My cat was prescribed Prednisone for Irritable Bowel Disease. He has been very cranky and agitated since he has been on this, which I understand is a rare side effect. Has anyone else experienced this and if so, did your cat eventually get used to it and return to its normal demeanor?

I feel like it is somewhat cruel to let my cat suffer the emotional side effects of this medication for the rest of his life. Then again, the meds might relieve his physical symptoms. Tough choice.

prednisone is a steroid. Not good. Have you explored dietary change for your cat before resorting to drugs?

I'd look into holistic vets in your area before you resign your cat to a life of unhappiness and poor health.

My dog has lymphoma and is on the pill version of prednisone. Yes, that is a somewhat "rare" or uncommon side effect. Secondly, your cat willl not be on prednisone for the rest of its life. I don't know where you heard this but that is untrue. An animal or human can only be on prednisone for so long. Eventually the body will reject it, the medication will need to be switched. - the suffering will stop. Don't give up and put it down.

Report the side effect to your veterinarian and they can determine if it's coincidental or directly related to the steroid selection. There are other steroids besides pred, if pred is causing unusual symptoms in your kitty. IBD is best treated by steroids initially, then pulse therapy as bouts resurface. Discuss diet with your vet also...get them to consider a list of your selected premium diets you've filtered through at a quality pet supply store, diets with less ingredients, high protein, low fat, and no by-products. These factors all help decrease flare ups of IBD. I hope he at least isn't dealing with diarrhea or vomiting anymore. So glad they finally gave you a diagnosis so you can help him feel better. pets question and answers,www.5d2d.com

Increased urination, thirst and hunger are also side effects of pred (and any steroid use), so ensure he has plenty of water, and he's emptying his bladder normally. These kind of extreme urges could make him "antsy." Keep plenty of fresh water available throughout the home (or whatever areas he has access to), and limit his stress as much as possible by maintaining routine, environment, diet, and comfort as much as possible.

Don't overfeed, as this leads to IBD episodes also, when the stomach is overburdened with food.

If they didn't do a good technique and positioning Xray of his abdomen, make sure they do. I've had 2 patients referred to us after treatment for 2 weeks and 6 weeks each of IBD, that actually had linear foreign bodies in their intestines that were obstructing enough to cause irritation and vomit/diarrhea, but not enough to fully obstruct the GI tract and cause regurgitation and limit blood supply to the intestines (classic foreign body obstruction signs), so their symptoms mirrored IBD, until they finally had Xrays. They were fortunate to still be alive! Just a warning. So many good vets miss diagnostics.


Good luck! It is a balancing act indeed to decide if the risk or experience of side effects is worth the result of treatment.

I suggest that you try your cat on a raw diet. It helps many cats with IBD.

I would not want one of my animals nor myself on long-term corticosteroids. There are too many side-effects. But if your cat has already been on Prednisone for a while DO NOT simply stop cold-turkey if you do want to try something else!
You must consult with a vet (who will probably tell you raw food is "dangerous") to taper off the dosage.

Some information on raw diet for cats, all discuss or mention IBD:
http://www.catnutrition.org/ibd.php
http://www.catinfo.org/
http://cats.about.com/od/diseasesandcond…