Advice for a cat with IBD

My little cat has IBD. She’s on a high dose of steroids. She’s currently eating the food the vet recommended, but I’d like to try a home-cooked diet. I was thinking of starting with steamed or boiled turkey, or maybe some liver, rabbit or fish, and introducing it gradually. Am I doing the right thing? Thanks in advance for your replies. P

My little cat has IBD. She’s on a high dose of steroids. She’s currently eating the food the vet recommended, but I’d like to try a home-cooked diet. I was thinking of starting with steamed or boiled turkey, or maybe some liver, rabbit or fish, and introducing it gradually. Am I doing the right thing? Thanks in advance for your replies. P

My little cat has IBD and is on a high dose of steroids. She’s currently on the food recommended by the vet, but I’d like to try a home-cooked diet. I’m thinking of starting gradually with some steamed or boiled turkey, or maybe some liver, rabbit or fish. Am I doing the right thing? Thanks in advance for your advice. P

Hi there, After she spent two days being sick repeatedly and then refusing to eat (though showing no other symptoms), I took my little 10-year-old girl to the vet. They did a full blood panel but couldn't find anything wrong. The vet suggested an ultrasound at a specialist clinic, as not all specialists are the same—the one we saw spent 45 minutes checking Lila’s digestive system and sent a detailed report back to our vet. The scan showed a thickening of the intestinal wall and a swollen lymph node. To tell the difference between IBD (Inflammatory Bowel Disease) and cancer, the specialist said a biopsy via laparotomy (rather than a needle biopsy) was necessary. It turns out Lila, who weighs about 7.7 lbs, has IBD (phew!). Her treatment is a 2.5mg dose of steroids daily for three weeks, then halving the dose for another three weeks, and eventually moving to every other day for another three weeks. After that, we’ll stop and restart only if she has another flare-up. The reason for tapering off the steroids and spacing out the doses is twofold: to encourage her body to start producing its own cortisol again and to minimise any side effects. As for food, it doesn't strictly have to be hypoallergenic; you have to see what works. My vet recommended Virbac HPM Digestive dry food since she was already on that brand, which meant we didn't have to worry about a transition period. Lila also absolutely loves Purina Pro Plan "Delicate" turkey mousse (for sensitive stomachs). I hide her tablet in a little ball of the wet food in the morning when she’s at her hungriest—otherwise, she’s very good at avoiding her meds! She has half a tin a day, topped up with the Virbac dry food throughout the day. My other two cats are obsessed with it as well, so they get their share too... Finally, the vet mentioned that IBD is different for every cat. The treatment needs to be tailored to the individual (for example, keeping an eye on which foods make them sick and which ones they digest well). You might need to switch to hypoallergenic food if necessary. I hope this info is helpful to some of you. Best wishes

Hi, I know this thread is really old, but I thought I’d give it a go anyway... My cat is in the exact same boat as yours. He has swollen lymph nodes; the vet did a fine-needle aspiration but they didn't find anything. They suspected a tumour or IBD, but it wasn't that. He had stopped eating—he's a bit better now, but he's still not quite 100%. He’s currently on antibiotics and anti-sickness meds. Thanks to anyone who might be able to help!

Hi there, My girl was also diagnosed with IBD just over two months ago, which was confirmed by a biopsy. She refuses the wet food and the Hill’s prescription pouches sold by the vet, but she’s okay with dry food. Since I don’t want to feed her exclusively on kibble, I’ve decided to stick with her usual diet. I mentioned this to the vet who didn't object; she’d lost nearly 1.3 lbs and it was vital she put some weight back on. Up until now, I used to rotate brands and flavours of tins (Catz Finefood, Granatapet, Feringa, Porta 21). Now, I try not to vary things too much. It’s a bit tricky to manage, especially as Zooplus often has stock issues. I was giving her Catz Finefood lamb & rabbit and that was going well. She got diarrhoea when I switched to Catz Finefood chicken & pheasant + Granatapet pure chicken (I’d read, probably wrongly, that poultry was better tolerated). For her dry food, I give her Purizon fish. I’d increased her kibble portions to help her gain weight, but now she’s back to her normal weight, I only give her a tiny amount (about 10g a day, more of a snack really). As for the vomiting, she rarely ever does it now. I also looked into a home-cooked diet but didn’t really find a clear answer—I think I’d need to see a vet nutritionist for that. During the first month, the vet gave her a long-acting steroid injection. After that, she moved onto half a Prednisolone tablet a day for a month. At the same time, she was getting a B12 injection every week for six weeks (according to the vet, IBD cats are often deficient in B12). She’s now on half a Prednisolone every other day (we’ve only just started this). We stopped the B12 injections after her latest tests. The vet’s goal is to taper off the steroids gradually until we find the right maintenance dose. The vet says that cats can have a good quality of life with the right treatment. It’s true that the long-term side effects of steroids are scary, though. At the moment she’s doing well; she’s more energetic and is starting to want to play again. How was the diagnosis made for your cat? For us, it was quite a long process. At first, they thought it was pancreatitis. Then, when she relapsed, they did an ultrasound and weren't sure if it was lymphoma or IBD. The IBD diagnosis was confirmed after the biopsy, but her lymph nodes still need monitoring because they are swollen. According to the vet and the lab, inflammation can sometimes create a focal point for lymphoma to develop. Anyway, that's our story. Sorry for the essay, but it’s not an easy situation and you can feel a bit alone facing this disease. Have a good weekend!

Hi there, I’m getting back to you very (actually, extremely) late to answer your questions. My little Soon has just been diagnosed with IBD. What a shock!!! He had surgery this morning to remove 40cm (about 15 inches) of his intestine... my poor baby. Ever since I got him, he’s had non-stop digestive issues. It was haunting me; he spent all his time in the litter tray, and in those last few days, he was just passing clumps of mucus and blood wherever he happened to be and was vomiting every hour. After a week at the vet's, waiting for results from stool samples, ultrasounds, X-rays etc... it turned out his digestive system had completely shut down. As treatment started, due to a mass at the top of the intestine, it folded in on itself like a sock being turned inside out and swallowed another section. There was no choice but to operate to see exactly what was going on... I’ve already shared the outcome above. Before this disaster, I had switched him to Virbac Gastrointestinal. That seemed to suit him. For when he’s discharged (not just yet), the vet has recommended Royal Canin Hypoallergenic and then a slow transition back to the Virbac. I’m completely lost. I’m so scared of doing the wrong thing or making the situation worse, and I’m dreading having to give him his meds every day, especially as it’ll be for life now. (I’ve already traumatised him with all the meds we tried before the diagnosis to stop the diarrhoea). If anyone has any advice... I’m all ears. My little Soon is only 6 months old.

As for wet food, you might want to check out some of the Facebook groups that review pet food ingredients; they often provide charts ranking the healthiest options. You'll just need to make sure they’re right for your cat, but by trying out a few different brands and flavours, he’s bound to find something he likes. My cat used to enjoy Almo Nature, which really helped her put some weight back on. I eventually stopped giving it to her because it didn't rank that well, but it’s still a lot better than the stuff you get in the supermarket, which is often packed with carbs.