Which prescription diet best for chronic constipation/lazy bowels?
My 1.5 year-old male tabby recently had a bad bout of constipation. Toby
did not poo for over two days and a vet check-up found a substantially distended colon. The vet immediately put him on Propulsid (bowel stimulant) and Duphalac (lactulose syrup) but he still refused to poo for another two days. The vet finally administered an enema under anaesthesia, which thankfully helped empty Toby's bowels almost immediately. While x-rays taken before the enema showed a distended colon, it wasn't conclusive enough for a megacolon diagnosis. The vet has now put Toby on a mixture of Hill's Prescription Diet w/d dried and r/d canned, and reckons that Toby will also have to be on Propulsid and Duphalac for the rest of his life. [Toby was also recently diagnosed with struvite crystals in his urine, which necessitated the change of diet to Hill's w/d and r/d.] While I'm okay with Toby having to be fed a fairly expensive prescription diet for the rest of his life, I'm not sure I am prepared to continue paying my vet the exorbitant prices charged for the two drugs. I did some research and discovered that Duphalac can be had for as little as AUD$12 per 500ml bottle at pharmacies in Australia without needing a prescription - in contrast, my vet charges me AUD$25 for a mere 25ml bottle (which lasts less than a week). I am, of course, a little peeved at the obvious profiteering going on here. But that's OK, since it is something I can get around by getting the Duphalac myself. Propulsid is a more complicated matter - it is probably a prescription drug, which means I can't buy it over-the-counter at pharmacies, and my vet charges me AUD$65 for a wee little 25ml bottle. I also found out that propulsid has been withdrawn from the pharmaceutical market for humans because of allegations that it caused the deaths of several young children. So, quite apart from cost, there is the question of whether long term use of Propulsid could harm my little boy. So I am at a dilemma - should I risk stopping the use of the drugs and rely on the higher fibre combination w/d and r/d diets to keep Toby's bowels moving? What if I leave out the Propulsid and just rely on the Duphalac to keep Toby's stool soft/moist? Is a higher fibre diet (the Hill's w/d and r/d) necessarily better for chronic constipation or is a low-residue diet the way to go? Is canned pumpkin safe for a cat with a potential struvite crystals problem? Thanks a million to anyone who can shed some light on the above. :-) Devlin Perth, Australia |
By the way, Toby was fed a roughly 50%/50% diet consisting of IAMS Lamb &
Rice (dried) and Whiskas Advance (canned) with the occasional canned tuna as a treat (about once a week) before his crystals and constipation problems reared their ugly heads. He'll of course get no more tuna (or any other pseudo-people foods disguised as cat foods) from now on due to the struvite crystals problem. Devlin Perth, Australia |
By the way, Toby was fed a roughly 50%/50% diet consisting of IAMS Lamb &
Rice (dried) and Whiskas Advance (canned) with the occasional canned tuna as a treat (about once a week) before his crystals and constipation problems reared their ugly heads. He'll of course get no more tuna (or any other pseudo-people foods disguised as cat foods) from now on due to the struvite crystals problem. Devlin Perth, Australia |
From: "Devlin Tay"
So I am at a dilemma - should I risk stopping the use of the drugs and rely on the higher fibre combination w/d and r/d diets to keep Toby's bowels moving? If it were my cat, I would put him on a homemade diet, and also consult with a holistic vet. Constipation sometimes occurs when the cat doesn't get enough bulk in his diet or doesn't get enough exercise. Always make sure the litterbox is clean so the cat doesn't get into the habit of holding it in. Another thing you could try is adding olive oil. This can act as a tonic for the intestinal tract and stimulate liver bile. Any excess oil will help lubricate the fecal mass and sooth mucus membrane of the intenstine and rectum. I would suggest 1/2 to 1 teaspoon 2 times a day, mixed with food, until he is going regularly. It can also be given once a week for hairball prevention. Lauren ________ See my cats: http://community.webshots.com/album/56955940rWhxAe Raw Diet Info: http://www.holisticat.com/drjletter.html http://www.geocities.com/rawfeeders/ForCatsOnly.html Declawing Info: http://www.wholecat.com/articles/claws.htm |
The vet has now put Toby on a mixture of Hill's Prescription Diet w/d dried and r/d canned, and reckons that Toby will also have to be on Propulsid and Duphalac for the rest of his life. [Toby was also recently diagnosed with struvite crystals in his urine, which necessitated the change of diet to Hill's w/d and r/d.] While I'm okay with Toby having to be fed a fairly expensive prescription diet for the rest of his life, I'm not sure I am prepared to continue paying my vet the exorbitant prices charged for the two drugs. First of all, I have a real big problem with a vet that proclaims a cat has to be on a special food/drugs for "the rest of its life" because of *one* incident of constipation. I also question putting the cat on the foods you described for crystals in the urine. The best diet for both constipation and urinary tract issues (and in general) is one that is all canned, high quality (Iams is not) and fed on a schedule. I have two clients that have cats that had constipation issues that were never resolved using the prescription high fiber diets, and one of the cats was still constipated despite getting daily doses of mineral oil and a prescription stool softener and was in constant misery. Completely eliminating dry food and switching the cats to a high quality canned food fed on a 12 hour schedule resolved the constipation in both cases and eliminated the need for stool softeners as well. Canned is also beneficial for urinary tract issues as it greatly increases a cats water intake, which in turn helps to keep the urine more dilute and the bladder flushed. In general a canned diet isgoiong to be better for your cat and there is more and more information coming out that shows that dry foods are not great for cats (a good website that you can check out on this subject is http://www.catnutrition.org ) I would suggest trying this approach before deciding the cat has to have prescription drugs and diet for the rest of its life. Megan "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." -Edmund Burke Learn The TRUTH About Declawing http://www.stopdeclaw.com Zuzu's Cats Photo Album: http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22 "Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way." - W.H. Murray |
The vet has now put Toby on a mixture of Hill's Prescription Diet w/d dried and r/d canned, and reckons that Toby will also have to be on Propulsid and Duphalac for the rest of his life. [Toby was also recently diagnosed with struvite crystals in his urine, which necessitated the change of diet to Hill's w/d and r/d.] While I'm okay with Toby having to be fed a fairly expensive prescription diet for the rest of his life, I'm not sure I am prepared to continue paying my vet the exorbitant prices charged for the two drugs. First of all, I have a real big problem with a vet that proclaims a cat has to be on a special food/drugs for "the rest of its life" because of *one* incident of constipation. I also question putting the cat on the foods you described for crystals in the urine. The best diet for both constipation and urinary tract issues (and in general) is one that is all canned, high quality (Iams is not) and fed on a schedule. I have two clients that have cats that had constipation issues that were never resolved using the prescription high fiber diets, and one of the cats was still constipated despite getting daily doses of mineral oil and a prescription stool softener and was in constant misery. Completely eliminating dry food and switching the cats to a high quality canned food fed on a 12 hour schedule resolved the constipation in both cases and eliminated the need for stool softeners as well. Canned is also beneficial for urinary tract issues as it greatly increases a cats water intake, which in turn helps to keep the urine more dilute and the bladder flushed. In general a canned diet isgoiong to be better for your cat and there is more and more information coming out that shows that dry foods are not great for cats (a good website that you can check out on this subject is http://www.catnutrition.org ) I would suggest trying this approach before deciding the cat has to have prescription drugs and diet for the rest of its life. Megan "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." -Edmund Burke Learn The TRUTH About Declawing http://www.stopdeclaw.com Zuzu's Cats Photo Album: http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22 "Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way." - W.H. Murray |
"Devlin Tay" wrote in message . ..
My 1.5 year-old male tabby recently had a bad bout of constipation. Toby did not poo for over two days and a vet check-up found a substantially distended colon. The vet immediately put him on Propulsid (bowel stimulant) and Duphalac (lactulose syrup) but he still refused to poo for another two days. The vet finally administered an enema under anaesthesia, which thankfully helped empty Toby's bowels almost immediately. While x-rays taken before the enema showed a distended colon, it wasn't conclusive enough for a megacolon diagnosis. The vet has now put Toby on a mixture of Hill's Prescription Diet w/d dried and r/d canned, and reckons that Toby will also have to be on Propulsid and Duphalac for the rest of his life. [Toby was also recently diagnosed with struvite crystals in his urine, which necessitated the change of diet to Hill's w/d and r/d.] While I'm okay with Toby having to be fed a fairly expensive prescription diet for the rest of his life, I'm not sure I am prepared to continue paying my vet the exorbitant prices charged for the two drugs. I did some research and discovered that Duphalac can be had for as little as AUD$12 per 500ml bottle at pharmacies in Australia without needing a prescription - in contrast, my vet charges me AUD$25 for a mere 25ml bottle (which lasts less than a week). I am, of course, a little peeved at the obvious profiteering going on here. But that's OK, since it is something I can get around by getting the Duphalac myself. Propulsid is a more complicated matter - it is probably a prescription drug, which means I can't buy it over-the-counter at pharmacies, and my vet charges me AUD$65 for a wee little 25ml bottle. I also found out that propulsid has been withdrawn from the pharmaceutical market for humans because of allegations that it caused the deaths of several young children. So, quite apart from cost, there is the question of whether long term use of Propulsid could harm my little boy. So I am at a dilemma - should I risk stopping the use of the drugs and rely on the higher fibre combination w/d and r/d diets to keep Toby's bowels moving? What if I leave out the Propulsid and just rely on the Duphalac to keep Toby's stool soft/moist? Is a higher fibre diet (the Hill's w/d and r/d) necessarily better for chronic constipation or is a low-residue diet the way to go? Is canned pumpkin safe for a cat with a potential struvite crystals problem? I have seen r/d and w/d do nothing except keep a cat coming back to the vet for enemas. I would trash the Hills, put the cat on a hairball maintenence dry diet (which is higer in fiber and Mega 3 fatty acids) with pumpkin (if he will eat it) and also give plenty of canned food that is high in protein - such as Purina DM or a canned kitten diet. Protein is better utilized and lower-residue in nature. I would keep him on the drugs until he seems completely regulated. Make sure is he groomed frequently, get enough exercise and plenty of water. Massage can also help. best of luck to you, -L. |
"Devlin Tay" wrote in message . ..
My 1.5 year-old male tabby recently had a bad bout of constipation. Toby did not poo for over two days and a vet check-up found a substantially distended colon. The vet immediately put him on Propulsid (bowel stimulant) and Duphalac (lactulose syrup) but he still refused to poo for another two days. The vet finally administered an enema under anaesthesia, which thankfully helped empty Toby's bowels almost immediately. While x-rays taken before the enema showed a distended colon, it wasn't conclusive enough for a megacolon diagnosis. The vet has now put Toby on a mixture of Hill's Prescription Diet w/d dried and r/d canned, and reckons that Toby will also have to be on Propulsid and Duphalac for the rest of his life. [Toby was also recently diagnosed with struvite crystals in his urine, which necessitated the change of diet to Hill's w/d and r/d.] While I'm okay with Toby having to be fed a fairly expensive prescription diet for the rest of his life, I'm not sure I am prepared to continue paying my vet the exorbitant prices charged for the two drugs. I did some research and discovered that Duphalac can be had for as little as AUD$12 per 500ml bottle at pharmacies in Australia without needing a prescription - in contrast, my vet charges me AUD$25 for a mere 25ml bottle (which lasts less than a week). I am, of course, a little peeved at the obvious profiteering going on here. But that's OK, since it is something I can get around by getting the Duphalac myself. Propulsid is a more complicated matter - it is probably a prescription drug, which means I can't buy it over-the-counter at pharmacies, and my vet charges me AUD$65 for a wee little 25ml bottle. I also found out that propulsid has been withdrawn from the pharmaceutical market for humans because of allegations that it caused the deaths of several young children. So, quite apart from cost, there is the question of whether long term use of Propulsid could harm my little boy. So I am at a dilemma - should I risk stopping the use of the drugs and rely on the higher fibre combination w/d and r/d diets to keep Toby's bowels moving? What if I leave out the Propulsid and just rely on the Duphalac to keep Toby's stool soft/moist? Is a higher fibre diet (the Hill's w/d and r/d) necessarily better for chronic constipation or is a low-residue diet the way to go? Is canned pumpkin safe for a cat with a potential struvite crystals problem? I have seen r/d and w/d do nothing except keep a cat coming back to the vet for enemas. I would trash the Hills, put the cat on a hairball maintenence dry diet (which is higer in fiber and Mega 3 fatty acids) with pumpkin (if he will eat it) and also give plenty of canned food that is high in protein - such as Purina DM or a canned kitten diet. Protein is better utilized and lower-residue in nature. I would keep him on the drugs until he seems completely regulated. Make sure is he groomed frequently, get enough exercise and plenty of water. Massage can also help. best of luck to you, -L. |
Lyn wrote:
I would trash the Hills, put the cat on a hairball maintenence dry diet (which is higer in fiber and Mega 3 fatty acids) with pumpkin (if he will eat it) and also give plenty of canned food that is high in protein - such as Purina DM or a canned kitten diet. Protein is better utilized and lower-residue in nature. This is contradictory. A dry, high fiber diet will contribute to stool size and is full of grains which a cat cannot utilize and can be considered "residue" that just passes through. Feeding this and a low residue diet would defeat the purpose of the low-residue food. Since this cat has already had a blockage once, I wouldn't recommend foods that are going to increase his stool size. Feeding a canned food means that the cat will digest and utilize more of the food and stool size will be smaller, which is certainly preferable if the cat is still constipated after the diet change. At least he'd be able to pass them and canned pumpkin could be added to the mix to help soften them, but my guess based on experience is that a grain free strictly canned food diet will take care of the problem. Megan "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." -Edmund Burke Learn The TRUTH About Declawing http://www.stopdeclaw.com Zuzu's Cats Photo Album: http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22 "Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way." - W.H. Murray |
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