irritable bowel syndrom

How can I tell if my cat has IBS?

Are there medications they can take to help this that she could stay on consistantly to reduce her inflammation? What are they?

Are there any over the counter?

How would a vet diagnose IBS? Are there expensive tests involved?

I suspect this is what Shadow has since I have yet to narrow down what she is allergic to. I have tried it all Venison and green pea, hills z/d, Fancy Feast without wheat gluten, and the list goes on and on. I am very concerned because sometimes her stool is like a mucus with blood only. She begs to be let outside and tries to escape to eat grass to settle her stomach only to throw it up.

I still have meds from the last vet visit. Antibiotics and a suppressant for the diahrea. But what can I do to keep this from happening all the time?

Thanks,

jenkitty

Originally Posted by jenkitty

How can I tell if my cat has IBS?

Are there medications they can take to help this that she could stay on consistantly to reduce her inflammation? What are they?

Are there any over the counter?

How would a vet diagnose IBS? Are there expensive tests involved?

I suspect this is what Shadow has since I have yet to narrow down what she is allergic to. I have tried it all Venison and green pea, hills z/d, Fancy Feast without wheat gluten, and the list goes on and on. I am very concerned because sometimes her stool is like a mucus with blood only. She begs to be let outside and tries to escape to eat grass to settle her stomach only to throw it up.

I still have meds from the last vet visit. Antibiotics and a suppressant for the diahrea. But what can I do to keep this from happening all the time?

Thanks,

jenkitty

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My understanding is that IBS can only ultimately be diagnosed for certain by surgery. I have opted not to have surgery for my IBS cat Teddy; instead, our diagnosis is a rule out based on countless blood and stool tests, as well as extensive food testing. There are quite a few threads that I have posted on - as well as others - about his adventures, so definitely search for those for other information too.

Teddy has gone through every food - prescription and not - within reason. His IBS displays as diarrhea (and I mean the explosive type, sorry!), and the same blood/mucus you describe. He is controlled right now (and not very well, I might add), by 2 things: prednisone, and eating w/d food. Because he is such a mess, he will be on the prednisone for the forseeable future. That is not the best solution, but it's the only one that works for him right now. Why the w/d food works is a mystery, and we're hoping to get him off of it at some point since it's usually used for weight loss (note: he hasn't lost weight). We had tried z/d over 2 years ago when he was first so sick and he didn't seem to take to it, but he might be different now.

Teddy's health is complicated by the fact that he also has herpes. Unfortunately, steroids like prednisone are immunosuppressants, and therefore, his herpes flares up whenever we have to increase the prednisone due to his IBS acting up.

All of that being said - even though Teddy hasn't had solid stool in the entire time we've had him (almost 3 years!) - the prednisone has saved his life. He used to be in the litterbox (sometimes, he didn't make it there) having horrible diarrhea 5-6 times a day, and he was lethargic and just generally in a funk. Since the prednisone, it's like we have an entirely new cat. He greets us every morning, jumps in the shower, runs around and plays - even without us prompting him - and is just happy in general. He lets us groom him, and we've learned how to read his signs for when he's not feeling well. We keep a daily log of his medication amounts and litterbox activities, and make sure he doesn't have access to anything other than his food and water that could possibly get into his mouth.

IBS has been a learning experience for us - and we thought we were going to lose Teddy to it in September. It may take a lot of medication - and if it comes to prednisone, a lot of trials - and it will take tons of patience, care, and love. At least with my Teddy, there has been no easy fix - or even resolution - but we march on.

As an aside, antibiotics will do nothing for IBS - and personally (though talk to your vet!), I wouldn't give them. Antibiotics, especially broad spectrum ones, will kill off good and bad bacteria, leaving you with a cat with diarrhea all over again.

I'm not sure if this helped, but I hope you find something that works for your cat. Feel free to ask me questions if you have them about my experiences with Teddy.

Thank you Shambelle! I will read up on your posts about Teddy. I am starting to believe that Shadow does have IBS as well. I have tried all the foods and she's still always runny. Then when she's really sick it's outside of the litter box mixed with blood.

I've tried to remove, red dyes, wheat gluten, and all unnatural by products from her diet and she's still not feeling well. I've had two vets check her out on several occasions in the three years that I've had her. I've tried all food suggested prescription and otherwise. All she wants to eat is grass. She begs to be let outside. Not to wonder but to eat grass. I won't let her out because I am not sure this is helpful. She just throws the grass right back up, but for some reason she acts as if she needs it.

I will talk with my vet and maybe he can treat her for IBS as a process of elimination.

Thanks,

jenkitty