pancreatitis and longevity

My 10 year old male has had two attacks of pancreatitis in the past 7
months, cause unknown. Per my vet, I keep him on a low fat diet and
don't let him eat anything but his normal light cat food.

Is this a "just a matter of time" condition or can he live a normal
life span with attacks now and then? I have pain meds and Pepcid on
hand. This last attack wasn't nearly as bad as the first.

He is a very sweet animal and I want him to live as long as possible
but not if he's in pain.

Hi Jane,

About four years ago, my cat had pancreatitis (we suspect because he
ate an entire mouse toy). I've done a lot of reading on cats and
pancreatitis, and it seems some cats get one attack and never get it
again, while others can have recurrances. Most cases in cats are
idiopathic (meaning there is no cause found), so that makes it even
more frustrating.

What kind of food are you feeding? Is it wet food? I would highly
suggest putting him on a grain-free wet diet. Diet is the cornerstone
of health. Here is a great article to read about feline nutrition:
http://www.catinfo.org/

Rrene

Jane wrote:

My 10 year old male has had two attacks of pancreatitis in the past 7
months, cause unknown. Per my vet, I keep him on a low fat diet and
don't let him eat anything but his normal light cat food.

In feline pancreatitis there appears to be no particular point in going
low-fat, as you would with a human or a canine -- though I wouldn't go
particularly high-fat. But a diet change of some kind is likely to
help, particularly if the pancreatitis is actually following from
inflammatory bowel disease. For Will, who had got to the point where he
was having attacks almost monthly, and some of them severe, a change to
Hill's prescription z/d seems to have done the trick. He hasn't had a
severe attack in a year and a half, and the few upsets he does have now
are so mild I can't even be sure they are due to pancreatitis.


Is this a "just a matter of time" condition or can he live a normal
life span with attacks now and then?

I can't give you any statistics, but I have hope that Will, who is
seventeen now, will top the 20-year mark. He's put on weight and looks
extremely healthy.


I have pain meds and Pepcid on
hand.

Those are important to have. I hope the pain med is bupenorphine, not
meloxicam.

Another important thing to have on hand is an anti-nausea med such as
ondansetron -- though it can be hard to talk some vets into prescribing
it.

Supportive care of pancreatitis also includes subcutaneous fluids. You
can go to your vet for these, but if it happens often or is needed for
long, that can be expensive, so you may want to learn to do it at home.
--

Wayne M.

Supportive care of pancreatitis also includes subcutaneous fluids. *You
can go to your vet for these, but if it happens often or is needed for
long, that can be expensive, so you may want to learn to do it at home.

YES, sub-q fluids are one of the cornerstones for treatment. It is not
hard to do this yourself at home. Your vet can show you how. Ask for
an 18-gauge needle. It's larger so administering the fluids goes
faster. Do not worry about the needle size--it hardly seem to bother
the cat at all.

On Nov 8, 10:19*pm, Wayne Mitchell wrote:
*Jane wrote:
My 10 year old male has had two attacks of pancreatitis in the past 7
months, cause unknown. *Per my vet, I keep him on a low fat diet and
don't let him eat anything but his normal light cat food.

In feline pancreatitis there appears to be no particular point in going
low-fat, as you would with a human or a canine -- though I wouldn't go
particularly high-fat. *But a diet change of some kind is likely to
help, particularly if the pancreatitis is actually following from
inflammatory bowel disease. *For Will, who had got to the point where he
was having attacks almost monthly, and some of them severe, a change to
Hill's prescription z/d seems to have done the trick. *He hasn't had a
severe attack in a year and a half, and the few upsets he does have now
are so mild I can't even be sure they are due to pancreatitis. *

Is this a "just a matter of time" condition or can he live a normal
life span with attacks now and then? *

I can't give you any statistics, but I have hope that Will, who is
seventeen now, will top the 20-year mark. *He's put on weight and looks
extremely healthy.

I have pain meds and Pepcid on
hand.

Those are important to have. *I hope the pain med is bupenorphine, not
meloxicam.

Another important thing to have on hand is an anti-nausea med such as
ondansetron -- though it can be hard to talk some vets into prescribing
it.

Supportive care of pancreatitis also includes subcutaneous fluids. *You
can go to your vet for these, but if it happens often or is needed for
long, that can be expensive, so you may want to learn to do it at home.
--

Wayne M.

Sorry I didn't reply to this earlier. Thank you for your story. It
makes me feel better.

As for the sub-q fluids - so far that hasn't been an issue because
despite being sick he will eat wet food mixed with water if I warm it
slightly and bring it to him. He eats it lying down. The vet said
this was extremely helpful since dehydration can be a problem, as you
mentioned. I work at an animal shelter with cats and I know how to
test for dehydration. So far it hasn't happened.

I'll keep the Z/D in mind. I might bring some home from the shelter
to see if he'll eat it. He wouldn't touch the C/D

Again, thanks.

On Nov 18, 7:19*am, Jane wrote:
On Nov 8, 10:19*pm, Wayne Mitchell wrote:





*Jane wrote:
My 10 year old male has had two attacks of pancreatitis in the past 7
months, cause unknown. *Per my vet, I keep him on a low fat diet and
don't let him eat anything but his normal light cat food.

In feline pancreatitis there appears to be no particular point in going
low-fat, as you would with a human or a canine -- though I wouldn't go
particularly high-fat. *But a diet change of some kind is likely to
help, particularly if the pancreatitis is actually following from
inflammatory bowel disease. *For Will, who had got to the point where he
was having attacks almost monthly, and some of them severe, a change to
Hill's prescription z/d seems to have done the trick. *He hasn't had a
severe attack in a year and a half, and the few upsets he does have now
are so mild I can't even be sure they are due to pancreatitis. *

Is this a "just a matter of time" condition or can he live a normal
life span with attacks now and then? *

I can't give you any statistics, but I have hope that Will, who is
seventeen now, will top the 20-year mark. *He's put on weight and looks
extremely healthy.

I have pain meds and Pepcid on
hand.

Those are important to have. *I hope the pain med is bupenorphine, not
meloxicam.

Another important thing to have on hand is an anti-nausea med such as
ondansetron -- though it can be hard to talk some vets into prescribing
it.

Supportive care of pancreatitis also includes subcutaneous fluids. *You
can go to your vet for these, but if it happens often or is needed for
long, that can be expensive, so you may want to learn to do it at home.
--

Wayne M.

Sorry I didn't reply to this earlier. *Thank you for your story. *It
makes me feel better.

As for the sub-q fluids - so far that hasn't been an issue because
despite being sick he will eat wet food mixed with water if I warm it
slightly and bring it to him. *He eats it lying down. *The vet said
this was extremely helpful since dehydration can be a problem, as you
mentioned. *I work at an animal shelter with cats and I know how to
test for dehydration. *So far it hasn't happened.

I'll keep the Z/D in mind. *I might bring some home from the shelter
to see if he'll eat it. *He wouldn't touch the C/D

Again, thanks.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Please DO NOT feed z/d, or any prescription food. These diets are not
only innappropriate for cats with pancreatitis, but are a poor option
for cats in general. With pancreatitis, dry food, especially those
foods with corn and wheat, triggers pancreatitis due to chronic
inflammation from the introduction of foods a cat has no business
eating. We are dealing with an obligate carnivore and feeding it food
meant for an omnivore is fraught with problems. Don't expect to hear
this from most vets as they are in the business of selling you this
crap food. Dr. Lisa Pierson, however, has an incredible website that
spells out clearly and concisely the dietary needs of cats and what
kind of damage a dry diet can do:
http://www.catinfo.org

A canned, grain free, fish free, gluten free diet will be your best
option to get your cat on track.

Also, with pancreatitis, it is imperative that your cat get pain
control. Even though they may not show it, pancreatitis is an
incredibly painful condition for most cats and the fact that your cat
is eating lying down leads me to suspect that there is pain involved.
Buprenex (injected SQ or IM 2-3 times per day using insulin needles)
is an excellent option for this purpose.

"catlady" wrote in message
news:652836c8-b067-4765-beb2-

Also, with pancreatitis, it is imperative that your cat get pain
control. Even though they may not show it, pancreatitis is an
incredibly painful condition for most cats and the fact that your cat
is eating lying down leads me to suspect that there is pain involved.


Yes. I have had cats who died of conditions that must have involved terrible
pain, and we didn't even know they were sick. You'd think that by now, they
would come up with some way of knowing how much pain or stress your cat was
in. Maybe a collar that lit up, or something. Any doctor that designs such a
thing would be a saint in my book. He/she'd be worth every cent they made
out of the device.

catlady wrote:

Please DO NOT feed z/d, or any prescription food. These diets are not
only innappropriate for cats with pancreatitis, but are a poor option
for cats in general. With pancreatitis, dry food, especially those
foods with corn and wheat, triggers pancreatitis due to chronic
inflammation from the introduction of foods a cat has no business
eating. We are dealing with an obligate carnivore and feeding it food
meant for an omnivore is fraught with problems. Don't expect to hear
this from most vets as they are in the business of selling you this
crap food. Dr. Lisa Pierson, however, has an incredible website that
spells out clearly and concisely the dietary needs of cats and what
kind of damage a dry diet can do:
http://www.catinfo.org

Aren't you being just a bit gullible here? The superiority of canned
food over dry is an Internet myth with no scientific basis. The idea
that corn is a common food allergen in cats is another Internet myth;
its actually very low down the list of likely allergens. Lisa Pierson
is a self-promoter with no training in nutrition whose reputation is
much higher on the Internet than in the real world.

By the way, Hill's z/d dry contains neither corn nor wheat.

That some cats with IBD and/or pancreatitis can be helped by putting
them on z/d, or a similar product in which the proteins are hydrolyzed,
is a scientific fact. It's also a scientific fact that it doesn't help
all pancreatitis sufferers. It's just something that a veterinarian and
caregiver may wish to try.

So far, it seems to have helped Will -- but intestinal tract disorders
are notoriously episodic and can come and go mysteriously, so we may
ultimately find that the current improvement is not actually due to the
diet change. I'm still hopeful.
--

Wayne M.

"Wayne Mitchell" wrote
catlady wrote:

Please DO NOT feed z/d, or any prescription food. These diets are not
only innappropriate for cats with pancreatitis, but are a poor option
for cats in general. With pancreatitis, dry food, especially those

Aren't you being just a bit gullible here? The superiority of canned
food over dry is an Internet myth with no scientific basis. The idea

Not really Wayne, but some of it is myth. Some is just emperical evidence
from cat owners. I've had cats (usually 2-3 at the same time) since 1978.
In the early days, I fed only dry with a rare wet treat. It wasn't
particularily quality dry (poor college student and didn't know much then).
Most had tooth issues pretty early on in life and several developed kidney
problems.

Later when i had more money and better knowledge of cat health, I used
mostly wet and a bit of the highest quality kibble I could find based on the
best info of the time and it worked much better. Tooth issues and kidney
issues went down and longevity went up.

As I've generally adopted older cats, their years of eating before me has a
play in all of it.

that corn is a common food allergen in cats is another Internet myth;

Not really. For dogs it's shown for sure. Cats may be another story.

Daisy-chan (cat) was adopted at now what they think was age 6 making her
probably almost 9 now. For 18 months of fosterage before we snagged her to
her forever home, she was fed a kibble diet of not really the worst or best.
Purina Pro Plan. We converted her over 2 months time to wet and had her
teeth fixed up (bad tartar situation but fixed before any toothloss). She
had major ear infection issues constantly.

When we took her off all wheat (which also removed corn and soy as a side
thing in how the foods are sold), the ear issues went *away*. She also
started licking vs knarfing her paws and belly skin. With no allergin test,
I can only make the logical 'assumption' that she's got wheat issues.

Oh, they've cancelled her dental for the past 2 years but say it's best to
do it again this year come April to deal with very *minor* buildup.

Her diet is simple wet (check labels, some of the fancy feast for example is
grain free) mixed with treats of Blue Wilderness grain free kibble. It's
working for us.

That some cats with IBD and/or pancreatitis can be helped by putting
them on z/d, or a similar product in which the proteins are hydrolyzed,
is a scientific fact. It's also a scientific fact that it doesn't help
all pancreatitis sufferers. It's just something that a veterinarian and
caregiver may wish to try.

Agreed. It's worth trying.

So far, it seems to have helped Will -- but intestinal tract disorders
are notoriously episodic and can come and go mysteriously, so we may
ultimately find that the current improvement is not actually due to the
diet change. I'm still hopeful.

Good luck!

We just took in a new foster (I think we will adopt her permanently). She's
a dog estimated 7-12 years (I'd say 10-12 is a better range) beagle. She's
recovering from heartworm treatment which is hard on a pooch. She also has
almost every classic symptom of a food allergy so instead of using the food
they delivered with her, we have her on grain free. Interestingly she was
described as a 'slow eater'. Not here! She's like a high class hoover
vacumn cleaner here on what we are feeding!

I understand though. Finding just the right food can be a trial, so good
luck with it. If Z/D is working, keep with it.

cshenk wrote:
"Wayne Mitchell" wrote
catlady wrote:

Please DO NOT feed z/d, or any prescription food. These diets are
not only innappropriate for cats with pancreatitis, but are a poor
option for cats in general. With pancreatitis, dry food, especially
those

Aren't you being just a bit gullible here? The superiority of canned
food over dry is an Internet myth with no scientific basis. The idea

Not really Wayne, but some of it is myth. Some is just emperical
evidence from cat owners. I've had cats (usually 2-3 at the same
time) since 1978. In the early days, I fed only dry with a rare wet
treat. It wasn't particularily quality dry (poor college student and
didn't know much then). Most had tooth issues pretty early on in life
and several developed kidney problems.

Later when i had more money and better knowledge of cat health, I used
mostly wet and a bit of the highest quality kibble I could find based
on the best info of the time and it worked much better. Tooth issues
and kidney issues went down and longevity went up.

As I've generally adopted older cats, their years of eating before me
has a play in all of it.

that corn is a common food allergen in cats is another Internet myth;

Not really. For dogs it's shown for sure. Cats may be another story.

Daisy-chan (cat) was adopted at now what they think was age 6 making
her probably almost 9 now. For 18 months of fosterage before we
snagged her to her forever home, she was fed a kibble diet of not
really the worst or best. Purina Pro Plan. We converted her over 2
months time to wet and had her teeth fixed up (bad tartar situation
but fixed before any toothloss). She had major ear infection issues
constantly.
When we took her off all wheat (which also removed corn and soy as a
side thing in how the foods are sold), the ear issues went *away*. She
also started licking vs knarfing her paws and belly skin. With
no allergin test, I can only make the logical 'assumption' that she's
got wheat issues.
Oh, they've cancelled her dental for the past 2 years but say it's
best to do it again this year come April to deal with very *minor*
buildup.
Her diet is simple wet (check labels, some of the fancy feast for
example is grain free) mixed with treats of Blue Wilderness grain
free kibble. It's working for us.

That some cats with IBD and/or pancreatitis can be helped by putting
them on z/d, or a similar product in which the proteins are
hydrolyzed, is a scientific fact. It's also a scientific fact that
it doesn't help all pancreatitis sufferers. It's just something
that a veterinarian and caregiver may wish to try.

Agreed. It's worth trying.

So far, it seems to have helped Will -- but intestinal tract
disorders are notoriously episodic and can come and go mysteriously,
so we may ultimately find that the current improvement is not
actually due to the diet change. I'm still hopeful.

Good luck!

We just took in a new foster (I think we will adopt her permanently).
She's a dog estimated 7-12 years (I'd say 10-12 is a better range)
beagle. She's recovering from heartworm treatment which is hard on a
pooch. She also has almost every classic symptom of a food allergy
so instead of using the food they delivered with her, we have her on
grain free. Interestingly she was described as a 'slow eater'. Not
here! She's like a high class hoover vacumn cleaner here on what we
are feeding!
I understand though. Finding just the right food can be a trial, so
good luck with it. If Z/D is working, keep with it.

I used to have a beagle named, "Casey". If you threw a piece of meat in the
air, the first thing that would interrupt it's pure parabolic arc would be
the bottom of Casey's stomach. Those dogs eat anything and everything......