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Old September 9th, 2016, 10:38 PM
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JD's persistent URI--is it possible L-lysine is making it worse?

It's starting to look like JD's URI is going to be chronic. He's had gooby eyes, sneezing fits and a runny nose since he arrived. As a last resort, and after being told by the vet that, at best, it would help and, at worst, it would do no harm, we decided to try L-lysine.

We got some L-lysine from a pet supply store. It's chewable and formulated especially for cats. 250 mg per chew. It says one per day for kittens, 2 per day for cats. Since we don't know exactly how old JD is, we started with 1 chew.

He ate it, but then threw up his breakfast. The next day, I tried another, which he just gummed and spit out. So I gave him a day off, then sliced up a half chew for his morning meal the next day. He kept that down, so we graduated to 1/2 chew in the morning and 1/2 at night. He's had about 3 days of lysine in a row without nausea now.

However, his sneezing is worse, he's begun coughing again (he had been coughing early on but after a few weeks it had been much reduced), and his eye goobies are pretty bad. Does this mean that his immune system is ramping up and fighting whatever is ailing him or does this mean that the L-lysine is actually making him worse? Is it safe to continue the L-lysine for a while longer?
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Old September 10th, 2016, 07:57 AM
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I don't know. I just want to say I hope it gets better quickly. When a mother and kitten I got from the Human Society both developed URI (the Humane Society shelter is probably where they caught it) the Vet had me give them Aspirin. You can give very small amounts of Aspirin to cats but best only on VEt's orders. The kitten weighed just +one pound. The Vet had me cutting a baby Aspirin into eighths. Then I had to guess how much resulting dust equalled 1/8 of what I'd started with. It was not fun.

JD, you cut this out and get better.
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Old September 10th, 2016, 01:20 PM
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Interesting! What did the aspirin do? Were they feverish?

I'd settle for a little improvement--I feel like we're going backward from where we were before the L-lysine. I guess I'll give it a chance to work and continue the dosing for another few days--unless he gets even worse, in which case I'll just drop the L-lysine entirely. Sounds like a plan, anyway!

(Oh, and I keep telling JD the same thing! Cut this out and get better!! Thanks for the well-wishes!)
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Old September 10th, 2016, 05:50 PM
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Yes, they both had temperatures. Taking a kitten's temperature and an adult cat you just got, that's not fun either.
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Old September 10th, 2016, 09:21 PM
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Hi HRP:

Sorry to hear you are having such an issue with JD and his upper respiratory problems. I had considerable problems with our late Missy a few years ago and my vet - at the time - suggested using L - Lysine, which I did. She recommended starting at low dosage of 250 mg twice a day up to 500 mg twice a day for a week and then dropping off to the 250 mg for maintenance. It seemed to help to a degree. I also used a drop of Colloidal Silver in the eyes 2 or 3 times a day which seemed to relieve a lot of pain and allowed her to have her eyes open properly. I would try to put a drop into her nostrils from time to time, but she was not impressed with that. This also helped to relieve congestion.

Something that I found contributed to the problem, was stress within our human family. The animals seem to pick up on it quickly. So quite possibly JD could still be under some sort of stress - being new family surroundings. And who knows what he was under before coming to you. I find that some cats have a long memory. And if he's one of them, this could be part of the problem.

Something I found with Missy was to make sure she was on quality food - so I made my own raw food and was really surprised at the difference it made. Quality canned cat food may have the same ability, but I don't do that.

I'm including a couple of web sites that might be of interest.

If there is anything I can assist with, let me know.

http://holisticat.com/en/acute-conditions/37-uri.html

http://www.littlebigcat.com/health/f...onjunctivitis/
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Old September 10th, 2016, 10:48 PM
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Thanks for those links, Reg!

Where would I get Colloidal Silver? Health food store, maybe? Or would a pet supply place have some?

One new thing that might be stressing him--he's undergoing hormonal changes as he matures. He won't be neutered for another 16 days--we and the vet agreed that he needed to be healthier before we stressed him with a vet stay like that. But we've noticed he's maturing and I'm sure that must be causing some stress. I know he's been trying to sneak outside--which is odd for a cat that doesn't like the feel of grass on his feet...which makes me think wanderlust is kicking in. Thankfully, except for bobcats, he's not likely to pick up the scent of any fems in heat out here.

I wish JD could tolerate 500 mg of L-lysine, but he seems to have trouble keeping half that dose down. I wonder if I should find some capsulated L-lysine--maybe he's intolerant to something other than the L-Lysine in the chews we found?

I was thinking about a raw diet. Do you have any links to good intro material on feeding cats raw?
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Old September 11th, 2016, 09:43 PM
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Hello again HRP:

When it comes to Colloidal Silver, I would be purchasing it at a good health food store. Keep the ppm low ( parts per million ) - between 5 and 10, especially for use around the eyes. ( This was told to me by my eye surgeon who is a hunter and a great lover of Retrievers. He keeps a bottle in his pocket to treat his dogs after a rompse in the bush. It helps to relieve the inflammation caused from running through the grass and brush.)

When applying to the eyes, what I have found works best for me, is to wedge puss between my body and the arm on the couch or soft chair, tip the head up on an angle and close the eye with the thumb and finger of one hand and put a drop or 2 maybe, right in the corner of the eye and the nose, then open the eye with the index finger and thumb that you used to close the eye. Then tip the head so that the silver runs across the eye. The reason I do this is to lessen the shock of the drop hitting the eyeball itself and it doesn't seem to stress the animal as bad.

I have bought Colloidal Silver from the pet food store and the contents did not match what was on the bottle's label. The ppm label on the bottle was 20 ppm and the contents tested at 47 ppm. ( I made silver commercially at one time, for dispensing in health food stores.)

When it comes to L - Lysine, I bought the NOW brand capsules 500 mg to start. Later on I bought it in bulk by the pound jar, and at about that time, I switched Missy back to raw foods and in the course of a month or so, the problem had gone into remission.

I agree that if there are hormonal issues going on, this also could cause stress. I would hope that there would be at least a month between the vaccinations and neutering. Vaccinations will also stress the animal. We also tried to get at least 45 days or so between the 2 procedures.

What are you feeding JD right now? If you're going to use the L - Lysine from the health food store, it should be mixed into wet food, due to the fact that it has a salty flavour that may turn him off. Our vet also had L - Lysine in a pressurized dispenser that you could either give direct to the cat or put it in its food, but it was expensive.

Regards raw food, here are 3 web sites that I follow quite closely. They have some really good recipes in them. I also feed raw pork which gets people upset. But I follow the CDC handling protocols to help eliminate any possibilities of trygonosis ( spelling ). Any cases of that in Canada have to be reported to the Department of Agriculture according to law. It has been a few years since I did my research, and at that time, it had been in excess of 15 years since the last case reported.

http://holisticat.com/en/

http://www.catinfo.org/

http://feline-nutrition.org/


There are other good web sites, if you decide to go this route, make sure you follow the recipes. The supplements are of major importance to good health.
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Old September 12th, 2016, 09:58 AM
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Thanks so much, Reg! I'm going to have to check out the links later when my connection is fast enough to open them....sigh.

Can we afford to wait 45 more days above and beyond the two weeks from now that we were planning on getting him neutered, do you think? He's due for his FeLV booster that day, as well. We were hoping to do the booster, a dental and the neutering that day. I don't want to stress the little guy any more than necessary. He's changing pretty quickly now, though, and showing a distressing desire to get outside. I've been told this is the wandering/mating season and our constant fear is that he's going to get out accidentally
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Old September 12th, 2016, 07:54 PM
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Back atcha HRP:

Kind of caught between a rock and a hard place. JD is strictly an indoor cat now, is he not? If he is, I would be putting the booster off until he has been neutered. Hopefully the neutering will take some of the spunk out of him - at least for a bit anyway. And he may be able to get over the stress from that quicker than the vaccine, and possibly get that done after 2 or 3 weeks. I would be running it by the vet, since they seem to be knowledgeable with his condition.

Something I have found over the years is that different vet establishments in different towns have different protocols when it comes to vaccinations. And the last couple of vets I've had would only vaccinate in response to the environment in which the cats were raised. For example - strictly indoor cats, indoor/outdoor cat, multi cat dwellings - and some vets never even bother asking. Once they've had their initial shots, that's basically it.

The web sites that I sent along all have articles on vaccinations.

See if the vet can switch things around to make it more comfortable for JD. YOu don't want to pile things on for him - spread things out a bit if possible.

A situation similar to yours is what caused our problems with Missy. She was vaccinated, and spayed within 24 hours and then endured a very long car ride with a dog, and 2 other kitties to get to our home a few days later. It screwed her immune system up and we had to do a lot of research and vet work for the next 12 years to keep her as healthy as possible and comfortable.

We also had another situation with our youngest kitty. She came out of a heat period on a Friday and was spayed on the following Monday - we didn't know any better at the time - and it took quite a few years for her to come out of whatever it was that the procedure did to her system.

This is why I am kind of stand offish on having things done too close together.

Some animals will come through stuff with no problems at all, and then there are others. "Murphy's Law".
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Old September 13th, 2016, 12:06 PM
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Murphy's law and I have a long and sordid history

Maybe we'll put off that booster--isn't FeLV the one that they get a natural immunity to as they age, anyway? He must be almost a year old by now and if he hasn't gotten it, yet, he's not likely to get it now, given that he is an indoor-only (except on leash and harness) cat and there are no other cats around the neighborhood. (And yes, I'm pretty sure of that, since cats are snacks to the wildlife around here )

Still can't open the links, which is odd--usually our connection is the slowest when the weekend out-of-towners are here visiting and eating up the signal--so I'm thinking the phone company is having difficulties with the network again. Bah! Well, I'll get them open eventually!
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Old September 13th, 2016, 01:53 PM
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Back again HRP

I thought by the pics that he was getting older. Has he been spraying at all, yet? Usually male kitties start that habit somewhere after 8 months, or so, and that's why it is usually recommended neutering soon after the age of 6 months.

Basically, as I already said, I'd be getting him neutered as soon as possible. As far as the booster is concerned, it's not an immediate necessity, and the teeth can wait for another day as well.

You didn't mention what you are presently feeding. If you decide to do the raw food bit, it will make a great difference in the condition of his teeth and mouth.

No where you're coming from with the dial up for internet. We suffered that indignity when we lived in the country.
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Old September 13th, 2016, 08:31 PM
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We have 3 Mbps DSL...that can sometimes get as fast as dial-up these days

We still have JD on kitten chow (Gold Fromm Kitten formula) but we're down to only about 1/4 c. a day. He gets a 5.5 oz can of wet, separated into two portions (as is the kibble). We alternate between Blue Wilderness Chicken and Trout, Blue Wilderness Rocky Mountain Recipe Red Meat Feast (the only beef-based food he likes), Merrick Thanksgiving Day Dinner, Merrick Turducken, and Merrick Grammy's Pot Pie. When I go into Eau Claire I always scout around for new flavors that he might enjoy, but those 5 will likely be our standby menu until/unless I switch him to raw.

No spraying, yet, although he is definitely beginning to develop into a muscular tom. You can tell his head and neck are more massive and he's getting very athletic. He weighed just under 6 pounds when he arrived and has gained about a pound-and-a-half. I have to keep asking the techs if he's getting fat--it seems like such a large percentage of body mass to have added--but they all seem to think he's a good weight for his size I've gotten very good at judging body condition on the dogs over the years, but I have no experience to draw on for cats. How do you tell if a cat is getting too fat? Any tips?

Oh, and the little darling kept down 500 mg of L-lysine today! Yay! The vet thinks the URI will be chronic but the current increase in symptoms is because the L-lysine is working and the body is fighting the virus harder again. I don't know what to think, and I'm a wee bit uncomfortable stressing him with the neuter when he's still feeling sort of punk. On the other hand, he has way more energy now than he did when he first arrived--he plays, grooms, chases...claws, bites But it's play-biting (no blood ) and it's not really clawing--just reaches up and puts a paw on either side of my face, then reaches up and nibbles my chin. So vicious, my little darling!

He did accidentally snag my fingertip with a claw a few weeks back, while he was attacking his bouncy mouse--great motivation for learning how to clip a cat's nails!
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Old September 14th, 2016, 01:17 PM
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Hi again:

I was thinking of the L-Lysine issues you seem to be having. I know a few years back when I was having so much trouble with Missy, between upper respiratory and IBD, when I talked to one of the vets in regards to the L-Lysine, she informed me about the lack of meat proteins in our cat foods. This is causing a lack of lysine that is found in meat, and it is allowing the Herpes virus not to be under control.

I wish I could remember all the ins and outs about it, but it's a few years back.

I know I was surprised at how quickly Missy seemed to come out of the upper respiratory problem when she was put back on raw food. So I think if it were me, I'd be following through with the L-Lysine. And if you're thinking of feeding JD raw food, I would be using raw meat as a treat from time to time. What I do with our crew is dice up lamb chops and other meats and freeze them in small containers, usually 1 or 2 oz containers, and give them about a third of an ounce a day as a treat.( 10 gms) And that's generally at night, a couple of hours after suppertime.

This would help to get him started on raw food for down the line, and it makes a good healthy treat.

Sometimes starting a cat on raw food can be time consuming and frustrating. If he's already had a taste of raw treats, it'll help.

I was also thinking that perhaps you could have his teeth looked at at the same time as the neutering, cause it shouldn't be that much of a problem. He'll be under aenesthetic for the neutering anyway. That would save stressing him with another trip.

You mentioned about being scratched. If you picked up Colloidal Silver for his eyes, when it comes to scratches on yourself, turn the area up and put a drop or 2 of the Silver on it, and the pain should be gone within a matter of a couple of minutes. It also works on light tooth punctures - I've had those inflame the hand. Had I used the Silver at the time of puncture, I wouldn't have had the problem.

Glad to see he's getting wet food. It helps to administer the L-Lysine.
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Old September 14th, 2016, 04:07 PM
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Thanks for all the advice, Reg! Sorry to bend your ear so much, but I'm sort of out of my element with this feline fella!

That idea about the raw treat is a really good one! At worst, he'll get some tasty nutritional treats; at best, if we switch him over to a raw diet, we'll be that much farther ahead!

He's been keeping the L-lysine down even at the higher dose, so we'll continue with that for a bit and see what comes of it. His eyes actually looked a bit better this morning! There's hope, yet!
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Old September 22nd, 2016, 09:17 PM
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JD has developed diarrhea... I have no idea how to treat diarrhea in cats. (We'll be calling the vet tomorrow.) I'm assuming it's not like in dogs where you withhold food for a day to rest the digestive system? So what do you do for a cat?

Could this be from the L-lysine? I wanted to keep him on the 500 mg/day for a full 2 wks, then switch back to a maintenance dose of 250 mg/day, but I'm thinking of stopping it entirely.

His diet hasn't changed. He still has a good appetite and drinks a fair amount of water (maybe a little more since the diarrhea started, which wouldn't be surprising), but since his stool started getting soft 3 days ago, he's been a little cranky and a bit more lethargic than usual. Then tonight he had a couple very liquid, foul-smelling stools...

Any suggestions?
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Old September 22nd, 2016, 10:46 PM
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Hi Hazel:

Sorry to hear that JD is having another problem.

As far as the L-Lysine causing the problem - I don't think that is causing the issue. I hadn't encountered it when using the Lysine, and I haven't heard of anyone else having the problem. Not to say that it doesn't happen.

Lysine is an Amino acid that is present in meat. It's something that cats cannot produce on their own, it has to be obtained from their meat food.
Kibble food is very low in it. I'm not sure about the canned food.

Since he's on canned food, something you could try adding would be pure pumpkin puree. About a tsp per meal. I hear people have good success with this.

Something that I have used and had success with is Slippery Elm Bark. A good recipe is in Little Big Cats web site. The web site is up the page in an earlier posting. Another one that I used a long time ago was Bentonite Clay. I'll have to see if I can find the recipe.

Are you able to access or open web sites yet? or are you still dealing with slow dial up?

Are emails a problem, because if they are not, I could pm you with some information tomorrow.

Assume Mr. D hasn't been neutered yet?

Giving the vet office a phone call about the diarhea sounds like a good idea.
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Old September 23rd, 2016, 07:42 AM
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Poor JD. I have recently dealt with the opposite problem, constipation in my 18 year old cat. I tried slippery elm bark too and I cooked it with homemade chicken or turkey broth. Assuming a cat with diarrhoea needs hydration just as much as a cat with constipation this may help and it certainly made it more palatable and it made it easier to serve. Cooked in plain water the SEB had the consistency of egg white, which is hard to separate by spoonsfuls. Plus there are some nutrients in the broth, some call it bone broth. I must say as well how surprised I was my cat did eat just the plain SEB powder mixed into her food. It smelled like a tree to me, I thought she'd turn her nose up, but she ate it.

If you try pumpkin, consider sweet potato as well. SP has six times the fibre of pumpkin so you need to get less into the cat to help firm things up. Start with an extremely small amount, a fraction of a teaspoon. Like us, introducing too much fibre too soon makes for loose stool. My cat wouldn't eat either pumpkin or sweet potato (both cooked) but she ate the SEB, you just can't figure cats.
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Old September 23rd, 2016, 04:54 PM
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Poor JD can't seem to catch a break
Has anything changed with his diet recently?
Is he on the mend yet?
The only time my cat had diahrea was when I was silly enough to change his food. After a couple of vet visits and switching back to his original food, he was back to normal. It was scary though as the upset to his bowels caused some bleeding. Thankfully that cleared up on its own.
Sending well wishes to the little guy
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Old September 23rd, 2016, 05:43 PM
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Dang it, Reg--I just had the sites open within the past few days, but the connection is degrading because of the weekend crowd streaming in so now I can't get them up again. But I'm sure they'll be accessible again by Monday, so I'll do a little more reading then.

I've heard of SEB but had forgotten about it. Is that something that I'd have to get at a health food place or would a pet supply store maybe have it?

Interesting that you mentioned the bentonite clay, Reg--I thought it sounded familiar. Turns out the litter we use has bentonite clay in it...but I'm assuming that sprinkling the litter in his food is not a good idea?

I use pumpkin with the dogs all the time--we have a couple with hip/SI nerve issues that need a little help staying regular, so they get pumpkin in the morning. I'll steal a little of theirs for JD. I'm sure they won't mind.

Do you process your own sweet potato, Longblades, or does it come canned? (Probably a stupid question, but I've never looked for sweet potato except as a root! )

No change in diet, Lynne. He's been rotating between 5 different varieties of canned food since he arrived in July and hasn't had any problems.

The vet sent out part of the sample I took in today for analysis--results due back tomorrow, and with luck, before they close at noon. Maybe we'll know more then. Meanwhile, until I can get back into town for SEB, I'm hoping the pumpkin will help a little.

Thanks for the ideas and the good wishes!
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Old September 23rd, 2016, 06:39 PM
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I buy sweet potato at the grocery store, bake it or nuke it. It's a regular item here as I mix it with ground kangaroo to make jerky treats for the dog. We humans like sweet potato too.

For the SEB I had to go to a health food store.



Unrelated but I have made "pumpkin pie" with sweet potato. I don't need to use as much sugar, everything else stays the same. What I would really like to find are the purple fleshed sweet potatoes and make a pie with them. With whipped cream on top I think it would look fabulous. It's my house for Thanksgiving Oct.9 (Thanksgiving is Oct. 10 in Canada) and that would make things a bit different.

https://www.google.ca/search?q=purpl...sAQIJw&dpr=0.9
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Old September 23rd, 2016, 09:58 PM
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Okay Hazel

I generally get it at a health food store. I've tried the capsules, but they don't work as well.

Sprinkling the litter on the food will not work -

You didn't say whether JD has been neutered yet or not. Also would a "pm" help with some information for you? Let me know.

Longblades suggestion of sweet potato is a good one as well. I've heard of it being used with success, just never used it myself.

How to Make Slippery Elm Syrup
In a small stainless steel or glass saucepan (do not use
aluminum, copper or ‘Teflon non-stick’ pans) place 1/2
cup of ‘cold’ purified or distilled water and 1 heaping
teaspoon of powdered slippery elm. Whip with a fork.
Bring to a simmer over low heat, stirring constantly.
Simmer 2 to 3 minutes or until slightly thickened. Cool
mixture to room temperature. Store refrigerated in a
tightly capped jar (Mason or Ball canning jars for making
jelly or jam work great). Keeps its medicinal properties
and remains fresh for 1 week.
Example dose: 1 teasp. given 5 to 10 before each meal.

This is the recipe that was supplied to me by my holistic vet. As mentioned it can be mixed in with the food or put on the food dry, but the #1 choice if possible, is to administer with a syringe or eye dropper. I prefer the eye dropper cause it's easier to give - a little easier to control.

It is very soothing for inflammation of the mouth or gastrointestinal tract. It can also be used on dogs and humans.
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Old September 24th, 2016, 07:46 AM
Longblades Longblades is offline
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In case it helps, I have the same SEB recipe as supplied by Reg above. The only thing I changed was I used the home made broth. That made the concoction gel up like jello and I could feed it like that, cold, or warm it a bit to liquify.
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Old September 24th, 2016, 11:09 AM
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Yes Longblades - sounds like a super idea. Must remember that for the next time I have to use it. There's a possibility that it might shorten the shelf life.

Another thing it's going to do is interfere with the taste test to check the quality of your SEB.
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Old September 24th, 2016, 03:04 PM
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Do you have any favorite brands of SEB--or any I should specifically avoid? I'm not sure how to check the quality of the SEB....

I think I'll try it with homemade broth--could I freeze most of the broth as cubes and thaw it as needed to make the SEB?

And (nearly totally unrelated), that sweet potato pie looks luscious!
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Old September 24th, 2016, 03:08 PM
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Oh, and I think the L-lysine was actually helping--now that he's off it, he's more congested. If there's no effect on the stool this afternoon after having been off it a while, I'll put him back on 250 mg L-lysine tonight.
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Old September 24th, 2016, 03:48 PM
Longblades Longblades is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Reg View Post
Yes Longblades - sounds like a super idea. Must remember that for the next time I have to use it. There's a possibility that it might shorten the shelf life.

Another thing it's going to do is interfere with the taste test to check the quality of your SEB.
I don't think so, I still only make the amount in the recipe and only keep it in the fridge, in a sealed glass jar, for a week. I sterilize the jar same as I do when canning food. The minute I open the jar it's no longer sterile of course. I can taste the SEB powder before I use it, smell it too.

Here's a question though, wondered if I should store the SEB powder in the fridge too? That stuff isn't cheap, want it to last as long as it can.
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Old September 24th, 2016, 07:56 PM
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Oh, good question! Does it have a short shelf-life?

I gave him a little bit of pumpkin this morning along with a very teeny sprinkle of the probiotic we give the dogs and there was a very small improvement in his stool this evening. Not fully formed but not fully liquid anymore, either! Still don't know if the absence of L-lysine has anything to do with it or if it's just the addition of the pumpkin and probiotic. Skipped the lysine again tonight, just in case that's part of the equation, but will re-introduce it if the improvement continues and see what happens.

Had an interesting night. JD came up in the family room, as we've been doing every night, and Grace came in to visit (the other dogs are gated out, but they can watch). He started out arrogant and cocky as usual, leaping on her back from behind at one point and biting at her ears. The second 'attack', though, she was ready for him and bopped him in the face with a discipline nip (basically, he just ran into her teeth and bounced back). There was no yowling, no blood, not even a sneeze--but he actually took the correction and gave her some space!! Yahoo!! He wandered around for a while, keeping an eye on her, then settled in for a rest and a think-through under the futon couch. Eventually, Grace was lying down next to the couch, wagging her tail and barking, trying to entice him out to play. He hasn't figured that part out, yet, though, but at least he didn't jump on her head any more and bite her ears, or bite at her elbows or hocks, again tonight. Maybe we're getting somewhere!
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Old September 24th, 2016, 09:24 PM
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Hazel you were asking about a brand name for the SEB. I would recommend the NOW brand in bulk. Comes in a 4 oz container. It has some decent reviews in iHerb with people using it for cats and dogs. It's the smallest container I seem to be able to find.

I tried this many years ago but here in Canada, at the time, I could get it only in capsule form. Personally, I didn't like the capsules, so consequently I switched to a bulk. The shelf life. I've found it's good for 3 or 4 years providing the product is kept in a well sealed air tight container in a cool place.

I've often wondered if it would keep longer in the freezer, as Longblades asked.

Glad to hear that JD is showing some signs of "sociability" with the dog Grace. Hopefully the pumpkin puree will work on the diarhea.
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Old September 25th, 2016, 08:32 AM
Longblades Longblades is offline
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In case it helps anyone I am in Ontario, Canada and the loose powder product I bought recently at a health food store is by Organic Traditions.

https://yourorganicsources.com/Produ...der--7-Oz-200g

They have an office in Toronto. The 7 oz - 200g package cost me $27.99. Nowhere on the package does it say how to store it so I have emailed to ask them, just now.

At the health food store the saleslady told me the capsules (which they didn't have) have the SEB coated with some kind of non clumping agent. Now, it seems to me that it would be the loose powder that would need that more than the capsules but I don't know about this.

I just recently learned the reason many recipes say not to use pre-shredded cheese in them is because it has cornstarch to keep the shredded cheese from clumping and that means it won't melt properly in recipes where you want it to. The little bit of cornstarch won't hurt you and I have never noticed if the stuff melts differently or not. So if there is a non-clumping agent in the capsules or the powder SEB I'm not sure if it matters much.

Last edited by Longblades; September 25th, 2016 at 08:46 AM.
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Old September 25th, 2016, 11:48 AM
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Thanks for the info! Will have to hit the mall next time in town--I think that's where the health food stores relocated to... If I can't find a product I'm comfortable with, I'll order online.

Reg, I finally got two of the links to open today--but the holisticat one came up as a 404 Page Not Found error again. Finding lots of good info on the other two, though! Thanks again!! Also thank you for the offer of PMing the info but I hate to put you to the trouble and time of putting it all together, so I'm glad the links work for me some of the time! I was watching the campers peel out of town this morning, rubbing my hands together gleefully, waiting for the WiFi usage at the bars to fall far enough for me to get a decent connection today!

And I keep forgetting to say, although you've asked, that JD's neuter is scheduled for this coming Tuesday if we can clear up the diarrhea by then. If we can't, we'll probably bump it back another week...

Speaking of which, JD's morning stool was more formed yet! So I'm continuing with the pumpkin and the probiotic and as soon as he's consistently solid, we'll reintroduce the lysine at a lower dose. He's a little more lethargic than usual--I think from the congestion. I sure hope the lysine doesn't turn out to be the problem, because it really did seem to help.
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