IBD - Cat acts like he is starving but refuses food when offered

[stephanietx]

Ask the vet for Zofran to help settle his tummy. It works better for us than Cerenia. You can also try slippery elm bark syrup to help soothe his tummy and GI tract. It will also help a little with nausea. Lastly, get simethicone, or baby gas drops (Mylicon) and give 0.3mg or 0.5mg every 8-12 hours. If his tummy is upset, he won't feel like eating. If he's not eating, the body can't get the nutrients it needs. You're feeding him a great food, but you might try plain meat baby food for now and then mix with his regular food once you get the nausea under control.

 

[jedi_amy]

Yeah I'm wondering if it's salt or carbs or both maybe. I wish I just had a vet who I could chat with about it. I might go back to my primary and see if we can just talk through some of it. My husband has a limit though, and is willing to continue trying some things, but I'm trying to be sensitive there too.

Hello! Quick disclaimer: I'm a "people nurse" not an animal nurse/vet tech, but there's a lot of correlations in medicine for animals vs humans. That being said, I have a few questions if you don't mind:

I see they checked kitty's phosphorus & calcium levels, but did they check sodium level at any point? With him trying to snack on salty, carb-rich foods that makes me concerned about Addison's disease, which is an autoimmune disorder of the adrenal glands. In humans, some of the first signs of Addison's are rapid weight loss, salt/sugar/carb cravings, decreased appetite and lethargy. I'm not sure of the incidence of Addison's in cats, but I know dogs can develop it and display many of the same symptoms as humans. If the vet was willing to check for this, it would likely involve bloodwork that tests cortisol levels as well as sodium levels.

I'm also curious of they have ruled out diabetes or hyperthyrodism? If you have copies of his other lab results/blood tests you would be willing to share I would be curious to take a look and see if there's anything that seems off to me.

I hope things are turning around for you and Kitty! Keeping my fingers crossed for good things.

 

[kirukan]

I appreciate it! We actually originally thought it was Addison's after we got past the more common ailments but they ruled it out. It really seemed like it. We were between that and FIP. Man that seems like a lifetime ago haha. I'd almost forgotten about it. Both came back "no" in the Addison's case and "not likely" in the case of FIP. Which I'm pretty sure he would be dead by now if it was actually FIP.

I know they tested cortisol and while I don't remember for sure about sodium, I think they probably did. They did two pretty big sets of blood panels, just because his symptoms have been generally atypical for any potential issue.

We do know that he has inflammation and scar tissue in his GI. Really the only abnormal numbers we had were his albumin, until recently.

That is a good catch though. It's honestly what his presenting symptoms fit best and is pretty rare (in cats anyway) so not out of the realm of possibility that it got missed.

I don't have copies of everything but that probably isn't a bad idea.

As an update: he had a really bad morning yesterday. Not hungry, diarrhea, accidentally peeing a couple times. I thought his body was failing. But I syringe fed him, putting a packet of Fortiflora in it. He hasn't had an issue since. He had his second Chlorambucil dose yesterday and today has eaten probably more than any other day since this started. He climbed up on my lap for the first time in a couple weeks today.

I got some better probiotics than Fortiflora and going to start those today and hopefully head off major chlorambucil-induced diarrhea. I'm more hopeful than I was even a day or two ago.

 

[stephanietx]

Are you giving him Cerenia or Zofran (Ondansetron) to help with nause or any Simethicone to help with gas/bloating?

 

[kirukan]

Are you giving him Cerenia or Zofran (Ondansetron) to help with nause or any Simethicone to help with gas/bloating?

He is receiving Cerenia and since I've pulled him off Mirataz his appetite has improved. I was going to ask my vet next week about other options to use in conjunction with or instead of Cerenia because I do think there is still an aspect of nausea even though it is improved. Cerenia in the dose he was prescribed makes him VERY lethargic, so I'm using half that dose right now, but I can't get very exact on it because the pills are so small.

 

[kirukan]

Last night we had awful mucousy diarrhea and full refusal to eat. He had several accidents and clearly felt terrible. I think this is from the chlorambucil as it was a worse version of what he experienced about 2 days after his first dose. In this case it was 18 hours after. Last time it lasted about 4 hours, this time about 10. I even gave him probiotic yesterday with all the good ones for IBD. You don't think a probiotic would cause or exacerbate the chorambucil upset? I assumed it would help.

 

[stephanietx]

We use Zofran (Ondansetron) with our IBD kitty for nausea. It really helps his appetite. We sometimes will also give him a dose of Pepcid (plain Fomatadine, 10 mg, 1/4 tablet) if he's really having issues. Ondansetron is a 12 hr pill and Pepcid lasts about 6 hours. We also give a small dose of Adored Beast's Gut Soothe to help calm his GI tract.

 

[stephanietx]

Also, just FYI, IBD is usually good days and bad days. It seems you have a few good days, then back to a bad day and start all over again. You can try slippery elm bark syrup to help with the diarrhea.

 

[kirukan]

Also, just FYI, IBD is usually good days and bad days. It seems you have a few good days, then back to a bad day and start all over again. You can try slippery elm bark syrup to help with the diarrhea.

I just called the vet and asked about some other nausea/diarrhea options. I'll look into the slippery elm!

 

[kirukan]

Well, I thought we were doing okay, chlorambucil was effective, if hard on him. He developed a sneeze which we attributed to him being immuno suppressed. The vet checked him over and his vitals were OK. His bloodwork (a recheck of previous problem areas) wasn't great but wasn't indicative of any imminent problem.

He went into respiratory distress last night and couldn't stay upright. We took him to the ER to euthanize him. I'm not sure what happened, but I think it was just too much for his little body and it started shutting down.

Thank you all for your advice and help. You showed so much care and I really am grateful for everyone who made a comment or reacted to my posts.

 

[DeesCats]

I am so sorry for your loss K kirukan !

 

[Alldara]

Sorry for your loss.

 

[fionasmom]

I am so sorry for your loss. When a cat passes on, we lock the thread out of respect. If you would like to post a tribute to your baby in our Crossing the Bridge forum, you are welcome to do so.

Crossing the Bridge