diet with ibd?

pikacat · Sep 15, 2011

hello,

i'm a new user -- someone referred me here. anyway my cat was diagnosed with allergies that triggered ibd flare ups. prednisone is controlling it currently. my vet recommended switching food to a high protein grain free wet food.

my issue is that i'm not very keen on switching food simply because the food my cats are currently eating is working well for them. my vet thought my cat might one day not tolerate the food i'm feeding right now. however, because of my situation, it would be easiest to switch all my cats over, and i'd rather not if it might not offer any benefit to my sick cat.

at any rate. i was just wondering if anyone had experience with this and if the switch in food helped cats with ibd (or alternatively, what diet in general helped with ibd). i would just rather not switch everyone's food if a diet switch didn't offer any help.

thanks!

fleshflowers · Sep 15, 2011

Welcome to TCS! I hope you find the help you need, as for the question I am sure mostly everyone will ask what you are currently feeding your cats? Brand/dry/wet?

pikacat · Sep 15, 2011

thanks! sorry about that. i'm currently feeding kirkland maintenance cat:

http://shop.costco.com/en/In-The-War...-Food/Cat.aspx

sharky · Sep 15, 2011

I feed Kirkland to two ibd cats and a ibs cat but their allergies and or triggers are to things not in this food...

Ibd/ Ibs is alot of trial and error ... Yes if your cat has issue with something in the food a switch can bring great relief

Is your vet recommending further testing or did they make some more specific recommendations like brands or meats to try?

carolina · Sep 15, 2011

I have a cat with IBD...... with that said, like Sharky mentioned, with IBD, it is a lot of trial and error..... which is why I don't really understand your vet's thought process (sorry to be so frank), if the current food IS already working for your kitty. A cat with IBD is a very sensitive cat, and there is NO WAY I would change a diet that is currently working just because "one day it might stop working". IMHO you might be opening a can of worms here - I would cross that bridge when you get there.... If I were you, if the food is working, consider yourself fortunate..... It is hard to get to that point....
My opinion FWIW.

pikacat · Sep 15, 2011

thanks for the imput so far. i was a little confused by her advice, too. i really didn't want to put her through the stress of changing foods because it seemed like my cat was doing well.

she had been down to 7 lbs and right now, she is on a low dose of prednisone (2.5 mg every other day) and b 12 injections and i really didn't want to upset the calm. she gained 3 lbs and is doing really well. so i was worried that switching foods would trigger a flare up.

my vet wasn't even sure it was the food causing flare ups. she thought it was allergic reactions that triggered flare ups after some bloodwork came back that showed a really high t cell count showing an abnormal immune system response. anyway, she suggested i switch foods because she "foresaw" my cat having a problem with the food i was feeding now and said that many ibd cats have issues with grains and that, in general, many cats are allergic to them.

i just felt unsure about switching foods right now. i thought i'd post to see if people had a lot of success with feeding grain free and high protein foods with ibd cats. i really didn't want to do it unless the answer was like, "oh, it's a sure fire benefit for an ibd cat!" for obvious reasons -- it's been a long road with a lot of stress and pain to my cat.

to sharky, we're doing tests now, but bloodwork to see how she's tolerating the prednisone. i think this is par for the course? or is this poor management?

she didn't recommend any specific foods or meats. simply grain-free, high protein because grains were frequently the cause of allergies. though she also said it could be seasonal allergies or pollen causing the problem, perhaps her thought process was simply that it would be cutting down potential allergens my cat was exposed to.

denice · Sep 16, 2011

I have a cat who is on pred to control IBD. He is doing well right now and I'm leaving everything the way it is. I don't think anything in food was causing his flares. He could go several months without a problem then get really sick with a flareup. That would be with no food change. He would always have another flareup right after the bad one that wouldn't be as bad then go for a while without one. I know the idea that grains in processed food is what has caused the uptick in IBD with cats but sometimes there is just no way to figure it out. I think too when they are going back to data from years ago there may have been cats with IBD and they didn't recognize it as that.

sibohan2005 · Sep 16, 2011

Being human and having IBS I know that grain products along with Milk products are big No no's for me.

I have never had a cat with IBD but I would think that they would love a grain free, wet diet. Just think about it, you never see cats grasing in a field of barley. However I would be attentive of your cat's fecal matter and be sure to notice any changes in it.

In humans Probiotic's (good bacteria) somtimes help with IBD and IBS you might want to ask your doctor if Probiotics are available for cats and if they are healthy for cats. Never give your cat anything without checking with the vet.

I hope your poor kitty is feeling better soon. It may need a prescription diet or a quality food like Nutro or somthing.

auntie crazy · Sep 17, 2011

Originally Posted by pikacat

thanks for the imput so far. i was a little confused by her advice, too. i really didn't want to put her through the stress of changing foods because it seemed like my cat was doing well.

she had been down to 7 lbs and right now, she is on a low dose of prednisone (2.5 mg every other day) and b 12 injections and i really didn't want to upset the calm. she gained 3 lbs and is doing really well. so i was worried that switching foods would trigger a flare up.

...

Hi, Pikacat. Welcome to TCS!

Both kibble and grains are strongly suspected causes of IBD in cats. A switch to a grain-free wet food is one of the most-often suggested steps in trying to address this issue. And - although not as well-known - switching to a raw, prey-modeled diet has had incredible success in completely eliminating all traces of IBD.

Here are several resources for your reading pleasure:

CatInfo.org (Dr. Pierson): Inflammatory Bowel Disease

There are many unanswered questions with respect to this disease process, but it seems logical to start to â€œtreatâ€ a gastrointestinal problem in the cat with a species-appropriate diet.

Too often these cats are treated with a high level of steroids and a prescription grain-laden dry food diet. I feel very strongly that this common therapeutic regimen dismisses the very significant role that a proper diet plays in our IBD patients. There are an impressive number of anecdotal reports of cats that were terribly ill with IBD that exhibit dramatic improvement when all dry food was removed from their diet.

Little Big Cat (Dr. Hofve): Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Many veterinarians believe that most cases of feline IBD are caused by food allergies. When immune cells see foreign proteins from cat food in the blood, they may provoke the immune system into making antibodies to those proteins. Reactions between antibodies and food proteins cause inflammation, and the cycle is perpetuated.

Your veterinarian may suggest a food trial with a â€œhypoallergenicâ€ diet, to see if a food allergy is contributing to the problem. The diet must be strictly followed (no treats or other cheating!) for several weeks, although an improvement may be seen in just a few days. Diet change is also a method of treatment, and many cats will experience a complete remission of symptoms with diet therapy alone.

Dry food is more commonly implicated in IBD than other diets. One case report described an IBD cat with an underlying food allergy where the dry trial diet had no effect, but the same food in a canned version resolved the problem completely.

IBD Kitties (a resource for IBD cat owners): Raw Food Information

I believe strongly in a raw food diet and would still recommend trying it. It is without a doubt the most important tool so far in seeing recovery in this disease and its symptoms. Even if there are setbacks, major or minor, itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s by far the one thing that helps above all others.

Dr. Hodgkins, author of YourDiabeticCat.com, in her book, "Your Cat: Simple New Secrets to a Longer, Stronger Life."

I have never seen a single case of serious obesity, diabetes, urinary tract disease, or IBD in a cat fed meat instead of commercial dry foods. Many other people have seen the same results. Further, I do not see nutritional deficiencies in cats fed properly balanced raw-meat diets. I want to emphasize a point here. The incidence of these problems has not just declined on a raw-meat diet, they have entirely disappeared. These results are too dramatic to ignore.

Feline-Nutrition.org also has several articles reference IBD, it's potential causes and management / cure routines: "Carnivore Digestion and Inflammatory Bowel Disease"; "Duke's Story: Inflammatory Bowel Disease"; and "The Carnivore Connection to Nutrition in Cats" are just three of them. That last article, by Dr. Zoran, was published in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association and can also be read here.

IBD is often a difficult disease to manage; I hope you find some of this info helpful in your efforts to improve your cats' health!

AC

sharky · Sep 18, 2011

Pred is a nesessary evil at times...

One of my vets uses it as a getting managment tool ,while the other uses far different methods...b12 is often used by my holistic vet

Finding the triggers is the important thing... oddly at times it is odd things like weather , air quality ... Most cases will have some food componant...

Yes ,grain free is usally the best start point , in my house grain free caused worse issues but this is not typical

carolina · Sep 23, 2011

Pred works for many cats, doesn't works for others - Like my Bugsy.... B12 does works if the cat has B12 deficiency - which can be found in a blood test. If it does, it is a great thing to do, and a simple addition that can make a huge difference.
Food can be a major trigger, and diet management is usually a first step... That normally involves switching the kitty to a one protein/one starch food (preferable one that the kitty hasn't eaten in the past), often times a novel protein, or a hypoallergenic diet. Adding fiber to the diet also helps by slowing down the digestive tract, and a good probiotic IMHO is of utmost importance. Bugsy is on 2.
Here is what Bugsy is on, currently:
Food:
Mixture of Royal Canin HP and Hills Z/D for dry
Wet: Ziwi Peak Venison and Fish, and Ziwi Peak Venison

In the morning, he takes:
1 Capsule of Align (human probiotic for IBD)
1 capsule of Proviable-DC (probiotic for cats and dogs)
1/2 capsule of Vetasyl (Fiber)
5 drops of Runnipoo (herbal medicine for diarrhea)
250mg of L-Lysine (unrelated, for general health)
Hyaluronic Acid 24mg (unrelated, for Bladder/joint health)

In the PM, he takes:
5 drops of Runnipoo
1/2 Capsule of Vetasyl (Fiber)

No drugs, as drugs affected his liver - he had a diarrhea that started last October after he took antibiotics for an UTI, and it never stopped - I am still kind of dealing with it. It is under control now, but he has soft poop - I am afraid he will never be the same.

What has made the biggest difference for him? The probiotic Align - the human probiotic for IBD. It has literally saved him from exploratory surgery. I highly recommend discussing it with your vet and giving it a try - I would use that any time instead of pred.

And of course..... all listed here has been discussed with the vet - everything Bugsy takes is on his files -
Good luck!!

elle33133 · Nov 5, 2013

When my 12 yr old Maine Coon I'd had since 12 weeks old died of Multiple Myeloma, adopted a 5 yr old altered former champion stud cat from a VERY reputable breeder. She neglected to tell me he had IBD, I can't believe she didn't notice the loose stinky stool. After numerous tests and 2 diets, put him on DVP Natural Balance Duck and Green pea limited ingredient dry food supplemented by seared duck breast, B 12 injections and lysine. He did well, still not consistantly firm, formed poop, put him on protocol of prednisone. He's now on 5 mg every 3 days, firm poop, duck and green pea crunchies, small amt of sauteed duck breast or chicken and doing GREAT. Specialty vet told me I saved his life, that if he had not had dietary and steriod intervention could have been candidate for lymphoma. I'm just an owner, and every cat is different. Hope this helps. I know how it feels.

Good luck with your furry friend.

Elle

carolina · Nov 5, 2013

Carolina said:
Pred works for many cats, doesn't works for others - Like my Bugsy.... B12 does works if the cat has B12 deficiency - which can be found in a blood test. If it does, it is a great thing to do, and a simple addition that can make a huge difference.

Food can be a major trigger, and diet management is usually a first step... That normally involves switching the kitty to a one protein/one starch food (preferable one that the kitty hasn't eaten in the past), often times a novel protein, or a hypoallergenic diet. Adding fiber to the diet also helps by slowing down the digestive tract, and a good probiotic IMHO is of utmost importance. Bugsy is on 2.

Here is what Bugsy is on, currently:

Food:

Mixture of Royal Canin HP and Hills Z/D for dry

Wet: Ziwi Peak Venison and Fish, and Ziwi Peak Venison

In the morning, he takes:

1 Capsule of Align (human probiotic for IBD)

1 capsule of Proviable-DC (probiotic for cats and dogs)

1/2 capsule of Vetasyl (Fiber)

5 drops of Runnipoo (herbal medicine for diarrhea)

250mg of L-Lysine (unrelated, for general health)

Hyaluronic Acid 24mg (unrelated, for Bladder/joint health)

In the PM, he takes:

5 drops of Runnipoo

1/2 Capsule of Vetasyl (Fiber)

No drugs, as drugs affected his liver - he had a diarrhea that started last October after he took antibiotics for an UTI, and it never stopped - I am still kind of dealing with it. It is under control now, but he has soft poop - I am afraid he will never be the same.

What has made the biggest difference for him? The probiotic Align - the human probiotic for IBD. It has literally saved him from exploratory surgery. I highly recommend discussing it with your vet and giving it a try - I would use that any time instead of pred.

And of course..... all listed here has been discussed with the vet - everything Bugsy takes is on his files -

Good luck!!

Gee..... I love finding these posts!
This didn't resolve the situation - only masked.... Bugsy was going to have his surgery, but thank goodness I decided to try Raw. He has been 100% healthy ever since - solid poops, lost the extra weight, no more vet visits, only wellness exams - he is fantastic, healthy as he can be now! :clap:

E elle33133 I am glad you found a solution for your kitty - IBD is a beast!

nicolefrank117 · May 20, 2014

Can anyone tell me how IBD is diagnosed in your cat? Are there special test they run?

denice · May 20, 2014

There isn't really definitive tests short of a biopsy. The inflammation can sometimes be seen on an ultrasound but that doesn't necessarily mean that it is IBD. When my kitty was diagnosed it was a diagnoses of elimination but there is a blood test being done now that is a strong indicator of IBD. http://healthypets.mercola.com/site...11/02/inflammatory-bowel-disease-in-pets.aspx is an article with a lot of info about IBD and it has a testing for IBD section that explains it. It measures the absorption of B vitamins and is done at Texas A&M. I think it is very new. My kitty was diagnosed 3 1/2 years ago at a very good feline only clinic whose head vet is a certified feline specialist and he didn't have the test done.

nicolefrank117 · May 23, 2014

What is considered a "flare up" ?

As a human who has had their entire large intestine removed because it literally died I can back up the fact that we really are what we eat. There is no answer as to why the nerves in my large intestine died but I have a very strong feeling it has to do with all the additives, hormones, gluten, gmo and other unnecessary things they are putting in our foods. They are killing us and they are now killing our animals. I would think that if a cats intestines are inflamed or they have any sort of digestive issue that the food is definitely the first thing you would want to make better and easier on them to digest. Just my opinion.

diet with ibd?

pikacat

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fleshflowers

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pikacat

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sharky

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carolina

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pikacat

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denice

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sibohan2005

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auntie crazy

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sharky

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carolina

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elle33133

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carolina

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nicolefrank117

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denice

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nicolefrank117

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