Constipation Expertise Needed

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Maureen & Sammy

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http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=12901&p=129421#p129421

Sammy's got no history of constipation. Dx in 2006. Rainbowed for a year. Back on PZI Vet. Tightly regulated. Delayed tooth extraction b/c of heart murmer until April 6. Came thru like a champ. No op-related diarrhea. Pudding poo on April 8. Then after that sometime one as long as his tail practically. Then he had to switch from PZI Vet to Lantus b/c they're not making PZI anymore. First shot April 18 was a 5x overdose. Stuffed him with food and Karo. Lantus board here saved him. Lowest point was 62. After that realized he wasn't going and hadn't been for goodness knows how long. 1/8 tsp MiraLax diluted and shot orally on April 20. Repeated 24 hrs later on April 21. Went to doctor nite of April 22 (Thursday). In handling for X-ray he relieved himself. In handling for 2nd X-ray went again. 2nd X-ray confirmed only a little left in tract. Doctor yesterday (Saturday April 24) told me to give him 0.5cc Lactulose despite sugar. BG soared but no poop. Well, It appears he may not have gone since and the Lantus board did some research and Lactulose appears to be contraindicated for diabetics. There was a little package in the LB this AM but his sister was also in the house. Not only am I worried he's uncomfortable, it may be affecting his numbers. What would you suggest?
 
I prefer Miralax over Lactulose, same stuff for the most part, only Miralax is easier to give. Lilly Grace gets 1/8 tsp every other day, my Henry(GA) used to get 1/8 tsp every day, some cats I've heard get 1/4 tsp daily.

It's odorless and tasteless, I did taste it to see how to give it to Henry. I place it in Lilly Grace's canned food, add extra water and she does well.

You do need to add the extra water because water is taken from other parts of the body and absorbed into the colon using the Miralax or Lactulose and even if not using either, dehydration can cause constipation.

I'm no vet or expert, but I might consider using the Miralax daily, add the extra water and see if your kitty gets more regular and the BGs start to come down.
 
Prior to Webber's dx of diabetes last year I was giving him Lactulose once a day. It never really helped with the constipation though. And it does have sugar in it so I stopped using once we knew that he was diabetic. IMHO I would not give Sammie the laculose anymore.

I was told about Miralax on LL and have started giving it to all my kitties (via their food) about every other day. It has helped with Webber's constipation (which he has had all his life). I give 1/4 tsp sprinkled in with their food once a day. BUT I also add about 1/2 can of water to their canned food to help with the constipation as well help the miralax work. The Miralax works by bringing water into the intestinal track, so it is important to increase the water in their diet while taking it. I did try to give the Miralax mixed with water orally but found that it did not work. I don't know why.....it seemed to not work as well whe given all at once in a syringe with water.

Most start with 1/8 tsp once a day but with Sammie's recent events I would recommend you start with 1/4 tsp once a day mixed in with his food and lots of water. But be careful as well because you may end up with pudding poo for Sammie and his sister ;-) Then you could go down to 1/8 tsp.

Hope this helps. Good luck, constipation is no fun for the kitties or the beans.
 
Hi.

Spooky (GA) was diagnosed with a tumor that, as it grew, caused constipation issues. I gave him 1/2 Senekot twice a day until he went, usually within 24 hours of getting the dose. Toward the end, I tried to give it to him about every third day, two to three doses in a row, just to keep things moving. It worked well for him.

I would just like to say that you don't want to just treat the constipation; you want to get to the cause. In our case, it was a tumor so continued medicating provided quality of life. If there is an underlying cause that can be treated, that should probably be addressed. Sure that you know that, though.

Best of luck,

Lisa & Spooky (GA)
 
I second Paige's advice above.

Porky was constipated before his DX (all dry diet), and still has problems, although he now eats an all canned, low carb diet, with plenty of water mixed in. I add a good 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon to his soupy breakfast every morning, and this helps him go fairly regularly - on this dose, he's never had pudding poo or worse.
 
OK. So what I did is to raise Sammy's dose to 1.75U (PMPS=424, a level he's not used to). Took half a can of lc FF mixed with approx half a can of water and 1/4 of a tsp of MiraLax and sat with him or chased him around the kitchen until he ate all but a tsp of the gruel. I'll get the rest of it into him later. Now all I have to do is evict the other cats out into the rain and pray to the godess Cloaca.
 
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