My cat has constipation. Can I give lactulose syrup and how much?

Stick with the dose that your veterinarian recommends. Constipation can kill. The type of diarrhea he gets from lactulose likely will not impair him. Do not feed him dry food, but stick to good quality tinned cat food, or low residue tinned cat food. You can ask your vet if you can reduce the amount of the individual dose, however, please do not do this on your own without consulting with your vet. Unfortunately the broken pelvis has possibly caused the passage through the pelvis to get smaller and the constipation may have expanded the colon before the pelvis so that feces collect there and do not fit through the pelvical opening. So it is much better if the feces are soft, or even fairly liquid provided that is caused by the lactulose.

Hello, and thanks for your question. The specific flavor of lactulose shouldn't matter, but I'd make sure to give it according to your vet's recommendations. Constipation is a bit unusual in a young cat like Aspen (I'm seeing she is just over a year in your profile), so I would not recommend giving it unless your vet instructed you to do so. Hope this helps!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Yes, as long as you have found the right dose where she is not having diarrhea and losing an excess amount of fluids then it would be ok to be used on a daily basis. Good luck and have a good night!

You are better off giving him Miralax powder. The psyllium is a fiber that will bulk up the stools but it isn't really a laxative/stool softener. I would give him 1/4 teaspoon mixed in a bit of canned food every 12 hours to effect. I think this will help tremendously. https://www.walmart.ca/en/ip/equate-clearlax/6000189073881 Hope this helps. If you have more questions you can always opt for a private consultation where we can chat back and forth. That way you can ask as many questions as you'd like. Best wishes.

Hello, and thanks for your question on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. For now, I wouldn't stress about knowing exactly which medication has helped Kiki - in truth, it's probably been a combination of all the different interventions. Cats who are prone to constipation often need constant adjustments in their management, so for now, if she's doing well, continue the miralax as your vet advised and touch base with them if her stools become hard or less frequent again. Sometimes cats may need to be on both meds for a time, or even switch foods entirely to a diet formulated for cats with constipation issues. So, there's probably not one "right" medication for her, and a therapy that worked this time might still need to be adjusted in the future. I have found the Royal Canin GI Fiber Response food to help immensely - you could ask your vet if that's an appropriate option if Kiki continues having bouts of constipation. Hope this helps!

Unfortunately human laxatives are toxic to cats, so that is not a good idea. Depending on how constipated Martin is, sometimes your vet will have to do an enema to resolve the constipation. If the constipation is mild, you may be able to give a stool softener to help resolve the problem. There are some over the counter and some prescription medications for this. I am attaching a handout below that discusses constipation including medications that we use. https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4951509 Good luck! I hope that was helpful and answered your question. Thanks for using PetCoach.

While lactulose is a type of sugar, it will not make your cat overweight and it will also not damage your cat's teeth. Your kitty actually should lose some weight which will help with the constipation as well. If lactulose is working resolving the constipation then I would keep using it. Also make sure her water bowl is at least 5 feet away from the food bowl as cats do not like to drink water near their food.