If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#11
|
|||
|
|||
On Mon 22 Aug 2005 08:40:05p, Elizabeth Blake wrote in
rec.pets.cats.health+behav nk.net): Soon after we got back to work, Harriet went in the litter box. She passed some very liquid stool, which was expected since she had enemas. I'm sure it felt better than trying to push out the big, hard feces. I'm glad she is in good spirits tonight. I'm sure she feels so much better after the enemas. I saw your post about the canned food and that is a great plan. And even if she starts shunning the canned food you can try crushing up a few pieces of the dry into a powder and sprinkling it over the canned food to try to entice her to keep eating it. This subject is so serious to me after trying to help Marley, and not to scare you, but the enemas can start to become almost "addictive" if she can't seem to keep everything moving. It's a viscous circle. -- Cheryl "The clever cat eats cheese and breathes down rat holes with baited breath." - W.C. Fields |
#12
|
|||
|
|||
|
#13
|
|||
|
|||
On Mon 22 Aug 2005 08:47:12p, Phil P. wrote in
rec.pets.cats.health+behav (news If she's been constipated for more than a few days, the feces may be too dry and hard to eliminate. Sometimes, manual extraction (under anesthesia) is the only way to get the cat back on track. Once the dry, hardened feces are removed, you should be able to manage her with only dietary support and possibly ranitidine and lactulose. This is merely a theory since obviously I'm not qualified to make anything more than a guess. Since Liz keeps saying that the stools are very large, I wonder if there's a reason why she has so much waste? Not absorbing food during digestion and most of it turns to waste? Or is it more likely just because the bowels aren't moving as often as they should, ie, 2x instead of 1x per day, and it just builds up? I've read a few articles about digestion problems (diarrhea/constipation) in cats and one factor with constipation in some cases other than hard and dry, seems to be very very large. What are the things that lead to large stools (not just frequent stools, not just dry, hard stools) - eating too much? eating too much, too quickly? malabsorption? -- Cheryl "The clever cat eats cheese and breathes down rat holes with baited breath." - W.C. Fields |
#14
|
|||
|
|||
"Elizabeth Blake" wrote in message oups.com... Two weeks later, she was still having problems. On Saturday she was able to poop, but she did it on a rug and in her bed! Liz, try a different litterbox and litter and change the location of the box. Part of the problem might be *voluntary* fecal retention. She may be voluntarily holding it in and finally pooped in other places because she may be associating painful defecation with the litterbox. Constipation, regardless of cause, tends to be self-*perpetuating because the large, dry, hard stools in the rectum are painful or difficult to evacuate- which can lead to continued voluntary fecal retention and eventually obstipation. The longer stools remain in the rectum the drier and harder they become and the more difficult they are to evacuate when she finally tries. Phil |
#15
|
|||
|
|||
"Cheryl" wrote in message ... I'm glad she is in good spirits tonight. I'm sure she feels so much better after the enemas. I saw your post about the canned food and that is a great plan. And even if she starts shunning the canned food you can try crushing up a few pieces of the dry into a powder and sprinkling it over the canned food to try to entice her to keep eating it. This subject is so serious to me after trying to help Marley, and not to scare you, but the enemas can start to become almost "addictive" if she can't seem to keep everything moving. It's a viscous circle. -- Cheryl Even before the constipation showed up again this year, I was sprinkling a little freeze dried chicken on her wet food. Of course she would just lick/eat the very top layer that had the chicken and leave the rest. Today after she initially began eating her wet food (she didn't really have time to eat her breakfast this morning) and left it, I put a little of the chicken on it and she went back to the bowl. I crush it to a fine powder. She's addicted to the freeze dried chicken, but now I'm afraid to give it to her. -- Liz |
#16
|
|||
|
|||
"Karen" wrote in message
... I wonder if the hills wet w/d or i/d would help. It is very high fiber and is suppposed to help both with constipation or diarrhea. It sure has helped Pearl's diarrhea. I mean like within two days. The w/d comes in two flavors. The "with chicken" seems more appealing. More juice. Both vets that have seen Harriet this month (at the same practice) didn't recommend high fiber food. I think they said that it might cause her stools to become too big again. The Lactulose does have some kind of fiber in it. -- Liz |
#17
|
|||
|
|||
"Phil P." wrote in message
news Sometimes colonic motility decreases due to smooth muscle deterioration caused by chronic overdistention. The vet we saw today did mention this. Has your vet run any blood tests? Hypokalemia and/or hypocalcemia can adversely affect colonic smooth muscle function. They ran blood tests when she was brought in the first time, on the 4th. They said the results were all normal. She also had x-rays (they thought maybe at one time she might have broken/fractured something) and those were also normal. Speak to your vet about ranitidine (Xantac) dosed at 1 to 3.5mg/kg every 12 to 24 hours. Ranitidine is in the H2 receptor antagonist drug class- and stimulates colonic motility through inhibition of synaptic acetylcholinestierase. Cimetidine (Tagamet) and famotidine (Pepcid) are in the same drug class but they don't have the same effect in cats, so you can't use either as a substitute for ranitidine (been there tried that- didn't work). I've had pretty good luck with a regimen of lactulose and ranitidine. Ranitidine doesn't work in all constipated cats- but it works in enough cats to justify trying it. Also, speak to your vet about pediatric rectal suppositories such as Colace or glycerine. Both are available in preloaded pediatric rectal syringes. Fleet also makes a *plain pediatric glycerin* preparation. Please be *very* careful not to confuse Fleet pediatric glycerin preparations with regular Fleet enemas. Please *DO NOT EVER* use sodium phosphate retention enemas such as Fleet enemas in cats- they can cause *fatal* electrolyte imbalances in cats. Similarly, *never* use mineral oil orally in cats because of the danger of fatal aspiration pneumonia due the lack of taste. Mineral oil should only be used *rectally* as lubricant laxative. I've never given her any type of medication without seeing a vet first. I will ask about the Xantac and baby suppositories. If your vet recommends fiber, please make sure Harriet is *well* hydrated to avoid impaction of the fiber in the colon. They didn't recommend a high fiber food, because they said it might cause her stools to become too big and block her again. Harriet does drink a lot of water. We have a Drinkwell fountain at work, and she comes into my office several times a day and has a nice looooooong drink. If she's been constipated for more than a few days, the feces may be too dry and hard to eliminate. Sometimes, manual extraction (under anesthesia) is the only way to get the cat back on track. Once the dry, hardened feces are removed, you should be able to manage her with only dietary support and possibly ranitidine and lactulose. When I brought her in this morning, the vet said that her entire colon was blocked but that it didn't feel too hard. He said that the diameter was probably making it hard for her to eliminate them, not that they were too hard. I do know that when she went outside the box they did seem firm to me. Today she said that they got everything out, and she did pass liquid stool after I brought her back to work. Get her blood checked. ;-) Best of luck, Phil I'll try to find out what blood tests they did run two weeks ago. -- Liz |
#18
|
|||
|
|||
"Cheryl" wrote in message ... This is merely a theory since obviously I'm not qualified to make anything more than a guess. Since Liz keeps saying that the stools are very large, I wonder if there's a reason why she has so much waste? Not absorbing food during digestion and most of it turns to waste? Or is it more likely just because the bowels aren't moving as often as they should, ie, 2x instead of 1x per day, and it just builds up? I've read a few articles about digestion problems (diarrhea/constipation) in cats and one factor with constipation in some cases other than hard and dry, seems to be very very large. What are the things that lead to large stools (not just frequent stools, not just dry, hard stools) - eating too much? eating too much, too quickly? malabsorption? -- Cheryl The vet said that if the feces start accumulating and she can't pass it, and more feces come along they end up pushing forward and squashing together. That increases the diameter, making it that much harder to pass. If she can't go and more & more feces build up, the colon's (and feces) diameter will enlarge making it that much harder to pass. They recommended the low residue food, which is supposed to decrease the amount of feces she produces, since her body can use more of the food and makes less waste. Less feces produced should hopefully mean it won't start getting backed up and compacted. She never really seemed to have a problem going to the bathroom before all this started. She used the box on a regular basis. Since there are two cats & 4 boxes, it wasn't really possible to tell who did what. Her favorite box is outside my office, so I could often tell what she did if I caught her in the act. -- Liz |
#19
|
|||
|
|||
"Phil P." wrote in message
... Liz, try a different litterbox and litter and change the location of the box. Part of the problem might be *voluntary* fecal retention. She may be voluntarily holding it in and finally pooped in other places because she may be associating painful defecation with the litterbox. Constipation, regardless of cause, tends to be self-*perpetuating because the large, dry, hard stools in the rectum are painful or difficult to evacuate- which can lead to continued voluntary fecal retention and eventually obstipation. The longer stools remain in the rectum the drier and harder they become and the more difficult they are to evacuate when she finally tries. Phil The two cats have 4 boxes. They all have clay clumping litter in them. Up until recently, their least favorite box had some awful litter my boss bought. I recently dumpd that, cleaned the box and put in a different awful litter (clumps fall apart very easily) and they actually seem to like it. They've used that box a lot since I switched it. I have two big bags of WBCL at work that I bought for my cats, but I think I'll open one and set up one of their boxes with it. Two of the boxes change location as things gets busy/crowded but Harriet's favorite box has always been outside my office door. Even when there was a different box in the same location she preferred that over the others. Before the first trip to the vet, she would sometimes get in the box and try to go. When she couldn't, she would get out and go on the rug and leave one turd. Then she would go back to her favorite box and finish up there. Since she really likes that box in that location, should I just leave it and move the others around? I even took one of the boxes upstairs into the actual store, but she doesn't like going there. I know she knows it's there, because I saw her checking it out. -- Liz |
#20
|
|||
|
|||
"Elizabeth Blake" wrote in message k.net... I've never given her any type of medication without seeing a vet first. I will ask about the Xantac and baby suppositories. Have you tried (cow's) milk? "Too much" milk gives most cats diarrhea-- that's just the effect you want in a constipated cat. |
|
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
OT-My Ghost is Back | Bob M | Cat anecdotes | 6 | January 27th 05 07:07 PM |
home for middle-aged cats | carolyn | Cat rescue | 18 | September 21st 04 02:44 PM |
Crazy kitties (long) | Steve Touchstone | Cat anecdotes | 18 | August 20th 04 04:20 AM |
We're back from Purrth (long) | badwilson | Cat anecdotes | 24 | July 20th 04 04:09 PM |
A Morning With Sammy | CatNipped | Cat anecdotes | 26 | July 10th 04 12:43 AM |