need help - cat vomits and eye waters, etc

lolacat75

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I have a 6 year old cat (Lola) we adopted from the pound when she was a few months old. She has had these bouts of sickness, where she throws up and has really bad diarrhea then gets somewhat better again for a year or so.  For the past few months, she has been throwing up, loosing lots of weight, occasional diarrhea, lethargic, her one eye waters, the inside of her ears will sometimes get really orange, sometimes she'll have an insatiable hunger and drinks lots of water and other times she won't eat at all and we have to force feed her, really gassy, sometimes will hide and she has been sneezing lately.

We have been to 3 different vets at first they all said she was allergic to something in her food. So they switched her to Duck and Pea dry cat food. It seemed to help for a little while but then she got sick again. All of her shots are updated and is fixed. They tested her for a few things, but the last vet, the only thing they could find wrong was an enlarged colon from the x-rays and an increase in liver enzymes. They diagnosed her with Imflammatory Bowel Syndrome and gave us prescription dry food.

I have read that enlarged colon (mega colon) will cause constipation, which she has never had. And I'm not sure that imflammatory bowel syndrome would cause all these problems. We don't want to put her down but she doesn't seem very happy or comfortable ever. Is this the proper diagnosis and what should we do?
 

vball91

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Was she diagnosed with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) or Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)? They are different. Her symptoms could be IBD which is difficult to diagnose without a biopsy (which has its own risks). Did they test for anything else like pancreatitis which requires a separate blood test called a spec FPLI?

If it is IBD, dry food is not a good idea. A more easily digestible wet diet high in animal protein and low in carbs is generally recommended. Also, low dosage prednisolone (a steroid) is generally prescribed for IBD. I would encourage you to check out this site which has a wealth of information. Www.ibdkitties.net
 
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mrsgreenjeens

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And as to the watery eye and sneezing,this sounds unrelated to the other IBD or IBS issue.  This sounds like feline herpes. And feline herpes CAN effect appetite and even depression
(but not vomiting)   Many people give their herpes cats L-Lysine sprinkled on their food to help boost their immune systems, but if they get a URI from it,then they might need antibiotics too.

Has she had her Thyroid checked, because when you said she eats (sometimes) voraciously, yet has lost lots of weight, this really sounds like a thyroid issue. 

I would definitely check out the website vball suggested, especially if a Vet suggested she does have an irritable bowel.  I would guess she is having gas from the grain in the kibble she is eating.  You said she is now on a prescription diet.  How is she tolerating that?  Is she still having the same issues?  If so, I would try to switch her to a good canned food, and there are many suggestions of what kind on that website.  She may very well be depressed, probably because she doesn't feel well, but if you can get her feeling better, possibly with the right diet, and maybe some meds (if she has a thyroid problem) you may have a whole new cat
 
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