Pumpkin for Constipated Diabetic?

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alissandre

Member Since 2010
Hi everyone,

My fiances 4 year old cat Bugsy was just diagnosed with diabetes at the beginning of August. He is currently on Prozinc Insulin, 2 units morning and evening. He's currently eating wet Purina DM. He is constipated and we're trying to find something to help him out. I have read about miralax and I'm a little nervous suggesting something like that for him without trying some natural stuff first.

A little background: when Bugsy was a kitten he had some sort of intestinal problem. I wasn't around at that time so I don't know the whole story, but my fiance said Bugsy couldn't seem to poop on his own (the vet had no idea what was causing it) and he ended up giving Bugsy enemas twice a week for months. Then, Bugsy sat outside with my fiance on a harness and leash, and he ate some grass. Later that night he pooped by himself for the first time in months. Fiance got cat grass for him and eventually switched him to an indoor formula food with greens...I can't remember what brand it was. Since then, he's rarely been constipated, but the food switch has caused him problems again. I don't know what the magic was with the grass, but it really seemed to help. He has some grass growing now for him, but it won't be ready for a day or two.

When my geriatric (non-diabetic) cat was constipated I mixed some canned pumpkin (no spices) into her food which seemed to help her. I also had some good luck with cat milk. Can we try either of these options without messing up his blood sugar? Should he just try an enema? Or would Miralax really be the best option? If so, what would the dose be for a 12lb cat? Are there any risks?

He has an appointment on Monday at the vet, we'd just like to find something we can do for him this weekend. He's not in any distress (other than a little when he's pooping) and he's still able to pass stool, he just cries when he does because it's big and hard and we'd like to give him some relief.

Thanks so much!
 
Pumpkin does work for many felines. However, in areas it is not easy to buy. You do NOT want pie filling, just plain pumpkin. I do not know the dose but would guess a tablespoon. A lot of caretakers here use Miralax. You can search (upper right to get the doses for Miralax, I think t was 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon)). I would not try an enema at home without specific instructions from a vet.
 
Good luck finding canned pumpkin - I've given up. Maybe this fall?

I add a couple of pinches of MIralax to my cat's wet food. It cleared a constipation problem. I also add about a tablespoon of water to each meal, making a stew which he seems to like. I feed him Friskies low carb food exclusively.
 
Thanks for the responses guys! My local grocery store had canned pumpkin in the baking aisle right by the pie fillings (it made me paranoid that it was pie filling but the only ingredients were Pumpkin and water...I even tasted it to make sure it was only pumpkin, lol). Didn't know I was lucky to find it!Maybe some regions don't carry it? My fiance doesn't live in the same area though so I guess I'll give him both options and see which he would prefer trying. I didn't want to suggest the pumpkin if it would mess up Bugsy's glucose control.

I was nervous about miralax because I was thinking of metamucil...my vet told me I could try it for my senior girl, but said that it could cause an obstruction if she didn't eat or drink enough. The last thing we need is an obstruction for this poor guy! It sounds like it's totally different though, so that's probably the best option.

One last question: is it safe to give daily? If not, how frequently can it be given? If we could find something that would keep him consistently "regular" we'd all feel a lot better! Thanks!!
 
I have been working on constipation issues with my Minou who has IBD. Miralax works by pulling moisture into the intestines. The dose is 1/8 - 1/4 tsp bid, sprinkled on wet food. It works better if you add extra water to the food. Metamucil works by bulking up the stool. The dose is 1/4 tsp - 1/2 tsp bid. You must mix with extra water or it can cause a blockage. Pumpkin adds both bulk and moisture. Dose is 1/2 tsp to 1/2 Tbsp bid, mixed with food. All of these are safe to give daily.

We have had the best luck so far with the pumpkin. Some grocery stores have it, some don't due to the failure of the pumpkin crop last year. It is available on-line from amazon, netrition, and others. If you can't find pumpkin, squash baby food or frozen winter squash also work. They have more water than the canned pumpkin, so you may need to add a bit more to the food. Whatever you decide to try, start with the low end dose and give it a least 2 - 3 days before increasing the dose or trying something else.
 
alissandre said:
Then, Bugsy sat outside with my fiance on a harness and leash, and he ate some grass. Later that night he pooped by himself for the first time in months. Fiance got cat grass for him and eventually switched him to an indoor formula food with greens...I can't remember what brand it was. Since then, he's rarely been constipated, but the food switch has caused him problems again. I don't know what the magic was with the grass, but it really seemed to help. He has some grass growing now for him, but it won't be ready for a day or two.
Click to expand...

Can you take him outside again to eat some grass in the meantime? The grass is a natural antidote for cats for a lot of things that may bother them. Here are a couple of good links:

http://www.pawsonline.info/grasseating.htm

http://www.cozycatfurniture.com/cat_new ... sture.html

Also, have you considered a raw diet for him? You can make your own or go to the link in my signature and have it delivered to you. That might be all that he needs to help clear all this up.
 
My Miki was severely constipated as a baby. Doctor said it was a chronic condition and suggested 100% Pumpkin in a can or pills for the rest of his life. We chose the pumpkin. He loves it and it does the job. I give a teaspoon in morning and again in the evening. He's 13 yrs. old now and just diagnosed with diabetes two weeks ago. This is all new to me and Miki and a struggle, but I will not give up his pumpkin. I live in Charlotte, NC and have no problems finding the canned stuff. I stock up for a year in advance. Now, I feed him organic pumpkin which he loves. It looks chunkier and has more juice/water. If there's a shortage i'll buy baby food.
 
Thanks for all the advice everyone, and for the doses for each Karen. My fiance (DF) decided to try the Miralax, so he's been putting 1/4 tsp of it on Bugsy's food for all of his meals. We're hoping it will help things along for now. I would feel better using pumpkin, but DF wanted something to work quickly and thought miralax would be better. He went a little tonight...hopefully it will keep things moving.

Pamela: unfortunately Bugsy hasn't been outside much since he was little and started the food with greens and now he's terrified to be outside. He trys to wiggle out of his harness and run and hide under things and won't pay attention to the grass. Any ideas how to make him more comfortable outside again? The cat grass is almost done so DF will put it out, probably tomorrow. Also, I have read a little about raw diets, but DF and I aren't sure about it yet. I'll keep reading about it and keep it in mind though. Thanks!

Seedimon: That's great that Miki takes his pumpkin so willingly! Do you mix it with food or does he eat it on his own? I hope to convince DF soon that it's the better long term solution.
 
Couple suggestions on the pumpkin..

Firstly - Yittle used it when he was in diet-controlled remission and it didn't budge his blood glucose numbers at all. Obviously like everything ECID and you'll need to watch your cat's numbers. As others said you want the stuff thats only pumpkin and perhaps water.

Secondly - yes, huge pumpkin crop failure last year BUT this years crop is in and I've already seen some cans hit the stores this year from the new season. Try the baking aisle, then the seasonal aisle, then as a last resort try the organic aisle. A few times I've found the 100% organic pumpkin at rather hefty prices in that aisle. Another option - look in the frozen foods section for frozen pumpkin, its rare, but sometimes there and as another poster suggested you can substitute frozen squash which is often available.

When you find it, you will probably not be able to go through a can as fast as it can spoil. Your best bet is to open up the can and immediately portion it up and freeze it. I lined little containers with plastic wrap and dolloped it in and froze it, then moved them to zip-loc baggies. Just defrost as needed and proceed as normal.

When you feed it - I suggest using the strongest smelling cat food you've got for the first attempt or two. Successes at this house were Fancy Feast Tuna & Mackeral and similiar styles. The first few times we just put a little in so Yittle wouldn't notice it, but after that he would eat it without issue.
 
I know this is an older post but I am wondering if anyone has used pumpkin for a diabetic kitty with diarrhea vs constipation. I don't know if Oliver has IBD or not but he has the runs almost all the time. He was ok when we had him on a high fiber royal canin canned food but that has more carbs than the suggested amount per day so I switched him to a few others and he has diarrhea often and I believe his bowels are irritated by it as there is blood in his stool at times. My vet gave me metronizadole which he wants NOTHING to do with and I hate to force the nasty tasting stuff on him so thought pumpkin might help. I ordered some Weruva Funk in the Trunk which is low carb and has chicken and pumpkin in it but wondered about adding fresh pumpkin to the food.

Anyone have luck controlling diarrhea with it?

THANKS!
Kerri
 
Thank you Chris-I was just wondering if anyone had success treating kitties with pumpkin. I'm going for it! :)
 
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