My beautiful cat, Kuma, began suffering severe Pancreatitis attacks every few months before he was finally diagnosed with diabetes. I think he was getting the attacks BECAUSE OF the undiagnosed diabetes. He was very, very sick, completely stopped eating for about 4 days, and we nearly had to take him to the University Veterinary Hospital in our state, to put in a feeding tube (which I guess is not as bad as you think it is for your kitty, as it saves their life when they stop eating). The vet said a feeding tube is not painful for the kitty, it just looks kind of painful to you.) I was a nervous wreck. The very day we were ready to drive Kuma 2 1/2 hours to the Veterinary Hospital at the University, he finally began to lick some tuna fish juice. I think that's what began to pull him through, along with the following medications from the vet:
What helped Kuma during his pancreatitis attacks:
1. Medrol (4 mg. once a day - even though it can raise blood sugar, I think it saved his life);
2. The pain medicine called Buprenorphine (0.2 ml twice a day); and
3.
Very, Very Important: Bringing him in every day (or every other day as he gets better) for fluids/electrolytes, as they are usually very dehydrated. Fluids are critical.
4. Took all dry food away in his diet, and began giving him low fat, low carbohydrate, high protein, canned cat food only (some water pack tuna and some boiled chicken with no skin also).
The vet also tried antibiotics on Kuma (Amoxicillin), but he actually got worse and this may have contributed to his nausea and not wanting to eat. We stopped those, and that's when he started to perk up. (The vet also tried Metronidazole, but it also did not help in any way). Shortly after, the vet realized Kuma was likely suffering from diabetes, and as soon as he got on insulin, his pancreatitis attacks stopped, so his undiagnosed diabetes was likely the cause of his pancreatitis attacks.
Also, here is a response I received to an email I sent to the Cornell Feline Health Center, outlining treatment for pancreatitis attacks:
We are very sorry to hear about your kitty's troubles. Pancreatitis in cats can be a difficult disease to diagnose and to treat, and the cause of this diseases is the subject of debate, as is the appropriate way to manage it. Most management recommendations, though, focus on three basic areas: appropriate nutrition and prevention of nausea, normalization of electrolyte imbalances that may arise secondary to the disease, and pain control. It is not possible for us to make treatment recommendations, as we do not have the luxury of examining your baby in person (or in kitty), but it does sound like your veterinarian is addressing the nutritional and pain components well. We recommend that you work closely with your veterinarian to assure that all of these areas are addressed. If you would like to speak about this in person, please consider using our Camuti Consulation service, which is accessible on our website. Please keep in touch and best of luck to you and your kitty.
