a prebiotic that will encourage the re-growth of beneficial strains.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0013OVW0E/?tag=thecatsite

You should be able to find this at a Whole Foods, Sprouts, or any vitamin shop. Often it will be in the refrigerator with other probiotic products even though it says, "no refrigeration necessary."

 

[-Cory-]

Update. She managed to pull her tube out.

To be fair, it might have gotten caught on something or just slipped out because I have not seen her touch it once in the last 2 weeks. The vet was pretty baffled because it had been sutured in there pretty good. They recommended we see how she does without it for a couple days since she's been eating a decent amount lately. If she does ok, we can avoid anesthesia and a second surgery. Send positive thoughts.

 

[crouton]

Just wanted to suggest putting a motion activated camera in her room or litter box area so you can know which cat is having diarrhea and when. I had to do this when I had multiple cats with food problems, it helps immensely.
Good luck and I hope she feels better soon.

I second the cat wipe recommendation. I like the furbliss brand as they are big and thick, but water wipes are available at any big store and work too. I frequently have to clean off cat bottoms. Sometimes I just wet the area witha paper towel then use very diluted unscented dr bronners in a foaming pump, wash the area with a disposable rag or towel and then rinse off with wet towels. Less stressful than bath and more thorough than a wipe and less labor intensive than it seems.

 

[eva21513]

Update. She managed to pull her tube out.

To be fair, it might have gotten caught on something or just slipped out because I have not seen her touch it once in the last 2 weeks. The vet was pretty baffled because it had been sutured in there pretty good. They recommended we see how she does without it for a couple days since she's been eating a decent amount lately. If she does ok, we can avoid anesthesia and a second surgery. Send positive thoughts.

Oh, Pudge, can’t you please give Cory a break! Sounds like it did get caught on something though. Oy. I’m so hoping you can avoid another surgery! Crossing everything and sending Pudge some munchy-vibes.

 

[-Cory-]

Thought I'd post an update. I've still been giving her the Zofran and mirtazapine, but she's been eating 220-250 calories on her own since the tube came out (about a week now). I'm going to talk to my vet tomorrow about trying to wean her off the meds.

 

[sebbyz1969]

Thought I'd post an update. I've still been giving her the Zofran and mirtazapine, but she's been eating 220-250 calories on her own since the tube came out (about a week now). I'm going to talk to my vet tomorrow about trying to wean her off the meds.

Hi there! I was reading through your thread and wondering how you and Pudge are. I have a poorly kitty and he’s been throwing up after Cerenia, so my vet just sent in a script for Zofran. Sounds like it worked well for you kitty which gives me some hope for my boy Boots. He has nausea and intermittent vomiting - no diagnosis yet, awaiting test results.

 

[fionasmom]

Thank you for the update....here is hoping that her recovery will continue.