slippery elm for excess stomach acid?

[abbyntim]

My cat Tim has occasional problems with excess stomach acid. He's seen our holistic veterinarian for this, who prescribed Pepcid AC but warned us that we don't want him on this long-term if we can avoid it. We completed a short course of the Pepcid AC earlier this week and it appears the stomach acid is back. I have some suspicions that it may be temporary, so plan to watch Tim over the weekend and contact the vet Monday or Tuesday if it doesn't seem any better.

Meanwhile, because I want him to feel as good as possible, I am considering increasing his normal dose of slippery elm. Would this work with excess stomach acid? I know it won't stop the acid production, but will it make his tummy feel better? In addition to affecting his tummy, it seems to show up in excess drool, which occasionally causes his lower lip to swell. I think his lower lip is beginning to swell now, and wonder if giving him slippery elm will help coat and protect?

My final question is the form of slippery elm. I have terrible luck making the syrup. Out of four attempts, I've been successful once. The other times, I've ended up with poofy slippery elm powder at the bottom of my jar with discolored water on top. So can I just mix slippery elm powder with water and give it to him, or does it need to be a syrup to have the coating effect? If I can give him powder, how much? I should note that I've never seen the slippery elm "gel" when mixing with water; it remains fairly thin (it is NOW brand loose powder with nothing added!)

Thank you!!

 

[oneandahalfcats]

Hey there ...

While I have not used SEB for acid problems in my cats, I have read that it is very suitable for neutralizing and helping to protect the stomach lining from acid, as well as helping to soothe and alleviate any nausea associated with excess acid production.

You have probably read the article on SEB at Little Big Cat, if not, here it is : http://www.littlebigcat.com/health/slippery-elm/

Dr. Hofvre discusses SEB and gives an overview of its history and applications. As for dosage, I would think this would be the same as that given for constipation which is 1/4 tsp for every 10 pounds.

Your experience with the NOW powder is very much like mine was when I first purchased SEB in capsule form. I could never get the consistency of jelly when I tried the syrup recipe, but then discovered that the problem was that the brand I was using, contained magnesium stearate. This ingredient can prevent jelling. I found some SEB in bulk powder at my local health food store, and am now getting a jelly-like consistency when making the syrup. I prefer making the syrup as this ensures that the ratio of powder to water, is appropriate. If your powder is just SEB, it might be a matter of trying another brand or finding some loose bulk powder as I did.

 

[abbyntim]

Thanks for your response! I kind of thought slippery elm would work, but I've read so much lately my head feels ready to explode and it seemed easier to ask.

I am quite puzzled about my slippery elm experiences; I just checked the bottle, which contains loose powder and nothing else. Oh, well, I'll just give him the powder blended with water and think I'll dose him extra for the next couple days and see how he does.

In other news, Tim is off cisapride; he had his last pill three weeks ago and is doing well. I was just updating his spreadsheet and I can see how he's improving as time goes on. He's only skipped three days since his last dose on June 27 and the number of days between skips has increased each time. So I'm very excited and believe he will be fine without it.

 

[oneandahalfcats]

Glad to hear that things are going well, post-cisapride! 

 Now that you have other supportive solutions in your arsenal, you will be able to deal with whatever comes along.

 

[abbyntim]

Thank you!! I don't feel like it's over yet, but feel a lot more confident that the circumstances that caused Tim to be put on cisapride in the first place will not be repeated. I think, in time, I will relax, though never become complacent, regarding his litter box habits.

And some positive news on the other front: Tim's lip does not appear to be swollen today. Yay! Not sure if the extra slippery elm is helping, or if the discomfort yesterday was caused by Tim eating too much of Abby's food on Friday, but whatever the reason, I am glad it appears to have passed. But will keep him on the extra slippery elm for a couple of days and see how he does.

We have one more post-cisapride appointment with the holistic vet later this month, so he'll be checked out pretty thoroughly.