adding insult to injury (have to take another cat to the vet)

Since the weekend, I've noticed softer stools than usual for Luna. Last month, Luna was switched to a hypoallergenic diet, so I let some time pass to see if the soft stools would ease. But it's actually gotten worse and today, it's like pudding and more often than usual. So now, I have to make an appointment for HER. I just can't stay away from the vet. She's had issues in the past with giardia (even though Banfield vaccinates against it ) and/or general bacteria imbalances. Even if it wasn't serious, Luna's litterbox is in my room (she's required to stay in there when not supervised) and I'm not keen on the constant smell of sick cat poo , especially when I'm trying to sleep.

Edit: Luna sees a different vet than Mons until I finish out my year plan with Banfield. Mons' vet is more reasonable about not vaccinating, especially with vaccines than apparently aren't that effective as you can see.

Seems like you just can't catch a break. for Luna and Mons and you.

the good part is that Luna is probably treatable and will live for many years full of $45-60 per month feedings.

and she still tries to steal food as if I feed her air. Don't you just love cats?

had to drop Luna off in the morning. Poor baby had to be there all day but since they were out of evening appointments, I didn't want to wait.

good news is that it was probably some general enteritis/colitis. The vet said that it may have been something like tapeworm that didn't show up in the stool sample, so if it doesn't clear by her follow-up appointment, she'll be dewormed. In the meantime, I have to give her medicine. So exciting.

It's amazing how help disappears for this activity. No one wants to be near when the 'nice' kitty shows how adept she is at using her four sets of weapons.

At least Mons is becoming a better patient. No loss of blood today or yesterday from him.

Edit: I forgot to add that Luna is on a rather costly limited ingredient diet. You'd think from the level of gratefulness she was showing that I was feeding her from the trash.

Cats - gotta love 'em!

Are you sure her Giardia was gone?

Originally Posted by PawPrints and Purrs

Because of the prevalence of Giardia in the cat, the presence of cysts in the stool does not necessarily indicate that a problem is present. When the cysts are present in a cat with diarrhea, it is important. In particular, kittens and debilitated adult cats are at risk for death from dehydration associated with the diarrhea.

Although a fecal examination is needed for diagnosis, the routine flotation test may fail to detect these small cysts. A special solution may be needed for accurate identification of the cysts in the stool. Occasionally, the parasites may be seen on a direct smear of the feces. A test is available for detection of antigens (cell proteins) of Giardia in the feces. A delay of several days may occur as the test is only performed in select laboratories. The reliability of this test in the cat remains under investigation.

Click to expand...

http://www.sniksnak.com/cathealth/giardiasis.html

A fecal smear or fecal float that's clean does not mean the cat no longer has Giardia. We adopted a kitty with Giardia. After the course of meds to treat the Giardia, the vet needs a fecal sample to send out to a lab for the special test - and two or three samples should be sent with 2 - 3 day intervals between them, because the soft stools do not necessarily "slough" the cysts out of the intestine.

We also had a tough battle against round worm, not tape worm. The best thing to do is to literally change the litter to completely new litter weekly, and to bleach the box before you put the new litter in. It was SUCH a PIA, but the cats had been passing it around to each other for a couple of months, and we happened on a strain that was resistant to Drontal, the med the vet initially prescribed. We ended up having to use Strongid-T, and that combined with the new litter and bleaching the boxes ended the cycle (and not adopting any new rescues!)

it's not still giardia, and that it clears up quickly and easily!

Laurie