Roxy has pancreatitis

First: she is not critically ill. I guess there's acute pancreatitis,
which can be fatal, and there's chronic, which seems to be what Roxy has.

She has been losing weight fairly steadily for the past couple of years.
I've brought her to the vet a few times, and she's had full blood workups,
which did not show anything alarming. Her thyroid was a little high, but
still not high enough to treat, and her pancreatic numbers (whatever that
is called) were also elevated but not too high. So I was to Keep An Eye
On It.

Well, recently she started throwing up a lot, like daily. And not just
hairballs or wheat grass - she'd throw up her meals. And she was getting
a bit listless, not consistently, but often enough that I got worried.
So, off to the vet again last week, for another blood panel. This time
the indications for pancreatitis were very clear. (On the other hand,
her thyroid levels had gone back down to within normal. Kidney values
were normal, too.)

So, she's now on a prescription food called Hill's I/D, which will probably
not mean a lot to folks outside the US. It's for cats who have digestive (?)
problems, maybe. All I know about it is that it's low fat. I guess fatty
food causes the flareups? If that's what this is. Obviously, I'm pretty
uninformed about this condition.

I'm also supposed to give her 1/4 of a tablet of Pepcid, an over-the-
counter antacid medication, twice daily. These tablets aren't easily cut
up, and I have a decent pill splitter - not using a knife or anything!
Plus, then the inside of the pill can be tasted, and from my first attempt
to pill Roxy with it was not successful. (Which is surprising, because
usually Roxy is easy to medicate.) I guess I'll be investing in some Pill
Pockets.

Anyway, does anyone here have an older cat with pancreatitis? (For the
record, Roxy is 17.) What is pancreatitis, exactly? I've read that some
cats get antibiotics for it, which suggests that it's an infection.
(Isn't that what the "-itis" suffix means? Or does it simply mean
"inflamed" or irritated?) In any case, my vet didn't prescribe any for
her.

Have your cats done OK with the prescription food? Roxy is very finicky
and she *must have variety* or she goes on strike. So far, she seems to
like it, but I dread the day she turns away from it and then looks up at
me expectantly for something more tasty. There won't be anything else
to give her! (There's one variation, and I've given her that, too, but
she doesn't seem to like it as much.)

Does a cat have to stay on the prescription food for life, or is this
just a flareup, and after it has settled down, she can go back to her
regular diet?

On the other hand, could I feed both cats the prescription food?
(Amazingly, it is cheaper than the premium yuppie-cat food I usually
get for them.) Both cats like to check each other's dishes out after
eating some of their own. I do feed them in separate rooms, but Roxy
eats really slowly, which means that Licky is shut in my bedroom for
a long time. That's OK in the evening, but I can't hang around all
morning waiting for Roxy to nibble away at her breakfast. It would be
so much easier if I could just give both of them the same stuff - as
long as it's OK for Licky to eat.

I also bought some boneless, skinless chicken breast, baked it and
cut it up into small pieces for Roxy to have as a treat, because she
is constantly hungry and she LOVES chicken. Licky isn't interested in
that, so I know he won't gobble it up if she looks away for two seconds.
It's low fat, so I hope that's OK for her to eat. Does anyone have
experience with that?

I made a list of all my questions and I do plan to ask the vet, but
they're really busy and it's hard to get hold of her, so that might
take a while. Plus, I'd just like to hear from other people who've
cared for cats with pancreatitis. If anyone can recommend a good
online resource for information, I'd appreciate that, too.

Thanks!
Joyce

On 10/20/2015 1:42 PM, Bastette wrote:
First: she is not critically ill. I guess there's acute pancreatitis,
which can be fatal, and there's chronic, which seems to be what Roxy has.

She has been losing weight fairly steadily for the past couple of years.
I've brought her to the vet a few times, and she's had full blood workups,
which did not show anything alarming. Her thyroid was a little high, but
still not high enough to treat, and her pancreatic numbers (whatever that
is called) were also elevated but not too high. So I was to Keep An Eye
On It.

Well, recently she started throwing up a lot, like daily. And not just
hairballs or wheat grass - she'd throw up her meals. And she was getting
a bit listless, not consistently, but often enough that I got worried.
So, off to the vet again last week, for another blood panel. This time
the indications for pancreatitis were very clear. (On the other hand,
her thyroid levels had gone back down to within normal. Kidney values
were normal, too.)

So, she's now on a prescription food called Hill's I/D, which will probably
not mean a lot to folks outside the US. It's for cats who have digestive (?)
problems, maybe. All I know about it is that it's low fat. I guess fatty
food causes the flareups? If that's what this is. Obviously, I'm pretty
uninformed about this condition.

I'm also supposed to give her 1/4 of a tablet of Pepcid, an over-the-
counter antacid medication, twice daily. These tablets aren't easily cut
up, and I have a decent pill splitter - not using a knife or anything!
Plus, then the inside of the pill can be tasted, and from my first attempt
to pill Roxy with it was not successful. (Which is surprising, because
usually Roxy is easy to medicate.) I guess I'll be investing in some Pill
Pockets.

Anyway, does anyone here have an older cat with pancreatitis? (For the
record, Roxy is 17.) What is pancreatitis, exactly? I've read that some
cats get antibiotics for it, which suggests that it's an infection.
(Isn't that what the "-itis" suffix means? Or does it simply mean
"inflamed" or irritated?) In any case, my vet didn't prescribe any for
her.

Have your cats done OK with the prescription food? Roxy is very finicky
and she *must have variety* or she goes on strike. So far, she seems to
like it, but I dread the day she turns away from it and then looks up at
me expectantly for something more tasty. There won't be anything else
to give her! (There's one variation, and I've given her that, too, but
she doesn't seem to like it as much.)

Does a cat have to stay on the prescription food for life, or is this
just a flareup, and after it has settled down, she can go back to her
regular diet?

On the other hand, could I feed both cats the prescription food?
(Amazingly, it is cheaper than the premium yuppie-cat food I usually
get for them.) Both cats like to check each other's dishes out after
eating some of their own. I do feed them in separate rooms, but Roxy
eats really slowly, which means that Licky is shut in my bedroom for
a long time. That's OK in the evening, but I can't hang around all
morning waiting for Roxy to nibble away at her breakfast. It would be
so much easier if I could just give both of them the same stuff - as
long as it's OK for Licky to eat.

I also bought some boneless, skinless chicken breast, baked it and
cut it up into small pieces for Roxy to have as a treat, because she
is constantly hungry and she LOVES chicken. Licky isn't interested in
that, so I know he won't gobble it up if she looks away for two seconds.
It's low fat, so I hope that's OK for her to eat. Does anyone have
experience with that?

I made a list of all my questions and I do plan to ask the vet, but
they're really busy and it's hard to get hold of her, so that might
take a while. Plus, I'd just like to hear from other people who've
cared for cats with pancreatitis. If anyone can recommend a good
online resource for information, I'd appreciate that, too.

Thanks!
Joyce

I don't know any more about it than you do, so I can't give you any
advice. However, I do have lots of purrs and good wishes for you and
Roxy. The only thing I know about pancreatitis is that, in humans, it's
very painful. I do hope the medication helps her.

Joy

First: she is not critically ill. I guess there's acute pancreatitis,
which can be fatal, and there's chronic, which seems to be what Roxy has.
[...]
So, she's now on a prescription food called Hill's I/D, which will probably
not mean a lot to folks outside the US. It's for cats who have digestive (?)
problems, maybe. All I know about it is that it's low fat. I guess fatty
food causes the flareups? If that's what this is. Obviously, I'm pretty
uninformed about this condition.

It's available through vets in the UK. We tried Chloe on it for her
chronic diarrhoea, but it didn't work. The problem was hyperthyroid
and gluten intolerance, so she's on an absolutely gluten-free diet
(mostly Waitrose's "Arden Grange" adult hypoallergenic grain-free
"fresh chicken and potato" dry food), with occasional doses of biotin
(a lot of catfood has egg in it, which is an anti-nutrient for that).
If she snitches even a tiny amount of gluten-containing food there
are bloodstained khaki puddles in the hallway.

Arden Grange has fat content 19%, how does that compare with Hills i/d?

None of our cats would eat the Hills stuff if there was any alternative.
They love the Waitrose one, though. It's also significantly cheaper.

Does a cat have to stay on the prescription food for life, or is this
just a flareup, and after it has settled down, she can go back to her
regular diet?

Most likely this is forever.

On the other hand, could I feed both cats the prescription food?

Yes, it's balanced enough.

Pancreatitis is not fun. You'll have a lot of symptoms to look out for.

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mobile 07800 739 557 http://www.campin.me.uk Twitter: JackCampin

"Bastette" wrote in message
...
First: she is not critically ill. I guess there's acute pancreatitis,
which can be fatal, and there's chronic, which seems to be what Roxy has.

She has been losing weight fairly steadily for the past couple of years.
I've brought her to the vet a few times, and she's had full blood workups,
which did not show anything alarming. Her thyroid was a little high, but
still not high enough to treat, and her pancreatic numbers (whatever that
is called) were also elevated but not too high. So I was to Keep An Eye
On It.

Well, recently she started throwing up a lot, like daily. And not just
hairballs or wheat grass - she'd throw up her meals. And she was getting
a bit listless, not consistently, but often enough that I got worried.
So, off to the vet again last week, for another blood panel. This time
the indications for pancreatitis were very clear. (On the other hand,
her thyroid levels had gone back down to within normal. Kidney values
were normal, too.)

So, she's now on a prescription food called Hill's I/D, which will
probably
not mean a lot to folks outside the US. It's for cats who have digestive
(?)
problems, maybe.

g Surprisingly for such a backward country, we do have Hills prescription
diets over here ;-)


All I know about it is that it's low fat. I guess fatty
food causes the flareups? If that's what this is. Obviously, I'm pretty
uninformed about this condition.

ISTR that Spicey had pancreatitis fairly recently. Maybe Tak could help
you?

I'm also supposed to give her 1/4 of a tablet of Pepcid, an over-the-
counter antacid medication, twice daily. These tablets aren't easily cut
up, and I have a decent pill splitter - not using a knife or anything!
Plus, then the inside of the pill can be tasted, and from my first attempt
to pill Roxy with it was not successful. (Which is surprising, because
usually Roxy is easy to medicate.) I guess I'll be investing in some Pill
Pockets.

Anyway, does anyone here have an older cat with pancreatitis? (For the
record, Roxy is 17.) What is pancreatitis, exactly? I've read that some
cats get antibiotics for it, which suggests that it's an infection.
(Isn't that what the "-itis" suffix means? Or does it simply mean
"inflamed" or irritated?) In any case, my vet didn't prescribe any for
her.

I had a dog with pancreatitis once, she was very ill with it, she nearly
died, but recovered. I haven't had experience with it in cats. In humans
it is usually caused by over-indulgence in alcohol, but obviously that
doesn't apply to animals. I don@t know why they get it.

Have your cats done OK with the prescription food? Roxy is very finicky
and she *must have variety* or she goes on strike. So far, she seems to
like it, but I dread the day she turns away from it and then looks up at
me expectantly for something more tasty. There won't be anything else
to give her! (There's one variation, and I've given her that, too, but
she doesn't seem to like it as much.)

Does a cat have to stay on the prescription food for life, or is this
just a flareup, and after it has settled down, she can go back to her
regular diet?

You'll have to ask the vet. If Roxy has "chronic" pancreatitis, as you
know, it means it's a long term condition
so maybe the prescription diet will have to be for life. I really don't
know but rest assured even if her food is not to her liking, if she has a
normal appetite she is unlikely to starve herself for long.
On the other hand, could I feed both cats the prescription food?

NO.
(Amazingly, it is cheaper than the premium yuppie-cat food I usually
get for them.) Both cats like to check each other's dishes out after
eating some of their own. I do feed them in separate rooms, but Roxy
eats really slowly, which means that Licky is shut in my bedroom for
a long time. That's OK in the evening, but I can't hang around all
morning waiting for Roxy to nibble away at her breakfast. It would be
so much easier if I could just give both of them the same stuff - as
long as it's OK for Licky to eat.

Do it the other way round. Put Roxy in a room with a litter box in to eat
her brekkie at her leisure. It's not Licky's fault and he shouldn't be
shut away. IMHO. and KFC looks down from her place at the RB and agrees.

I also bought some boneless, skinless chicken breast, baked it and
cut it up into small pieces for Roxy to have as a treat, because she
is constantly hungry and she LOVES chicken. Licky isn't interested in
that, so I know he won't gobble it up if she looks away for two seconds.
It's low fat, so I hope that's OK for her to eat. Does anyone have
experience with that?

Once Kitty Farmcat got past agreeing to eat her kidney diet, she had chicken
breast for every meal, but that was for renal failure.

I made a list of all my questions and I do plan to ask the vet, but
they're really busy and it's hard to get hold of her, so that might
take a while.

E-mail her, say you need urgent advice. Are you saying you phoned and she
didn't get back to you? or do you mean you know she is busy and it's hard
to get hold of her so you didn't try? Sorry to ask that but it seems like
that's what you said.

Tweed

Christina Websell wrote:

So, she's now on a prescription food called Hill's I/D, which will
probably not mean a lot to folks outside the US. It's for cats who
have digestive (?) problems, maybe.

g Surprisingly for such a backward country, we do have Hills prescription
diets over here ;-)

But even if you did not have Hills, that wouldn't make your country
backward. You'd just have your own brand. It's good to know that you're
familiar with it, though, in case I have other questions about it in the
future.

All I know about it is that it's low fat. I guess fatty
food causes the flareups? If that's what this is. Obviously, I'm pretty
uninformed about this condition.

ISTR that Spicey had pancreatitis fairly recently. Maybe Tak could help
you?

Good idea. I don't know how often he reads the Usenet group. I posted the
same thing on FB and several people responded, but not Tak. He might not
be reading RPCA at the moment.

Anyway, does anyone here have an older cat with pancreatitis? (For the
record, Roxy is 17.) What is pancreatitis, exactly?

I had a dog with pancreatitis once, she was very ill with it, she nearly
died, but recovered.

That happened to a friend's dog several years ago. He nearly died and we
were pretty sure it was the end. But then a vet upped his prednisone dosage
and he suddenly rallied. And he's still with us! He's very old (17 - same
age as Roxy, but dogs don't live as long).

I haven't had experience with it in cats.

I read that it's more common for dogs to get the acute kind and for cats
to get the chronic kind. Or at least, that's what has gotten into veterninary
studies.

Both cats like to check each other's dishes out after
eating some of their own. I do feed them in separate rooms, but Roxy
eats really slowly, which means that Licky is shut in my bedroom for
a long time. That's OK in the evening, but I can't hang around all
morning waiting for Roxy to nibble away at her breakfast. It would be
so much easier if I could just give both of them the same stuff - as
long as it's OK for Licky to eat.

Do it the other way round. Put Roxy in a room with a litter box in to eat
her brekkie at her leisure. It's not Licky's fault and he shouldn't be
shut away. IMHO. and KFC looks down from her place at the RB and agrees.

LOL. Hi, KFC!

Well, it's not a bad idea, but I've been doing it this way for several
years (it started when Licky was eating a special diet for a while), and
these cats are very familiar with the drill. Plus, I don't want to keep
Roxy shut up in the bedroom all day while I'm at work. I don't do that
with Licky, either. Whether or not Roxy's finished when I need to leave,
I open the bedroom door to let Licky out. He has usually sucked down all
his food, so she won't get any of the forbidden food. The downside is that
he might eat hers, and then she'd be hungry. I want her to put on some
weight, if possible.

I made a list of all my questions and I do plan to ask the vet, but
they're really busy and it's hard to get hold of her, so that might
take a while.

E-mail her, say you need urgent advice. Are you saying you phoned and she
didn't get back to you? or do you mean you know she is busy and it's hard
to get hold of her so you didn't try? Sorry to ask that but it seems like
that's what you said.

I didn't try. And I'm not sure they have email - I've asked about it, but
the answer didn't make much sense, and I was too distracted to ask them to
clarify.

But I am now considering taking Roxy to another vet. My friend - the same
one whose dog nearly died about 5 years ago - has a terrific vet who uses
both mainstream veterinary methods as well as some alternative approaches.
And they spend a lot of time with my friend, explaining stuff and giving
her as much info as possible, which my vet didn't do. I hope to get an
appointment next weekend.

Thanks!

--
Joyce

I care not for a man's religion whose dog and cat are not the better
for it. -- (supposedly) Abraham Lincoln

"Bastette" wrote in message
...

Please ping Takayuki, he got Spicey over pancreatis recently. I am sure he
will reply if you ping him. I really cannot help you as I only had a dog
with it, not a cat but it was really serious and life-threatening.
My poor Pearlie-girlie whippet was so ill with it, that the vet actually
said "you might consider letting her go" I said "No way" She recovered.
Pancreatis is a nasty thing.
Tweed