Saturday, September 22, 2018

A Minor-Miracle Food



I experienced an unnerving yet interesting incident with Cammie this week. If you have read previous entries about the princess’s digestive issues, you know that by now pretty much any soft-food will cause her to vomit, and continue to vomit even after her stomach has nothing left to give. I have found that the only solution to this dire problem is an injection of Cerenia.

For several months, I have had Cammie on a hard-food diet of Z/D, a product designed to cause no allergic reaction. She does eat Orijen, though not a great deal, and that has not given her any bad effects. I am sure she finds her diet monotonous, and know that she misses soft-food. Z/D must taste good because several other cats will eat it if they can get to it, so there is that consolation. Even so, I must be vigilant regarding Cammie, and make sure that she doesn’t get into any soft-food, any and all of which seems to trigger her problem. This is easier written than done, with a population of six cats, all of which will eat only if they are apart from the others.

On Tuesday, Cammie must have consumed some soft-food. She threw up her breakfast, the results including both hard- and soft-food, so I knew she had gotten into what she shouldn’t. This usually spells disaster, and a trip to the veterinary hospital. I hoped that this time would be different and she would not continue to vomit. When I came home at noon to check on her, I saw that someone had thrown up their food. The number of times they had done it, and where, suggested that it had been Cammie.

But something was different. Cammie was hungry a few hours later, and wanted some food for dinner. Usually, during such episodes, she doesn’t like to eat, thinking it would only cause her to upchuck. I fed her a small amount, and waited. Normally, when she can’t keep anything down, she can’t keep it down at all - it comes back up immediately. But this time, her small Z/D dinner remained in place. She ate a little more at snack-time, about eight o’clock. This suggested to me that her stomach felt differently to her this time.

She had not thrown up again by the time I went to bed. I am attuned to hearing my cats wretch, as sad as that is, and I wake immediately when I hear the tell-tale sound, or anything like it. Cammie did not wake me.

The Z/D seemed not to be rejected by the stomach even when it was denying all other food. Normally, what Cammie takes in after she begins her episodes wouldn’t matter; it would still be thrown out. It’s true that Z/D is designed to give no reaction, but in such a case as Cammie’s, that usually would be immaterial: the initial cause of her illness (the soft-food) should still have been exercising its malign influence and making her wretch. In other words, once her stomach becomes violent, even the Z/D should be thrown up. But it stayed its course and, in fact, seemed to act as oil on stormy waters. I wonder if the Z/D’s hydrolysed composition fooled the stomach into letting it through.

Whatever the reason, Cammie has been fine since that day, and I am very grateful for Z/D. It has given her a safe food that she continues to like, and has even, it appears, lessened the problems caused by lapses in my security. Now, if it would only help me cut her claws…

18 comments:

  1. Well, this is good news re: the Z/D! Not good that Cammie was throwing up, of course. iI the time you've been writing about her, this seems to have been the "easiest" go of it for you both. That IS good. Fingers crossed she continues to eat the food and that it continues to benefit her in unexpected ways.

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  2. Way to go Cammie! This is great news! I know when Cammie becomes ill it's so difficult trying to get her to eat and so upsetting when she can't keep down the little she does eat. But hopefully her digestive issues are a thing of the past. Unfortunately John, I am not aware of any special diet that will help you give a cat a manicure. Perhaps if you called Hill's .... :-)

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  3. Oh, I forgot to mention - That photo of Cammie is just beautiful!

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  4. That's wonderful and I'm so happy it helped sweet Cammie!

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  5. Good on you Cammie.

    We have never cut any of our cats claws over the years. I guess our cats get to go outside and walking on concrete and scratching wood keeps them in shape. Our vet checks them each time Poppy visits, and will trim one or two if it needs to be done. Maybe it is a Kiwi thing, but we don't believe in trimming claws or giving cats baths (unless they are soiled).

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    1. Eric never had his claws trimmed. Flynn only did when he lost so much weight due to his illness and could no longer walk far. Before that he always kept them naturally short with walking and tree climbing. The first time I trimmed them he was 15 and I expected a struggle, but he was so good and sat there and let me do it.

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  6. That is very good news that Cammie soon overcame her digestive problems. If it is down to the Z/D it will make it much easier not just for her, but you too.

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  7. A change of food made a big difference to Katie.

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  8. I am pleased to hear Cammie's stomach is better and she is eating and keeping her food down. Do you get the Z/D from the vet? It seems to help poor Cammie.
    We have had a couple of weeks of health matters here - but after a couple of visits to the emergency vet and a stay in the vet hospital Holly seems to be back to usual self. I think it is possibly food - allergy related. Keep up your health, Cammie. Please let John trim your nails - it will feel more comfortable.

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    1. Yes, Z/D comes from veterinarians. Any vet should have it. I'm sorry to read that Holly had to go to emergency. That sounds frightening. I hope she stays her usual self from now on. (Z/D prevents allergic reactions by being 'hydrolysed' - broken down to its basic components, too basic to include allergens.)

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    2. If Holly needs a prescription diet, you can get it from a vet. However, if your vet could fax a prescription to Chewy.com, you could probably buy it from Chewy. I get Alex's Royal Canin Feline Urinary SO from Chewy, and it's considerably cheaper than what my vet would charge, and not to mention, it's delivered free.

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    3. Thank you both, John and Roberta, for this advice. I will be asking for this advice. Whatever it was, caused awful ulcers in her mouth.

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    4. You're welcome, Eileen. I hope Holly will soon feel better.

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  9. Had a LONG comment and there went the wifi. Again. I am going to try for a new modem.

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  10. Isn’t Cammie just beautiful! Lovely photo of your princess.
    Wonderful news about Cammie’s tummy! We’ll hope that this is the turning point in the battle with her digestion issues
    Pardon me, but I don’t recall if the Z/D wet food had previously bothered her. Perhaps somewhere down the road it could be reintroduced, with the vet’s ok, if you feel she might enjoy a bit of variety. Slightly warmed in small amounts. But for now it’s a good feeling for Cammie and all of us to know that her prescribed food is working.

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    1. I tried serving her the Z/D tinned food, but she would have nothing to do with it. It is of a particularly unattractive rubbery texture, that no warming or moisturizing will make more appealing. That's too bad because it would have been a good complement or even replacement for the hard-food.

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  11. If you figured it out without a trip to the vet, then that's good! Cammie is a cutie!

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  12. Good to hear that Cammie's tummy troubles are lessened by this new food. She truly is a princess. :)

    Eileen

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