irritable bowel syndrome

carmelauk · #1 (**permalink**) 27-10-2011, 12:22 AM

My 14 yr 8 month male cat sheeva has been diagnosed with IBS.

He has been on a special perscription dry diet, along with small sachets of bio powder I mix into his food. And vitamin jabs (weekly) for the past month. There has been no change so now we have upped the injections up to twice a week.

I was wondering how long does it take to see a change in his toilet habbits? He is putting on weight but still seriously runny stools. They just squirt out of him and smell awful.

Does it take time to see a difference? That is what the vet keeps telling me.

hobbs2004 · #2 (**permalink**) 27-10-2011, 06:52 AM

How was the IBS diagnosed? What is the special food that he is on? Has the idea been floated to explore a dietary cause more thoroughly to see whether a food allergy/sensitivity is at the heart of his problem? Also, has a stool sample been taken to rule out parasitic/bacterial issues?

alan g a · #3 (**permalink**) 27-10-2011, 09:19 AM

I'm not a hundred percent sure but I think that IBS is the result of poor life style. IE too much of the wrong kind of food, not enough excerise etc. In humans the solution is farelly easy, change your life style. With cats however, it's not so straight forward. You can't control what they eat when they are outside and you can't see what they are eating.

Ianthi · #4 (**permalink**) 27-10-2011, 11:13 AM

I was going to say exactly what Hobbs has with a few addtions. IBS isn't very common in cats so I would be wondering more about IBD. However, given the poor response to the food ( though some are better on others depending on the underlying cause ) I'd also like to hear parasites and bacterial infection have been ruled out.

A month is an awfully long time to have chronic diarrhea and I assume it's been going on for longer ie pre vet visit. I would certainly have expected it to resolve by now with the diet. B12 injections? These can aid weight gain and nutrient absorption.

carmelauk · #5 (**permalink**) 27-10-2011, 05:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hobbs2004

How was the IBS diagnosed? What is the special food that he is on? Has the idea been floated to explore a dietary cause more thoroughly to see whether a food allergy/sensitivity is at the heart of his problem? Also, has a stool sample been taken to rule out parasitic/bacterial issues?

They took a stool sample and diagnosed it that way. He is on Purina Gastro Enteric I think it's called.
We haven't discussed food allergies no.

Quote:

Originally Posted by alan g a

I'm not a hundred percent sure but I think that IBS is the result of poor life style. IE too much of the wrong kind of food, not enough excerise etc. In humans the solution is farelly easy, change your life style. With cats however, it's not so straight forward. You can't control what they eat when they are outside and you can't see what they are eating.

He has eaten very well all his life and has had plenty of exercide, he has always been a big hefty cat, I have a picture.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ianthi

I was going to say exactly what Hobbs has with a few addtions. IBS isn't very common in cats so I would be wondering more about IBD. However, given the poor response to the food ( though some are better on others depending on the underlying cause ) I'd also like to hear parasites and bacterial infection have been ruled out.

A month is an awfully long time to have chronic diarrhea and I assume it's been going on for longer ie pre vet visit. I would certainly have expected it to resolve by now with the diet. B12 injections? These can aid weight gain and nutrient absorption.

Hi Ianthi, What is IBD? Yeah it has been going on a few months now. We have had a lot of messing around with the vets, he saw three different ones and nothing was being done properly. This was the first time we took him around 3 months ago. Now we have started with another vet for this past month, and she is going to be the only one who sees him and works with the problem.

He is having the food I mentioned above also, FortiFlora on his food, but he has now decided he won't eat his biscuits if that is on it, so I mix it in water instead and give it him orally through a syringe. And I think they are B12, it says on the box Vitbee 250, yeah underneath vitamin B12.

hobbs2004 · #6 (**permalink**) 27-10-2011, 06:19 PM

So, they reached the conclusion of IBS because the stool sample came back clear? Unless I am very much mistaken, you cannot diagnose IBS or IBD using a stool sample, but you can use a stool sample to rule other things out.

The difference between IBD and IBS is that IBD has a physical manifestion, whereas IBS is just an umbrella term for gastrointestinal issues with no other discernible reason IMO.

Food allergies/sensitivities are often at the heart of what is often called IBS and it could be that your cat is reacting to something even in the food specifically formulated for gastrointestinal issues. So, personally, I would talk to the vet about changing the diet to one that contains a novel protein source to start off with. Problem with food allergies is that it can be to anything - specific meats, grains, emulsifier, thickeners. However, considering that your cat is still suffering it would be something that I would be turning my attention to next.

Also, if you are giving Fortiflora as a probiotic, then I would suggest that you also talk to your vet about changing it to another product that contains loads more probiotic bacteria (Fortiflora really just contains a source) - Protexin Enterogenic.

Best of luck!

Cazzer · #7 (**permalink**) 27-10-2011, 06:38 PM

sorry to hear about your cat OP. Must be dreadfully upsetting to see your cat like this

hobbs that was my understanding as well re a stool sample. My wegie Karlo having IBD which was diagnsoed via biopsy. My vet recommends the RC hypoallergenic over the RC sensitivity for the reason you suggest that a cat might be reacting to something in the sensitive food.

Also I'm surprised that steroids haven't been prescribed? My vet won't give Karlo any due to his tender age as he is worried as he is so young that it could cause him other problems such as diabetes. At the moment his IBD is under control with the RC sensitivity. However Sassie and Oska who are much older and have had similar issues to the OP cat as well as being on the hypoallergenic food [they are are dry food addicts and won't touch the RC sensitivity] they are also given a prednidale tablet once a day.

carmelauk · #8 (**permalink**) 27-10-2011, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hobbs2004

So, they reached the conclusion of IBS because the stool sample came back clear? Unless I am very much mistaken, you cannot diagnose IBS or IBD using a stool sample, but you can use a stool sample to rule other things out.

The difference between IBD and IBS is that IBD has a physical manifestion, whereas IBS is just an umbrella term for gastrointestinal issues with no other discernible reason IMO.

Food allergies/sensitivities are often at the heart of what is often called IBS and it could be that your cat is reacting to something even in the food specifically formulated for gastrointestinal issues. So, personally, I would talk to the vet about changing the diet to one that contains a novel protein source to start off with. Problem with food allergies is that it can be to anything - specific meats, grains, emulsifier, thickeners. However, considering that your cat is still suffering it would be something that I would be turning my attention to next.

Also, if you are giving Fortiflora as a probiotic, then I would suggest that you also talk to your vet about changing it to another product that contains loads more probiotic bacteria (Fortiflora really just contains a source) - Protexin Enterogenic.

Best of luck!

Thanks for the advice, I will look into all you said, thank you.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cazzer

sorry to hear about your cat OP. Must be dreadfully upsetting to see your cat like this

hobbs that was my understanding as well re a stool sample. My wegie Karlo having IBD which was diagnsoed via biopsy. My vet recommends the RC hypoallergenic over the RC sensitivity for the reason you suggest that a cat might be reacting to something in the sensitive food.

Also I'm surprised that steroids haven't been prescribed? My vet won't give Karlo any due to his tender age as he is worried as he is so young that it could cause him other problems such as diabetes. At the moment his IBD is under control with the RC sensitivity. However Sassie and Oska who are much older and have had similar issues to the OP cat as well as being on the hypoallergenic food [they are are dry food addicts and won't touch the RC sensitivity] they are also given a prednidale tablet once a day.

sorry completely forgot, yes his on steriods too, prednicare 5mg tablets.

Ianthi · #9 (**permalink**) 27-10-2011, 08:52 PM

Are these the same vets as before? When did the vets suggest IBS? There isn't actually a diagnosis for this, it's usually done by exclusion. What were their thoughts in the beginning? The reason I ask is related to below!

Assuming he's been on the steroids for at least a month the lack of response to both them and the food now makes IBD very unlikely. Usually they're excellent in reducing the inflammaton at the root of the problem and symptoms resolve. Which brings me back to the stool testing - do you know which parasites were tested for? It's important to remember that a negative stool sample can occur in an animal that's positive. Was he wormed anyway as a precaution? Of course this would only treat the usual ones. Also I'm still wondering about an infection. Any of the others showing any symptoms?

carmelauk · #10 (**permalink**) 27-10-2011, 09:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ianthi

Are these the same vets as before? When did the vets suggest IBS? There isn't actually a diagnosis for this, it's usually done by exclusion. What were their thoughts in the beginning? The reason I ask is related to below!

Assuming he's been on the steroids for at least a month the lack of response to both them and the food now makes IBD very unlikely. Usually they're excellent in reducing the inflammaton at the root of the problem and symptoms resolve. Which brings me back to the stool testing - do you know which parasites were tested for? It's important to remember that a negative stool sample can occur in an animal that's positive. Was he wormed anyway as a precaution? Of course this would only treat the usual ones. Also I'm still wondering about an infection. Any of the others showing any symptoms?

I am going to ring tomorrow and ask about the stool sample and exactly what they checked for.

I do have another cat which has been having soft stools but it is so hard to keep track when you have several cats. But sheeva's stools more often than not are very watery and frothy.

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