Porsha's test results..

[Fran]

It's not great news.... The bowel biopsy shows she has a 'mild' inflammation of the small bowel which could be due to a number of things including food intolerance (and all the other possible causes have been ruled out already). The food allergy tests show that she is allergic to all meat :shock: chicken and turkey being her main allergen :? she is also allergic to Salmon and white fish and soyabean and corn. I will get a copy of the results myself which will highlight all the allergens but where do we go from here?? basically, Porsha cannot eat anything that she isn't allergic to :? The vet said that it is posible to treat the bowel inflammation with steroids but she is woried that in Porsha's case this will be counter-productive as it could set off all her respiratory problems again :( The vet has suggested that the only way forward is possibly and I can't remember the word she used but basically it would be a diet that is already quite digested as this would make it easier on her bowels. She is looking into what might be available diet wise and so am I. I could cook for her but the trouble is she is allergic to all meats and she can't live on veggies alone?
I'm gutted :( I was really hoping for a diagnosis and a treatment for her. Really don't know what to do from here and in true Porsha style...she has the runs tonight again too :(

[dandysmom]

Oh Fran, I'm so sorry; this is really distressing news...:( What in the world can the poor little girl eat; she can't survive on a vegetable diet! You must be just heartsick...do you think getting a second opinion would be any help; are there vets who specialize in severe food intolerance? I don't know what to say...just (((hugs))) to you all...:(

[Erin]

Oh fran im really sorry :-((((hugs))).i dont know what to say :-(

[EmmaG]

Fran if she isn't allergic to veg I would strongly suggest that you DO look into a vegetarian diet for her but you will need to supply her with various additives. I have heard of people feeding their cats on a vegetarian diet before and the cats have been very healthy.

I am off to google a bit for you.

[yola]

That is not good news. I don't have any real suggestions but I'm certain there must be animal allergy specialists out there or people that have been through similar challenges that might be able to offer practical advice on how they dealt with this.

I've just done a quick (global) search on pet/cat/veterinary dieticians and there is minimal information which is a real shame.

[EmmaG]

Fran, this might help.

http://www.vegansociety.com/phpws/index.php?module=faq&FAQ_op=view&FAQ_id=19

quote from the vegan society : -



"Unlike humans and dogs, cats cannot synthesize vitamin A from the carotene in plants. They also need a preformed source of arachidonic acid which most mammals synthesize from the plant fatty acid, linoleic acid. In addition, cats need a preformed source of taurine, an amino acid that they would usually obtain from flesh foods.



However, since Vitamin A, taurine and arachidonic acid are available in synthetic forms there is no reason why cats cannot be vegan. The Vegan Society imports Vegecat and Vegekit available to order online - veterinarian approved, animal free supplements formulated to provide (along with suggested home-made recipes) all the required nutrients for a healthy balanced diet for cats"

[Fran]

Thank you all x

Emma - thank you for the link, I am of now to have a look. I did wonder about a veggie diet but knew there would be supplements she would need. I knew about the Taurine but not about the vit A. She is such a fussy eater, I wonder if I could get her to eat a veggie diet but I have to look at all the options for her.

Eileen - I will ask the vet about a specialist when I speak to her next week

I need to wait on the full lab report to see just exactly what other allergens she has too. The vet just read me out the main ones, there were so many :? I would be intrested to find out the accuracy of these tests..

[dinahsmum]

:shock:
Poor Porsha - what a list of 'donts'
However, Emma's vegan link is a start.
Also, I notice that potatoes and pasta weren't on the banned list, so they might form the bulk of any home cooked diet you give her (even if only occasionally as a break from processed).
What about oily fish - herring, whitebait etc - and shellfish?

Best of best wishes, as always

[Jac]

Oh Fran, you really have your work cut ou for you with this .
Poor Porsha I really did hope the news would be better.

[Fran]

:shock:
What about oily fish - herring, whitebait etc - and shellfish?


The vet didn't mention those as an allergen but she only told me the main ones. She says I will get my own copy of the results so when I do I'll post up the full list and then I can plan from there on...

[Kazz]

Sorry the news looks so bleak on the surface, but every cloud has a silver linning. And this one's is you know where you are and what she cannot and can have, a major step forward..

[dinahsmum]

........ have had my thinking cap on.
So, here are some other 'possibles'
Tuna? (canned tuna in springwater would be an acceptable base, with supplements added now and then?)
Egg?
Organ meats? - heart/liver/brain/maybe tongue?
Cheese? (grated cheese on hot pasta, left to cool for Porsha - sounds good to me, hope it might to her)
Other dairy - yoghurt/mozarella/ricotta/marscapone
Peas? (quite a lot of protein in pulses, so you could look at all peas/beans {I know she can't do soya}, lentils, pearl barley
Pulses and rice or pulses and wheat (bread or pasta) combine to form 'complete protein' for non-meat eating humans, don't know if it is the same for cats.
(Can you tell I have my 'former vegetarian' head on here? Trying to think of the protein foods we ate instead of meat)
Think about Quorn. It's a fake meat protein, made from mycoprotein, which I think may be another word for mould/fungus :roll: but the plain mock mince and plain mock chicken fillets are good. I still use both, even though I eat a little beef and lamb and the occassional organic happy chicken now and again.

I'll have a look at the complete list when you post it and see if I can come up with other suggestions.

[tilly]

Hope you can find something she can eat.
If she isn't allergic to venison then you can try d/d which is a presciption diet that Tilly has to eat, as she was also having problems with food intolerances. My vet said that Tilly would be Ok on unique forms of animal protein such as venison ostrich and stange types of fish which I can't remember the names to.

Best of luck
Sally
ps here are some links to prescription diets that might be OK for Porsha.
d/d
http://www.hillspet.com/zSkin_2/products/product_details.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=8455244417 81876&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302037389&bmUID=1180171880912
z/d
http://www.hillspet.com/zSkin_2/products/product_details.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=8455244417 80768&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302037389&bmUID=1180171959647
Royal canin hypoallerngenic
http://www.royalcanin.us/vetdiet/felinehypoallergenic.html
royal canin intestinal
http://www.royalcanin.us/vetdiet/felineintestinal.html
iams response allergy diet
http://us.iams.com/iams/en_US/jsp/IAMS_Page.jsp?pageID=PL&productID=60

[Fran]

Thank you, DM - I'll post the full list up when we get it and we can have a look and see what exactly we can feed her. In the mean time I'll have a look at Sally's links...Venison could be the way to go? I don't think any of the 'stranger' meats were identified as she has never had them so she couldn't show an intolerance to something she has never had. I really need that full list and then I have something to work on. Thanks for that Sally...

[Kazz]

I that case maybe Rabbit could be a goer?

[Kazz]

Easy to find and cook.

[dinahsmum]

or goat/kid, guinea fowl, pidgeon, wild duck, pheasant, etc etc.
Wow - Porsha's potential meals are growing by the minute!

[Fran]

or goat/kid, guinea fowl, pidgeon, wild duck, pheasant, etc etc.
Wow - Porsha's potential meals are growing by the minute!


Duck was one of her allergens as was rabbit...but the others are worth a try..

[Tanya]

I hope you can find a suitable diet for Porsha - Goodluck xx

[Fran]

Found this...

Perhaps I could order some of the mince and give it a go??

http://www.ostrichfayre.co.uk/products.htm

[Mags]

Oh dear Fran, sorry the results of the biopsy showed all these food allergies:(
When you are able to post the list of Porsha's allergens we may be able to put our thinking caps on and come up with some sort of a decent diet for the poor girl:?

At least you know what you are working against now, although heartbreaking.....
(((((hugs)))) to you and a cuddle to Porsha ......

[dinahsmum]

Well why not Fran? Maybe add potato or pasta for bulk?
Or she could eat the mince raw?
(Sorry is this is disgusting for little rodent lovers, but could you get some frozen baby mice, as snake etc keepers use? A totally natural food for Porsha, and a protein she won't have come across before)

[Jane]

Aw, what awful news :( Hope you manage to sort something out for her soon.

dinahsmum - I am a rodent lover, and whilst it does sound gross, all animals must eat, so if it was the only thing aslong as the animals were kept well then I wouldn't have a problem with it. Just thought I should add that ;)

[Sweet]

((((((hugs)))))) I do not know what to say or suggest x

[Elaine]

So very sorry Fran, cannt offer anything to what others have said but I did find some links about testing etc, dont know if they will help also found one with some recepies that may help.
Wish both you and Porsha all the very best. xxx
http://www.catnutrition.org/vetletter
http://www.vin.com/VINDBPub/SearchPB/Proceedings/PR05000/PR00093.htm
http://www.animal-allergy.com/downloads/3_Feline_Screening.pdf?PHPSESSID=2d76b23b17dec9bff eecf9e95d26d5a2
http://www.sniksnak.com/cathealth/allergies.html
http://www.wellness.demon.co.uk/allbro~1.htm

[sarahd]

I'm so sorry to hear the news about Porsha

Good luck in your quest to find her something suitable she can eat that will also be substantial for her too

Sarah
x

[Fran]

So very sorry Fran, cannt offer anything to what others have said but I did find some links about testing etc, dont know if they will help also found one with some recepies that may help.
Wish both you and Porsha all the very best. xxx
http://www.catnutrition.org/vetletter
http://www.vin.com/VINDBPub/SearchPB/Proceedings/PR05000/PR00093.htm
http://www.animal-allergy.com/downloads/3_Feline_Screening.pdf?PHPSESSID=2d76b23b17dec9bff eecf9e95d26d5a2
http://www.sniksnak.com/cathealth/allergies.html
http://www.wellness.demon.co.uk/allbro~1.htm

Thank you very much for the links Elaine...will have a look at them tomorrow x

[Donna]

Hope you find a few foods that Porscha can eat. Good luck x

[tilly]

Some cat recipes which might help Porsha if she can eat them.

Sally

These recipes use raw meats but not to the extreme, if you like, extent of the BARF diet. Some nutritionists would say this is not ideal. On the other hand others do advise cooking. Other holistic vets would recommend cooking the meat content as well there is I'm afraid much controversy in the world. I think we all agree none processed foods are best. Use these as a guide as to what to feed along with the other information in the site, they need not be followed to the letter Do not be afraid to vary a little and remember the raw chicken wings for the teeth in addition!

Meaty Oats

4 cups of rolled oats cook until soft, then add to the rest of the ingredients, which are fed raw.
2 eggs
2 pounds of minced lean beef, or other meats e.g. chicken, turkey, heart, rabbit or lamb
1 tablespoon of Supplement' powder (see below)
2 tablespoons of bonemeal or 4,000 mg Calcium or 2 teaspoons of eggshell powder
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
10,000 i.u of Vitamin A from for example cod liver oil
150 i.u of Vitamin E
1 teaspoon of fresh raw vegetables e.g. carrot, spinach, herbs etc.

This will make about 12 cups of which you feed 1 to 2 cups a day depending on how large and active your cat is.

Some liver can be added to the recipe but do not use just liver as the only meat.

Feline Feast

1 cup of corn meal or Polenta (cook with 4 cups of water and add to rest of the ingredients which are fed raw.
2 eggs
2 tablespoons of veg oil or butter. (Less if fatty meats are used)
2 pounds of minced meat red or white or offal (liver/heart/kidney/tripe) or fish or a combination .. vary it.
4 tables spoons of 'Supplement' Powder (below)

2 tablespoons of bonemeal (3,000 mg of Calcium or 1 ¾ teaspoon of eggshell powder
10,000 units of Vitamin A (fish oils)
150 i.u. Vitamin E
1 teaspoon of raw fresh veggies with each meal
feed ¾ to 1 ½ cups to your cat with each meal

Oats ( 2 cups before cooking) Rice, or potatoes (4 cups cooked) can be used in place of corn as a grain substitute or a combination

Always add about 500mg of Taurine to cat recipes if you cook the meats.

Fishy Delight

Fed occasionally this can be a treat for your cat, do not feed too often though

2 eggs
1-2 cups of milk
2 tablespoons of Supplement powder (see below)
1 teaspoon of bonemeal
2,500 i.u. of Vitamin A
100-200 i.u. of Vitamin E
200mg of Taurine supplement (cat vitamin tablet)
1 teaspoon of fresh raw veg.
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.
1 can of mackerel or tuna or ½ of white fish
2 slices of brown bread

Blend together eggs milk and supplements then mix well with fish and bread serve raw or baked for 20 mins or so at 180 C.

'Supplement' Powder:

2 cups of nutritional yeast or brewers yeast
¼ cup of Kelp powder
1 cup of Lecithin powder
1000 mg of Vitamin C (or ¼ teaspoon of Sodium ascorbate)

Mix together and refrigerate and use as in above recipes

Or use Pet Plus, Udo's Pet Essentials or Missing Link powders along with the Vitamin C.

For more information and natural Pet Products visit

http://www.naturalpetcare.co.uk/

[tilly]

some more info that might help you
Sally
Diarrhoea:

Acute diarrhoea is a response of the body to rid itself of toxins and unwelcome germs from the bowel, it is a speeding up of the natural passage of gut contents not giving time for water to be absorbed in the normal way so producing a watery stool. Suppression of this response using alopathic drugs such as Immodium to slow the bowel down is not therefore recommended, we should try to assist the body not work against it.
We do this by resting the gut, replacing normal gut bacteria and using absorbent materials to soak up the toxins and protect the inflammed intestine lining. Diarrhoea of this type may be caused by ingestion of rancid unfit foods or other toxins including drugs in some cases it is often accompanied by vomiting which is treated in a similar way (See this page as well if your companion has both symptoms)

Prevention
This condition can not be completely avoided as animals are wont to pick up garbage at any time but if your companion is having a good quality natural diet, avoids unnecessary drugs and vaccinations he will be in a much better shape to deal with any food poisoning he may pick up. Raw foods will mean your companion is used to the bacteria commonly found in meats and so seem more resistant to diarrhoea
Always change diets gradually sudden shocks to the bowel can induce diarrhoea.
Stresses and anxiety can cause diarrhoea in animals as well as ourselves.

Treatment
Rest the gut by giving a very light diet until recovery. Initially a complete fast for at least 12 hours is best followed by a day on broth, feed in small quantities through out the day. Follow this with meals of boiled chicken and turkey and rice for a day or two before gradually re-introducing the normal diet. For dogs use about 50 to 60% rice, cats may not find this appetizing but try 20-30% ground rice.
The first thing to use with any case of diarrhoea is to give what is known as a probiotic. This is a preparation of the normal bugs that live in the intestines and help us digest our foods. An example is Lacto-B from our shop, protexin or simply 'live' yoghurt. Give a few teaspoons of this to your companion along with the light diet.

Homeopathic Remedies
Arsenicum album
Alloe
Mercuris solubis

These and other remedies are available from our shop on this link

Complex Remedies:

(These remedies from the MacSamuel ™ Range are available in our shop more detailed advice in Atjo Westerhuis's book Your Dog and Homeopathy) They combine 1 or more herbal or homeopathic remedies together to treat specfic conditions.

(MacSamuel™) Digestion Tonic

Ingredients:
Diluted extracts of vegetable charcoal, posion nut, okoubaka and and tormentil.
Homeopathic Remedy Keynotes
Carbo veg 8x, Flatulence, wind

Nux vomica 6x, Excess motility of the GI tract, overeating rich foods
okoubaka 2x, Detoxification

Tormentilla Ø diarrhoea


Packaging: 50ml dropper bottle 38% alcohol

Dosage: 10-20 drops depending on size of dog for 1 to 3 weeks. Remeber of course to also use an appropriate diet. An easily digestable hypoallergenic one in many cases and use probiotics.

Remedy Picture:
The remedy is designed fro both acute and chronic diarhoea. The picture is and hypermotile intestinal tract caused by food posioning or diet change.
This common condition can be caused by eating novel foods, infection and overeating or the use of some mediciations. It has been used with IBS (irritable bowel) and excessive wind with some success. If there is vomiting or no appetitie you should consider other treatments. Probiotics and diet change are also usful tools.


Herbal Remedies
Chronic Diarrhoea

to be finished soon PreventionTreatment
Diet

Homeopathic Remedies
Herbal Remedies

[tilly]

last bit that might help you.
SAlly

Agrimony ( Agrimonia cupatoria): This is a good remedy for the digestive system; It can help with colitis and diarrhoea and aids digestion. It is a bitter tonic and will improve appetite.

It can be found in Denes Probiotic powder in the shop
Echinacea A stimulant of the immune system, helps prevent and treat chronic skin and other infections
Peppermint (Mentha piperita) This is useful in the treatment of indigestion, farting, colic and nausea because of its carminative and antispasmodic affects. It also stimulates the appetite.
Found in Denes Gastric tablets and Phytoplex Spillery Elm
http://www.naturalpetcare.co.uk/petshop/product_info.php?cPath=38_66&products_id=559
http://www.naturalpetcare.co.uk/petshop/product_info.php?cPath=38_66&products_id=366
http://www.naturalpetcare.co.uk/petshop/product_info.php?cPath=38_66&products_id=365


hope this helps I was looking to see if there was anything that could help Tilly, and thought as Porsha also has a sensitive tummy I would post them for you as well.

[dandysmom]

Fran, I know you said the report showed she was allergic to all meats, but I was wondering if that included lamb? One of my vets once recommended lamb and rice for a cat with a delicate stomach/colon...... just trying to think of something helpful ....

[Fran]

Thank you Sally, lots of information and links there for me to read over x

Unfortunately Eileen, she did test positive for lamb :(

[random]

Oh dear poor Porsha. :( I have a dog with a very bad tum too, she's constantly having a runny tum and her diet is very strict. Every now and then though, she'll come across something that will upset her and we just have to add it to the list of 'bad' things. It does get easier but is a lot of hard work and patience at the begining. Once you have her on something that agrees with her it gets easier from then, but it can take some time to find that something!

I don't really know what to suggest, if she was a dog I could bombard you with links, plus dogs can get along better on a vegetarian diet, cats will need all sorts of suppliments if that is the road you need to take.

Will try and get my thinking cap on when you post the full list, it will just be trial and error for a while until you find something. All the best to you and Porsha. x

[Animagus]

maybe you could try her with some Yakult to top up her good bacteria levels.... is it safe for cats???? hope you can find something she can eat fran.... hugs for Porsha xxxx

[charliebubs]

I'm just catching up on Catsey Fran and am so sorry to read this thread. What a blow. On the plus side though, at least you will have a full list of do's and don'ts rather than having to guess what was wrong with her before.

Once you have the list I'm sure we will all do our best to come up with some solutions.

Keep your chin up and lots of gentle hugs to Porsha.
xx

[Fran]

Thanks all, well at the moment I plan to change nothing. She is tolerating Royal Canin Sensible 33 at the minute and I have to say things have been vastly improved since her bowel biopsy/spey. If the diarrhoea returns with a vengence then I will try and work her an alternative diet out. I still haven't got the full results back yet :roll:

[alexgirl73]

Good grief!!! Obviously just catching up on this Fran. I'm sorry to hear that things aren't much clearer with Porsha after the biopsy. At least she seems to be settled with the food she is on just now so hopefully that will continue. Loads of ((hugs)) to you both!

[dinahsmum]

How is she now Fran, a week on from your last bulletin?
Also, have you the definitive list of allergies yet?

[Amie]

Sorry don't have time to read though the thread right now so sorry:? if I'm repeating anything but have you thought of trying her on unusual meats like.

Ostrich
Alligator
Duck
Pigeon

I now it will be expensive but I'm sure there's a company that will deliver this meat fresh.

Not sure if this is a ridiculous idea or even if these meats are suitable for Cats but might be worth a bit of research;)

[Fran]

Hi Amie, thanks for that, I have indeed found a supplier of ostrich meat if I need to go down the route of an alternative diet for her. At the moment she is tolerating RC sensible 33 so I will keep her on that as long as it suits her.

Thanks DM, I got the full list a couple of days ago, here it is......

IgE scores - scores for these indicate that the cat has a true food hypersensitivity (classical allergy) to these foodstuffs

she tested IgE positive for the following foodstuffs


beef
pork
lamb
duck
chicken
turkey
rabbit
tuna
white fish
soybean
corn

IgG scores - these scores indicate that these foodstuffs may be implicated in a food intolerance (delayed allergy)

She tested IgG positive for the following..

chicken
turkey
tuna
milk
salmon

Her highest scores indicating worst allergy were for chicken, Salmon and milk

[dinahsmum]

So, if the worst came to the worst and she no longer tolerates the proprietary food you could consider any of the following, with rice or pasta (I didn't miss wheat intolerance did I?) for bulk
pidgeon/pheasant (make friends with shooters)
venison (ditto)
ostritch! :shock:
herring/sprat/sardine/whitebait/mackerel
shellfish
squid

But if she's doing fine as she is, long may that continue

[Fran]

(I didn't miss wheat intolerance did I?)


She tested negative for
wheat
rice
eggs

[dinahsmum]

Oh yes - I forgot eggs - good source of protein, dead easy and most cats love 'em

[Fran]

It was the YorkTest she had done...

www.animal-allergy.com (http://www.animal-allergy.com)

[charliebubs]

Gosh - that's some list Fran!!! Poor Porsha.

I hope she stays fine on the RC S/C 33. :)

[Mags]

That's quite a list Fran - at least you have something to work around now if she gets fed up of the RC sensible 33..:)

Has Porsha had any 'bad' days since she has been on the RC 33 ?

[Fran]

That's quite a list Fran - at least you have something to work around now if she gets fed up of the RC sensible 33..:)

Has Porsha had any 'bad' days since she has been on the RC 33 ?

Well I had only just switched her over to this before she had the biopsy and spey done, prior to that she had been on RC Siamese. She had a runny bum after the biopsy but they put her on RC chicken and rice pouches whilst she was in the hospital as they thought it would be gentler on her tum :roll: in all fairness they couldn't have predicted the results of the allergy test. She has been absolutely fine since then, no runs at all and the most normal poos ever since getting her :cool: so I am really hopeful that the RC sensible suits her and of course she now doesn't have the stress of calling, which I do think contributed to the timing of some of the episodes

[Mags]

I'm so pleased to read that Fran, you must be so relieved that you are getting somewhere at long last...:)

[charliebubs]

no runs at all and the most normal poos ever since getting her

:smt026 :smt038 :smt026 :smt038

[alexgirl73]

that is sooooo great to hear Fran! I can imagine the relief you are feeling at the moment!

[dinahsmum]

Which leads us to the obvious question Alex ..... and how is Teddie?

[dandysmom]

It's a relief to know now what she can tolerate if she goes off the RC! There are some inventive things you can do with what she can eat!

[alexgirl73]

The answer to the obvious question lol DM is, that teddie is doing fantastically just now. Beefing up a bit and has grown a bit too. Doing great poos and being a cat lol! Spoke to the vet on monday when I picked up her food and we are going to try over the next month to see how she goes with very tiny amounts of hi-life being added to her meat. If it all goes well, brilliant. If not them she'll probably be on the RC wet for life.

[Fran]

This is great news Alex!! Good luck with the Hi-life x

[dinahsmum]

Good news from both our errant girlies!
Alex - has Teddie been spayed? I lose track (yes I know - getting old etc! :roll: )

[Jac]

Fran that's great. At least your making headway at last!!! I'm so very very pleased for both you and Porsha of course. Poor wee might has been through so much in her short life. Lets hope it's on wards and upwards from here on in.

[alexgirl73]

no she hasn't been spayed as yet DM! The vet still hasn't given the go ahead, I'm hoping he will soon though as I'd like that done before the summer.