Nakita's health update

[AbbysMom]

I hope Nakita is feeling better soon

 

[shambelle]

Hi there. I've been gone for a while so I'm just reading this... hope Nakita continues to improve.

Originally Posted by Russian Blue

I've had a few inquiries into how Nakita is doing so thought I'd post an update.

For those not familiar with the story, Nakita started pulling the fur from her chest, scratching her ears and throwing up every day. The vet thinks she may have food allergies and possible IBD (this is in addition to the feline hyperesthesia). The vet placed her on short term Prednisone to give her body a chance to rest while the new food has a chance to take effect.

Nakita has now been on Prednisone for 3 weeks. First week - 1/2 pill daily, second week - 1/4 pill daily, third week - 1/4 pill every other day. She started to throw up again right after we went back down to 1/4 pill every other day.
We went back to the vet last week and we're going to see how she does on 1/4 pill every day.

I'm not sure if you've read my threads about my Teddy (IBD cat) and his prednisone (actually, I can't remember if I ever posted updates). Teddy's bowel problems are very severe. We started him on TWO pills a day, and tried to work him down to 1/2 every other day, to no avail. Within 2 every other day treatments, his diarrhea was back with a vengence. We've gone to a 6 week course of 1/2 pill every day for a 4+ weeks now and that seems to help. Some cats need that daily dose.

Originally Posted by Russian Blue

We're also changing her food to rabbit and pea instead of duck and rice. Nakita may be allergic to rice and I wanted to avoid that as a final diet measure. Plus, I'm not sure if the Prednisone or the food or a combo of the two is causing her to be constipated.

I'm not sure which brand of food you're using, but we have been through most prescription diets on the market at this point. We started with IVD duck and pea, and Teddy LOVED it. However, it eventually seemed to be too rich for him after a year and a half. The rabbit and pea wasn't any better, and the vension - he would barely touch it! For the moment, we are feeding Science Diet (not the best, but we're low on options) W/d - which is actually for weight loss. However, that, combined with the prednisone, keeps Teddy completely stable. We're hoping to get him onto I/d or Z/d over the next few months.

I know that when Teddy was on higher doses of prednisone, he started getting constipated (which, in a way, was better than the diarrhea), and every so often, he still has that problem. It's hard to tell with the dietary switch and the medication addition which is causing the problem, but I would bet it's the prednisone.

I hope you get Nakita sorted out. Prednisone has been a miracle for Teddy, and while I dislike having him on it, it returned him to being a cat that we'd never thought we'd see.

 

[russian blue]

Thanks everyone for your response! I've been so busy with the new job I haven't had time to check back.

Originally Posted by shambelle

I know that when Teddy was on higher doses of prednisone, he started getting constipated (which, in a way, was better than the diarrhea), and every so often, he still has that problem. It's hard to tell with the dietary switch and the medication addition which is causing the problem, but I would bet it's the prednisone.

I also think it's mainly the Prednisone. I decided to bring her down to 1/4 pill every day rather than 1/2 every other day. She seems to be pretty good right now.

Originally Posted by shambelle

I hope you get Nakita sorted out. Prednisone has been a miracle for Teddy, and while I dislike having him on it, it returned him to being a cat that we'd never thought we'd see.

Oh, I totally agree that a cat on Prednisone that returns to a normal life is way better than the alternatives. I'll be going to the vet in the next couple of weeks for allergy testing. Then we'll have some base to work around instead of assuming she has IBS/food allergies. Nakita never showed any typical IBS symptoms (loose stools etc.) so at this point we're assuming it could be a combo IBS/food allergy since she was throwing up bile only in the morning (no food involved).

When there is a will there is a way. I just need patience through the trial and error.

 

[russian blue]

Originally Posted by Renovia

have you talked to her breeder to see if there are histories of such dilemmas?

No history from what the breeder is saying. Not sure that I trust that answer though. Both Nakita's parents have been out of the breeding program for a couple of years.

 

[purrpaws]

Would extra fiber help Nakita's constipation?