# Rescue Remedy Effects?



## Kattt (Dec 20, 2008)

As I posted in other threads, my 7 year old female cat has been having constipation for a few weeks, with yet to resolve it. The vet did x-rays, bloodwork, etc and said theres no health issues causing it. And she is a high anxiety cat, so my vet suggested that stress may be the cause, and that I try Rescue Remedy.

So I gave her 4 drops in her food as directed on the box about 5 hours ago. Since then, she's seemed lethargic. Shes gotten up to eat/drink here and there, but seems kinda drowsy and depressed, and not her usual self. I understand its supposed to calm them, but does it make them just wanna sleep and have very little activity? Is this normal? I've never used it before, so I'm not sure whats normal, and whats not. Or if I should be worried that she seems kind of out of it.

She's also on Miralax 2x's a day for her constipation issues, so I hope this didn't upset her stomach even more.

I have another vet appointment tomorrow morning for a follow up exam on her constipation issues, and I'm going to keep a close eye on her throughout the night. But if anyone with Rescue Remedy experience could please advise if this is normal or not, and how long will it take to wear off?


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

I've been using Rescue Remedy for the past month with no results. But I think 5 drops in her food may be too much. It's 27% alcohol. For a person, the recommended amount is 4-5 drops in a glass of water. I put a few drops in their water bowls.


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## Kattt (Dec 20, 2008)

It's the pet version that I purchased. Not sure if its different from the human version or not? But according to the package, it says it's alcohol free formula. This is the version I purchased: http://www.amazon.com/Rescue-Remedy-Pet ... 463&sr=8-1

The package said to give 4 drops, so thats why I used that amount. And she did drink it all at once. So maybe thats why she's kind of zoned out? Maybe she's just in a very relaxed state, and I'm worrying for nothing because of her other issues. I don't know, I just know she's not her usual fiesty self.

I've been googling, and supposedly they can't overdose on Rescue Remedy. Luckily I have that vet appointment tomorrow, so they can check her out to be safe.


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

Sorry about that, you're right, different product.

On the web page you posted, it says to give 2 drops, though.


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## Kattt (Dec 20, 2008)

And the box and bottle says 4 drops. Nice way to confuse people :? 

I suppose most pets probably don't drink the full dosage at once, and she did.. so maybe thats why she seems to be a bit drugged. Well supposedly they can't overdose, so I hope I didn't do more harm than good. She doesn't appear to be in pain, and she's not vomitting.. she just looks high or something. 

Hopefully Rescue Remedy and Miralax in the same day, doesn't cause adverse effects. The vet seemed fine with giving it though, but as we know.. vets aren't always right. 

And I personally won't be using it again, I don't like the effect its had on her. I wonder how long it takes to wear off? Soon I hope. Its already been close to 6 hours since she's had it.


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

Two drops does seem like a very small amount. You probably gave the right dosage, so I wouldn't worry about that. I know it is troubling when our little ones are out of sorts. atback 

I've heard that if your cat has little or no response to catnip, they're more likely to have little or no response to homeopathic remedies like Rescue Remedy and Feliway.


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## Kattt (Dec 20, 2008)

Yea, its been a crazy few weeks with both of my cats requiring vet visits, and more visits to come. And my experience with multiple vets, they seem to not have an answer of what the cause of problems are, more than they actually do have an answer. Which just causes alot of stress for both the pets and their owners.

She seems to be coming out of her zombie state now, and walking around a bit... So I guess its starting to wear off. It lasted a good 6 hours. She does react to catnip, she loves the stuff.. rolls all around, and gets relaxed with that as well. Feliway Diffusers however, had no effect at all. I'm going to try the Feliway spray next.

While I didn't like the effect Rescue Remedy had, it did kind of zone her out. So maybe I'll use it prior to her vet visit tomorrow since the car ride/vet visits stress her out pretty bad.


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## laurief (Jun 22, 2008)

Make sure you are using the Rescue Remedy Pets formula. It is alcohol-free and formulated specifically for use in pets.

You can find the full list of Rescue Remedy formulae (including the Pets formula) here:

http://www.bachflower.com/Rescue_Remedy.htm

Laurie


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## Kattt (Dec 20, 2008)

Thanks for the replies Marie & Laurie!  

Its definitely the pets formula that I gave her, I double checked the box and the bottle to be sure, and they both say for pets and alcohol-free formula.

Laurie, I know you're very familiar with Miralax. Do you know if theres any risks of giving her Rescue Remedy while on Miralax?

Also, the Miralax isn't really doing anything for her at all, so after today... she won't be on that anymore. I increased her dosage to 1/8 2x's daily, and still had no change. She goes every 2 days, but still multiple trips to the litterbox, and lots of straining to get her stool out. I tried taking her off the pumpkin, thinking I was bulking her up too much, but that just made matters worse, to where she didn't go for 3 days. So back to the vets tomorrow for another exam, and she wants to try her on Lactulose next. Which I thought was basically the same as Miralax, but with a worst taste for the cats. So I'm not sure how that will fix anything.


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

Well, that's just great. Not only am I using the wrong kind, it has alcohol in it, and it's not working, NOW my cats have to go to rehab.


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## laurief (Jun 22, 2008)

Kattt said:


> Laurie, I know you're very familiar with Miralax. Do you know if theres any risks of giving her Rescue Remedy while on Miralax?


As far as I know, RR doesn't interact adversely with anything. In fact, I've never even had it have any effect on the animals I've tried it on. I know it's been reported to have miraculously relaxing effects on some animals, but it never has on mine. If it's relaxing your girl so much, I'd recommend continuing to use it, but perhaps at a lowered dose of 3 drops instead of 4.



> Also, the Miralax isn't really doing anything for her at all, so after today... she won't be on that anymore. I increased her dosage to 1/8 2x's daily, and still had no change.


If you stop it abruptly, she may become very constipated again, so I recommend tapering off if you really want to stop it. First, though, I'd try increasing the dosage to a heaping 1/8 tsp twice daily (the dose I was giving Billy for years). 

Most importantly, though, you MUST keep her very well hydrated, because neither Miralax nor Lactulose can do their jobs if she is at all dehydrated.



> I tried taking her off the pumpkin, thinking I was bulking her up too much, but that just made matters worse, to where she didn't go for 3 days.


I hope you put her back on the pumpkin.



> So back to the vets tomorrow for another exam, and she wants to try her on Lactulose next. Which I thought was basically the same as Miralax, but with a worst taste for the cats. So I'm not sure how that will fix anything.


Lactulose is an osmotic laxative like Miralax, which means that it acts in the same way to hold fluid in the digestive tract to help soften the stool. That's why hydration is the key to success. If there isn't enough extra fluid in her system for the osmotic laxative to draw into the digestive tract, then the med can't work.

Lactulose is an extremely sticky, sweet syrup (a lot like Karo Syrup) which cats tend to dislike. It's also terribly messy to administer unless you can get her to eat it mixed into canned food. There is also some risk of increased serum calcium with Lactulose, so you may want to discuss monitoring that with your vet.

You can read more about Lactulose and other constipation remedies here:

http://www.felinecrf.org/treatments.htm#constipation

Laurie


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## Kattt (Dec 20, 2008)

marie73 said:


> Well, that's just great. Not only am I using the wrong kind, it has alcohol in it, and it's not working, NOW my cats have to go to rehab.


LOL! That seriously made me laugh, your poor kitties need AA. :lol: 

Laurie, thanks again for your helpful reply. I did try the heaping tsps 2x's daily, and have been giving her lots of additional water. She drinks at least 4-6ozs a day in her wet food, I'm not sure if thats enough to make the Miralax effective enough or not? The vet says she should have about 250-300 ML's, which if my math is right - is about 10ozs per day. But thats just unrealistic to get a cat to drink that much water daily, at least for my cat it is... even when mixed in food, she won't drink THAT much. I feel like I'm always trying to shove water down her, to the point where its stressing me thinking shes not getting enough, since the Miralax/pumpkin isn't working.

I suggested the option of SubQ Fluids with my vet, but she didn't seem too keen on that idea. She said we could try it, but it might turn into a forever thing, and she's only 7... so she'd prefer that to be a last resort. Plus it kind of scares me the thought of giving her fluids, because shes extremely skittish, and probably won't sit still for me to administer a needle (She's a biter/scratcher/spaz too). But if it would make her better, I would figure out a way do it of course. I would do anything to fix her problem at this point.

I did put her back on the pumpkin today the minute I realized it made things worse, she was only off of it for 2 days. Lactulose seems pointless to try since it works the same as Miralax, and especially if theres higher risks. But I feel helpless at this point, like nothing is working. She hasn't gone for 3 days now, and she looks very uncomfortable. So I'm sure she's probably going to require another enema tomorrow at the vets


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## laurief (Jun 22, 2008)

Kattt said:


> I feel like I'm always trying to shove water down her, to the point where its stressing me thinking shes not getting enough, since the Miralax/pumpkin isn't working.


First, stressing isn't doing you or your girl any good, so stop it! Second, the Miralax and pumpkin ARE working. They just aren't working as well as you'd like, so Lactulose would be a good alternative to try (in addition to pumpkin). If she were my cat, I wouldn't hesitate to try Lactulose instead of Miralax and see if it works better for her. Yes, they are both osmotic laxatives, but they aren't identical in how they work. Lactulose might just be the answer for her.



> I suggested the option of SubQ Fluids with my vet, but she didn't seem too keen on that idea.


I agree with your vet. SubQ fluids can cause extra work for the body systems, so don't use them until and unless you can not keep her properly hydrated with the canned food soup you're feeding now.

I suspect that some or all of your girl's problem may be associated with low bowel motility. Her digestive muscles just aren't pushing the stool along vigorously enough, so it has too much time to dry out and get stuck before her body can expel it. There are several things you can try to improve motility. These are worth researching and discussing with your vet: methylcobalamin (the neurologically active form of Vit B12) and Folic Acid (another B vit that should be given with B12), and Zantac 75 (ranitidine). 

The following article is worth reading carefully ... several times:

http://www.vin.com/VINDBPub/SearchPB/Pr ... R00118.htm

and review the info on Tanya's site about constipation (esp. the sections on Lactulose and the mention of methylcobalamin) - http://www.felinecrf.org/treatments.htm#constipation - You will notice that she mentions a new, crystallized form of Lactulose available in the U.S. I don't know of anyone who's used it on their cat yet, but it sure would make administration of Lactulose MUCH easier and more palatable to the cat!

Laurie


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## jusjim (Jun 30, 2009)

I give Missy a big half teaspoon of pumpkin well mashed with a teaspoon of Tuna first thing every morning. Her stool (she hasn't been with me overlong) still seemed hard, so I started mixing in about a third of a teaspoon of canola oil. (Canola because to me it's virtually tasteless.) Last night's stool (she's quite regular now-- every night at my bedtime  ) appeared to be softer.


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## Kattt (Dec 20, 2008)

Thanks Laurie, you've been so helpful through all of this. It was your advice with the Miralax, that got her having semi-normal bowel movements again. And thanks for the input as well Jim!

When I talked to the vet last night, she said that her Miralax dosage could actually go up to 1/4 tsp 2x's daily, since she's a large cat (16lbs). She said 1/8 was probably too small a dosage for her weight. So last night I increased it not quite to 1/4, but in between 1/8 & 1/4, and I don't want to get too excited just yet, but she poo'd twice today, and got it out on the first try. She strained a bit each time to get it out, but nonetheless, it was her first try... where as the past few weeks, its taken her 3-4 and sometimes several more straining episodes to get it out. I also gave her that Rescue Remedy last night as well, so I’m not sure if it was the increase in Miralax that did the job, the Rescue Remedy relieving her stress, or a combo of both. 

I really didn't like the zombie effect the Rescue Remedy gave her though, and I think it also may have upset her stomach, she seemed very off and uncomfortable for several hours last night after I gave that to her (That could have also been because she didn't have her scheduled bowel movement that day too though, who knows). And given she's already on Miralax & Pumpkin too, I really hate adding something else that she has to ingest. So I ordered Feliway Spray today (Sadly, my local pet store was out of stock), which I should have by Tuesday, and I'm hoping that will work as a good de-stresser, without her having to ingest the Rescue Remedy. 

I read everything about constipation on that site last night, and saw the Kristalose liquid form of Lactulose, and was going to request my vet to give me that instead. But I talked to my vet again this morning, and told her about this mornings progress.. and we agreed to keep her on Miralax for now, since it may be finally starting to work. We don't want to mix up her system with something new, after shes finally showing signs of progress. She also cancelled her appointment for today as well, since she had a normal bowel movement, because she said we shouldn't rock the boat, and stress her out with a trip to the vets. If her straining continues, I will definitely discuss your motility suggestions with my vet.

I also got her a new litterbox today as well, so she has a couple of options to choose from now. Reading hoofmaiden's posts about the Biddy Box, I took the plunge and tried that one (Which I love so far). And she seems to love it as well. She jumped in and pee'd not even 5 minutes after I set it up. And she's already poo'd in it, and using the new box over the old. So hopefully the excitement of a new box will help her wanna use it too. Definitely not out of the woods yet, but always excited to see some progress.


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