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Cat Diarrhea

2K views 3 replies 3 participants last post by  chillminx 
#1 ·
Hi all!

I’ve recently taken in a stray cat that was found by a friend. I’ve had her about a week now. For the first few days she was absolutely fine, but on Sunday her poos have become softer and now they are very runny. I had made an appointment at the vet for an initial consultation before this started (just to make sure she’s healthy, get her vaccinations, and see when I can get her fixed) but this is on Saturday and I’m not sure if I should be calling them sooner or wait and see and mention it then.

I have been feeding her whiskas dry kitten food (she’s not a tiny kitten, but my friend brought her to a vet when they first found her and they said she was under a year old). I tried switching to another brand for a day but it only seemed to make it worse. Apart from that, she is still eating and drinking and playing and doesn’t seem lethargic or anything, so I’m not sure how worried I should be.

I would appreciate any advice - thank you!
 
#2 ·
Hello @Ayemque and welcome :)

I would take her off the dry food and for the next few days feed her a bland diet of home-cooked chicken drumsticks to rest her bowel. .

Serve the cooked drumsticks chopped into pieces, without the bone, but with the skin and also with the cooking juices to provide fluids. Nothing else except a bowl of water for her. Feed her little and often - 4 or 5 meals a day while she has an upset bowel.

It is likely she won't pass any stools for a few days and then will pass a formed poo. At this point you need to start transferring her to a wet food diet, a little a time, while you continue with the chicken diet gradually reducing it, as you increase the wet food.

No dry food at all, it is too rich for her tummy. If you need to keep costs down, an inexpensive wet food such as Felix As Good As it Looks pouches is better for her than dry food.

Has you wormed her since you adopted her? As it is only 2 days to Saturday you could leave it until you see the vet and ask them to recommend a wormer. (I use Milbemax worming tablets for my cats every 3 months - they are only available from the vet, or with a prescription). .

Your cat will also need a flea treatment if you have not yet treated her for fleas. Advantage spot-on is an effective one and you can buy it online at pet pharmacies without a prescription. Much cheaper than buying it from the vet.
 
#3 ·
I was in your situation, I advise you to buy a probiotic to give once a day to your cat (Fortiflora probiotic supplement by Purina). It helps with diarrhea and will restore her intestinal microflora.
It might just be a dietary issue (new alimentation), so try to get her something plain for upset stomach, but might be something else, so if I were you I'll try to take a close look at her stool (is there blood ? does it seems viscous?) and I would talk about it to your vet. My kitten had diarrhea caused by Giardia, it's an intestinal parasite (nothing serious!), since we were concerned about the diarrhea our vet asked us to bring a stool sample, and after running a few test he determined that she was infected with Giardia and prescribed a one-week treatment.
Hope it gets better soon
 
#4 · (Edited)
@clorefi

Giardia is a parasitic micro-organism, which is highly contagious and can be hard to get rid of because the cysts live quite a long time outside the body, especially in a damp environment. We had it at the Shelter a few years ago, and we had to quarantine about 20 of our cats for about a month until we were sure the giardia had gone. During that period only certain staff were only allowed in the quarantine pens [and no other pens]. They had to don hazmat-type footwear and clothing to enter the pens, so as to avoid spreading the infection to their own cats at home.

Not all feline diarrhoea responds well to probiotics. if given to cats with e.g. IBD, it can make the diarrhoea worse. IME it is best to identify the cause of the diarrhoea first before deciding how to treat it.
 
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