While pet cats can sometimes be picky eaters, one reason your pet may not be normally eating is because of an upset or sensitive stomach. Just like other animals, cats experience certain gastrointestinal and digestive issues. When this happens, your vet will often recommend the prescription diet i/d cat food.
What is the prescription diet i/d cat food?
This cat food is specially formulated by nutritionists and veterinarians for digestive care and clinically proven to improve stool quality and digestion. It contains Psyllium, a leafy-stemmed Eurasian plantain, to promote healthy intestinal regularity and motility.
It also contains a prebiotic which significantly increases beneficial gut bacteria and supports a healthy microbiome balance. Vets recommend that you give this food alternative to your pet cat while still experiencing stomach disorder and until your pet’s tummy becomes normal again.
What are the ingredients of a prescription diet i/d cat food?
The ingredients of this cat food alternative include the following:
- protein in the form of chicken or white meat
- vegetables
- minerals, calcium, taurine, and magnesium
- soy fiber
- brewer rice
- ground whole grain corn
These ingredients all make up a nutritionally-balanced meal, improve resistance, and for a speedy recovery.
This cat food alternative is highly digestible with an optimal balance of soluble and insoluble natural fibers. Aside from Prebiotic, it has essential omega 3 and 6 fatty acids. It also has clinically proven antioxidants and high in electrolytes and B vitamins.
Pros and cons of the prescription diet i/d cat food
Pros
Prescription diet i/d cat food alternative supports regularity and bowel health and replaces lost nutrients for easy nutrition absorption for your pet cat. It also promotes the growth of beneficial gut bacteria. Most importantly, this alternative supports a healthy immune system and meets the special nutritional needs for felines.
Cons
This cat food alternative may not sit well with some cats simply because cats are born carnivores and most of their diet contains meat and doesn’t need much fiber especially if the digestive function goes back to normal again. Also, consuming fiber may ultimately result in stomach problems. Thus, using this cat food alternative should be done with caution, and with the able monitoring of your vet. Finally, another downside of this alternative is the fact that it’s pricey compared to the usual canned food for your pets.
While pet cats may have simple meal requirements, they tend to become fussy due to a sensitive stomach. This requires prompt attention and thorough check-up with your vet so that the right treatment may be given. The intake of a prescription diet i/d cat food alternative is also beneficial as a therapeutic supplement while your pet’s stomach undergoes recovery and until it ultimately regains its normal function again.
Some prescription diet i/d cat food alternatives
Hill’s Prescription Diet I/D Feline Chicken and Vegetable Stew
This product is available in a size weighing 2.9 ounces. These are its key ingredients:
- water, chicken, pork liver, carrots, wheat gluten, rice starch, rice, chicken fat, chicken liver flavor, powdered cellulose, potassium alginate, calcium chloride, monosodium phosphate, soybean oil, taurine, vitamins, and riboflavin, among others.
Hill’s Prescription Diet I/D Feline
This product is available in sizes weighing 8.5 pounds and 4 pounds. These are its key ingredients:
- chicken, cracked pearled barley, corn gluten meal, brewers rice, pork fat, chicken meal, whole grain corn, egg product, chicken liver flavor, lactic acid, dried beet pulp, calcium sulfate, potassium chloride, vitamins, taurine, l-lysine, and beta carotene, among others.
Hill’s Prescription Diet I/D Feline ( Canned)
This product is available in a size weighing 5.5 ounces. These are its key ingredients:
- water, pork liver, chicken, rice, potato protein, chicken fat, chicken liver flavor, powdered cellulose, dried beet pulp, guar gum, calcium sulfate, calcium carbonate, vitamins, ascorbic acid, biotin, folic acid, and ferrous sulfate, among others.
What are the common gastrointestinal and digestive disorders of cats?
A digestive disorder reduces the absorption of food and alters its passage through the digestive tract while a gastrointestinal disorder affects the cat’s stomach and intestines. These disorders may lead to dehydration, malnutrition, and electrolyte imbalance. Some cat breeds are more prone to digestive problems such as the Ragdoll, Sphynx, and the Rex.
Causes
The common causes of gastrointestinal and digestive disorders include food intolerance or sensitivities, infections, parasites, bacterias and viruses, and lack of digestive enzymes.
Common digestive disorders
These are some of the common digestive disorders:
- acute gastroenteritis – inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract caused by the infection of bacteria, parasites, medication, or even new food
- diarrhea – unformed or loose bowels due to infections with protozoal organisms, and dietary imbalance.
- constipation – infrequent or hard to pass bowel movements
- pancreatitis – an inflammatory condition or infection of the pancreas
- colitis- inflammation of the large intestine resulting in frequent and painful passing of feces.
- irritable bowel syndrome – chronic inflammation and discomfort of a cat’s bowels but usually not directly linked to gastrointestinal disease.
- exocrine pancreatic insufficiency – characterized by weight loss and a large number of soft feces mainly due to chronic pancreatitis.
- small intestinal malabsorption – inflammation of the small intestine resulting in weight loss and diarrhea.
Symptoms
The most common symptoms of stomach problems are soft stools or diarrhea as well as the following:
- abdominal pain
- weight loss
- vomiting
- flatulence or passing of gas from the digestive system out of the back passage
- regurgitation or the action of bringing up swallowed food back to the mouth
- weakness
- blood or mucus in the feces
- change in appetite
Treatment
Upon careful assessment and diagnosis of your cat’s stomach problem, your vet will usually prescribe the necessary medication to stabilize her condition and nurse her back to health. Also, your vet may recommend that you feed your pet cat with highly digestible food to prevent irritation of her stomach and intestines such as prescription diet i/d cat food alternative. It’s also important that your pet kitty is hydrated to replenish lost fluids in her body.