IBD cats on long term prednisolone

[zx81]

Hi,

I'd like to get feedback from people with cats on long term prednisolone. My darling cat Lucy was diagnosed based on symptoms and an ultrasound. Her only symptom was chronic vomiting (at least twice daily) and she instantly responded to prednisolone. She hasn't responded to restricted diets. She's been on and off prednisolone for about 4 years. The internal medicine vet says she'll likely need it for the rest of her life. She's 8 now. She's currently on 2.5mg every second day and I'm on track to taper that down to every 3rd day.

I struggle with her never ending appetite which is one side effect of the drug. She's currently 5.4kg (12 pounds) and I'm trying to get that down. She's had one UTI which was awful and is a side affect of this immunosuppressive drug.

Can anyone else tell me how your cat has done on long term prednisolone treatment? As in how many years have they been on it, what dose and what issues you've had?

I'm really not looking for alternative therapies. This works but I'm well aware that there are negative consequences. I've already discussed with specialist vets (at great time and cost) if there's something else I can do but they say this is the best course. So I'd really love to hear from people with cats on long term prednisolone.

 

[di and bob]

I have had several cats on the steroid, unfortunately, they were older and had more problems than your Lucy. The longest i had one on the drug was three years and he died of an unrelated cause. It sounds like you have the dose well under control and are even tapering it off to every three days, that would really help to offset the side effects. i am of teh mind, whatever helps with their symptoms to give them some quality of life, go for it as long as you can. I have had office help tell me I had my little one on the steroid for way too long and I always replied, He is dying, he has cancer. I will continue to do whatever helps him live as long and as happy as I can. i would advise to get a kidney supplement on Amazon or a pet med site, I give all my cats DMG, an immune builder and I really think it has helped them fight off their Leukemia, diagnosed three years ago. Of course, check with your vet first. Bless you for loving that sweet girl so much......

 

[zx81]

I Bless you for loving that sweet girl so much......

Thank you so much for replying. And I wish you and your kitties the best. It's so hard when they're sick - they don't understand. She hates me when I have to give her a pill. She avoids me around the time she knows it's coming. But then she totally forgives me after that. They are the best souls.

 

[di and bob]

I cooked up some bacon every week, took a tiny piece, and pressed the pill inside of it. Sometimes it took two or three, but eventually, he swallowed it. Or a piece of cheese.

 

[fionasmom]

IBDKitties – Helping Save Lives…One Paw at a Time
This site has a discussion of the use of steroids, along with a great deal of other information about IBD.

My Chelsea had SCL, but because I would not allow invasive testing was not put onto chlorambucil initially but took only pred. We did not have problems with side effects, although I am in no way saying that there are not side effects.

15-year-old cat has had 4 UTIs so far this year
There is a discussion here about D Mannose and UTI prevention.

 

[zx81]

My Chelsea had SCL, but because I would not allow invasive testing was not put onto chlorambucil initially but took only pred. We did not have problems with side effects, although I am in no way saying that there are not side effects.

I'm sorry about the SCL. I was told this was a possibility as the thickened gut seen on the ultrasound could be that or IBD. I too refused invasive testing - they did a needle biopsy which was inconclusive and probably a waste of money. But she's still here 4 years later so I think it must be IBD.

Thanks for the links too, I'll go there now.

 

[zx81]

Or a piece of cheese.

I use cheese. She's an angel, she never struggles or scratches or bites. She just hates the process (as do I) and she's so scared that she shivers.

She's an expert at figuring out when it's time for a pill and unless I'm really sneaky about it she won't let me near her, even when I put out her evening meal. So it's catching her that's the problem. Giving her the pill is relatively easy.

 

[jmichaelp]

My cat Dude has been on Prednisolone for six years for IBD. He's 17 now. His maintenance dose is 2.5mg every other day. I've tried every 3rd day but the IBD symptoms increase. He had a tiny abscess on his chin 2 years ago. He may have increased susceptibility to any drug that causes lethargy. He has trouble maintaining weight/appetite unless on daily appetite stimulants.

 

[zx81]

My cat Dude has been on Prednisolone for six years for IBD. He's 17 now. His maintenance dose is 2.5mg every other day. I've tried every 3rd day but the IBD symptoms increase. He had a tiny abscess on his chin 2 years ago. He may have increased susceptibility to any drug that causes lethargy. He has trouble maintaining weight/appetite unless on daily appetite stimulants.

Thanks for that. That's the same dose Lucy is on. Luckily and for now she'd completely free of chronic vomiting. I'm about to try every third day too. The vet would like to see me stop if that works, despite saying she'll probably need it for life. But every time I completely stop she starts vomiting. It's usually about a couple of months after I stop that she gets sick again. So I'm trying to find the smallest dose that works.

 

[Margot Lane]

Wow thanks that

IBDKitties – Helping Save Lives…One Paw at a Time
This site has a discussion of the use of steroids, along with a great deal of other information about IBD.

wow that is a really great website. I’ve never had the courage to “go raw,” but it does make sense. I like that it includes a segment about taking care of yourself.

My Chelsea had SCL, but because I would not allow invasive testing was not put onto chlorambucil initially but took only pred. We did not have problems with side effects, although I am in no way saying that there are not side effects.

15-year-old cat has had 4 UTIs so far this year
There is a discussion here about D Mannose and UTI prevention.
[/QUOTE

 

[iPappy]

Anecdotal, but I have had both dogs and cats on prednisolone, and IME my cats tolerated it MUCH better than the dogs did with little to no side effects.

 

[iPappy]

I'm sorry about the SCL. I was told this was a possibility as the thickened gut seen on the ultrasound could be that or IBD. I too refused invasive testing - they did a needle biopsy which was inconclusive and probably a waste of money. But she's still here 4 years later so I think it must be IBD.

Thanks for the links too, I'll go there now.

That's the route we took with Levi. He had a multitude of health issues, and SCL was suspected but at his age we decided to treat the symptoms without a firm diagnosis. He lived for years, and his passing had little or nothing to do with anything intestinal.

 

[zx81]

Anecdotal, but I have had both dogs and cats on prednisolone, and IME my cats tolerated it MUCH better than the dogs did with little to no side effects.

Thanks for replying. I've heard that cats tolerate it better than dogs. I just don't want another UTI due to a depressed immune system so I'm going see what the lowest dose is that keeps her IDB at bay. After talking with the vet I'm trying 1/4 of a 5mg tablet every second day although it's such a small dose I'm not sure if it will do much.

 

[silent meowlook]

My cat has intestinal lymphoma that started out as IBD. It was diagnosed through ultrasound as she wouldn’t be a good surgical candidate.

She has been on Prednisone for over 2 years. The starting dose was 5mg twice a day and she is currently on 5 mg every other day. I have seen no side effects from it.

Prednisolone is generally well tolerated in cats and that is a very low dose.

FYI my cat also gets Chlorambucil and vitamin B12 injections.

 

[zx81]

She has been on Prednisone for over 2 years. The starting dose was 5mg twice a day and she is currently on 5 mg every other day. I have seen no side effects from it.

Thank you. Good to know. She has so far shown no signs of side effects aside from an increased appetite and a single UTI. And the UTI might have happened despite the pred. Over 4 years she's had periods of up to 8 months without pred and has been IBD symptom free. But it always comes back with chronic vomiting multiple times a day. This is now the longest period I've had her on pred, something like 6 months now. First on 10mg/day, then down to 5mg/day, then 2.5mg/day, then 2.5mg every second day and now 1.75mg every second day.

 

[daftcat75]

1.25 mg/ every other day is not a very large dose at all. When I told my vet that Betty had been tapered down to 2.5 mg a day, my vet said, "oh, so more like an anti-inflammatory than an immuno-suppressing dose." That eased my mind and we left it at 2.5 a day while we waited for her long overdue dental appointment that was sidetracked by her hairball problems. That was Betty's presentation. She never vomited food. But she would toss a hairball and then turn herself inside out for the rest of that day vomiting several more times and often ending in pink spits and an ER visit. After two of these ER visits, I got herself on a specialist's schedule. I think she would have one more ER visit and almost weekly hairball episodes that were not severe enough for the ER before we finally got through all the testing and put her on pred (5 mg/day) last August. She hasn't had one of those episodes since. I gave her about five more months after her dental exam before we revisited the pred dose with the specialist. Now she's down to 1.25 once a day and still doing great. She's a bit heavier than I'd like (11 lbs and she can probably lose up to a 1 lbs to get back to a healthy weight.) Her eating confuses me. She was weighing less when I was feeding her more. I started tapering her servings to see if she would lose some weight. But she seems to be hoarding calories now. This week, I tried putting some food back on the plate but upping her play. We'll see at tomorrow's weigh-in if that was a good approach.

But yeah, I would say 1.25 mg every other day is probably just fine to leave her on for the rest of her life if that works for her. It really is a low dose and it's probably not responsible for the UTI.

If she doesn't have food sensitivities, I wonder if this trick with Hills A/D would work with your cat. I pack all Betty's meds into capsules. I dip them in A/D and drop them on the carpet for her. I don't even have to try to hide the capsule. She seems to know that this routine is important and making her feel better than before. She always shows up for meds. She scoops and swallows them willingly. She meows for more. And she purrs the entire time. I take a little bit of the A/D and smear that atop her medicine meal (meal at medicine time, not a meal with medicine in it) to make certain she eats a little with her meds. Sometimes that smear is all she eats until those meds kick in. And other times, she'll clean the plate. But getting meds into her is the least of my worries.

 

[zx81]

But yeah, I would say 1.25 mg every other day is probably just fine to leave her on for the rest of her life if that works for her. It really is a low dose and it's probably not responsible for the UTI.

If she doesn't have food sensitivities, I wonder if this trick with Hills A/D would work with your cat. I pack all Betty's meds into capsules. I dip them in A/D and drop them on the carpet for her. I don't even have to try to hide the capsule. She seems to know that this routine is important and making her feel better than before. She always shows up for meds. She scoops and swallows them willingly. She meows for more. And she purrs the entire time. I take a little bit of the A/D and smear that atop her medicine meal (meal at medicine time, not a meal with medicine in it) to make certain she eats a little with her meds. Sometimes that smear is all she eats until those meds kick in. And other times, she'll clean the plate. But getting meds into her is the least of my worries.

Thank you very much for the effort you put into this reply to me and Lucy. It's helped a lot. I'm feeling apprehensive about how she'll do on the new very low dose. It will probably take weeks to be sure. All the best to you and Betty. This is a fantastic place.