Life after IBD??

Karma2222:

The problem I had with Primal's rabbit occurred over a period of about two years, separate occasions. I buy Primal from a small indy store in my neighborhood.  The owner usually only carries the popular flavors for cats, e.g., chicken/salmon and beef/salmon.   The rabbit nuggets (and Primal Pronto - bites), I had to special order. Out of four bags of nuggets, my little guy Mikey (who isn't fussy about any food), only ate two of the four bags. The other two he sniffed, backed away and wouldn't touch. Same thing Primal Pronto - 6 bags purchased, four he ate, the other two, he wouldn't touch. With those two Pronto bags, the food not only looked different in texture (and looked porous), it had a strange odor.  In 2013 when I contacted Primal re the nuggets, I was told that Primal had two different rabbit suppliers and that "each batch differed" from one another.  So when they switched over to one supplier, I didn't anticipate this issue but it did come up again this past year. We concluded it may be a problem with the distributor and not Primal, e.g., the distributor that services my retailer wasn't getting a high turnover on rabbit and it was left sitting in his freezer although the best buy date was six months ahead of its' expiration. Primal told me the best buy date ought to be at least one year ahead which I found kind of odd, given that I had used NV frozen raw with a best buy date right up until that date.

Anyway .... it seems resolved now, the Pronto bites I purchase have been consistent. At some point I'll see about nuggets again, more cost effective although I've recently introduced Rad Cat and Mikey is loving that too, wish they had more meat choices.

Hope this helps.

I had similar problem with NVI bite size raw. It looked freezer burned and had strong smell, and my cats didn't like it. I think it depends on distributor or retailer. I got another chub from the same retailer and it looked freezer burned too, and again my cat didn't like it too much. The store has good selections, but somehow looks disorganized and clerks have sort of rude attitude, so I suspect that it's not managed well. Also, Pronto or bite sizes can thaw so quickly, I wonder if they can be damaged during transit.

AnKitty:

That problem with the food being freezer burnt, smelly or clumped together, that may be a distributor or retailer issue, I agree with you. That problem recently occurred at one of the major retailers that carries NV raw bites -- e.g., the bites being all clumped together like one big lump versus separated. It turned out that the staff including managers didn't realize that the bites do thaw fairly quickly at room temp, in a matter of 20 minutes or so. The food was thawing and then was refrozen.  Sometimes it could be an issue with delivery, I've been told also, e.g., if delivery time is late, the food is left thawed and waiting. That's why it's important to report these things to the extent the companies can have a local rep either contact the store and follow up. This is what I've done on several occasions. Primal actually contacted my local indy retailer, spoke with management to find out what the heck was going on. The store you patronize ought to be more conscientious regarding their frozen products, let them know you'll take your business elsewhere if they don't get it together.

LisaMarie12 said:

 
AnKitty:

That problem with the food being freezer burnt, smelly or clumped together, that may be a distributor or retailer issue, I agree with you. That problem recently occurred at one of the major retailers that carries NV raw bites -- e.g., the bites being all clumped together like one big lump versus separated. It turned out that the staff including managers didn't realize that the bites do thaw fairly quickly at room temp, in a matter of 20 minutes or so. The food was thawing and then was refrozen.  Sometimes it could be an issue with delivery, I've been told also, e.g., if delivery time is late, the food is left thawed and waiting. That's why it's important to report these things to the extent the companies can have a local rep either contact the store and follow up. This is what I've done on several occasions. Primal actually contacted my local indy retailer, spoke with management to find out what the heck was going on. The store you patronize ought to be more conscientious regarding their frozen products, let them know you'll take your business elsewhere if they don't get it together.

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Yeah, you are right. I probably should contact NV and other companies. I have other excellent stores around but this particular store has the best selections and prices, so I'll see if they can be improved. Thank you for suggesting that. I'll also see other stores can order them for me. 

from working at a pet store for 7 years and now being a sales rep for a distributor, those bites are hard - especially when the weather is hot.  it is hard to get everything put away when you get a large order and the store is hot, plus the customers that carry it around in their basket and then decide they don't want it ..... annoying as hell.  and cats are tens times more fussy then dogs on the freshness and quality of the meat.

Karma2222 said:

 
from working at a pet store for 7 years and now being a sales rep for a distributor, those bites are hard - especially when the weather is hot.  it is hard to get everything put away when you get a large order and the store is hot, plus the customers that carry it around in their basket and then decide they don't want it ..... annoying as hell.  and cats are tens times more fussy then dogs on the freshness and quality of the meat.

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I can see that. When the package says "Thaw in minutes", I thought, "Not while I'm driving, please!" I always bring a cooler box when I buy frozen cat food. They probably should have better containers or something, I guess. I don't think I'll buy bite sizes again, though. Our cats love Primal nuggets anyway. 

My cat stopped vomiting completely after removing dry food and switching to grain free(some have carrageenan)canned. Pride rockstar rabbit, Merrick duck or chicken pate (has carrageenan), nutro natural choice chunky chicken loaf, tiki puka luau, natural balance catatouille stew,, wellness Devine duos duck/chicken, holistic precise pork. I feed 5 or 6 pieces of orijen kibble for a treat instead of junkie temptations. No one has vomited in months not even hairballs. I add several tablespoons of water to wet food.

My problem is 6 cats with one (recent rescue) who gags every time she even smells canned food and only wants kibble (i have a running water fountain and she drinks a good amount of water).

Back to my IBD cat...5 days with no hairballs, then two days in a row. Vet STILL is hesitant to give antibiotics and wants to insist on diet change (done 6 weeks ago). Do any of you give your IBD cats something specific for hairballs?

Vets best hairball relief tabs, they eat like candy. Sold on Amazon it is slippery elm and psyllium. Did you have your cat wormed? If it was feral it probably has tapeworms , which make them vomit. There is a special wormer for tapeworms. They get them from live prey. My girl had them, it could have been the cause of her vomiting. I had her dewormed even though nothing showed in stools, I also now use revolution drops for fleas and worms both. She stopped vomiting after I no longer let her out, dewormed her, gave hairball tabs and removed dry food from diet.

This is an indoor only cat and has been all 10 years. I will try those tabs as I've heard how good slippery elm is. I just cannot understand the vet's resistance to not trying a round of Metrodozonale antibiotics. Thanks for telling me about the tabs.

mphscat said:

This is an indoor only cat and has been all 10 years. I will try those tabs as I've heard how good slippery elm is. I just cannot understand the vet's resistance to not trying a round of Metrodozonale antibiotics. Thanks for telling me about the tabs.

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My cat got worse with metronidazole. I don't see the need of antibiotics unless it's infection. My cat was having loose stools after taking different antibiotics and believe that he just needed to restore good bacteria that antibiotics killed. So I gave him probiotics and it worked. 

For hairball, I give my cats unsalted butter. They love it. One of them got sick from Vet's Best and I believe that psyllium was had on him.

If your cat is vomiting in mornings when he's hungry, you can try feeding him midnight and see if it helps. Our vet also prescribed antiacid (pepcid). 

I spoke with a girlfriend who has an IBD cat and uses the same vet. She started giving her cat organic slippery elm bark once a day and she said it was a miracle. She didn't tell our vet. She started giving it to her cat in July and at the October check up and ultrasound, there was no sign of IBD. My cat is on no other medication and besides the hairballs, acts and looks great. I'll let everyone know the outcome.

And thanks to everyone for your continued updates and support.

mphscat said:

I spoke with a girlfriend who has an IBD cat and uses the same vet. She started giving her cat organic slippery elm bark once a day and she said it was a miracle. She didn't tell our vet. She started giving it to her cat in July and at the October check up and ultrasound, there was no sign of IBD. My cat is on no other medication and besides the hairballs, acts and looks great. I'll let everyone know the outcome.

And thanks to everyone for your continued updates and support.

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Wow, do you know how much she gives and how (is it powder dissolved in hot water, does she give it between meals)?  I've been thinking about trying.

1/4th level teaspoon per every 10 pounds diluted in to water to form a paste. If the cat will eat it, great. Otherwise put it in a syringe and give it to your cat at least two hours from any medication. I gave it to my cat today about 2 hours before his dinner. At his dinner I gave hi his limited protein (rabbit) with his probiotic mixed in and he ate his dinner and part of the left overs of another cat. We'll see what happens around 4.00-4.30 when the usual hairball throw up happens. I do know it may take several days before it kicks in.

I give my IBD cat egg yolk from pastured clean source farm mixed with raw goat milk. All my cats love this treat. My IBD cat also has FIV and is an X feral. He was a mess and there were times I thought maybe I shouldn't have interfered but he is doing great now. I slowly got him off the kibble he was used to outside and found NV canned rabbit to immediately stop most symptoms. Then I started incorporating their venison and lamb, all gum free. Now he is slowly moving to all raw. But yes the egg yolk seems good for hairballs. He was an obsessive groomer due to IBD itchy skin so hair was building.

Btw, the raw milk is added because I read egg yolk has alot of phosphorous which can interfere with calcium absorption. But I am not sure.

I will keep the egg yolk on the list and I had heard about the goat's milk. Hollywood feed carries it.

I gave my cat his first dose of Slippery Elm last night, then fed him and gave him a probiotic about two hours later and though one time a trend does not make, no hairball this morning. Time will tell.

My best to you all and your kitties for a healthy, happy 2015.

mphscat said:

I will keep the egg yolk on the list and I had heard about the goat's milk. Hollywood feed carries it.

I gave my cat his first dose of Slippery Elm last night, then fed him and gave him a probiotic about two hours later and though one time a trend does not make, no hairball this morning. Time will tell.

My best to you all and your kitties for a healthy, happy 2015.

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Yes, let us know how slippery elm worked after several days. Sounds promising. 

Day two and no hairball. I have also noticed that the consistency of his poo has improved as well. I've also noticed I don't have to coax him to eat (chase him with the bowl, push the food back together in a little pile, etc). One of the benefits I've read is an increased appetite. Sorry to give daily updates but the little victories mean SOOOO much.

My best wishes for health and happiness to you and your fur babies.

So happy to hear the improvements! Those of us that have been thru similar experiences certainly understand the importance of the "little victories"!