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Cat Forum / Cat Anecdotes / February 2006Diarrhea and then constipation?
Some of you may remember that my mom's 8 yo female longhair had a sore on her right hind leg. Several months ago, after changing a hard food formulation food too quickly she developed diarrhea which solved itself in about two weeks. Well, it's now about three months later and I'm not sure whether it was the shot of depo medrol, the removal of an old carpet or getting her off of Fancy Feast wet canned food, but the sore seems to have disappeared. The problem is that after a week of another bout with diarrhea, she seems to be constipated. My mom has this habit of giving the cat different protein sources every time she meows. Instead of sticking to Iams Lamb and rice (which the poor thing doesn't seem to like anyway), and Purina Pro Plan Chicken and Rice hard food (which she does like), she was alternating with chicken baby food, turkey breast, and cooked chicken along with the normal hard food. For four days last week, the cat had diarrhea. For the last three or four days she hasn't passed a stool. She urinates with no problem, drinks, plays, and nibbles at her hard food. She doesn't strain as she doesn't seem to have any desire yet to pass a stool. Should we give it another day? Should we go back to Fancy Feast even though we're not sure if she has skin allergies to it? We've tried Wellness, Iams, and IVD allergy brand food, and she doesn't like them at all. I've read in some places where baby food squash is helpful as is Metamucil, but other sites seem to indicate that MORE fiber in the diet could also cause problems. She may have inflammatory bowel disease and may have to see a vet. Gail > Some of you may remember that my mom's 8 yo female longhair had a sore > on her right hind leg. Several months ago, after changing a hard food [quoted text clipped - 25 lines] > Metamucil, but other sites seem to indicate that MORE fiber in the diet > could also cause problems. She doesn't show the signs of IBD. There's no vomiting, she eats, looks for other, more tasty food, and isn't losing weight. Is there anything that will replace the love of Fancy Feast that she had and is actually healthy for her? > She may have inflammatory bowel disease and may have to see a vet. > Gail >> Some of you may remember that my mom's 8 yo female longhair had a >> sore on her right hind leg. Several months ago, after changing a [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] >> Metamucil, but other sites seem to indicate that MORE fiber in the >> diet could also cause problems. I would go to a pet store and look at the high quality canned cat foods that are there. There are some very tasty ones in small cans that are high quality. I would buy a few small cans to try them. Gail > She doesn't show the signs of IBD. There's no vomiting, she eats, looks > for other, more tasty food, and isn't losing weight. [quoted text clipped - 35 lines] >>> Metamucil, but other sites seem to indicate that MORE fiber in the >>> diet could also cause problems. I've tried Wellness, Nutro, and others, but she just walks away from the plate. The small can route is all we do as my mom always believes in never serving old food. She doesn't want a large can in the fridge for more than a day. > I would go to a pet store and look at the high quality canned cat > foods that are there. There are some very tasty ones in small cans [quoted text clipped - 39 lines] >>>> Metamucil, but other sites seem to indicate that MORE fiber in the >>>> diet could also cause problems. At the risk of TMI, after my own bouts of the big D, several days often pass before things get back to normal. Still, a call to the vet, if not a trip in, may be in order to get an idea of how long is too long to go without pooping. Hope things resume their normal course soon. Caroline S. > Some of you may remember that my mom's 8 yo female longhair had a sore > on her right hind leg. Several months ago, after changing a hard food [quoted text clipped - 25 lines] > Metamucil, but other sites seem to indicate that MORE fiber in the diet > could also cause problems. Thanks for your concern. Today she thankfully had a normal stool. The only problem is that the sore on her right hind leg has returned. So it's either another shot of depo medrol or a change of food and more Tresaderm/Prednisolone. I'd like to rule out Fancy Feast and a wheat gluten/corn allergy as the cause, but I can't because my mom told me she was sneaking some Fancy Feast back into the cats diet over the last few weeks because of her refusal to eat other wet food. No matter how much I explain to her that 2/3 to 1 cup a day of Purina Pro Plan hard food is enough as long as the cat drinks plenty of water, she still believes the cat needs canned food for balance. Considering that the poor little girl lost her little teeth at a young age, maybe just a hard food diet is a little risky. However, I still have a feeling that she may have an allergy to Fancy Feast, or else what our vet calls a licky granuloma. > At the risk of TMI, after my own bouts of the big D, several days > often pass before things get back to normal. Still, a call to the [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > Caroline S. > The problem is that after a week of another bout with diarrhea, she seems > to be constipated. She might be dehydrated from the diarrhea- which can cause constipation. Diarrhea can also cause electrolyte imbalances- especially potassium depletion which can impair colonic smooth muscle function making elimination difficult. You might want to speak to your vet about SC fluid replacement with a balanced electrolyte solution and possibly an additional potassium supplement. Constipation in cats must be resolved quickly because it tends to become self-perpetuating. The longer feces remain in the colon the drier and harder they become and the more painful they are to eliminate. This can make a cat voluntarily inhibit pooping-- which only makes the feces drier are harder and even more painful to eliminate. Phil "Phil P." <phil@maxshouse.com> wrote in news:hhbJf.33447$0H1.30909 @trnddc04: > Constipation in cats must be resolved quickly because it tends to become > self-ðperpetuating. The longer feces remain in the colon the drier and > harder they become and the more painful they are to eliminate. This can > make a cat voluntarily inhibit pooping-- which only makes the feces drier > are harder and even more painful to eliminate. Thanks for info, Phil as I always respect your input. The constipation seems to be over with as she had a normal stool. I'm back to worrying about the recurring sore on her right hind leg which had disappeared for 3 months or so (after her last shot of depo medrol). It's either an allergy to something or a granuloma. Somehow I've got to find out if Fancy Feast is the problem. From what I can see from their labels, the only food they make without wheat gluten is Turkey and Giblets. I'm sure it has plenty of preservatives, though. It's funny how some cats can eat anything and others are so sensitive that a minor change in their diets can cause allergies or digestive problems. How does Purina Pro Plan hard food stack up against the other top shelf stuff - and is there anything to replace Fancy Feast as far as taste goes that's healthy and provides the same H20 content? I will say that when she just ate her Purina Pro Plan Chicken and Rice hard food and Fancy Feast canned, one could set their clock by her regularity.
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