- Joined
- Jan 3, 2014
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A little background on Willis, the brown and white tabby protagonist:
Willis was about 10 years old and a little over 8 lbs on a long lanky frame when I got him. He had a history of vomiting. He needed frequent small meals throughout the day. He was eating kibble at the time, and he was transitioned to a grain-free canned diet. He would vomit if given more than about 1/4 of a 5.5 oz can, or 1.4 oz, at a time. So he ate 4-8 small meals a day, depending on the food. He would also vomit yellow/foamy liquid when his stomach was empty. We went through a period of diarrhea and trial and error before finding canned foods that worked for him. He had one emergency vet visit for vomiting + diarrhea, when he was tentatively diagnosed irritable bowel, but since his diarrhea cleared up and he reverted to "only" periodic vomiting, once every two weeks or so, I didn't pursue the diagnosis. Every so often he would lose interest in his favorite food, and I'd have to find another food he liked. For about a year, he ate Soulistic brand from Petco, and vomited very seldom on it, so despite its relatively high carbohydrate content for canned, I thought we were doing OK. At his chubbiest, he weighed in at 10 lbs 8 oz; I think a healthy weight for him is about 9lb to 9 1/2 lb.
Now, he's about 14 years old, and he went off his Soulistic after trying to eat breakfast two mornings in a row and vomiting both times. I took him to the vet, and after an ultrasound he was found to have an inflamed bile duct and pancreatitis. He had a feeding tube put in, and he has been eating Hill's a/d through his tube. He's become jaundiced and has lost additional weight. He's 8lb 8oz now. He spends most of his time resting, and I feed him as much as I can in the hopes that we can turn this around.
What he's getting:
120cc's of Hill's a/d, in 30cc doses 4x/daily
15 mL of Nutri-Cal supplement once daily
0.2 mL prednisone 2x/daily
2 mL reglan 2-3x/daily
1 mL amoxicillin 2x/daily
0.05 mL buprenex 2-3x/daily
100 mL Lactated Ringer's solution subcutaneous 2x/weekly
He also gets weekly B12 injections from the vet.
I think he will be able to handle a fifth 30cc meal without vomiting, which should in theory get us to 180 calories per day. His stools are formed but soft and are the color of the a/d, and I'm concerned that he is not metabolizing well. I mentioned digestive enzymes and the staff laughed at me but gave me some Proviable-DC. What else can I do to help him?
Willis was about 10 years old and a little over 8 lbs on a long lanky frame when I got him. He had a history of vomiting. He needed frequent small meals throughout the day. He was eating kibble at the time, and he was transitioned to a grain-free canned diet. He would vomit if given more than about 1/4 of a 5.5 oz can, or 1.4 oz, at a time. So he ate 4-8 small meals a day, depending on the food. He would also vomit yellow/foamy liquid when his stomach was empty. We went through a period of diarrhea and trial and error before finding canned foods that worked for him. He had one emergency vet visit for vomiting + diarrhea, when he was tentatively diagnosed irritable bowel, but since his diarrhea cleared up and he reverted to "only" periodic vomiting, once every two weeks or so, I didn't pursue the diagnosis. Every so often he would lose interest in his favorite food, and I'd have to find another food he liked. For about a year, he ate Soulistic brand from Petco, and vomited very seldom on it, so despite its relatively high carbohydrate content for canned, I thought we were doing OK. At his chubbiest, he weighed in at 10 lbs 8 oz; I think a healthy weight for him is about 9lb to 9 1/2 lb.
Now, he's about 14 years old, and he went off his Soulistic after trying to eat breakfast two mornings in a row and vomiting both times. I took him to the vet, and after an ultrasound he was found to have an inflamed bile duct and pancreatitis. He had a feeding tube put in, and he has been eating Hill's a/d through his tube. He's become jaundiced and has lost additional weight. He's 8lb 8oz now. He spends most of his time resting, and I feed him as much as I can in the hopes that we can turn this around.
What he's getting:
120cc's of Hill's a/d, in 30cc doses 4x/daily
15 mL of Nutri-Cal supplement once daily
0.2 mL prednisone 2x/daily
2 mL reglan 2-3x/daily
1 mL amoxicillin 2x/daily
0.05 mL buprenex 2-3x/daily
100 mL Lactated Ringer's solution subcutaneous 2x/weekly
He also gets weekly B12 injections from the vet.
I think he will be able to handle a fifth 30cc meal without vomiting, which should in theory get us to 180 calories per day. His stools are formed but soft and are the color of the a/d, and I'm concerned that he is not metabolizing well. I mentioned digestive enzymes and the staff laughed at me but gave me some Proviable-DC. What else can I do to help him?
I'm new to pancreatitis and I can use all the information I can get. How long have you and Sebastian been doing this? 
