[Catherine4cats]

The vet has said that My tabby cat Phoebe (13 years old) has got acid reflux. First she had a cold on her lungs, she was coughing (and the vet heard it on her lungs), got anto biotics which cleared the lungs but upset her stomach and made her vomit badly. This was about a month ago. She was still coughing once a day, just for about 20 seconds, as if she had a hairball but she hasn't. Started to have runny poo when she went to toilet. Took her back to the vets a week ago due to the coughing etc. The vet listended to her lungs and they were clear but she said there was a lot of gas in her tummy and the acid was irritating her pipes causing the coughing and upset stomach. She gave her an injection to calm the tummy and said to give her Hills sensitive stomach food (normally hills light chicken dry food). She is hyper sensitive to any food changes, but her poo is now better and firm and first 5 days no coughing. But now she has started coughing again and is not eating much. I try to give her cooked white fish as well which she eats a little. Has anyone had experience with acid reflux with their cat and can you give me anymore advice about diet to control it? Thanks so much. The vet did not want to give any medicine as it tends to make her sick.

 

[Paddypaws]

I had a diabetic cat Paddy who suffered on and off with Pancreatitis and this gives a cat a very acid tummy, often making them vomit a lot too. (Hmm, maybe your vet should check for this, its a test called Spec fpl1)
Anyway.....I used Slippery elm bark powder which lines the stomach and soaks up acid, also a drug called Famotadine which the vet can prescribe for you and is very effective.
Food wise I would be avoiding dry food all together and feeding boiled chicken or white fish for a few days

 

[Catherine4cats]

Thanks for your reply. I took her back to the vets this morning. Her stomach sounded quieter (not so much acid) but yet again she has got a little fluid on her lung. She gave her 2 injections, one for the acids and one for the lungs. She did not want to give her any tablets to take because they always upset her stomach. I will cook her some white fish and chicken and just hope all this helps. I am british but live in belgium so am having to do all these vet visits in dutch! Thanks again.

 

[Ianthi]

Catherine-The coughing combined with the fluid on her lungs would strongly suggest heart disease (HCM springs to mind, but don't worry this is often very treatable) to me. Has the vet mentioned this at all? I've heard of cats having mouth ulcers from stomach acid but never being cited as a cause of coughing and I find your vets summary rather confusing. Additionally, cats unlike humans don't tend to suffer from colds on their lungs though they can get infections, of course. Incidentally, IF stomach acid is a problem (lip licking, stomach gurgling are sure signs) then in addition to IBD and pancreatitis renal issues can also cause it so how are her kidneys?

Correct me if I'm wrong but purely from memory as haven't time to look, but I believe you first posted some time ago about your other cat who was incontinent and I remember having concerns about the vet who was treating him. Is this the same one?

 

[Laurac]

Could it be worth trying Zantac for the acid reflux?