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Post by Sherry on Sept 3, 2012 10:08:39 GMT -5
If she IS IBD, she's at a phase where she's going to need prednisolone. No getting around that. Once she's stabilized, then you can start working with the supplements. When you get her a kibble(and right now, it's going to be whatever she'll eat) try to avoid one with chicken since that's such a common trigger.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 3, 2012 11:13:03 GMT -5
Thanks for all the replies overnight!
Yes, I have tried baby food, no luck, cold, room temp or warm... I have also tried extra virgin vegetable oil and canola oil, both a no go... She doesn't like anything new, so I highly doubt she'd try something she's never had before. She hates canned food - whatever brand or protein source I get (Even the A/D... I had some here a year ago for Meeko, and she refused to even look at it... ). I also had kitten replacement milk around a few weeks ago, and we tried that in the begining, and she hated it. Prior to taking it, her poops were on the better side, then they became runny again, then when we stopped feeding her that (no improvement while the 2 days she was forced to eat it) her poops became a bit better...
I ran to the nearest Safeway this morning, and got her two bottles of Whiskas CatMilk which is "98% lactose free, easy to digest". I use to get it for her when she was a kit as a VERY special treat, and she LOVED it. She still does! She ate a nice amount (about 2 tbsp) before stopping. I am relaxed to know she's got SOME fat in her for the moment, now I gotta wait and see if she keeps it...
I am about to run out to the PetStore to get some of her old kibble. She was on a mix of 3 brands, total of 5 different kibbles, but I will grab only her favorite brand. She LOVED the Origen the best.
Thanks for Sherry for mentioning maybe not getting the chicken, because Origen DOES have a 6 fish formula for cats. I will grab a tiny bag of that.
As for pred, I thankfully happen to have some on hand. I have some PediaPred for Meeko here all the time.
Sherry, I am ready to try it out, but I need a LOT of coaching! She currently weighs 575g. That's after eating some CatMilk. How much would I give her? How often? Twice a day like Meeko?
Are there any negative things that COULD happen to her, say she has something different than IBD?
Thanks!
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Post by Heather on Sept 3, 2012 11:23:02 GMT -5
I would say she needs to be seen by a vet, something is really wrong but it being a holiday makes it difficult. Sherry is going to have to message you about dosages for the pred. I've never used it on IBD. Ghenghis was treated with some homeopathics and slippery elm. He responded well to this regime so I've never used pred for IBD. I'm glad that she's taking the cat milk that will help. Do you have any stomach coaters to give her before the pred? I use sulcrate which I give about 45 min before feeding ciao
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Post by Deleted on Sept 3, 2012 12:26:42 GMT -5
I do not have any stomach coaters. Last time I talked to my vet about them, she looked at me funny, not knowing what I was talking about, and asked me why I wanted to inquire on them. I decided she's not one to promote then, so I haven't talked to her about them again since...
We went to the vet a week ago, and blood was normal. She said the next thing she wanted to do was x-rays and ultrasounds to look for tumors... I know she'll push for that if I book again. The only thing that she said when we had seen her was that she could feel some part of intestine feels "funny", but not like a blockage, and said she was not worried about it...
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Post by Sherry on Sept 3, 2012 13:07:08 GMT -5
Okay, going to send a message.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 3, 2012 13:58:03 GMT -5
I'm so sorry you're seeing all these issues with your baby. I hope your can find a solution
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Post by Deleted on Sept 3, 2012 20:57:40 GMT -5
Well, here's another update. I'm at a loss here. One minute I'm crying fearing that she's slipping from our grip, and the next all is fine to the point were I feel like a retard for even thinking we may be loosing her... Ferrets This morning, she was at a weight low, looking a tiny bit lethargic (may have been waking up too, not certain). She wouldn't eat treats, then I fed her a bit of milk, and she enjoyed that, but had an explosive poop a few hours after. I HAD to wash her behind, it was everywhere! All yellow and liquid and eww.... Poor girl! Then I had to head out to get my class ready for back to school tomorrow morning.... I left about 5-6 kibbles in her cage in case she changed her mind... I came back home an hour ago, and all three were snoozing soundly. Only one kibble was left, but I don't know who ACTUALLY ate them (I doubt Baloo would see them as food, as he's been on raw ever since I got him... but it MAY have been Meeko... who knows) I woke them all up, Lyla had a pee but no poop. I let them out and tried to get her to drink some catmilk out of the fridge. She hat a few licks and then stopped, did this a few times then started shivering... So I warmed it up 5 seconds in the microwave, just enough to make it luke warm, and she LOVED that! So guess what? I gave her another small bowl! She ate about 3-5 tbsp all in all (I'm unsure how much is a bowl, lol). Then, she had a poop in the litter box, and... TADA! It looks AMASING compared to what it was a few hours ago it was mostly solid, only slightly loose, and light brown instead of yellow... wth!?!?! So I still gave her the suggested Pred dose by Sherry, and will do so for at least 2 days, or until her poops are always nice, then lower as she advised. Man! I hope this isn't just a tease! I hope she'll start getting better VERY soon!!! Ugh, the stress!!!
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Post by Heather on Sept 3, 2012 21:26:19 GMT -5
It's brutal I know. I wish I had some advice to offer, but don't. I've lit her healing candle, I hope you find a solution soon. I know that the rollercoaster ride of having sick ferrets is very wearing. ciao
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Post by Sherry on Sept 3, 2012 22:39:03 GMT -5
As I mentioned via pm- if it's indeed IBD, her stools are going to vary drastically, even on the same food. At least until she's stabilized. If the pred is going to help, you should notice a difference in about 3 days. At least that's what it took for Boris.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2012 10:57:42 GMT -5
Thanks! So... looks like Lyla's feeling better already after 3 doses of Pred only! Last night (after her 3rd dose), I saw her eating some freeze dried on her own (she hasn't for over a week!) and then go to the kibble I got her to fatten her up a bit, it was the last thing I could think of to get her to eat. She ate a little of each, and then I gave her two small bowls of milk! Her poop just before that was great too! But I think the milk, although it is working great at fattening her up, is giving her loose stools. After the two bowls of milk, later, she had a very liquid poop again. Then, later in the evening (with no milk), she had a normal-ish one again!... So, I'm torn! The milk is helping put loads of weight back on (she weighed at 680g this morning! That's 100g more than 2 days ago when I got the milk!!! ) But... I think it may be causing her a few issues... Should I keep doing the milk a few days until her weight's normal? OR should I stop right away and let her eat her kibble to fatten up, then switch her back to raw alone? What are your thoughts? I will also call the vet this evening to have her opinion on me giving Lyla a bit of pred to help, and then lower the dose once she's doing better... I feel like she may smack my fingers for not going to see her before acting, but I feel like I should keep her updated on what I'm doing with Lyla. Also get her OK to give her some Pred, that way they won't look at me funny if I run in for another bottle for Meeko too early... Thanks
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Post by Heather on Sept 5, 2012 11:18:07 GMT -5
See what happens if you cut back on the milk. Also check to see if there is actual cows milk in the mix. I was stunned to find one of the milk replacers actually had cows milk in it. For an animal (human too) who is lactose intolerant this would be horrible. It's one of the reasons why I suggested finding a kitten replacer with goat's milk. It appears to be better tolerated. You could try whole goat's milk and see if she will tolerate that. My guys do and most of them cannot tolerate whole cream. ciao
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Post by Sherry on Sept 5, 2012 12:09:14 GMT -5
Your vet will most definitely smack your fingers- mine did ;D Just stick to your guns about it helping, and why you believe it to be IBD. And no- she won't need a biopsy. It can be diagnosed on symptoms alone.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2012 13:12:45 GMT -5
If you tried mixing pumpkin in with the cream/milk and warming it a bit would she eat it? It would help fatten her still and keep her stools firmer.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2012 13:24:16 GMT -5
I would switch her to eather goats milk or a milk called lactaid 100. I can't handle ANY lactose. the lactaid 100 tastes better than goats milk. I get the red carton since it is hole milk, not 2% or fat free. i
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Post by Heather on Sept 5, 2012 14:46:02 GMT -5
Careful of your sugar contents in milk "created" for human consumption. I'd go for the goat's milk, make it homogenized or raw (I can't get raw ) ciao
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