To Everybody Out There.

[PrettyKitty1]

After spending his entire life bleeding through the rectum and me not knowing what to do or what could be causing it, my cat has been finally diagnosed with Inflammatory Bowel Disease and it is chronic. (I have posted about his bleeding issues a thousand times) He is being properly treated and is looking better. However, the vet said if he bleeds through the rectum one more time I need to take him back ASAP.  Possible referrals to the specialist and endoscopies etc are still pending. Vet said my cat doesn't have colon cancer but his condition can lead to it any time.  If anyone out there has ever had a cat with IBD I'd be more than glad to read all about it. Also, if anyone has had a cat with colon cancer, please, advice me on what to do in case the bad news arrives one day.

Thanks You!

PK

[PrettyKitty1]

Please let me know how it goes. It does sound like Archie's problems are much much bigger than Abby's. Maybe I don't know which is worse, blockage or diarrhea, but your kitty sure does need help.

It is hard sometimes to keep up with their needs, but we must take care of them because, like you said, adopting a pet is a life commitment. It saddens me to see so many pets abandoned each day. But I'm glad to see there are no-kill shelters like yours where good care is offered always. Do you guys ask for donations? Do you get donations at all? Many no-kill shelters are forced to close for lack of budget. It's so sad.

I'm glad you have a good vet. After all, our pets' lives depend on them for the most part. I will be waiting to read all about your baby. Keep taking good care of him. I'm sorry they have to go through this, but they aren't alone, that's for sure. They have us.  :)

[stretchycat]

ACK! I have to take Arch to the vet tomorrow morning for a barium enema and x-rays. Vet thinks he may have a blockage or kink somewhere. He keeps trying and squatting to no avail. All he is getting is leakage of mucous and some food colored stuff.
He is not dehydrated - what he has been eating is a bit of dry food ( Hills sensitive stomach)1/2 cup a day, and I have spaced it out in little bits with enough warm water that it looks like soup. I let it sit till the food swells a bit and he wolfs it down gravy and all.
He is miserable - he is hungry and cant poop!He just wants to lay on his side next to me wherever I am.
ps...about the spelling errors...I can spell but my keyboard cannot.
I will have them shave him, but I am sure nerml will laugh and make fun of him.
They said the chechup will be 38$, the barium 40$, and x-rays up to 100$ depending on how many they have to take. Add meds and stuff...well, the humans will be eating macaroni and cheese the rest of the month. I don't mind. I would go without rather than let kitty suffer. When I adopted both cats, I promised I would take care of them for life.
So many people bring wonderful cats to the drop box at the shelter because it's inconvenient to have them anymore. Thank God we are a no kill shelter...but we are running out of room to farm the excess cats out to volunteers and the county park farm. We can house about 100 cats and 20 or so dogs at a time at the shelter. The volunteers are so dedicated that it does not smell like a shelter or even a nursing home.

I will let you know as soon as I know what is wrong with my poor baby.I have a great vet...he is a Vet vet. He is a Air Force Colonel (reserve) and is incredible technically competent. Above all else, he loves kitties and is so gentle. He does volunteer duty at the shelter, and that says a lot to me.

tears and  kisses
stretchycat

[stretchycat]

Thanks for the sweet comments on the kitties lair. I have to let them in and out to the backyard through the garage, so can't really put a cat flap there. They do hace a cat flap though - its in the bathroom window. (LOL)They can clinb up on the commode and go in and out the window as they please to a 4 x 8 foot cage that is 6 feet high with a couple shelves. They wanted a hot tub and sauna out there, but the costs were too high. On soft summer nights they sleep out there and Nerml likes to sit out in the snow in a protected corner by the house.We have moved 12 times and always managed to have a cage and flap - even in an apartment. The cage took up the whole balcony, and you can get cat flaps that fit into a sliding door.

I am calling the vet today. Arch is still squatting with no results. It does sound like Abby's rectum is sore from overuse (think..baby with diarheaa)and see if he can reccomend an ointment or something. Let me know if he comes up with something that works.

We got Archie at 6 years as a throwaway cat. He was in the newspaper 4 weeks in a row and I had a feeling that I just had to go get him. He is afraid of loud men, raised hands and the noise plastic bags make. It took him a year to settle down and realize he was always going to be loved here. I knew he had accepted us when we had some tree work done and the fools left a board off of the fence when they left. I let Arch out and checked him a half hour later.MISSING! My hubby searched outside while I searched inside in case he had come in...he was pounding on the front door saying LET ME IN!!!!. He was finally home. Not having raised him from a kitten, he has habits we didn't teach him. Like biting and growling instead of meowing.
I will let you know what the vet says...gotta go strip the bed and do more layndry.

Hugs and kisses to you and yours...I will dry some catnip for you all.
stretchycat^-^

[PrettyKitty1]

What a beautiful post. I have not had the chance to live in a house like yours. My husband and I are currently planning on buying a house next year. So, what I’ll do is I’ll put a cat flap some place in the house and place a fence around a significant part of the yard for Abby to play and chase bugs.  I would love to condition my cat the way yours live. What a life!!

I’m sorry about Archie going through that entire dilemma. It is not easy to own a pet with IBD and I honestly hope cat owners learn from our experiences by reading your post.  I, too, am a cat lover, and I’d love to volunteer at the local shelter, but work isn’t allowing for much.

My cat is doing fine. He looks happy again. I keep checking his stool but so far I haven’t seen blood out of his insides. I need to clean his butt. He is so messy, but I guess it all has to do with IBD. He gets the tail and pantaloons dirty but hates being handled back there. He growls. But I have to clean the area otherwise I’ll be forced to clean and disinfect the entire house. His butt looks red right now. It doesn’t look sore but it looks like there is some kind of minor irritation going on. I have noticed him going potty way too many times. Can this be normal? Although he doesn’t seem to be bothered by it, it is never a good sign this redness and it may cause future bleeding. I don’t know if the redness is because the blood hasn’t come out but stays there around the anus area, or if it’s because his rectum is a bit damaged of how many times he uses the litter box. Should I call the vet?

I always take my cat to the vet for them to shave his behind. They shave the back of his tail and a little bit around the butt. But it doesn’t help. He still manages to involve his tail in dirty deeds. Very often he dares to have dangling butt biscuits behind his back legs.

My cat is declawed. I had him declawed only in the front. Like yours, he uses his back claws and teeth, but he isn’t a vicious biter. He just plays and loves, but the biting is very gentle. I taught him limits since he was a kitten. He is my baby. I have no kids, so my kitty is very spoiled. He gets attention from the whole family.  

Hugs and kisses to you and your pets. Abby sends Archie lots of catnip and a “get well soon” message.  :)

[stretchycat]

stretchycat here
We had a lovely day today. It was cool and crisp in Ohio today and I was outside cutting the last of my herbs to dry over the winter. We are blessed with a privacy fenced backyard, so Archie and his brother nerml safely prowl their territory from thaw to snow. At first I always went out with them, but now I check on them like I have a 3 year playing outside. (LOL).
With Arch so sick I havent let him out, but he was pawing the door sooo bad I relented. He checked out all his places, then stuck like glue to mommy. He laid in the sun beside me or in my lap,soaking up the sun to use later in the winter.(thats how I think of it)
He even nibbled from the catnip patch before I cut it down to dry it. I plant them a small square of winter whear and rye to give them tender greens to nibble, planting a new row every couple weeks so they always have young grass. The other end of the wheatfield is knee high by July and turning golden in August. They hide and stalk like tigers in the tall grass, and sleep in the cool.
By now you have realized that I do ramble. I clean cages out at the shelter so I have other cat people to talk to- my husband calls me a cataholic ):^-^

While we were outside, I noticed him scratching at the leaves and "assuming the position". He strained, his sides rippled but nothing came out. he sniffed where there should have been a bomb, looked disgusted, and walked away. He came by me and I checked him over. There was a very soft, lots of mucous but no blood glob just sticking there. it wasn't going anywhere unless it was wiped off. He gave me such a sad look and laid on his side beside me,crying a couple times. I petted and loved him up till he was calm...his belly wasn't sore until I rubbed over the colon. then he growled. He was holding his tail out from his body like he didnt want to get it dirty.
Well, I was out in the yard (ever been camping?) with no kleenex or warm washcloth, so a handful of bright yellow maple leaves did the deed. He growled, looked insulted, and crawled into my lap.

You mentioned that your cat "leaks". Of course Arch and nerml sleep in the family bed. They even let us sit on their furniture sometimes. I have sheets draped on the couch and stuff, but Arch sleeps on my pillow. Was I bad in a former life and this is God's idea of aromatherapy? I was thinking of trying those little diapers thet make for dogs in heat, but the last time I tried to dress Arch up for Halloween I went to the party as the bleeding mummy:)
I got the hard stuff off last night. I worked in a nursing hone and have some stuff that dissolves feces-it's a foam. I snuck it under his tail and was able to get him cleaned up. A comb helped too.
I would like to trim his hair.....maybe when I am feeling brave. He is front declawed (a rescue...I would not mutialate a cat!!! )but uses teeth and back claws just fine.
Arch is in pain at times. I need to ask the vet for something to ease the cramping and pain when he is just laying on his side and crying. The prednisone dosen't help that. He is also on 1/2 milligram of valium twice a day to keep his stress levels down.
WHAT STRESS???? When I die, I want to come back as MY cat!!!
The Hills food may not be as bad as you think. There were some articles about corn-based catfood being worse than satan,but until recently, most catfood was corn based and mucho cato thrived on it.Raw foods are best,and yes, take huge amounts of time and effort. I am also researching the subject.
It is true that cats get dehydrated easily - do you know how to tell the signs of dehydration? Ask your vet to show you. I was trained as an EMT years ago and am still pretty good at giving subcutaneous (just under the skin) fluids. What we usually take arch to the vet for is vomiting and the colon problems. If we don't catch it right away or are gone a few days and the catsitter dosent call the vet (make that ex-catsitter) the vet gives the cat 300-500cc of ringers lactate with 5%dextrose. Since He knows my background, he sends the bag and some more needles so I can keep up the fluids for a couple days. Works really well.
Adding warm water to the dry food maked a sort of gravy and your cat may like that. Just another way to get water into them.
Gotta go...time to feed the humans. I brought in my oregano, thyme,rosemary and potted them. :( the greek basil got frosted last night so I will just dry it.
Be well dear. kiss the kitty for me.
stretchycat

[PrettyKitty1]

You really are lucky. Out of all the healthy cats I saw that day I had to pick the one with colon problems. But you know what? If I had to pick one cat again, I would pick him 100 times. He is the best, sweetest cat ever. He deserves the time and attention he gets because he is a very good boy.

Yes, my vet is very good. I'm happy my kitty gets treated at that animal hospital. Another thing is, the vet seems to remember everything he has done to Abby including previous conversations we had without looking at the file history. Yeah, I've taken my cat to the vet THAT many times lol.

[Mrs_Savas]

Only in the sense that we have had, over the years, an instance or two of a cat that got sick and wouldn't eat and therefore had to be force fed.

But otherwise, no, We've been very careful and very fortunate.

We have had brief run-ins with diarrhea, but in each case it was caused by a parasite or an illness.

It sounds like you have a good vet, which is very fortunate.  I've had good ones and not so good ones over the years and it is very distressing when you don't have a vet to go to that you know you can trust.

[PrettyKitty1]

That is exactly what the vet says he does. He feeds them raw meat, fish or chicken, and then he adds nutrients which cats would normally encounter in other parts of the "victim's" body. He does dedicate time and energy to the nutrition of his cats. I have never met a vet like this. I’m sure there are other vets who introduce their pets to a better nutrition. I just never heard of one.  I really want to switch my kitty to a much better nutrition. I think he deserves it.
Thanks for your input. I appreciate it. You have sooo many cats. You’ve never had one with food problems?

[Mrs_Savas]

OK, well, I thought I'd add one thing.  I would have told Savas to do it, but he just walked away.

Your vet is correct about the raw meat, fish or poultry diet.  However, it's a bit of a complex issue.  Felines are technically obligated carnivores, which means they kill and eat meat and get all other required nutrients from the animal they kill.  They don't just eat chicken breast, for example, or chicken thigh, they eat the entire animal including organs which contain partially digested vegtable matter and grains, etc.  

The best meat, to begin with, would be free range/organic that is fed a good quality diet.  However, you won't get the whole animal, so those "other nutrients" your vet mentioned come into play.  The best ratio is 80% raw meat and 20% pureed vegatables and grains.  Then you will want to add a multi vitamin/ dietary supplement.  

This regiment takes some expense and time (and research) but is very healthy - really ideal.  

Short of this, like Savas mentioned, focus on nutrition and, especially, hydration and I'm sure it will help tremendously with this issue.  He knows a lot about really good packaged feline diets, so his advice should be quite valuable in this regard.

[Savas]

Well, a cat has a very low instinctive threshold for drinking water.

They get about 90% of their water intake from their food. It may look like your cat is drinking enough, but likely he isn't.

Cat's have to get about a 75% hydration rate but studies have found that a dry food and water bowl diet tends to max out at only 65% (best case scenario, not usually the case).

This means your cat will be dehydrated to some degree all the time.

And we all know what happens to dehydrated cats;

Hard stool leading to intestinal problems; including hard stools which can cause rectal bleeding.

UTI infections prompted by crystals. Additional stress on the kidneys and liver causing issues later in life to crop up.

Not to mention a gradual scarring of the intestinal tracts which can leave kitty open to opportunistic infections and tumours.

[PrettyKitty1]

I did not know Hill's wasn't a very good diet. The things that you learn everyday...
I will definitely consider switching him to a better nutrition. His diet is dry, but he drinks plenty of water and the best part is I have not seen blood at all. He seems to be doing well. I just hope we don't go through another crisis again. The vet does not agree with dry foods either. He says a cat's natural diet is raw meat, not processed commercial foods which can potentially ruin our pets’ lives. He told me his cats ate raw meat, fish or chicken with other nutrients that he buys especially for felines and mixes them with the protein.

[Savas]

No worries. To be honest, Hills is okay but not great. I'm going to get around to doing a faq for the health pages on proper nutrition and feeding as well as choices of foods, but these 11 hour shifts at work are just killing me right now.

I'd consider switching to one of the holistic foods like By Nature's or Holistic if the Hills doesn't work out. I'd also cut back on the dry significantly as the low water content could be a bit difficult for a cat in your position.

[stretchycat]

Thanks for the warm welcome! It's a heck of a way to meet each other, but comforting to know that we are in this together. Be well, dear...
stretchycat

[PrettyKitty1]

I'm so glad that we can share this together. I mean, don't get me wrong. I would rather have my pet healthy, but I don't, so I need support here. Yes, my cat is still on prednisone so we have that in common. I totally understand what you mean about his butt the size of a quarter, all bloody and sore. It is painful to watch. Right now I can picture it and it hurts me. I do clean his behind with water using a special paper towel used at Convalescent Centers. He wants to kill me, yes. But I still do it because he likes to sleep on my bed, and he jumps on the counter, kitchen, well, every where. He has even left blood and stool traces on the bathroom counter. My husband gets real disgusted by that. I just feel sorry for my little guy. I spent nearly $300 last time for his IBD. He is on Hill's Z/D, which is a special food for kitties with food allergies. He was on Science Diet before but it didn't work, and that is one of the reasons the vet said it was chronic.

Thank you for posting here. Thank you for sharing your story with me. My cat means a lot to me. Please don't hesitate to write anything else about your cat and his IBD issues. I would love to hear all about it.

[stretchycat]

this is stretchycat and I have a 20 pound orange tabby with IBS or inflammatory bowel disease. The vet keeps wobbling back and forth on the diagnosis.Once a month I take hin in for a shot of predisone and antibiotics. at home he is on 1mg. of valiun and prednisone every other day. He gets reglan if he vomits a lot, and I am getting good at giving sub cutunaeous fluids. He is on science diet sensitive stomach and hates it. It is such a relief to find someone else struggling with this in a cat. I am going to get that supplement and talk to the vet about the food.
This may be gross, but when his butt is the size of a quarter and red and raw and you have managed to get it cleaned up withour him killing you...do youu put anything on it to sooth the raw skin? I use a cool washcloth as long as he will let meand put a bit of vasaline on the skin,but I know he licks it off and it's a laxative. Any ideas here?
Its late..2:30EST and tomorrow comes early. at least the cat is feeling better (yikes! 84$ at the vet again!!!) and we can all sleep in peace tonight.
I remember part of a song...can anyone help?

Sleep my child and peace attend you,all through the night.
Guardian Angels God will send you,all through the night.
thats all I remember. it was in the early 60's.

well, meow and goodnight.
stretchycat

[kitty51]

Hey PK1 theres always hope,look at Heidi her skin cancer was diagnosed as aggressive and since the freeze burn treatment there has been an improvement.When you feed Abby write down what the affects are with different types of food,you may find that some of his food may agrivate his bowel.
So while you are in the corner make up a little book with the dates and days and what puss has eaten but stick to one type of food for a cuple of days unless it upsets his bowel.Well its only an idea,but it may help.

[PrettyKitty1]

Thanks. He is beautiful. I enjoy having him around. He is like a baby to me.
And yes, hopefully, his condition will improve. I'd hate to see my cat get sick and there is only so much I can do to help him. *sigh*

[JoyRenee]

Oh no! So sorry to hear about this. BUT the good news is that you can now try to prevent and treat the problems at hand. BEAUTIFUL KITTY!

[PrettyKitty1]

Got it! Thank you!

Well about his diet. He is on Hill's Z/D. Aleda, the vet on the "Ask a Vet" forum told me that this diet is for cats with foor allergy basically. She also mentioned a type of protein that my cat needs to consume. I need to read that again. I really wanted to switch my cat to raw/cooked meat, fish, chicken with vitamins and minerals and a bit of fiber but right when I was about to try he bled the night before and so I decided it was about time for me to take him to the vet.  The vet wants me to keep administering Z/D. I have to say, since I started feeding him this food, together with the antibiotics and prednizone, I have not seen more blood at all. So, hopefully, this means my cat is actually responding well to the treatment.  :)

Savas, I appreciate your help. Big Help! Thanks!!! :)

[Savas]

Well, you could do an endoscopy...but I'm not sure its worth the trouble and discomfort.

The best thing is to switch kitty to a good diet. I've been reading up on cat nutrition; I've found out some surprising things that I'm going to eventually put up in a faq on the health pages.

I believe the dose is generally about a quarter teaspoon per can of cat food. There should be instructions on the label...I'm pretty sure most of the prozyme bottles are the same ratio, but check to be sure.

[PrettyKitty1]

As always you've been a great help!, Thank you so much. I will try prozyme. I'm not sure how to administer prozyme but I'll do my best to try and give my cat the right dosis?
Savas, how would I know if there is some scarring there that can lead to cancer? Is there any way for the vet to know this? He did a biopsy. Can this be seen by doing a biopsy?

April2, fish oil huh? Do you get it at the market or at the pet supermarket? I'm sorry if this seems like a silly question, but I just need to make sure where to get the things you suggest. I'm willing to try anything to improve my cat's health. You do know how much I love my pet.

[Savas]

Argh, I posted the second part of this on the thread  titled "Bowel problems". I was suggesting prozyme, which is a natural plant enzyme that helps the digestive tract break down and absorb vital nutrients, minerals, and vitamins.

Conveniently, it will help your cat by making kitty need to eat less...and thus go to the bathroom less. :)

Well...the answer was the same on both threads. Two birds with one stone cat!!

[April2]

I'm not sure what a kitty should eat but they told me low-fat, low-fiber bland diet. Yuck, I know! Hopefully a cat won't care as much as us humans!
Also, PrettyKitty, I've been taking fish oil as it's supposed to help coat and soothe the colon. Maybe that would be something Abby would like?
What has your vet said yet? Did they recommend any certain diet?

[Savas]

Well, its good news and bad news. Hmmm... give me a day or so, I think there are some special foods you can use that will help keep down the irritation to the digestive tract. Your big worry is if there is some scarring going on in there; that's what usually makes for the high chance of colon cancer in the end run (so to speak; no pun intended!). :)