my vet recommended Pepcid AC

jem2998

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Hi -- My kitty is refusing to each anything but tuna and lunch meat, so the vet wants me to try the antacid to see if will help her appetite. Jave any of you used this antacid for your cats? Any luck? My vet is recommending 1/4 of a 10 mg pill. Thanks!
 

optionken

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Yes I have used it. I have given 1/4 tab 2x a day wheh a stomach is upset.
The vet also has injectable pepcid available but it is a big shot. Make sure it is ac and not plain pepcid
Best of luck
 

sharky

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many on here have used this drug for the reason your vet suggested it to you... I too found compounding easier
 

the_food_lady

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Originally Posted by optionken

Yes I have used it. I have given 1/4 tab 2x a day wheh a stomach is upset.
The vet also has injectable pepcid available but it is a big shot. Make sure it is ac and not plain pepcid
Best of luck
Hey Ken!

Don't you mean not to use Pepcid "complete" -- that it should only be Pepcid AC (famotidine, which means the generic "famotidine" can be used). The "complete" formula has other ingredients that cats shouldn't have.
 

tamgirl99

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I give this to my IBD kitty twice daily (1/4 pill at each dose before meals). I have found that when I stop giving it, her appetite declines again so she will likely be on it for life. I don't mind giving it to her at all though as she takes it very easily. My trick is to have her stand in front of me (on a counter) and I gently lift her head back, open her mouth and drop it straight down her throat. It's small enough and falls so far back that she instantly swallows it. I then follow it up with a treat or her canned food so it doesn't get stuck.

I have found that the pepcid works well for improving appetite again, but it takes her about 2 weeks on it to get back to normal. Her symptoms when she doesn't take it are inappetance, hunching after meals and spastic burping. These are all minimized or eliminated when she takes the pepcid twice daily. The other thing I use for naseau is slippery elm bark made into a gruel/syrup. This is basically a liquid bandage for their GI tract, similiar to pepto for us (don't give kitty pepto though!). It works great but since it reduces absorption (give it separately from any meds), I only use it when she's really feeling poorly or completely refusing to eat.

Good luck and I hope it helps your little one as it has mine!
 

tamgirl99

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Originally Posted by jem2998

Hi -- My kitty is refusing to each anything but tuna and lunch meat, so the vet wants me to try the antacid to see if will help her appetite. Jave any of you used this antacid for your cats? Any luck? My vet is recommending 1/4 of a 10 mg pill. Thanks!
I forgot to ask, did your vet do any tests to rule out anything else might be going on with your kitty? Inappetance can mean SO many different things (i.e. CRF, IBD, food allergies) so you want to make sure something more serious than a little extra stomach acidity isn't going on.
 

jasmin

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I had to share this piece of knowledge!!  If your kitty is having issues with his or her Appetite or becoming really finicky eaters; get them a B-12 shot!!  This took the frustration out of our whole world for my kitty and us without having to use drugs!!   
 

finnlacey

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I am curious as to why your vet gave her pepcid? Does she have a health issue? If not, medication shouldn't be given just because they're picky. All meds have side effects (although I'm a big fan of pepcid). As some of the others have asked, does she have any health issues at all? Just curious.
 

mrsgreenjeens

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I am curious as to why your vet gave her pepcid? Does she have a health issue? If not, medication shouldn't be given just because they're picky. All meds have side effects (although I'm a big fan of pepcid). As some of the others have asked, does she have any health issues at all? Just curious.
Finn....who are you addressing this question to?  This thread was started in 2008, so the people who were originally posting may not be active anymore!
 

finnlacey

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I didn't even notice that. Whoopsy! Thanks for telling me. LOL.
 

j steele

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I am very interested in the B12 option.  My cat too has been throwing up randomly, but frequently.  I have tried about 10 different specialty foods and it only helps for a short time. In fact, he hardly threw up over the winter which led me to believe he may have allergy drainage causing stomach upset.  So then I started giving him allergy meds, but that didn't help.  He WILL NOT take any kind of pill.  I have tried crushing it up in tuna, soft cat food, pill pocket, wrapped in lunch meat, stuffing it down his throat, etc.  I am so frustrated.  What does the B12 shot treat specifically?  Thanks! 
 

finnlacey

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J Steele does your cat have health issues? B12 given usually for anemia, low B12 levels or malabsorption and GI issues.
 

j steele

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None that can be found.  I had about $500 worth of testing done (blood work, xrays, etc) and everything came up normal.  I was then told he had developed a food allergy and to switch his food.  Which I did, numerous times :( 

I am about to take him to another vet, it just doesn't make sense that he has been having these issues for about 2-3 years now and the only thing they can tell me is food allergy. 
 

j steele

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I wonder if B12 is something that is in the normal blood work test or do I have to ask for a special panel?
 

sugarcatmom

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I wonder if B12 is something that is in the normal blood work test or do I have to ask for a special panel?
It's a separate blood test. Can be a tad expensive (I think I paid around $50) but prices may vary depending on location, etc.

I personally don't think testing is necessary. If there are GI issues, B12 injections may help even if serum B12 levels show up as normal.
 I was then told he had developed a food allergy and to switch his food.  Which I did, numerous times :( 
What foods have you tried? Sometimes there may be a common ingredient in all of them that you don't notice (like yeast or soy or fish for example) which is triggering a reaction.
 

wendyb

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Precious gets 1/4 of a 10mg tablet twice a day when she's not eating well.  Right now she's in her "I'll eat anything" mode, so it's in reserve for when she doesn't feel well and won't eat.  It's a life saver!!
 

otto

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A couple of things to keep in mind when using pepcid (famotidine)

It can cause constipation as a side affect and it can cause a vitamin B-12 deficiency.

I agree with trying to find a common ingredient in various brands of food. I discovered I have a cat who cannot tolerate carrageenan. Many canned foods contain this unnecessary ingredient now, and many cats are sensitive to it. Beet pulp is another.

Grains of course are common allergens.
 

bellaluna05

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Hi J Steele,
I hope your kitty is doing better! I just wanted to share an idea for giving your cat the pepcid, that just worked for my impossible kitty. I have the same problem with cat. She gets super aggressive and stressed when I try to give her any medication whether it's pills or liquid. She's a rescue and has always been very skidish and at times really aggressive, most of the time sweet to me but will not put up with medication of any kind. Anyway , last night I crushed up the 1/4 tablet of pepcid and mixed it with plain yogurt and also added some apricot preserves b/c that's her fav. She's always had a major sweet tooth, lol. But after a week and half of unsuccessfully trying to wrestle the pills down her in several different ways, and hidden in many different things this finally worked and she had no idea she was being medicated! Amazing! She happily licked it up all on her own. I just pray to God she doesn't catch on or lose interest but it's was an exciting victory last night. And I checked with her vet on both ingredients and he said they were both fine, not too much of the apricot preserves cuz of the sugar but in small amounts he said it was fine. And even said yogurt, plain yogurt , is, even good for her b/c of the probiotics, acidophilus in it and said she could have like 2 to 3 tablespoons a day. She's an extremely picky eater too and she easily tasted the pepcid in everything else I tried mixing it with. But the yogurt and preserves hid it well thank God! The other thing I'm going to try in case she's gets sick of the yogurt, which has happened before unfortunately, is a gravy like drink for cats called viyo veterinary for cats , which I first got from her vet a couple yrs ago when she wouldn't eat for a week once. They gave me the viyo b/c it helps stimulate eating or drinking water and it worked immediately, they had me put some over her food and she started eating again rigjt away, you can't also mix it with some water if they aren't drinking enough, she loved it so much I kept ordering it from amazon and giving it to her every night, it also has probitics in it and a lot of vitamins, so its really good for her. You just have to be careful to keep its refrigerated b/c it doesn't have any preservatives and you also wanted to keep the probiotics alive, actually I think it says prebiotics, but anyway. I had, run out and had to order more, but I'm anxious to try it since it's the one things she's never gotten sick of, and it even says on the site that it's good for hiding medicine in for difficult cats. Don't mean to sounds like an ad, she's just never liked anything so much so I really hope it's hides the bitter taste of the pepcid. I hope one of these ideas helps though, I know how frustrating it is! My cat is my baby and she acts like I'm trying to torture her when I'm just desperately trying to help her feel better! Good luck to all of you! And few anyone else has any other ideas or things that's worked for them please share, I never know when I'll needed a new idea! Thanx :)
Bellaluna05 :)
 
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