Charlie is a ~14 year old male, neutered cat. I got him as an ~8 years old foster cat and his history is unknown. He was found as a very sick stray on the streets. He appears to be at least partially a ragdoll and weighs a little under 9 lbs.
BEAM: Charlie loves people and can’t get enough lap time. He welcomes all guests and I usually ask anyone working in my home if they mind having a helper, as Charlie will be by their side. He has always been a little on the lower energy side and sleeps a ton. He loves food typically, but recently his appetite is very poor. His mood is typically happy and demanding, but at the moment he is mostly listless and down. I’m particularly disturbed by his trembling on and off that started several weeks ago, as I wonder if it’s due to pain.
Diet: Due to his current illness, I am feeding him almost anything he will eat, but it’s all canned food or baby food. Prior to his illness, he was on Royal Canin Renal D for CKD, but I was transitioning him to a raw diet. I believe I pushed his body over the edge with the raw food transition (how I don’t know) so have gone back to canned foods for now. I’m concerned about feeding raw until I know how to transition him safely. Any input is appreciated. The original transition was to a small amount of raw chicken thigh, then added a small amount of liver, then added some supplements all while also giving him much of his original food. I never fully transitioned him before he got sick.
Problem: Now - Chronic Pancreatitis that has flared. Past several years - allergies/chronic rhinitis and constipation. I have been hoping to get Charlie off some of his medication for a while and wanted to start with a raw diet. Three weeks into the food transition he became very ill. He stopped eating, was clearly in pain, frequented the litter box and then I saw blood in his urine. This was just before Thanksgiving. I took him to the vet thinking a blockage, but no issues were found. They had started him on Orbax in case of infection, but I stopped that a couple days in. They did find the following: fPL2 = 11.9. He was referred to an internist for an ultrasound and she definitively diagnosed chronic pancreatitis based on identified nodules and inflammation. She could not rule out cancer without a biopsy. He was started on a conventional treatment protocol of Cerenia, 100ml fluids daily, buprenex, mirtazapine, famotidine, and in the last week, increased his steroids to 5mg prednisolone daily. I also added .1ml CBD oil 1xdaily. Larger meals seem to make him worse, also some foods trigger him going to the litter box I’m assuming to poop, but with no production.
It’s been a couple weeks and he seemed to have turned a corner in the last few days, but then this morning he seemed to slip backwards and again wasn’t eating well (I’m hand feeding him), he seemed to not feel well, and was trembling until I gave him bup. I had stopped mirtazapine as he seemed a little better but may need to restart if eating doesn’t improve. He continues to go to the litter box without pooping but not as much as he was when he originally got sick. I have not seen any blood in his urine beyond the one time.
Note: he normally takes Zyrtec 5mg/daily, 2.5 mg prednisolone daily, 2 puffs Flovent 2x daily and Miralax daily for allergies/rhinitis and constipation. Supplementation of potassium also 1x daily. My original goal before he got sick was to reduce or eliminate pred, Zyrtec and hopefully stop Miralax.
The internist that did the ultrasound will most likely suggest an aspiration of Charlie’s pancreas to determine if it’s cancer since he is still struggling. Another procedure/test isn’t what I’m hoping for as it’s so hard on him. I’m looking for alternative ideas in treatment, or diet ideas, or any other suggestions to make him more comfortable and to help him heal. Ultimately, I really hope to get his whole body back into balance. I’ve done quite a bit of research and much of the information is for treating dogs. I’ve also found some conflicting information about cats, i.e. what the best diet is and if fat content really matters. Both vets Charlie sees support the idea that fat isn’t an issue for cats, but I still wonder? I’ve also found information on Holistic Actions which has been very educational, but I would be uncomfortable moving forward with much of it without professional guidance (like from you all) due to Charlie’s other issues and complexity (CKD, allergies, sinus issues, GI issues). Also, which steps do you take first, what’s most important? Should I give him chicken again but cook it for now? I don’t want to inadvertently make him worse as I did with the food transition and I'm new to holistic approaches. I also understand that if this is cancer, treatments may yield little results.
Test results are attached.
BEAM: Charlie loves people and can’t get enough lap time. He welcomes all guests and I usually ask anyone working in my home if they mind having a helper, as Charlie will be by their side. He has always been a little on the lower energy side and sleeps a ton. He loves food typically, but recently his appetite is very poor. His mood is typically happy and demanding, but at the moment he is mostly listless and down. I’m particularly disturbed by his trembling on and off that started several weeks ago, as I wonder if it’s due to pain.
Diet: Due to his current illness, I am feeding him almost anything he will eat, but it’s all canned food or baby food. Prior to his illness, he was on Royal Canin Renal D for CKD, but I was transitioning him to a raw diet. I believe I pushed his body over the edge with the raw food transition (how I don’t know) so have gone back to canned foods for now. I’m concerned about feeding raw until I know how to transition him safely. Any input is appreciated. The original transition was to a small amount of raw chicken thigh, then added a small amount of liver, then added some supplements all while also giving him much of his original food. I never fully transitioned him before he got sick.
Problem: Now - Chronic Pancreatitis that has flared. Past several years - allergies/chronic rhinitis and constipation. I have been hoping to get Charlie off some of his medication for a while and wanted to start with a raw diet. Three weeks into the food transition he became very ill. He stopped eating, was clearly in pain, frequented the litter box and then I saw blood in his urine. This was just before Thanksgiving. I took him to the vet thinking a blockage, but no issues were found. They had started him on Orbax in case of infection, but I stopped that a couple days in. They did find the following: fPL2 = 11.9. He was referred to an internist for an ultrasound and she definitively diagnosed chronic pancreatitis based on identified nodules and inflammation. She could not rule out cancer without a biopsy. He was started on a conventional treatment protocol of Cerenia, 100ml fluids daily, buprenex, mirtazapine, famotidine, and in the last week, increased his steroids to 5mg prednisolone daily. I also added .1ml CBD oil 1xdaily. Larger meals seem to make him worse, also some foods trigger him going to the litter box I’m assuming to poop, but with no production.
It’s been a couple weeks and he seemed to have turned a corner in the last few days, but then this morning he seemed to slip backwards and again wasn’t eating well (I’m hand feeding him), he seemed to not feel well, and was trembling until I gave him bup. I had stopped mirtazapine as he seemed a little better but may need to restart if eating doesn’t improve. He continues to go to the litter box without pooping but not as much as he was when he originally got sick. I have not seen any blood in his urine beyond the one time.
Note: he normally takes Zyrtec 5mg/daily, 2.5 mg prednisolone daily, 2 puffs Flovent 2x daily and Miralax daily for allergies/rhinitis and constipation. Supplementation of potassium also 1x daily. My original goal before he got sick was to reduce or eliminate pred, Zyrtec and hopefully stop Miralax.
The internist that did the ultrasound will most likely suggest an aspiration of Charlie’s pancreas to determine if it’s cancer since he is still struggling. Another procedure/test isn’t what I’m hoping for as it’s so hard on him. I’m looking for alternative ideas in treatment, or diet ideas, or any other suggestions to make him more comfortable and to help him heal. Ultimately, I really hope to get his whole body back into balance. I’ve done quite a bit of research and much of the information is for treating dogs. I’ve also found some conflicting information about cats, i.e. what the best diet is and if fat content really matters. Both vets Charlie sees support the idea that fat isn’t an issue for cats, but I still wonder? I’ve also found information on Holistic Actions which has been very educational, but I would be uncomfortable moving forward with much of it without professional guidance (like from you all) due to Charlie’s other issues and complexity (CKD, allergies, sinus issues, GI issues). Also, which steps do you take first, what’s most important? Should I give him chicken again but cook it for now? I don’t want to inadvertently make him worse as I did with the food transition and I'm new to holistic approaches. I also understand that if this is cancer, treatments may yield little results.
Test results are attached.
hosphorus ratio in something like Small Batch makes it safe for CKD cats?
