Miss Kessie, 2 ahead, 1 back...

Hey all;

I was looking at the infant colic drops at CVS...any chance these might be of use to a kitty with irritable bowel?  (Have ordered the slippery elm.)

Here's the blurb for one of them: "A 100% natural dietary supplement with ginger & fennel. Safe, Gentle Relief of: stomach upsets; gas; teething; hiccups in infants & babies. Syringe included. Alcohol & sucrose free. CVS pharmacist recommended. Gripe Water is a 100% natural formula that has been used for over 100 years. It's specially flavored for babies and young children and can be used straight or added to formula and juice. Contains no fillers, binders, artificial flavors, artificial color, yeast, wheat, gluten, soy, dairy or starch. Gluten free. Certified vegan."

[opus88]

is that the diagnosis? IBS????? poor baby....glad you ordered the SEB that will help alot.
Pip I'll do some reading and see what I can find out from my holistic ppl abt the colic drops...
but I'd stay away from the gripe water...the one thing you didn't mentioned that it doesn't contain is SUGAR, I think it has lots of sugar in it.
something I know they Holistic CAT ppl do use for gas is charcoal..but I'll do some reading for you.
are you trying mostly to treat the gas? diarrhea? vomiting? all of the above?

[opus88]

found an interesting writing on slippery elm bark I'll copy and paste it here.

History:

Slippery Elm is a large, deciduous tree that is native to North America and grows in the moist, well-drained (but not waterlogged) woods of the eastern half of Canada and the United States. The tree may reach a height of sixty feet and may now also be found planted along streets, as well as in the forests throughout North America. Native American Indians were the first to discover the soothing qualities of the Slippery Elm and found that when the tree's inner bark comes in contact with water, the gummy substance (or mucilage) swells and produces a soothing, softening ointment and coating. Native Americans used it on skin wounds, and when it dried, it became a natural bandage, and they also wrapped Slippery Elm Bark around meat to prevent bacterial spoilage. The English settlers soon noticed its widespread use by Native Americans and included it into their medicinal applications for wounds and mouth. The Colonists also used the bark for the throat, urinary tract, bowel and gastric health. Slippery Elm Bark was even used during the American Revolution for gunshot wounds and in Valley Forge as a survival food. Mixed with water, Slippery Elm Bark makes a highly nutritious and soothing gruel for children and for sick people of any age, and the herb was once listed in the United States Pharmacopœia. Slippery Elm bark has a soothing and coating effect on any part of the body with which it comes into contact. The bark's exceptionally rich mucilage content is composed of easily digested, nontoxic, complex carbohydrates, and Slippery Elm Bark also contains alpha- and beta-sitosterol, campestrol, tannin, protein, phytosterol, polysaccharide, salicylic acid, selenium, silicon, calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, zinc, chromium, D-galactose, fat, fiber, fructose, glucose, beta-carotene and vitamins B-1, B-2, B-3 and C.


I also found out more on the gripe water...I was right its a no no b/c of the sugar. but heres one the H people do use for cats..for short term. long term it can interfere with nutrient absorption I will copy the site for you, don't know if its something you're able to find locally or not? looks like its a homeopathic product. IF YOU DECIDE TO GET THIS LET ME KNOW AND I'LL TELL YOU HOW TO PREPARE IT..don't use straight from the bottle it has to be diluted for cats.

same as the slippery elm...did I explain how to prepare that? let me know ok..

read also. that you can use fennel seeds and or ginger add boiling water and make like a tea than give .5cc several times a day....via syringe because its smells too strong to add to food.

as for the activated charcoal, open the tablet and add half to full tablet directly to the food...I always start on the low side when I'm trying anything new..
this too can be used safely for short term. long term it too interferes with nutrient absorption.

good luck and hugs to you all♥


http://www.coliccalm.com/gripe-water.htm

[Piparskeggr]

Thanks, I will always seek full info before giving anything to Kessie.

This evening, about an hour ago, she spewed and because Anita and I were blocking the hall cleaning the carpet, Kessie used a cardboard scratch pad in the foyer as a "landing pad."  It was a fairly solid stool, well-formed, surrounded by a puddle of thickish "pea soup."  (This sample was bagged to be brought to the vet for more analysis.)

I'm going to try not giving the Metamucil for a day or so and see what happens.

Found a no-grain food she likes for wet, the Wellness formulas.  She also likes the Science Diet wet, as well as their sensitive stomach kibble.

She's social, has pretty good energy (went to town on the scratching post earlier this evening), so, ????

She is still not acting like a sick or hurting kitty.

[AnnieBrooke]

Diamond pet foods recently had a big recall due to a rare form of salmonella in its dog food.  If your cat can get at the dog's food, or even if the cat's food is from Diamond, I'd be a little suspicious about the possibility of this form of salmonella.  You might ask your vet.

[opus88]

yes annie is right there have been some recalls...and wellness is one of the better foods but there have been lots of reports on the holistic area that they are seeing some illnesses connected with this food...maybe a good idea to stay clear of that one Pip.

http://truthaboutpetfood.com/articles/distributor-states-canidae-natural-balance-and-one-wellness-product-recalled.html

keep up the great work with dear Kessie♥

[FurballsMom]

I went through this with my previous cat, only hers turned out to be IBD, or Colitis, which is more serious.  So, my instinct tells me that you will need the activated charcoal.  But, from what I understand, that isn't a good long term solution because it can cause malabsorption issues.  But, then, so can chronic diarrhea.  I would definitely give slippery elm bark (comes in teas or in capsules) a try, as was suggested.  I never had any success in using the anti-diarrhea medications or the slippery elm bark myself.

[Piparskeggr]

Anita talked to Doc Knilans today, he doesn't think there's any bacterial infection, other kitties would have shown signs by now.

He recommended upping the Prednisone for a few days (5mg in the morning and 2.5 mg in the evening, from 2.5 and 2.5) to see what happens.

Next step that he recommends is a trip for Kessie up to the University of Wisconsin Veterinary College for an endoscopy and biopsy.

We started keeping a diary of Kessie's symptoms and what we give her...hopefully we'll pin this down.

[Piparskeggr]

Doc also said that the UW Vet College has had good results with a new, powdered antibiotic for chronic diarrhea, but won't prescribe such until after a thorough exam (which raises the confidence level).

[Jade59]

Best of luck at UW, Pip.  That endoscopy along with a biopsy should tell all.  At least I hope so!  

[opus88]

some brands of Slippery Elm Bark...ie: NOW FOODS like the one I told Pip to order comes in powder form, and its the one best recommend for use for cats.
for cats to prepare you need to boil some water. Mix 1/2 teaspoon SLB to 2 tbsps. hot water in a jar. stir lightly. let sit for 30 mins. than shake. this will make a thick gruel(if its too thick add a drop more water)  after its cool give kitty 3-5cc's via a dropper 2-3xdaily. BUT it HAS to be 30mins before or after food or any medication so not to effect absorption...this is very important!!!

Best of luck Pip, we are all rooting for the little girl♥

[Piparskeggr]

Interesting development today.

I was chatting with a nice young woman at the store today, who I was helping in the paint department.

I noticed the logo on her polo shirt, Webster Veterinary Supply...asked her about that.  Turns out she is a vendor rep, who deals with vets medical supply needs.  She has my vet, Doc Knilans, as an account.

I told her about Kessie and she told me that they have developed a new blood test that can screen between IBD and lymphoma.

I asked her to let Doc Knilans know we'd be glad to have Kessie be a test case if he'd like to try it.

If this can replace an endoscopy with the attendant travel time and anesthesia...good, good, good.

Also, a thought formed within my head as I was grocery shopping today.  Baby meats and brown rice cereal powder mixed as a "gravy" for the other kitty food...?

I did this for supper tonight and Kessie ate the plate almost clean, wanted seconds.  (Mixed in a smidgen of Metamucil, too, as the no Metamucil experiment seemed to lead to very loose deposits.)

[Piparskeggr]

We are discontinuing the brown rice cereal as an addition, just seems to have given Miss Kessie more gas.  Had a bout of "explosive" diarrhea the other night.

She seems to do better on a mix of regular Friskies chicken or turkey bits in gravy mixed with the Wellness or Science Diet grain free wet.  She's still eating the Science Diet Sensitive Stomach kibble, haven't seen her eat any of the regular Friskies indoor Formula since we got the SD.

She still shows no signs of pain, even let me rub her belly for about 10 minutes tonight.  Was sitting up on the window shelf quite a bit today, something Anita says Kessie hasn't been doing the past couple of months.

Slippery Elm bark not yet here, will ask about its use when it does arrive.

Endoscopy does look like the next step, if the new blood test is inconclusive.

[Jade59]

Oh, poor Kessie.  And poor You and Anita.  You must be beside yourselves with confusion with all this.  You mentioned the blood test 6days ago.  Was Kessie approved for it, and did you get in yet?

Fingers crossed with the Slippery Elm Bark!  Opus gets such great results with this!

[Piparskeggr]

No, the Veterinary rep will be calling on Doc Knilans this week to see if she can arrange for the test.

However, it seems that Kessie is less loose and gassy after discontinuing the brown rice cereal.

We are still trying wet foods within the brands she likes that give us the option of less grain, lower fat and fewer by products.

Anita read up on the steroids, we're going to see if a change to Predinisolone helps better than straight Prednisone, especially if we can get a liquid rather than a pill.

Doc also mentioned a new anti-biotic that is formulated for chronic diarrhea treatment in poultry, which has shown promise in veterinary studies with cats. It's available in powder, so we could mix the dose with the baby meats she likes.

As long as she appears to be in no pain and looks to be leading a pretty normal life...we hope she'll be around another 9 - 10 years, follow in the footsteps of her momma cat who made it to 22.

[Jade59]

Well that's good news, she's better off the rice.  And okay, I see, you're waiting for arrangements to be made for the blood test.  Kessie's been on that Prednisone for a while now, so a change would be best for her anyway.  You still haven't had a chance to try the SEB.  Hopefully once that arrives, it will help, with it being natural a big plus.  If not, then you still have other avenues to try with the new antib.  

The very best news is Kessie isn't acting ill at all.  Pip, without reading through your entire threads again, did you say at some point, Kessie has some sort of growth happening in her tummy, or was that someone else?    

[aligator79]

I've got an odd question.  Don't we have to change kitties food slowly to not upset their tummy?  Could the constant change be a factor also?

[Jade59]

Good question, Ali.  That same thought occurred to me.  Pip, what do you think?

[opus88]

sorry pip will try and comment more later....good to hear that Kessie is at least not feeling her troubles.
Ali..yes indeed you do need to transition all food changes gradually so as not to upset bowels...
will have more time tomorrow to be on I hope

[opus88]

sending you a site with good info on prednisone/prednisolone....maybe added info to what Anita has already found.
you can also use that same site to find info on the drug your Vet has suggested to try for the diarrhea if you know the name of it, I would use extreme caution trying any medication that isn't approved for cats, but I know you and Anita are very cautious people already.
Another thought I have is to d/c the Whiskas since Kessie is eating better foods and Whiskas is so full of additives and could possibly be contributing to her issues...up to you but I do think that would be worth a try as well.
sending you all my best of wishes that you soon find a solution to what
ails her.

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&C=31&A=622&S=2

[Piparskeggr]

What we've been doing with the food changes is to mix new foods in over the course of 4 - 5 days.

Like I wrote earlier, the deletion of the brown rice cereal has helped and mixing in her favorite Friskies chicken_N_gravy with the SD wet that she likes has, too.  We've got her down to SD and Friskies, with a couple of beef Fancy Feast flavors she likes.  Didn't like the Wellness flavors, nor the Blue Buffalo.  She really likes the SD kibble.

When she is loose, the past several days, it's not the explosive gusher it had been, and she "thickens up" much more regularly.  But the cycle seems to be, get real close to normal, and then sploosh.

She hasn't vomited up food in several days, though she did cough up some foamy stuff last night.

Anita talked to Doc Knilans today, he's looking into that new blood test and will let us know next week.

[Piparskeggr]

Got the Slippery Elm Bark, got the instructions printed out, fingers crossed.

[opus88]

Oh thats great Pip.....I sure have my fingers crossed too!!!!
I've also suggested it to Furballsmom for Akira's tummy problems....as you can see on her post today.
did I mention to give via dropper 30 mins before or after meals so as not to affect absorption(?) they really don't like the taste of it so I doubt any kitty would ever take it in the food anyway...but just wanted to mention again anyway..
sure hope this gives Kessie some relief -)

[Piparskeggr]

Yes, you did write about the 30 minutes.

We are very fortunate, Kessie doesn't like taking medicines, but she doesn't hold a grudge against us for dosing her.