Smoky keeps losing weight

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...sulin-to-prozinc-part-13.176803/#post-1950332

Smoky was diagnosed with IBD back in October of 2016. I have taken him to multiple vets in an effort to get him treated and get the weight back on him again.
I'm taking him back to the vet to have blood work done again. I'm scared it might be cancer or something drastic like that. How do the vets check to see if a cat has something like that? Do I just need to take him to a specialist?

He is too thin and weak to have any invasive procedures done like an endoscopy. He seems miserable most of the time and doesn't seem to be getting much nutrition from his food even though he can eat quite a lot.
I hate to think of him hurting or feeling hungry or sick. The ironic thing is that his blood sugar levels have been really good lately. My old vet even said that " there isn't much left of this cat" when he saw his condition. I don't know where to go from here.

 

So sorry to hear that. Smoky isn't even very old. I lost an 8 year old cat to kidney cancer once... I hope that's not what it is.

 

Wow yeah the numbers have been good. I'd say just get her to eat whatever you can. I know it's so hard with all her allergies. Can you sprinkle those flora flakes on it to entice her to eat more? What food can you feed? Look for the highest calorie you can find.

 

I thought about giving him some kind of high carb food for a while. I didn't want his BG to get really high from the food because then he will feel lousy from that too. I need for him to gain weight or I'm worried what might happen

 

Sending good vibes!!

 

So The challenge is to help you find a high calorie but still low carb food with no chicken fish or soy. Yikes. Lol

 

I might have to forgo the allergy issues for now and give him whatever high calorie food he will eat. I once heard a member talk about a high calorie food given to her cat during an illness to help the kitty gain back weight. The food was given on a temporary basis but I don't remember what it was. My current vet said he needs to gain weight or he might not make it. She suggested trying a raw food diet.

 

I'm so sorry to hear that Smokey is not doing well. It's so hard to watch them not feel well and it's hard to see them drop so much weight. I would see a specialist associated with a specialty hospital if possible. Ultrasounds can be really effective at diagnosing and aren't invasive. My previous elderly kitty's blood work was always good but an ultrasound was what showed the thickening of her intestines and enlarged lymph nodes. She was not able to gain weight no matter how much she ate.

 

There's also perscription a/d food is high calorie. Young Again is too. You could also try giving goat milk in addition to his regular food.

 

Hi Lillie
Smoky did have an ultrasound done last Oct, it's how I found out about the IBD.
The results were similar to your kitties actually. It is hard to see him as he looks like a skeleton almost.

 

If you go the milk route, I would suggest Lactaid since a lot of kitties are lactose intolerant and Smoky already has temperamental innerds

 

Goats milk is different than cow milk... It's very digestible.

 

Where would I get goats milk? I'm not sure if he likes milk or not

 

Oh sorry Janet, my dyslexia skipped the "goat" word lol

 

It could be that his IBD is worsening. Did they suggest another ultrasound for a recheck? My kitty was on chlorambucil and pred, but she wasn't diabetic so there wasn't a chance of her glucose increasing. These meds worked for about 11 months and then the drastic weight loss happened because she wasn't able to tolerate the chlorambucil any longer. She wasn't able to process any nutrients through the thickened intestinal walls at all. I used to cry when I took her to the vets and they weighed her.

 

Do you have a Whole Foods by you? Not sure.... You'd have to search.

 

I don't think there is one of those near me. We have the farmers market up here. It's an open air type of market.

 

Was he tested for EPI or metabolic insufficiency?

 

He was not tested for that as far as I know. Could you explain what that is please? His vet did say he could have a suppressed immune system.

 

@Lisa and Smoky, here are some links. There are many articles on this. Google EPI in cats.

http://veterinarynews.dvm360.com/ex...ficiency-cats-more-common-veterinarians-think

This says what blood test is needed to diagnose.
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=1 2135&aid=330

https://www.vetdepot.com/exocrine-pancreatic-insufficiency-cats.html

 

Thanks so much, I'll check these links out.

 

I looked at the links you sent me. They are very informative although they scare me to death. I should ask my vet to check him for EPI when I take him in for blood work. Sadly, if he does has this disease I don't have the finances to treat him for it.
It would be unfair to allow him to suffer and I would have to do what is best for him.
I'm really hoping it's not EPI and just the IBD but I have a lot of debt for his past care already. I'll speak to the vet on Monday morning about bringing him in for an exam and blood work and to check for EPI.
I'm a little irritated by his current vet since I mentioned the possibility of him having malabsortion issues months ago. I also asked about giving him enzymes to aid in his digestion. She only wanted to treat him for pancreatitis and the IBD.

 

Search in the forum for enzymes or start a new thread with the ? And ask about enzymes. There were a few people mentioning it about 2 weeks ago. It's a supplement added to the food. I don't know if they had malabsorption issues or just using it for boosting the pancreas.

 

Thanks I can try that. I just feel so bad for him. He looks like he is starving to death when you look at him. I talked to a friend who is a vet tech. She said the enzymes he would need require a prescription from a vet if it turns out he has EPI.

 

Unfortunately if his intestines are scarred from the thickening from IBD he will have a very hard time absorbing anything and they will end up with malabsorption. I went through this with my previous kitty. It is why she lost so much weight so quickly. Is prednisone a possibility at this point even though he is diabetic?

 

I'm so glad you posted Lillie. It's very encouraging to know someone else has been through this experience with their kitty. My vet is going to check him for EPI and look into treatment options for the malabsortion issues. Smoky has been taking budesonide for his IBD for a few months now. It's a newer type of steroid that doesn't raise his BG too much. He showed thickening of his intestinal walls on an ultrasound done back in October. He was actually lying on my bed with me this morning for a few hours He has been hiding in my closet lately.

 

I know how heartbreaking this is. Chlorambucil is usually the next thing they try. It's used for intestinal lymphoma and/or severe IBD. The budesonide is newer but I'm not sure how much luck they've had in using this for stubborn cases of IBD. I guess it all depends on the vet and what they are experienced in using. Unfortunately I had to put my previous kitty to sleep due to the intestinal lymphoma that morphed out of the IBD. I cried for days and sat in 'our' chair with her cremated box on my lap for hours after I brought her home. Sorry for being so morbid but I guess this all brought up a lot of feelings from when I was dealing with something similar a few years ago. We were together for 17 years. Now that Leo has some mild IBD I get really nervous and contact his specialist about everything for treatment. His specialist says she sees this and similar conditions at least three times a week. Seems to be pretty common.

 

I'm so sorry to hear about the loss of your previous kitty. My vet wanted to try the Chlorambucil first and then a steroid. I wanted to try the budesonide first but he has been on it for several months and his symptoms are getting worse. I am scared to try the chlorambucil since my vet told me it suppresses the bone marrow. I would also have to bring him in to have frequent blood work done. I'm not at all sure if I can come up with the money for that. I owe over $6000 on my two credit cards for his medical care over the last few years.

 

Yes it can suppress the bone marrow and my kitty did have blood work done frequently. Even at the age of 17 1/2 though she never came down with diabetes and never had any bone marrow problems so we were lucky I guess. The problem was though she was becoming so stressed from the vet visits and the tests, and the blood work that I started to feel it was better to just let her go. Plus she was starting to get bladder infections due to her compromised immune system from the chlorambucil and they were getting very hard to treat. I'm not sure if I would put another kitty on chlorambucil even though it does have some success. Maybe some do better than others. It broke my heart but I just couldn't keep putting her through so much so often. The expense is astronomical for these things and I believe I've spent about $6,000.00 so far for Leo. No new couch, computer, or TV for me this year. It's not easy dealing with these things, and it's really hard to know what to do.

 

Glad Lillie had some insight for you, Lisa!

 

I forgot to ask you if you were giving him b-12 injections? It's another expense though but they can be very very helpful since they aren't absorbing much of it with their condition. My previous kitty did really well with these injections and her specialist felt this was one of the reasons she did so well in the beginning. You can do them yourself and the vet can supply you with them.

 

My current vet was weird when I asked her about giving B-12 injections. Smoky had to have surgery for a urinary blockage a few years ago do already has issues with UTI and bladder infections.
I suspect he has EPI and may need to take digestive enzymes prescribed by a vet.

 

The oral b12 is more effective for diabetic neuropathy because it is the b12 methylcobalamin. The b12 shots are not.

 

The B-12 injections were for the intestinal dysfunction from IBD not diabetic neuropathy. I wonder if anyone ever does both?

 

ah, I see.
You could do both.... They will pee out excess anyway.

 

I didn't know b12 helped with ibd! That's good to know

 

If the IBD is causing malabsorption problems due to the dysfunction from intestinal wall thickening and scarring then they aren't able to absorb much b-12 through their intestines. At least this is how the specialist explained it to me. My kittie's specialist recommended the b-12 injections right away. Her IBD though had advanced to lymphoma so maybe it is different if the IBD is not severe. It did perk her up a bit and did help her eat more. Just like human doctors though they each have their own protocol for treatment and may differ from others. I just followed what this internal med vet told me since she dealt with this a lot at the hospital. Said she is seeing this more and more frequently now along with pancreatitis and diabetes. Makes you wonder why.

 

I wonder if my vet knows about the B12 being able to help with the IBD. Thank you for sharing your story, it helps me out so much. I know it must be hard to recount those sad days for you.

 

Making a note of Lillie being the IBD resource . Cataloged!

 

I haven't taken Smoky to see a specialist yet. I just don't have the means to do that.
I'm hoping his vet can see him either tomorrow or Tuesday to get blood work done and check for EPI.

 

Yes- sometimes it is, especially since Leo now has mild IBD. When his started I thought "Oh no, here I go again." Then when the diabetes was diagnosed I really got down in the dumps. He did luck out though as his was a transient diabetic episode, although it could come back at any time. By the way- I had a special B-12 test done on Leo to see what his levels were. I think it is pricey though because the vet sent it to somewhere in Texas to have done, (I'm in Calif) and the report stated his levels were good but did not necessarily mean he had no digestive disease. Gosh I've spent an awful lot of money on cats now that I think about it here. Sending Smokey some good wishes and energy for healing. head bump, kisses, and chin scratches

 

So interesting... Ty. It seems b12 helps with so many things. I originally started giving it to my ckd cat who was borderline anemic.

 

Janet- what form of b-12 do you give? liquid, pill, etc. Is it prescription? I'd like to start Leo on some but I don't think his IBD is severe enough for the prescription injections yet.

 

I give a pill that I sprinkle.... Vitacost brand. Other people use zobaline.

 

Thank you!

 

The cyno B12 gets converted to the same active form of methyl B12.
http://vitamininjections.net/vitamin-b12-injections-cyanocobalamin-vs-methylcobalamin/
https://books.google.com/books?id=o...AH#v=onepage&q=b12 conversion in cats&f=false

 

Good to know, thanks.

 

there is a supplement called nutri cal.... helps add calories
sending prayers....

 

Let us know how Smokey's vet visit goes this week.

 

OK I will. I might not know too much for a few days until the results come back from the blood work.

 

The ultrasound results came back for Smoky. The intestinal thickening is far worse than it was in Oct of last year. He has an enlarged kidney as well. The vet believes it is lymphoma and wants to treat him with chlorambucil and prednisolone. I'm not sure I want to put him through any more treatments.
@Lillie do u have any insights for me on this? Does anyone else have a kitty who has taken this med?
I'm still waiting for the results from the blood work.

 

I replied to your other thread too. It's a hard decision. After looking back to when my kitty was on this I'm not sure I would do it again but that is due to what the outcome was for her and the stress she was under (shaking and pooping in the carrier every time I took her to be tested) Other cats may fair much better with all of this so it may be worth starting the meds to see how Smokey reacts to all of it. You can always stop if you feel it is not in Smokey's best interest. Some cats just seem to have a pretty hardy constitution when dealing with all the testing etc. but my kitty was already an exceptionally nervous anxious kitty.
I'm sorry you have to deal with this. At this point I would definitely ask your vet about some b-12 injections.

 

My Mario had small-cell intestinal lymphoma as diagnosed by biopsy which was taken to clear a blocked bile duct He was treated with chlorambucil (oncologist did not want to give Mario pred since he was diabetic). He lived two years. The cheapest place to get chlorambucil is from compounding pharmacy like Diamondback.

 

Yes the compounding pharmacies are a good way to go. I had mine compounded into a chicken flavor liquid. It was much easier to administer.