? Cat hasn't pooped in 5 days. Please help :(

Long story short my cat Roxy was having a scooting problem and she cant stop licking her butt, which resulted in an irritated, swollen anus. During that time, besides of her angry looking anus; everything including her bowel movement was fine. The vet suspected that it was a food allergy so we transitioned her into a hypoallergenic diet per our vet requested. She doesn't really like the food so she has been eating less. Now she is having a constipation problem. The last time she pooped was 5 to 6 days ago and our vet has prescribed her lactulose (1ml 3 times a day).
It has been 3 days that she is on lactulose and still no poop. I have been putting water into her food but that doesn't seem to help either.
She has been eating less because she doesn't like the hypoallergenic food that much but she still asks for food and will eat treats if we give it to her.
No vomiting, no blood in stool, still pees everyday or every other day and her energy level is pretty good.
I have heard good things about miralax, would that be an option for her instead of lactulose?
I am insanely worried that she might have megacolon. Please help!

 

Five days is a long time. I'd ring the vet for advice at this point, they might suggest taking her in for a look at her.

 

I’d also concur with the comment above and ring the vets, even for your own peace of mind (and obviously Roxy’s health)
5 days seems a long time for no poop even with the lactulose. They might be able to give something different to help her along.

Keep us posted and I hope she is ok
Amy x

 

Good feedback! It does sound like a vet visit is in order.

I'd take a look at the ingredients in the new food. I'm wondering if it's markedly different than what you've been feeding (e.g., more fiber).

Did the vet rule out infected anal glands?

 

@roxy2019 - I'm going to take down the 911 and replace it with the "?" icon. We try to save the 911 if it's a life and death emergency.

 

If she dislikes the food so much that she is consistently not eating enough (meaning the number of calories needed to maintain her healthy body weight), she needs a different food. There is more than one 'hypoallergenic' food. My sister had this issue with her cat. The vet had her feed him a rabbit food, but he consistently would not eat enough of it and started to lose weight and have litterbox issues. He got so much better once she switched to a different food.

Miralax usually does work well, but if it has been 5 or 6 days with no poop even while taking a stool softener, it's time for a vet to figure out what is going on.

 

Update:
After 3 days of lactulose she finally pooped yesterday!
Her poop was quite a bit, like 1.5 times her normal poop. It looked normal and no diarrhea which was weird because it was quite a bit of lactulose that she has been having. It was a relief that she pooped! She is now eating almost half a cup of dry food and she is weight about 4kg.
Is that too little of food for her? Last time the vet said she is overweight consider she is only 2 years old.

 

Thanks for all the comments guys! Its nice to talk to cat owners to have a 2nd opinions other than the vets!
Yes. Both vets checked her anal glands twice and it was completely normal.
We tried putting pumkin paste into her food to help her scooting but it didnt work.
Maybe its time to put pumkin paste back in to help her constipation? not sure if its hypoallergenic tho.

 

YEAH! Poopies
I don’t think dry food is good... for a diabetic kitty
Maybe @Sienne and Gabby (GA) would have some input on this.

 

I agree. Dry isn't good for a number of reasons besides the potential for constipation. Dry food has almost no moisture content. Cats do not have a high thirst drive so canned food, which has a high moisture content, is better in terms of a cat getting some form of liquid. The other issue I find with most dry foods are their ingredients. They usually have something like powdered cellulose (aka the equivalent of saw dust) and all sorts of animal by-products.

The place I would look at for information is Lisa Pierson, DVM's site on feline nutrition.

 

Hi everyone! I am having huge problems with my Toots (5 year old male) and I am desperate.
Toots had a surgery due to obstipation about 2.5 weeks ago. Prior to that he was vomiting. After the surgery he had an 11 day period when he didn't vomit. Than again 2 days ago one time. He was very weak after surgery, lost a lot of weight and din't want to eat/drink. I forced fed him with a syringe. He got Cisapride immediately after surgery, cause the vet said he didn't see any motility. He only pooped twice those last two and a half weeks. 4 days ago he got a steroid, and seemed much better after that. Started walking around, his appetite is back too (he will only eat deli ham or turkey- that's it!). He seems more comfortable: stretches, goes on cat post etc. He seems much better except - he doesn't poop! The longest so far was 7 days. He started Lactulose yesterday morning 1 ml twice a day (3 ml so far), and no poop. The vet keeps telling me that it might be FIP, but honestly Toots seems much better. Today we are scheduled for enema. Vet told me I have to think about putting him to sleep. I feel terrible... Toots is still such a sweetheart - he comes to love and purr in the middle of the night. I can't do that do him!

 

I'm sorry you and Toots are going through this ordeal. Your best bet for information and treatment options is the feline constipation website.