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Irritable bowel syndrome—the name alone is sufficient to make you’re feeling uncomfortable. Even in the event you’ve been fortunate enough to never experience the pain, discomfort, and embarrassment of this fairly common condition, you almost certainly know someone who has. But did you already know that cats may suffer from the same condition?
In cats, we discuss with it as inflammatory bowel disease or IBD, but it surely might also be categorized as gastritis, enteritis, gastroenteritis, or chronic diarrhea, all of which may form a part of feline IBD but will not be the entire story.
Let’s look closer at IBD in cats, from what causes it to learn how to manage it.
IBS vs. IBD
You could be wondering what the difference between these two terms actually is, and it is basically to do with the species involved. Humans can suffer from each IBS and IBD, whereas cats and other animals can only be described as having IBD.
IBS, because the name suggests, describes a syndrome, or a set of symptoms that typically occur together, enabling the condition to be more accurately described and categorized. It shouldn’t be itself a particular diagnosis, nevertheless, IBD could be a explanation for IBS.
Symptoms describe how an illness or problem “feels,” and only humans can communicate that. A clinician can take heed to those symptoms and mix them with the patient’s clinical signs to make an objective assessment.
In terms of cats and other pets, they can’t describe their very own symptoms, which is why veterinarians depend on the history provided by the pet’s owner, combined with the animal’s clinical signs, to make a diagnosis.
For instance:
| Symptom | Clinical Sign |
| Sore leg | Limping, lameness |
| Earache | Head tilt, rubbing ear |
| Nausea | Drooling, vomiting, inappetence |
Now that we’ve got the semantics out of the best way, let’s move on to the condition itself.
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What Is Feline Inflammatory Bowel Disease?
IBD in cats occurs when the partitions of the digestive tract change into thickened and inflamed, reducing its ability to operate properly. Although there are numerous conditions that may produce the identical or similar signs, IBD shouldn’t be resulting from an infection, food response, or parasite, although these should be ruled out with a view to make a diagnosis. It could actually affect cats of all ages but is more common amongst middle-aged and older cats.
There are specific cell types which are normally involved in IBD which strongly suggest that it’s an immune-mediated condition. It might be triggered by certain foods, infections, or stress. It could actually occur as a part of a fancy condition known as triaditis1, which involves inflammation of the liver, pancreas, and small intestine. IBD may also be characterised as idiopathic, which suggests that no inciting cause will be identified.
What Are the Signs of Feline Inflammatory Bowel Disease?
IBD can affect different parts of the digestive tract, so the clinical signs will depend upon what area is involved.
- Gastritis (inflammation of the stomach)
- Enteritis (inflammation of the small intestine)
- Colitis (inflammation of the massive intestine or colon)
The inflammation might occur in only one area or could affect all three. Although colitis often produces more noticeable signs, like frequent, bloody diarrhea, it is normally the least severe by way of illness.
| Gastritis | Enteritis | Colitis | |
| Frequency of feces | Normal to reduced | Normal to reduced | Increased |
| Diarrhea | Mild or none | Great amount, watery | Small to large amounts of mucoid, could also be bloody |
| Vomiting | Frequent, shortly after eating | Occasional, 4–6 hours after eating | None |
| Appetite | Reduced or absent | Normal to increased | Normal |
| Weight reduction | Moderate | Moderate to severe | Mild to none |
| Energy levels | Normal to barely reduced | Reduced | Normal |
Gastritis: When the stomach is inflamed, it could possibly lead to vomiting, but it surely won’t affect the digestion and absorption of nutrients from food that’s kept down.
Enteritis: Nearly all of nutrient absorption takes place within the small intestine, so when that is inflamed, the body can change into severely malnourished, particularly if a considerable amount of the intestine is involved, or if the cat is affected by gastroenteritis (inflammation of each the stomach and intestines). The appetite could also be increased to attempt to compensate for the nutrient loss.
Colitis: The essential function of the massive intestine is the reabsorption of fluid from the waste material. Inflammation on this area doesn’t normally have a big impact on nutrition but can result in dehydration if not addressed.
How Is Feline IBD Diagnosed?
A big a part of diagnosing IBD in cats is ruling out another causes of the clinical signs. This could be a frustrating process, but a essential one. There isn’t a specific test for IBD, so an important a part of the diagnostic process is ruling out all of the things that it isn’t.
Patient history is a vital component of this process, so in case your cat’s clinical signs have been happening for some time, try to maintain an in depth record of what they eat, any changes (nevertheless minor) of their habits, any possible exposure to toxins, unusual foods, etc. Photographs of their vomit and feces, although pretty gross, may also be really helpful.
Depending in your cat’s clinical signs, your vet may perform the next tests:
- Physical exam: Focusing particularly on hydration, body condition, and abdominal palpation.
- Blood tests: These can indicate the presence of systemic inflammation or infection, assess organ function and protein levels, in addition to discover any viral infections, akin to Feline Leukemia or Panleukopenia, and rule out other illnesses like diabetes and hyperthyroidism.
- Fecal exam: To examine for parasites.
Sometimes vets will trial some treatments before making a diagnosis, akin to giving anti-parasitic or anti-inflammatory medications. A weight-reduction plan trial can also be a standard and necessary step, not only by way of diagnosis but in formulating a treatment plan.
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Definitive Diagnosis
The one technique to definitively diagnose feline IBD is thru intestinal biopsies; nevertheless, they will not be all the time completely accurate. Biopsies are performed under general anesthesia and will be done endoscopically (least invasive) or surgically (most accurate).
Once all other diseases have been excluded, there are two conditions that may only be differentiated with a biopsy: IBD and intestinal lymphoma. Biopsies will only give a particular diagnosis if the sample is taken from an area of the digestive tract that’s affected by the disease, so false negatives do occur.
The treatment of each IBD and intestinal lymphoma are sometimes very similar, and it shouldn’t be unusual for treatment to begin without biopsies.
There are two essential sorts of feline intestinal lymphoma:
- Small cell lymphoma – A more diffuse form that affects a bigger area of the intestine but is more aware of treatment, with a mean survival of two–4 years following diagnosis.
- Large cell lymphoma – Tends to form localized masses and has a much poorer prognosis. Surgery will be attempted, but survival times are likely to be around 2–4 months.
How Is Feline IBD Treated?
In nearly all of cases, the aim of treatment is management quite than cure. Some cats may experience an entire remission of all clinical signs after prolonged treatment, while others will have to be managed for the remaining of their lives.
Again, the specifics will depend upon the situation of the inflammation and the severity of clinical signs, but common IBD treatments include:
- Weight loss plan management: Using a hypoallergenic, highly digestible food to cut back the quantity of inflammation within the digestive tract and maximize nutrient absorption. There are quite a few veterinary-based diets which were developed for the management of feline IBD, and there have also been some reported successes using raw diets, although care should be taken to make sure adequate taurine levels are provided.
- Corticosteroids: Steroids (e.g., prednisone) are a commonly used medication to treat immune-mediated, inflammatory conditions. At higher doses, steroids cause immunosuppression, which will help reduce any autoimmune component, while also reducing inflammation. Resulting from the problematic unintended effects that top doses of steroids produce, the aim is to cut back dosing to the bottom therapeutic level once the clinical signs have improved.
- Cobalamin: AKA vitamin B12, this is important for healthy immunity, nervous system, and digestive function. In cats with small intestinal IBD, cobalamin is poorly absorbed, resulting in further deterioration of the condition and making a very vicious cycle. By supplementing Cobalamin, with injections initially and later with oral supplements, the general health of the cat is improved, as is their intestinal function.
- Chemotherapy: An oral medication called Chlorambucil will be used at the side of the above therapies to treat autoimmune conditions, in addition to reduce the buildup of thickened and abnormal tissue within the digestive tract. That is the treatment of alternative for feline intestinal lymphoma but can also be effective against severe IBD.
- Antiemetics: Medications to cut back vomiting and nausea are sometimes utilized in the early stages of treatment if gastritis or gastroenteritis are involved.
Image Credit: Jaromir Chalabala, Shutterstock
What Is the Prognosis for Cats With IBD?
Usually, once an acceptable treatment regime has been found, cats do quite well. In some cases, treatment will be step by step reduced over time, but more often than not, management is lifelong. Prognosis is linked with how extensive and severe the inflammatory changes within the gut wall are, suggesting that cases which are diagnosed and treated earlier within the disease process could have a greater end result than cats which have extensive changes of their gastrointestinal tract.
Cats that spend a whole lot of time outdoors will be harder to administer because it is unattainable to completely control what they’re eating. The success of treatment in these cases comes right down to how severe the cat’s condition is, and the way much “off-plan” eating they do.
In cases where lymphoma has not been excluded, the end result will largely depend upon whether we’re treating IBD, small cell lymphoma, or large cell lymphoma.
Summing Up
Feline inflammatory bowel disease is a comparatively common condition, mostly affecting cats which are middle-aged or older. It could actually masquerade as many gastrointestinal disorders, all of which should be ruled out before a diagnosis of IBD will be reached.
Early treatment and management of this condition may end up in fewer significant changes to the gastrointestinal wall, thus improving prognosis.
Although occasional vomiting and diarrhea will not be unusual in cats, in the event that they have been showing these signs for greater than 48 hours, and particularly in the event you notice weight reduction or lethargy, you must book them in for a checkup along with your vet ASAP.
Featured Image Credit: Andy Gin, Shutterstock