Advice for a cat with IBD

Hi @Ziggystardust, The vet prescribed a synbiotic (I think that was the name), but she refused to eat it, even with just half a capsule sprinkled on her wet food. She’ll take a bit of FortiFlora, but not the whole sachet. It's hard to say how long it took to see an improvement; she’s really been through the wars. She stopped eating altogether, so she had to have a feeding tube put in. For the first few weeks, she was on all sorts of antibiotics and anti-inflammatories; she’d be “okay” for a couple of days and then relapse the next, looking like she was at death’s door. The vomiting stopped fairly quickly. I can’t quite remember about the diarrhoea, but with the FortiFlora it cleared up in a few days—her stools weren’t liquid, more like cow-pats, let's say. Actually, what worried us most was how lethargic she was and the weight loss (even after she got her appetite back). I really felt the B12 jabs gave her a real boost. I’d say only now, after two months on steroids, she’s finally getting her spark back and wanting to play... let’s hope it lasts. As for the lymphoma, it was a concern because her lymph nodes are swollen in her neck, her intestines (or stomach, I forget which), and under her legs. Plus, she’s 10, so she's at higher risk, I suppose. We’d already had the ones in her neck tested back in autumn; they were negative, but the lab concluded she had a weakened immune system. The vet says we’ll need to keep a close eye on her. It’s going to be really tough to cut out chicken entirely. She couldn't care less about tinned chicken, but roast chicken breast is another story... Thanks for the chat and have a good day.

Hi there, My girl was also diagnosed with IBD just over two months ago, and it was confirmed by a biopsy. She refuses the Hill's prescription wet food and pouches from the vet, but she’s happy enough with dry food. Since I don’t want to feed her exclusively on kibble, I 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 (Catz Finefood, GranataPet, Feringa, Porta 21). Now, I try not to vary it too much. It's a bit tricky to manage, especially since there are regular stock shortages on Zooplus. I was giving her Catz Finefood lamb and rabbit, and that was going well. She got diarrhoea when I switched to Catz Finefood chicken and pheasant + GranataPet pure chicken (I’d read—probably wrongly—that poultry was better tolerated). For dry food, I give her Purizon fish flavour. I’d increased her portion of dry food to help her gain weight, but now she’s back to her normal weight, I only give her a tiny amount (about 1/3 oz a day, more as a snack). As for the vomiting, she rarely does it now. I also looked into home-cooked diets but couldn't really find a clear answer—I’d probably need to consult a veterinary nutritionist for that. For the first month, the vet gave her a long-acting steroid jab. Then, she moved onto half a Prednicortone tablet a day for a month. At the same time, she was getting a B12 injection every week for six weeks (the vet says cats with IBD are often B12 deficient). She’s now on half a Prednicortone every two days (we’ve only just started this). We stopped the B12 injections after her blood results came back. The vet's goal is to gradually taper off the steroids until we find the right maintenance dose. According to the vet, cats can have a good quality of life with the right treatment. It’s true that the long-term effects of steroids are scary, though. At the moment she’s doing well; she’s got more energy and is starting to want to play again. How was the diagnosis made for your cat? It was quite a long process for us; they thought it was pancreatitis at first. Then, when she relapsed, they did an ultrasound scan and weren't sure if it was lymphoma or IBD. The IBD diagnosis was confirmed after the biopsy, but her lymph nodes still need to be monitored as they are swollen, and according to the vet and the lab, chronic inflammation can be a precursor to lymphoma. Anyway, sorry for the essay, but this isn't an easy thing to deal with and you can feel a bit alone facing this illness. Have a good weekend!

You could look into seeing a specialist vet at a large referral centre or a veterinary teaching hospital that has a dedicated department for this. Steroids are the most common treatment, that's true, and they're often combined with a very specific, strict diet. There are other immunosuppressants that also give good results, like ciclosporin... but it’s very pricey!!! Have a chat about all of this with your vet to find the right balance and manage the condition. Sometimes it takes a bit of trial and error, as every cat is different. Keep us updated, thanks!

He’s on Ultradiar as well, it’s got charcoal and yeast in it ;) We honestly feel like we’ve tried everything, it’s so frustrating… I just hope he manages to stabilise again soon, I’m filled with dread every time he goes to the litter tray :(

I was just about to suggest brewer’s yeast! It’s also great for their coat :)