Does anyone have a cat with IBD on Prednisolone long term?

[cat pal]

My cat Vivian, 10.5 years, takes 5 mg prednisolone per day for inflammation that runs the entire length of her large intestine and causes loose stool with blood. A biopsy didn't indicate lymphoma, nor has it been completely discounted as a possibility. After three months the pred has firmed up her stool much but not all of the time. There is still a small bit of blood at the end of the bowel movement. Vet wanted to give the pred 3-4 months to see what it would do before adjusting dose or adding Leukeran. Vivian eats and drinks but seems to tire more easily and sleep more. She hasn't gained weight, looks like she has lost weight. Also the hair around the base of her tail and up along her tail has fallen out. Of greatest concern is her significantly increased drinking and urinating in the last week. There's a lot going on with her and I don't know how much of it is due to pred and how much is due to her underlying illness. She's going to see the vet Saturday, hopefully we can get her back on track. It's true that cats handle pred better than dogs, but these are strong drugs and can have significant side effects. The balancing act is trying to minimize side effects while maximizing benefit, or I guess at least weight side effects against health benefits. For the record, I pill Vivian in the evening, as supposedly the pred works better with the body's hormones later in the day.

I offer her a little canned food as a "reward" for taking the medicine. Right now she's buried under the stairs b/c she's afraid of the thunderstorm.

 

[mommytabby]

]

Hi Cat Pal,

Thank you for sharing your story. Hope the thunderstorms have passed by now!!

So sorry that Vivian is not doing well. I was glad to hear that she’s going to see the vet Saturday. The weight loss is not a good sign. How is her appetite? If she eats a lot of food but doesn't put on weight, increased drinking and urinating that might be a sign of diabetes or some other illness…

Do you have a baby scale? Weighing your cat is important. Many TCS friends recommended me, too. I purchased this one,  
Please let us know how the visit goes.

 

[stephenq]

 
My cat Vivian, 10.5 years, takes 5 mg prednisolone per day for inflammation that runs the entire length of her large intestine and causes loose stool with blood. A biopsy didn't indicate lymphoma, nor has it been completely discounted as a possibility. After three months the pred has firmed up her stool much but not all of the time. There is still a small bit of blood at the end of the bowel movement. Vet wanted to give the pred 3-4 months to see what it would do before adjusting dose or adding Leukeran. Vivian eats and drinks but seems to tire more easily and sleep more. She hasn't gained weight, looks like she has lost weight. Also the hair around the base of her tail and up along her tail has fallen out. Of greatest concern is her significantly increased drinking and urinating in the last week. There's a lot going on with her and I don't know how much of it is due to pred and how much is due to her underlying illness. She's going to see the vet Saturday, hopefully we can get her back on track. It's true that cats handle pred better than dogs, but these are strong drugs and can have significant side effects. The balancing act is trying to minimize side effects while maximizing benefit, or I guess at least weight side effects against health benefits. For the record, I pill Vivian in the evening, as supposedly the pred works better with the body's hormones later in the day.

I offer her a little canned food as a "reward" for taking the medicine. Right now she's buried under the stairs b/c she's afraid of the thunderstorm.

As noted above, baby scales for IBD cats are great because you can track small changes in weight gain or loss.  The fact that she may be still loosing weight on the Pred is not a good sign and I understand why you and your vet would consider adding Leukeran to the mix.  The increased water intake (and peeing) could be affected by kidding or blood sugar issues, both of which need monitoring with cats on Pred, so she should be getting regular blood work done and possibly needs a check if her water intake has changed recently.

 

[mommytabby]

Hi everyone!
I have a great news! Thank you so much everyone who recommended Miralax to my cat, Tabby!! Miralax works well for her already!! 

When I asked the vet about Miralax, she didn’t want me to switch it from Enulose. I visited the vet this week and asked about it again, then the vet said it’s okay to give Miralax, however, she still wanted me to continue giving her Enulose; Enulose 1.0 ml twice a day, Miralax 1/8 teaspoon once a day. I didn’t like the idea giving them both… but I was glad that my vet told me that my IBD cat can take Miralax!! 

After I read many pages about Enulose and Miralax, I decided to stop giving her Enulose, and just give her Miralax. I give her 1/4 teaspoon in the morning, and 1/8 teaspoon in the afternoon. Her poop was great!!! It got looser towards the end of her pooping, so I need to adjust the dosage though. 

Thank you so much for your helpful suggestion!!
I’m so happy!!

 

[stephenq]

 
Hi everyone!
I have a great news! Thank you so much everyone who recommended Miralax to my cat, Tabby!! Miralax works well for her already!! 

When I asked the vet about Miralax, she didn’t want me to switch it from Enulose. I visited the vet this week and asked about it again, then the vet said it’s okay to give Miralax, however, she still wanted me to continue giving her Enulose; Enulose 1.0 ml twice a day, Miralax 1/8 teaspoon once a day. I didn’t like the idea giving them both… but I was glad that my vet told me that my IBD cat can take Miralax!! 

After I read many pages about Enulose and Miralax, I decided to stop giving her Enulose, and just give her Miralax. I give her 1/4 teaspoon in the morning, and 1/8 teaspoon in the afternoon. Her poop was great!!! It got looser towards the end of her pooping, so I need to adjust the dosage though. 

Thank you so much for your helpful suggestion!!
I’m so happy!!

Excellent news!!!

 

[cat pal]

Vivian did see the vet today, with some mixed results. I was pleasantly surprised to learn she hasn't lost more weight since the end of Feb., she had lost significant weight in 2014 due at first to a thyroid tumor (removed) and then loose and frequent stools with blood, caused by large intestine inflammation. The prednisolone has improved the firmness of her stool, though there is still some blood present. Unfortunately it seems the increased drinking and urinating I've noticed the last couple weeks is due to diabetes, a common side effect of pred. Her blood glucose is around 350, not outrageously high but well above normal. The tricky part is that this would likely reverse to normal if she was taken off pred, but then her intestinal trouble is likely to worsen again. The vet will consult with internal med specialist to explore possible solutions. Leukeran is an option that has been mentioned in the past, so I don't know if the pred could be reduced and Leukeran added to pick up the slack and also treat some residual unresolved blood in stool loose stool. She also mentioned maybe trying antibiotic in case there is a urinary infection, Vivian didn't have a big enough bladder today to get a sample. She is anemic and her kidney values are actually lower than normal range - not sure what that's about, something related to drinking and peeing I'm sure but don't understand how.

There's more, but not related to pred so I'll wrap it up. 

 

[mommytabby]

Thank you so much,  Stephen! 

 

[mommytabby]

 
Vivian did see the vet today, with some mixed results. I was pleasantly surprised to learn she hasn't lost more weight since the end of Feb., she had lost significant weight in 2014 due at first to a thyroid tumor (removed) and then loose and frequent stools with blood, caused by large intestine inflammation. The prednisolone has improved the firmness of her stool, though there is still some blood present. Unfortunately it seems the increased drinking and urinating I've noticed the last couple weeks is due to diabetes, a common side effect of pred. Her blood glucose is around 350, not outrageously high but well above normal. The tricky part is that this would likely reverse to normal if she was taken off pred, but then her intestinal trouble is likely to worsen again. The vet will consult with internal med specialist to explore possible solutions. Leukeran is an option that has been mentioned in the past, so I don't know if the pred could be reduced and Leukeran added to pick up the slack and also treat some residual unresolved blood in stool loose stool. She also mentioned maybe trying antibiotic in case there is a urinary infection, Vivian didn't have a big enough bladder today to get a sample. She is anemic and her kidney values are actually lower than normal range - not sure what that's about, something related to drinking and peeing I'm sure but don't understand how.

There's more, but not related to pred so I'll wrap it up. 

Hi Cat Pal,So sorry Vivian was diagnosed with diabetes. I really hope you and your vets can find a solution for her intestinal and also diabetes.

 

Please let us know how it goes.

If you don’t mind my asking, what do you feed her on and how many calories does she eat a day? 

For urine test, you can collect a small urine sample before the appointment. That way, no extra needle for your cat! I always bring my cat’s urine sample from home. Have you tried it before? 

 

[cat pal]

Thanks, no I haven't collected a urine sample at home before, I thought it had to come directly from the bladder to be sterile. I actually would be interested in KNOWING Vivian had an infection instead of treating presumptively, as antibiotic has the potential of giving her diarrhea or stomach upset which she can totally not afford. Even the vet said, if she starts antibiotic and gets either of these things stop antibiotic immediately until we confirm infection. Interested to know how to collect urine from a cat - and will check with vet to see if she wants me to do this. It was crazy busy in there yesterday which I HATE b/c the vet is running all around treating multiple animals at once and doesn't have her focus 100% on one animal at a time; she initially forgot to do the blood glucose test until she said all was relatively normal on the blood panel and I asked - so there's nothing to explain the drinking and peeing? Then she remembered.

I changed Vivian's food a few months ago when I was trying the conservative approach to addressing her IBD, if that's what it is. I changed from Hill's ID dry - fed for years b/c my other cat has GI sensitivity - to DD for its novel protein. No effect. Recently I learned I was paying $20 more per 8 lb bag for DD than ID so I am in the process of switching them back, slowly. So Vivian gets about 1/2 cup of a DD/ID mix split into 2 feedings and also a little less than 1/2 can DD split into 2 feedings. Don't know how many calories, and also don't know how much "help" she gets with her share from her buddy Willis. But I do see her eating frequently and she's very interested in food so I know she eats enough. 

Speaking of Willis and pred, you were asking about the use of this drug long term. Willis doesn't have iBD, but was treated with prednisolone for his chronic rhinitis/sinusitis, for a couple of weeks. At first it really helped him breath easier b/c it reduced nasal inflammation. But then he got acutely ill. Seems the pred lowered his immune system to the extent that he got what seemed to be a very bad URI, and it also sent his liver enzyme values way above normal range. Though less common in cats, pred has this effect on some and is not right for all of them.  I am still working with internal med. specialist to find something that will give Willis breathing relief and not make him sicker. His liver enzymes were tested yesterday and have come back down to normal, so now he's starting a trial of Atopica (after a Zyrtec fail) - all of these drugs make me uncomfortable b/c of their side effects, but what are you going to do - just have to put some trust in the expertise of the vet who said she will continue to try things that may provide relief from symptoms as long as she feels they're relatively safe. 

 

[mommytabby]

Hi Cat Pal,
Yeah, check with your vet before collecting a urine sample. They may give you an instruction, a urine sample container and a syringe. 

My cat’s litter boxes are pretty easy to correct a urine sample. It’s the Tidy Cats Brand Breeze Cat Litter. It has a drawer for a pad. So when you need to collect a urine sample, clean the box, and just take off a pad. I use Feline Pine Original Cat Litter, that doesn’t affect a urine test. Hope that helps!

Tabby used to eat Hill’s d/d canned food, too. But she hated it... I had to switch the food. I’ve been feeding her Nature's Variety LID Turkey canned food. I think dry foods are not good for cat with IBD and also diabetes. (http://www.catinfo.org/?link=felinediabetes)  

Thank you for sharing about Willis’s story. I heard about the pred lowered one’s immune system. That’s great news that his liver tests have come back down to normal! Tabby has small kidney stones, which needs to be monitored, but does not require treatment.

I totally understand how you feel about drugs. I’ve been reading a lot of articles about feline IBD, and found that some cats with IBD do very well on a raw meat diet, and some cats even live without any medication! I asked the vet about a raw diet, but my vets, a regular vet and a vet specialist, they both against a raw diet, so I haven’t tried it yet.   

 

[nanniecat]

Hi there,

Does anyone have or had in the past a cat has IBD who was on Prednisolone long term? Could you share how much dosage and how often do you give Prednisolone to your cat?

My 8 year old female cat, Tabby was diagnosed with IBD about three weeks ago. Her weight is 7.3 pounds.

The specialist vet told me that Tabby’s biopsies were interpreted as "moderate”, and she needs to take 0.25ml liquid Prednisolone twice daily until June to control her IBD. So tabby take 0.50ml a day liquid Prednisolone. (It’s the same amount 13mg Prednisolone tablet, according to my regular vet.)

When I visited our regular vet last week, the vet told me that I should cut down the dosages. Now I only give my cats 0.25ml liquid Prednisolone once daily. (6.5mg tablet) I’m wondering if I give my cat higher dose...?

Any thoughts on this much appreciated.

is your cat still on pred?