Attached Link: http://www.holisticpetinfo.com/Conditions/digestive_constipation.htm

Thank you LadyElf
 I hope she recovers from this, so I get to treat her constipation...   :crying:

I would definately talk to the vet about the Milk Thistle for the liver and see what they say :)

There are so many things that can cause this. Hopefully, it's something that can be identified and resolved quickly. Gentle pats to Tigger, and a big hug for Connie...

Thanks!
I didn't sleep much last night, went to see her this morning, for couple of hours. They're officially closed today, but the nurselet me in for a while. They said that the doc will be in for a little bit this afternoon. I'm not sure if he'll call me or not - not sure f he will get to do any more tests today.
At least after I came home from seeing her I was calm enough to sleep for 2-3 hours.

Oh Connie...I'm so sorry to hear Tigger's  had a setback. :( I'm hoping and praying she'll get past this and be able to come back home soon!

Thanks MadameX, and thanks everyone else.

Your emotional support and sympathies here means so much more then I can put into words right now.

Spook and me have our fingers (err paws in her case) crossed for Tigger

We're praying for Tigger's recovery.

Thank You Frank and CardinalBiggles!

They let her go back home today!  She settled in and is taking a nap in her bed here on my desk! They added cortizone to her meds.  So far she's keeping her food down for few days now. Doc is little more optimistic then he was couple of days ago.
She even had a teeeny tiny bite of honeybaked ham, all on her own.

So, she's hanging in there. If she has no setbacks, recheck in 7 days.

It's a big relief to have her home. She had energy to do some purrng too, and was looking pretty comfy and content for a little while.

I found out that they are accepting donations in a way of towels and old T-hirts, to be used as animal bedding and cleaning rags, (Your vet/animal shelters may find those handy too). I found some nice large bath towels at Wal-Mart for $1.99, so I got them a dozen towels... and now I know to pack my goodwill boxes of towels, old blankets and t-shirts, for them.
The lady that wasso nice to stay almost an hour late over there for New Years eve, so I can spend a little time with tigger - I got her a Thank You card and a visa gift certificate - I hope that wasn't going overboard.

This vet is very active in adopting and homing lost animals, so half of his animal hospital is a shelter of sorts, but they don't brag abuot it.

Oh Connie! I'm so glad to hear/read the good news! I'll keep praying for her and you that she makes a full recovery! :)

I'm so glad she's back home with you :)  I'm sure that made her feel better just being around you :)

BIG HUGS for the both of you!!

So glad Tigger is back with you.  Praying for a full recovery.

Thank You MadameX, Lady Elf and Cardinal Biggles!
Tigger is tolerating her feedings fine today, getting some sleep and rest. With her liver enlarged and overall weak condition, I'm assuming she's in quite a bit of pain too, so I'm trying to keep her comfy...

I'm glad your kitty is doing better.:)
 
Our dog Bindy was stolen from our yard on Boxing Day and my dad had to put down our Cherrie on the 2nd of January (she was almost 17 and was blind and deaf and couldn't do anything for herself anymore..and being a pitbull she was kinda large and heavy for my dad to carry out to pee since he has some pretty bad heart problems)..so now I have no pets. :( 

Well I have Sea Monkeys but they aren't very fun..you can't pet them and they're kinda ugly LOL

I hope your kitty stays well. hug

My little buddies: Lady Grey and her brother Diesel. They're the only two that made it from a litter of five that a semi-feral mother cat bore. She herself disappeared when the kittens were only a few months old, but by then they were used to coming up to the porch and being fed. One (Grey's twin brother) died from a snake bite, while two others were the victims of these big-ass dogs that live up the street and basically get to run wild in a neighbourhood that's got perhaps three large cat colonies.

When I moved into my apartment a year ago, I decided Grey and Diesel were coming with me. They were about a year old at the time and werent quite sure what to make of this whole "living inside" thing. Grey spent the first two weeks on top of the upper kitchen cabinets and would come down only to eat and use the litter box (surprisingly, both of them figured it out pretty quick). It took almost eight months for Diesel to get to the point of trusting enough to allow me to pet him, and even now both of them run and hide under the couch when anyone unknown comes into the place. But at night, they both run and play on the bed until they tire themselves out, and I've come to happily accept that if it means gaining a bit more trust.

By and large, they're both quite happy little guys, now fully content to stay inside, especially now that winter's hit.

Sean, Thanks for sharing - they are adorable. I'm glad you took them with you, so they can have warm fuzzy loving home.

Tigger is puking again today, I think because she hasn't pooped yet almost third day now, I'm pretty darn sure she's getting rather constipated again. I upped her constipation medicine - I hope that helps her out. May have to go back to the doc for an enema tomorrow. We're pretty sure that bad constipation is what started all theese problems.

She's keeping her meds and a small amount of food for almost an hour now crossing fingers

My next little prayer is that tigger poops! It's a bit comical, but also super important for her recovery!

Oh Connie, if you think you're preoccupied with poop, you should be a bird owner LOL!!!  There are very few of us around that don't know what shape, what color and how many ours do in one day LOL!!  It's the lifeline for most birdy owners as that tells us volumes of what is going on with those guys :)

Give that Tigger a gentle hug for me and let him know that we're pulling for him here in Missouri :)

And talk to your vet about Milk Thistle :)

HUGS

Yes, yes, I read up all about Milk Thistle, and will ask the vet about it. Looks like it's a very good thing.
Now if she'll just poop. She has three days worth of feedings in her tummy, looks like there's no room for more before something comes out (Out the back end, not puking).

I may have given her enough Lactulose to give her diahhrea...  I'm thinking, at the moment, little bit of a soft stool, that she can pass easily is a good thing.

I gave good wishes for you and Tigger in Fisty's thread over at DAZ (as SiennaBlue), but I wanted to come over here and add to this thread.  I'll pray for you guys.  It's really heartwarming to see how many people truly love their animal family members.  My cat, Pippin, has trouble with constipation sometimes, too.  I've been giving him some hairball gel (the kind without any petroleum products in it) and I think it's been helping.  He just licks it off of my finger.  I know Tigger has to have the heavy duty meds right now, but I thought I'd mention the hairball stuff anyway. 

You asked for kitty photos so I'd like to add one of mine.  My pup, Chaco, is in my avatar.  I'm trying to make one with both of them.

All the best to you, Tigger and the rest of your family, Connie.

Thank You so much Emay/SiennaBlue!
What adorable kitty and puppy! I love their coloring!

Tigger puked again... still no poop. Most likely we're going to the Vet in the morning, for an enema. Poor baby!  Unless Lactulose kicks in overnight. There's still time.

On top of everything else, my 20 yr old stepdaughter came home from couple of days of hanging with her friends - with a Pink Eye!  My honey went shopping with her and spent most of the day with her today, so I'm thinking, he's likely to get it.

Sooo... I'll be sleeping with Tigger here in th den. Last thing I need is getting infected with that, or Tigger getting it... I'm hiding from everyone else in th house. My honey thinks I'm over-reacting. Well, boo hoo, I'd rather be on the safe side. Pink eye is as contageous as a flu. Very easily spread. He can have it all to himself. :tt2:

Connie, I hope ypu kitty gets well soon. I worry over my Miss Kitty when she gets sick. Miss K is 12 years old now. Yes, you want to avoid that pink eye, ugh, it is very contagious!

Well, considering Tigger could use some personal attention, I'm thinking maybe God has His mind on His work when He was doling out the pink eye....

Thanks Sean and Helen!
The Pink eye group is hanging on the other side of the house from me today... or I from them.

Went to the vet again to give her enema, so she can hold her food down. That went pretty well.
I asked the Vet about Milk Thistle, and he said, definately.  He also recommended another supplement, SAMe (I haven't read up on it yet)

Tigger is sprawled out on the couch, sleeping after a rough poopy day.  I'm glad to see her comfortable.

That must have been an interesting experience...  Tigger probably isn't going to like the vet for awhile.

Question: was she not pooping because she was puking too much?  Maybe she wasn't keep enough down to go through her.

Tigger has a chronic constipation issues, and has been on medicine and soft food only for it best part of last year. Her colon doesn't draw in enough fluids, so her poops are hard as a rock, when she's not on medicine, and she has a realy hard time passing them. It happens to 'middle aged cats' which she is.

Looks like her current condition started the same way. My honey admitted yesterday that: "She may have gotten into the dry food stash when he wasn't looking"  He did some major stuff aruond the house about the right time for this to happen.

Last time she ate too much dry food, I had to rush her to the vet for an enema, because she couldn't pass it. It hurts a lot, and they can strain themselves so bad, they pass out, and makes them overall very lethargic and miserable.

She only gets about 4-5 treat sized pieces of 'oral care' dry food per day. The rest has to be soft food. This is all per vet's direction.  Oddly though, it doesn't have a lot to do with whether she's well hydrated or not.

So, right now in her current condition, after she's been tube fed for 4-5 days, and hasn't pooped, she starts puking.  Last go around this happened New Years Eve. Tha time the vet took an x-ray and found her VERY constipated and bloated. After an enema, and her getting rid of, "Large dog sized poop" - says the vet, she was holding her food down again. So, right now, in her very weakened condition, she needs EZ-pooping. 

Or, in short... it's definately because of constipation.

Oh dear...the poor baby!! Constipation is no fun at all, and I can only imagine how it would be for kitties! The SAMe rings a bell; seems I saw something on tv about it. Got my fingers crossed and y'all are still in my prayers. :D

Poor Tigger!  Glad the vet trip went well.  It's good that Tigger has such a devoted nurse.  Wishing her a speedy recovery.

We've always used what's called 'liquid parafin' over here.  It's an oily liquid that was used to tread constipation in cats and humans.  Pharmacies won't sell it now as inhaling it might cause pneumonia!

When my cat Florence was getting in years and couldnt deal as easily with the litter box as she might, my vet recommended something whose name I forget, but it came in a tube. You put a bit of it on your finger, and the cat licks it off -- apparently, to them, it's pretty tasty, and it works as a digestive. I'll dig around in the old vet records and see if I can find what it was. It might help.

Quote - When my cat Florence was getting in years and couldnt deal as easily with the litter box as she might, my vet recommended something whose name I forget, but it came in a tube. You put a bit of it on your finger, and the cat licks it off -- apparently, to them, it's pretty tasty, and it works as a digestive. I'll dig around in the old vet records and see if I can find what it was. It might help.

Maybe it's the hairball remedy that I mentioned?  It comes in a tube and kitty just licks it off of your finger.  It helps, well, lubricate the insides.    It helps to move the obstruction of the hairball through the intestines so they don't have to throw up instead.  Some of them have petroleum products in them, but I bought one, Natural Defense by Sentry, that doesn't have any of those products in it.

The doc has her on this for constipation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lactulose

She's been past the hairball control paste helping her for couple of years now. Before Lactulose, she was on hairball paste.  

She seems to be doing okay today, holding her food and meds down, peeing okay, walked around the room enough to go to the litterbox on her ow, and grab her favorite sleeping spot. She even managed to hiss at her brother, Bubba, when her tried to lick her. She's not cleaning herself a whole lot, not enough energy for that yet.

Bubba is doting on her, and trying to get as close to her as he can. Right now he snuggled up about 6" away from her, which is much closer then she usually lets him.  And, she even ate couple of her oral care treats on her own today. That's a very good sign!

Whew, I really needed an uneventful day too!
I never had kids (Can't) but this must be what it's like having a newborn - I'm exhausted LOLOL.

Quote - The doc has her on this for constipation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lactulose

She's been past the hairball control paste helping her for couple of years now. Before Lactulose, she was on hairball paste.  

She seems to be doing okay today, holding her food and meds down, peeing okay, walked around the room enough to go to the litterbox on her ow, and grab her favorite sleeping spot. She even managed to hiss at her brother, Bubba, when her tried to lick her. She's not cleaning herself a whole lot, not enough energy for that yet.

Bubba is doting on her, and trying to get as close to her as he can. Right now he snuggled up about 6" away from her, which is much closer then she usually lets him.  And, she even ate couple of her oral care treats on her own today. That's a very good sign!

Whew, I really needed an uneventful day too!
I never had kids (Can't) but this must be what it's like having a newborn - I'm exhausted LOLOL.

Sounds like Tigger had a pretty good day!    That's good news.  Hope you've been able to get some rest.

The info on Lactulose is interesting I didn't know about it.  Do you get a formulation made especially for animals from your vet?  Sending more get well vibes.

I'm so glad to hear she's doing better, Connie! I'll bet Bubba has really missed her while she's been sick. Still praying here. :)

Thank You madameX and Emay and everyone else.
I think Tigger is feeling all the good vibes! She's looking pretty comfy today. Pretty alert, and even had energy for a good kitty stretch just a little bit ago, you know one of those down to the claws. 

This is the lactulose I get:  http://www.1800petmeds.com/Lactulose+Solution-prod10665.html 
It's by prescription from the vet. PetMeds calls the vet to verify prescription, then they send it to me. (It's about 10x more expensive getting it from the vet)

As for her constipation problem, the doc says it's one of those genetic things that show up in some cats when they get middle aged. I giess the problem is at the very end, her colon staying dry and not very good at pushing things out, and she has a hard time getting it all out - so it piles up.  (Sorry of I'm being too graphic)

Elfwine, that's hillarious!  Thanks for sharing!

Good news Conniekat8!  Hope Tigger continues to improve.

Being a dog person I didn't know older cats sometimes get a problem when eating dry food.  Hopefully her meds will help out with that backed-up problem.

Emay68 , another cute red cat -j'adoooore !
Cats are very strange animals - they can recover so quickly from lots of injuries -I was so astonished how quickly their skin recovers after surgery ! On the other half ,  they are very fragile for many "common" diseases  .They need our support as they trust us and they can understand we do our best to help them .
My ChatMoche had diarrhea several months ( maybe more as they go outside for this ...) but I wasn't worried as he was fine looking and active  .Now this has become "almost " normal -even feeded all the time with high quality dry food exclusively , I don't know why things have changed   . I don't think the dry food is the cause , dry or humid or home-made never changed a thing for ChatMoche . I guess that is easier to find high quality dry food than hi-quality humid food -you can always add some water on the dry food if your cat accepts the texture .
Maybe you should try food supplied with more essential fat -I saw something for persians , they add special fats for the fur , or even food for very aged cats .Very often , even for humans, is a lack of essential fats . You can also give him some fish oil ( one cap  once or twice a week , as it's very rich in vitamins ) - by piercing the cap with a needle and putting the oil on the fur .But you can try this later , when he'll feel better .
Don't forget to brush him a lot - cats can feel when they are " dirty" and they may feel very miserable when they are not able to clean themselves .
Fingers and paws crossed for Tiger ;)

Aww, that's so true, abut the right saint! 

Tigger is holding her own today, tolerating the food fine, she even purred and snuggled for a little bit today, and ate a treat on her own.  I hope this continues!

I just realized, my vet's last name is Irwin as well. Tom Irwin. He goes by Dr. Tom. Super nice guy, and super smart! Knows when to give serious treatment, and when not to torture our little ones by unnecessary stuff.

LOL! Steve looks shocked that he's been made into a saint! :D

YAY, Tigger pooped a whopper this morning... must have been at least 7" long, and probably half an inch thick.  LOL
Then she tried stealing her brother's dry food... and then she had a few bites of his wet food, on her own, while I was mixing her tube-feeding gruel and medications. No puking either.

That's MAJOR progress! She hasn't shown that much interest and energy since this all started. Resting now, I think she used up all she had this morning.

I think everyone's prayers are working!!! :)  (In addition to the Vet's and my care)

Yes, I think Mom's care has a lot to do with this. Yay! for Tigger! We've all be plugged up, and know how much better we feel when things....erm.... start moving again. Happy kitty has empty intestines, full tummy, and a cozy spot to snooze. Kitty paradise. ;)  

I'll bet Tigger's glad to get rid of that!  Excellent news, here's hoping that her recovery continues.  Our cat Ninja suffered from lifelong constipation so we know all about dosing cats.

Great news, Connie! Glad to hear things are 'moving along'! LOL!

Little setback today, started off with an early puke.  I think she got all stressed out when the gardeners started buzzing around the neighborhood.   Seems to be doing okay after that, but not as good as yesterday.

Or, maybe she's not all that happy that I ddn't sleep with her in the study last nighy, but actually went to bed (I neeed it). Got a milion aches and pains from sleeping on a couch.

We're averaging one puke per day, and holding her food down most of the time. Overall, things seem to be moving forward.

She is seeking cold and airy spots, which is unusual for her when she's feeling okay. I think fresh air helps her nausea (fresh air and cold always helps me when nauseatd).

glad to hear Tigger's doing better, Connie!! Demelza sends her love to Tigger.

she coughed up a lowster of a hairball last week, about 8 inches long and nearly 3/4 of an inch in diameter! and i give her a good brushing 3 or 4 times a week!.

demelza is a greedy little s**, monday night she somehow managed to get a packet of hairball shifting treats off the shelf and ate a few, which resulted in me having to wash her rear end 3 times this week(won't go into details!) thank goodness she is back to normal now!

Quote - glad to hear Tigger's doing better, Connie!! Demelza sends her love to Tigger.

she coughed up a lowster of a hairball last week, about 8 inches long and nearly 3/4 of an inch in diameter! and i give her a good brushing 3 or 4 times a week!.

demelza is a greedy little s**, monday night she somehow managed to get a packet of hairball shifting treats off the shelf and ate a few, which resulted in me having to wash her rear end 3 times this week(won't go into details!) thank goodness she is back to normal now!

Oh, giggle, yea, I can relate to much of that.
Tigger's brother, Bubba, tends to puke all over the place when he eats more then 3 haiball treats.
Right now, we're lowering Tigger's pooping medicine just a tad... LOL  Gotta find the middle ground.

Connie,

Hooray for the 7" poo!  :unsure:  Wait...well, yes in this situation that's a great thing.  :thumbupboth:  Keep it comin' Tigger!  lol

@Alizea-Thank you for the compliment on Pippin's cuteness!  :biggrin: