Two years of dealing apparent food allergies

Gosh if you figure this out please let me know. Right now I'm struggling with something very similar with my cat. She has a constant black brown mess in her ears no matter how much I clean it or what type of ear mite treatment I use. I don't think it's ear mites. She has diarrhea in episodes. Sometimes she's fine and then it just hits her and she will have quite a few diarrhea episodes before firming up again. She is on a totally dry diet and because she was pregnant I had her on kitten food (Blue Buffalo) and she had the worst stools imaginable on that stuff. She's been wormed, I don't think it's worms although she will need to be rewormed with the kittens. I switched her to sensitive stomach Authority cat food and that seemed to do the trick for about a week and now we are back to diarrhea episodes again! I'm worried it's a parasite and that she's going to pass this to the 5 kittens she has but with the ear crap that's been bugging her, it might still be dietary issues. I will be taking her and the litter to the vet next week for a check-up and worming. I guess we will need to discuss what options I need to take.

Smokie has been having some of the dark stuff in his ears too. Not too much but I have been noticing it more now too. When I brought him in for the scabs he was getting, I was told that any dark stuff in their ears like that is a sign of an allergy. I also have one cat who is pulling her fur out. She has one or two patches now that she's still pulling fur out in. I find tuffs of fur on the floor from her. I've been trying food after food and it's still happening.

I just switched to a dry food which is supposed to be a grain free diet. The vet said that a lot of cats are allergic to the grains in the diet. But they can have allergies to unusual ingredients too.

But with the scratching of the face and your other symptoms he most definitely has an allergy of some kind to the food.

I know how hard it is to try and find one food that the cat's like and are not allergic to.

Jack has had the black crud in his ears for 12 years. Way back when I first got him, the vet said that it was a histamine reaction, but he did not say to what and I haven't worried about it. Jack doesn't seem to be bothered by it and he doesn't scratch or rub his ears. I clean his ears once a week. Jack is on a grain free wet diet.

I'm pretty sure there's an allergy going on in my 8 month old, Boo. She is the most aggressive groomer I have ever seen and she scratches a lot. There are no skin issues I can see and she isn't missing any hair. I need to start playing around with her food to see if it helps. Boo won't touch wet food and is currently eating a mixture of dry (Evo Salmon and Herring/Acana Grasslands/Kirklands).

OK, I'm biased since Hills C/D seems to be working great for my cat, who was diagnosed with struvite crystals in September. Urine is perfectly normal now, and his senior panel, done last week, came back with great numbers. Sure, to me, as a lay person, the ingredients don't look great - but the results surely are.

Prescription food is formulated to address certain health issues, and is prescribed by a doctor. I honestly don't think any vet is making a mint from carrying various prescription lines at their offices (and can you imagine how everyone would complain if you had to mail order it, with a prescription?).d,

And, I know this sounds snarky - but the internet is not a substitute for a qualified vet. And no one on the internet, even assuming they have any sort of real qualifications, has actually examined your cat. There really is no one 'best' food, IMO - it makes no difference whether it's Friskies or the most holistic, highest priced, super duper premium food - if your particular cat is not thriving on it, it's not the best food for him.

You could ask a referral to a feline dermatolgist, or check with local vet schools. Or you could give the prescription food a try and see if it makes a difference.

I know there's a ton of information available these days on the net, and all of us want only the best for our babies - and any sort of immune/eating issue can be hell to diagnose, whether it's human or animal.

PS - My Hills CD doesn't really seem to cost me more than any of at mid-priced premium foods out there - CD, at least, is very calorie dense so you don't feed that much.

Carly, is your cat still nursing? When I was switching over to CD, my boy seemed to have mushy stools from the wet CD (the fish version). I stopped feeding the fish version, and the vet prescribed Talan (sp?) powder, a mild antibiotic often used to treat bowel disorders. Something worked - his stools firmed up nicely.

We had one cat at our shelter that blossomed on z/d. Just my two cents.

Sho had this for years... in only one ear. No earmites, no bacteria, no yeast. It went way on NB.

Sherman is unfortunately starting to show some of this now. He's on C/D so there's not really any options for his food.

At my vet in Glen Ellyn, IL, I pay 50.03 for a case of wet CD, and $34.09 for a 10 pound bag of dry. I've no idea if the various prescription lines would run differently. We've got a ton of vets in the western suburbs, so maybe there's a competition factor....and, as I said, at least with CD portion sizes are small - takes a long time to go through. That's why I don't get the larger boxes, which are somewhat cheaper per pound.

That said, if you wanted to try the prescription food I might start with a small bag and a few cans, asking the vet how long it would take to see a difference one way or the other. In the meantime, contact Hills and see if there is any sort of discount for people in your situation (sort of like what some of the drug companies do for certain patients). Also call other vets and see what they charge - does Dr. Foster sell this by mail order with a prescription? Did both vets suggest ZD?

If the stuff works, it is a miracle food - believe me, even if the CD were more costly than it is, it's cheaper than running a sick cat in for surgery for crystals, assuming I caught it in time. But that's my experience.

For a flat of 24 5.5oz or are you getting more for that cost? I pay ~$27 for a case of 24 cans.

I would agree that you should contact Hill's and see if they will help you out. Also - sometimes you can get the scrip food cheaper online and some online stores run free shipping specials which is what kills the cost!!

Maybe your vet would work with you re: price? Never hurts to ask. Seems like the z/d is kinda costly from a quick Internet search.

ETA: So the Royal Canin LID foods didn't work??

When you are feeding NB to your cats with allergies are you feeding only wet or a combination of wet and dry? I love NB food, our dogs are on it and they do wonderfully on it but because the kitten formula (Carly is nursing) has barley or wheat as a top ingredient, I skipped it. I have considered the duck food but wasn't sure how the peas would fit in.

strange wings, good catch - I went back to the itemized receipt, and that $50 price was a flat of wet and a 10 pound bag of dry - all CD, though.

^Is your sister nearer that vet? If so, maybe the three of you (you, your sister, and kitty) could meet up and make the 35 mile trip a little less tedious.

If you really need to look at a cats ear the "towel burrito" trick works. You wrap the cat up tightly in a towel, making sure all four feet are contained, with only the cat's head sticking out. It's a bit stressful for a cat, but if you need to check the ear a little stress can be dealt with. (a vet visit is even more stressful, but kitties get over it)

I thought it sounded a bit much for just a 24 flat! That's pretty good for it all together, though.

If it's food allergies, it doesn't necessarily have to be in both ears. I have dealt with food allergic pets that kept on getting recurrent infections in only one ear.

With my food allergic cat, when I was feeding NB, he reacted to the wet and was fine with the dry. I don't know if I remember correctly, but I think the dry has fewer ingredients than the wet, which helped in our case, because my cat reacts to fish oil. Nowadays, his allergies have gotten so bad that the only thing that works is a home-made diet. He is doing well on it and I like that I can control all the ingredients and it can be easily tweaked if I suspect he's reacting to something. Food allergies can be very frustrating to deal with.

Hi,

I wanted to suggest a treatment for allergies that is completely different then what has been suggested. And I want to suggest it to you because this vet and the treatments have been a god send to my cat. My cat has severe allergies which has caused him to get IBD and mild asthma. He recently had liver disease which was correlated with the IBD. The conventional vets never treated him for allergies. Oh wait sorry - yes he did....he had me feed him Medi-cal hypoallergenic for a long time (and his diarrhea always returned). And once his diarrhea returned he put him on Royal Canin Sensitivity. And of course the diarrhea returned over and over. They pumped him with medications for years but the diarrhea always returned. Finally after years of this type of treatment it spiraled out of control and he became very ill with IBD/liver disease. Instead of treating and riding him of his allergies the vet was just suppressing the symptoms. During this recent illness the vets wanted me to feed him perscription diets and keep him on steroids long term. I didn't like this game plan so I contacted a very highly recommended holistic/homeopathic vet that specializes in NAET and JMT for treating allergies in animals. We have been consulting long distance and I do the treatments at home under her guidance. During his illness we first started out by working on getting his health back and treating the liver disease. Once he rebounded from the liver disease we started to work on his immune system and eliminating these allergies from his body. I am very happy with the results. And can honestly say that I believe wholeheartedly in this treatment. Here is her website and an explaination regarding the immune system, NAET and JMT http://www.doctordeva.com/holistic_c...immune_disease and http://www.doctordeva.com/holistic_c...gy_elimination. There is also another very well known vet named Dr. Newkirk that performs NAET as well http://www.alternativevet.com/

This group here http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/WholeCatHealth/ has many threads on Dr. Khalsa and Dr. Newkirk and how they have helped their cats clear allergies that have persisted for years.

You may not go this route but I felt I should share my experience with you and anybody else that would be interested in learning more. I was hesitant at first on this type of treatment but now I am glad that I let my skepticism subside and go down this route.

You'd be surprised at what your kitty may be allergic to besides grains....
B vitamins seems to be a BIG allergen in cats (according to the general consensus on the group I posted about)....and surprisingly so has dust, pollen, grass, stuffing in furniture, etc. which I wouldn't have ever guessed my cat was allergic to. It has been a very enlightening experience for me

z/d is in a class by itself, price wise. It is the single most expensive cat food on the planet The cheapest I could find it on the web was $57/Case and $25/4LB Bag. I know cuz I just went through a month long food trial with it.

I am going through something very similar with my 2 1/2 y/o male. Last vet did nothing but treat without testing. New vet said "Let's rule food allergies in or out". We fed z/d for a month and there was no change. This meant it wasn't allergies. Endoscopic biposies confirmed it's IBD. No change in proteins will have any beneficial effect. Prenisolone seems to be doing the trick

What were some of the things the last vet did for your kitty to help relieve the symptoms?

I am curious as to why this meant there wasn't any allergies? What I think you are saying (please correct me if I am wrong) is that b/c the vet put him on a food that is supposed to be for allergies to certain food ingredients (not all) and the symptoms never cleared up that this means the cat does not have allergies. Is this what you are saying?

An ultrasound which is less invasive could have confirmed IBD as well. Most times the treatment will be the same either way if you go the conventional route for treatment.

Have you tried novel proteins on your kitty? One thing that is very common when feeding a cat that has IBD is to try a novel protein that the cat has never eaten before (ie: venison, duck, lamb, rabbit, etc.) and grain free. This can help tremendously in many cases.

Has your vet said your kitty will have to be on steroids long term? If so, has he talked to you about the long term use of steroids? Other things can pop up from the long term use of steroids - diabetes is one of them.

Because your kitty is so young I really think your kitty would benefit from treating IBD without steroids. Both the vets I incuded in my earlier post treat IBD without steroids.

Here is some interesting reading if you are up to it
http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/steroids.htm

I hope your kitty is symptom free for a long time

The last vet first suspected tritrichimonas (sp) and treated with antibiotics, although no Ronidazole (sp) the only known treatment. When the symptoms reappeared he suspected heliobacter and treated with antibiotics which proved ineffective, and the antibiotic cocktail ( flagyl + Clavamox) nearly killed him. He didn't eat for 5 days.


Yes, that is what I'm saying. Hill's z/d is as hypoallergenic as food a=can be. After a month of eating nothing but z/d his symptoms were no better.


I do not believe this to be true. The only definitive test for IBD is biopsy. Based on his previous experience with the antibiotics, I was finished treating without a specific diagnosis.


Yes, he is currently eating NB Duck, which he likes better than ND Venison. WHile the novel protein appears to help, it is the underlying IBD that needs to be addressed.


Our goal s to get Franklin down to the lowest possible dose of prednisolone, if possible off it all together. I trust my vet.

From your lips to God's ears

Chicken, B vitamins and soy are very common allergens in cats. The Hill's z/d diet has these ingredients in this diet. Your cat could have been reacting to something in this food. I would think a raw / homecooked diet would be one of the most hypoallergenic foods you could feed because you can control what ingredients go into your cat. And in turn have a better idea of what your cat may be reacting to in the food.

Ufortunately your previous vet was only treating him with antibiotics which is used for infection/ bacteria. Your cat had inflammation and that is why he did not respond to the antibiotics. Steroids is used for inflammation. Yes, a biopsy is good for definitive answers but an ultrasound would have diagnosed inflammation as well. Unless your vet felt your cat may have cancer? I am glad you feel you made the right decision. Atleast now you know that he has inflammation and can go from there.


I agree - the underlying reason for the IBD needs to be addressed. Unfortunately the steroids will only suppress the symptoms not healing the body of the disease or illness! Your kitties immune system has been compromised and will be compromised more on steroids. I hope you can get him off of the steroids sooner rather then later. And find more natural ways to treat his IBD

I hope this treatment works for your kitty I am glad you feel you have found a vet you can trust.

I appreciate your thoughts We will have to agree to disagree however. IDB is not just inflammation. It is the embedding in the lining of the bowel of very specific inflammatory cells the presence, and type, of these cells can only be confirmed by biopsy, not ultrasound. These cells can be managed but cannot be eliminated. The underlying cause of IBD is unknown. veterinary medicine has not yet been able to determine why and how these cells embed. THere is no cure for IBD. It can only be managed.

Kyle

Okay - I'll agree to disagree It may not be able to be cured but it can be managed and treated more naturally then steroids in many cases....I'll leave it at that - take care!

Madara - sorry we hijacked your thread

Here is what I have experienced:

My cat Napolean is 4 years old. When I got him at 10 weeks of age he presented with black debris in his ears. He was on Science Diet kitten at the time. We checked his ears several times for mites, treated him twice with revolution - nothing. Then the face scratching started. He has been on almost any diet you can think of, we biopsied his face and the allergist told my vet that he could potentially be allergic to meat proteins in general, that he could be allergic to the way food is processed etc.

I have been to a holistic vet. He made me feed him raw chicken which resulted in him itching his face. When he eats a food he is allergic to he will react immediatley.

Hill's Z/D gave him diarrhea and he still itched his face.

He has been on venison & pea, duck & pea, he was on Addiction's Unagi & Seaweed which also contains peas and reacted to it. So I'm pretty sure he's allergic to peas. I got a hold of Evanger's Game Meats for dogs and fed him those with a taurine supplement he reacted to the Buffalo, Duck, Rabbit, and Pheasant.

He did fine on Ziwi Peak Venison but started to react to it after several months. He did pretty good on Nature's Variety Salmon and Brown Rice for a few months.

I found that he reacts to Fish the least even though they say it's high on the allergy list. For a while I fed him meow mix pouches, the ones with different fish as a protein source. He can eat Tiki Cat which is all fish.

Right now he's on First Mate Fish & Potato and has done really well for the past several months. Even though it has chicken fat, chicken fat isn't supposed to carry chicken protein - I think the bag says "rendered free of proteins" or something and he hasn't had an issue.

Usually about once a year I give him a Depo-Medrol injection. Usually it's because he has gotten into something and really scratched his head raw. It definitely helps. I know steroids are bad which is why we only use it if we have to.

Anyway we've tried many things, even antihisitimines on a daily basis, I know I've fed him other things too it's just been so long! I totally know where you're coming from. For him it is always his left ear and he's had to have teeth pulled on the left side of his mouth 2 years in a row. Very weird.