Milk?

Hi, i have a 13 year old cat and iv been giving him lactose free milk for the past while because im lactose intolerent. Just recently iv learned that it is bad for them because it gives them diahrea but i havn't seen him have diahrea, could it be because im giving him lactose free milk?. Also, I was wondering if there are any other bad effects that milk could cause and if i should continue giving him milk. Thanks for your time, Brian

Originally Posted by Chinny8

Hi, i have a 13 year old cat and iv been giving him lactose free milk for the past while because im lactose intolerent. Just recently iv learned that it is bad for them because it gives them diahrea but i havn't seen him have diahrea, could it be because im giving him lactose free milk?. Also, I was wondering if there are any other bad effects that milk could cause and if i should continue giving him milk. Thanks for your time, Brian

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lactose free should be okay but I would call the vet and ask either the vet or a vet tech not the receptionist..

Hi Brian and welcome to TCS!

I hope you'll be sticking around and will introduce yourself and your kitty in the New Cats on the Block forum!

Many cats are lactose intolerant, lactose free milk should be fine for your kitty!

Specially formulated Cat milks have no lactose and this prevents them from getting diarrhea that cows milk can!

Thanks a lot for the help, i was worried for a bit and thanks for the warm welcome too I was also wondering if the milk is healthy for my cat? Thanks again everyone, Brian

As long as you provide fresh water, use the milk as a little treat. If he's ok with it now, you don't have to stop giving it to him.

My first cat was one of the few that could tolerate milk as an adult cat (used to call him my baby cougar). He'd get one of those little coffee creamers of 1/2 and 1/2 (like you have in restaurants) as a treat once or twice a week.

I'm lactose intolerant and drink lactose free milk. As it's skim milk, and lactose free, I figure it makes a great treat for my boys. It's nice to give them a little treat every so often.

Welcome to TCS. Lactose free milk should be fine in small amounts. My cats get cow milks on occasion and it doesn't do them any harm.

In my experience, it is the rare cat who does not have problems from
regular milk, since cats are generally lactose intolerant. I would
suspect that your success is due to the lactose free milk.

Even better, though, would be special "milk" for cats. I've forgotten
the name of it, now, but there is a formula that comes in a little
juice-box sized carton ("Sippy Milk?" "Cat Sip?" -- "Cat Sip" may be
right) that is lactose free, and fortified with important nutrients
for cats, such as taurine. Mine love it and it is a nice treat.

Carol

Hi and welcome. I give mine goats milk as a treat, as it is low lactose. Three of them love it, the others don't care so much. I don't think it does them any harm, though adult cats do not not need milk as a dietary thing and it could help them gain weight. AS long as yours is healthy and a good weight then I would not worry.

wow, thanks for all the helpful info everyone.

Milk isn't "healthy" but a little lactose free milk as a treat is okay.

The lactose in the milk is what would cause diarrhea so lactose free milk usually won't cause digestive problems.