BOB - info that might be helpful

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Lkldcatlady

Lkldcatlady

Member Since 2013
Hi everyone - I haven't been on the board for a really long time but I wanted to share this information just in case it might be helpful to others in my situation. Quick lowdown:

  • Bob has had diabetes for 2 years
  • Bob will NOT eat canned food
  • I stopped visiting the forum because I was feeling overwhelmed and stressed and was at a loss because I couldn't get him regulated
  • I managed to get Bob between 80-130 regularly while feeding 1/4 cup of dry twice a day
  • Since then, Bob has developed some pretty awful gastro issues - swallowing hard, lots of scary noises from his abdomen, pretty bad pain while digesting food, no vomiting and no diarrhea
  • Switched him to Royal CAnin HP (45% carbs - AHHHHHHHH), but seemed to help a little)
  • Vet believes a strong possibility of Pancreatitis or possible food allergy and recommended nutrition consultation from University of Tennessee - $92 for a commercial food consultation and $250.00 for a homemade food consultation.
  • Attached is the nutritional consult they sent me - I've already decided we will not do any invasive tests so this is pretty much my only option. Bob is currently on buprenex when needed and I will start switching food tomorrow.
The vet would prefer to have Bob on canned food and I would jump for joy if he was agreeable, but as I've explained many times in the past, he won't eat it and if he happens to like it for 20 seconds or maybe 3 days, he stops eating it. That is one cat who would literally starve to death when faced with only eating a food he doesn't like.

So, I hope this can help someone. I was never aware of the nutritional consult and they will do it for ANY situation/sickness, etc. I think it's a great option.

I hope everyone out there is doing well and the furballs are happy.
 

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Hi. It took me a while to figure out where to post to your conversation.
But I did.

I'd be afraid of that hi hi carb food. ( simply because I am currently dealing with a sick dog with super high cholesterol ( testing for hypothyroid today) and my vet was just explaining to me
that if I don't get the dog on a low fat diet, she will get pancreatitis.

So I'm wondering if that Royal Canin HP might aggravate and make it worse.


I would be trying the young again zero carb or http://www.chewy.com/dog/wysong-epigen-90-starch-free-formula/dp/103307 .....
these are the two lowest carb dry foods.


the other thing I would do is get an ultrasound.
that's non invasive.

simply because I had the same possible diagnosis, IBD, and we don't have vomiting/diarrhea either..... and it turns out I'm dealing with intestinal lymphoma ....

there is my 2 cents.... :)
 
Dara:

Thank you for sharing this. My civvie, Harvey, is currently undergoing a surgical biopsy of his intestine to rule out lymphoma. The other issue they suspect would be IBD. He does eat both canned and dry food. I tried him on Hill's z/d, and he would only eat the canned for a few days, but he really likes the dry. Because he also had kidney issues, I don't want him on a dry diet, so if it turns out to be IBD, I will also be doing a nutritional consult, at the UC Davis Veterinary Teaching Hospital where he is currently being treated. I found it very interesting to read your report, so thank you for sharing it.

Have you tried Bob on Hill's z/d dry? It's still high carb - 34% - but it's lower than what you've been feeding. If all else fails, it's another option. I hope the new diet works out for him. Good luck!
 
An option is to bake the canned or home made food to a pilaf or crunghy consistency. Use a jelly roll pan, spread the food thinly, and use a temp for crackers or crisps.

Note: high temps destroy some nutrients, so be sure any home made food to be cooked is designed to accommodate this in the nutrition consult.
 
Just on the off chance. Does he burp? My cat remi suffers from acid reflux and when he is bad with it he will swallow hard, gulp water, burp, moan in discomfort when he sits or is picked up. It has taken me a year or two to get it under control but I have raised his food dish, tried to slow down his eating by using a wider plate and have recently tried cisapride to help push the food through more quickly. This has really helped him and he is much happier now.
 
Tricia & Cinco said:
Dara:

Thank you for sharing this. My civvie, Harvey, is currently undergoing a surgical biopsy of his intestine to rule out lymphoma. The other issue they suspect would be IBD. He does eat both canned and dry food. I tried him on Hill's z/d, and he would only eat the canned for a few days, but he really likes the dry. Because he also had kidney issues, I don't want him on a dry diet, so if it turns out to be IBD, I will also be doing a nutritional consult, at the UC Davis Veterinary Teaching Hospital where he is currently being treated. I found it very interesting to read your report, so thank you for sharing it.

Have you tried Bob on Hill's z/d dry? It's still high carb - 34% - but it's lower than what you've been feeding. If all else fails, it's another option. I hope the new diet works out for him. Good luck!
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info Tricia - I've never tried the z/d, but the vet recommended starting Bob on the d/d so we will try that first. It also has a higher carb - 32%, but I've actually got him at some decent numbers even on the Royal Canin at 3.5 units of Lantus. Will keep looking into it. I'm going to try and get him an ultrasound next month and see what we see! he's actually been feeling pretty good for the last couple of days. Fingers crossed. Good Luck to you and Harvey!
 
phlika29 said:
Just on the off chance. Does he burp? My cat remi suffers from acid reflux and when he is bad with it he will swallow hard, gulp water, burp, moan in discomfort when he sits or is picked up. It has taken me a year or two to get it under control but I have raised his food dish, tried to slow down his eating by using a wider plate and have recently tried cisapride to help push the food through more quickly. This has really helped him and he is much happier now.
Click to expand...
Yes he does burp! But when I read that vomiting was the #1 symptom of kitty acid reflux, I just assumed it was something else. I will definitely mention that to my vet - He swallows hard and also drinks a lot even though his blood sugar has been "decent". Thank you so much for the info!
 
Remi hasn't vomited for a fair while although I do think that when he had a bout of it a few years ago I believe that weakened/inflamed whatever valves there are in his digestive system.

I have found it is a vicious cycle, he burps, the acid comes up and so he drinks more and swallows hard getting more sir trapped in his tummy and then he burps again, etc. The cisapride seems stop this. It was removed from the market for a while and is permanently removed for humans because of heart problems caused by drug interactions. They have allowed it back for animals but the vet needs to check that your cat isn't on any of the other drugs. Alternatively Metoclopramide can also be given but I didn't like the list of possible side effects.
 
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