I came home this afternoon to find my DLH cat, Cassidy, covered in her own feces. Actually, as soon as I walked upstairs, I began to smell that there was an issue. I figured one of the cats may have just used the litter box, but it became quickly apparent that that was not the case. Instead, I saw smears of diarrhea on my floor, on the dresser, on the shelves, on the cat tree, and on my bed. But, more distressing than that was when I saw Cassidy trying to walk, but being prohibited by the diarrhea that had matted to her bottom. She tried to clean herself, but it was just too much and she would take a few steps, try to wash herself, walk some more, try to lick the area again, and so on and so forth. It was pitiful! And, so I scooped her up in a towel and brought her down to the basin tub to wash her. My roommate and I bathed her and got all of the feces and matted fur off of her bottom, stomach, and legs, but that only solved one part of the problem. The questions remain why she had diarrhea in the first place and what do I do next?
But first, let me provide some additional info. Cass is 2 years old and has no known health issues with the exception of gingivitis and the herpes virus (of which she hasn't had a recurrence for at least 8 months). To date, while she's had the very occasional loose stools in the past, she has never had an episode like this one. There have been no food changes for at least the last 5-6 months and she eats a 75% wet, 25% dry food diet. Her dry is Taste of the Wild and her wet is rotated on a regular basis (Wellness, EVO, TOTW, ZiwiPeak, TikiCat, and the like). She has no access to anything poisonous and has not gotten into anything she shouldn't have. No new treats were added or removed from her diet. And, up until now, there has been no sign that she has not been feeling well. All of my other cats (and dogs) are healthy with no known issues. They all receive preventative and routine veterinary care. She does get Revolution monthly, but she was last dosed 3 weeks ago and so I doubt that is the issue. She also gets L-Lysine daily.
The stool, I'm assuming (based on what I saw on the floor), appeared to be the consistency of pudding -- maybe slightly thinner and more watery (though my roommate says that it was a pudding consistency, if not slightly thicker, so, there you go). No blood, no mucus. It was dark brown with possibly a slightly green tint. It did smell...a lot. But, I've had cats with active parasitic infections and this smelled like cat feces, very strongly so, in fact, but not like illness. I know that's vague, but some of you may understand where I'm coming from. She has been eating and drinking and there has been NO cross-contamination of ANY kind with my roommate's cat who has coccidia. I have been extraordinarily vigilant and the cats aren't even on the same floor of the house. We clean obsessively and take every precaution we can imagine. Of course, I suppose there is still a possibility that we're dealing with coccidia with Cassidy, but I really don't think so. Otherwise, no one has any known parasites and all of the animals have recently (in the last month +) have had fecal tests done with negative results -- they were, however, de-wormed as a preventative measure despite the results. So, as far as I can tell, there's nothing that I can outwardly see as being the cause for her diarrhea.
I did call our vet and was told to withold food for the night, but ensure that she has plenty of water. And, the vet didn't want me to remove her from the other cats, but did suggest I crate her for the evening so that they don't share the same litter boxes and so that, if there is another incident of diarrhea, we won't have the issue of the mess to deal with. Everything has been cleaned, scrubbed, and disinfected and Cassie has been resting peacefully in her crate. All of the other kitties seem fine and there was nothing odd in the litter box when I scooped it for the night. And, come to mention, Cassidy has not yet had any more diarrhea. We came home at 6:30pm and noticed it then and it's now midnight, so we're not doing too badly. Cassidy has been grooming herself on and off and is alert. She doesn't have a fever that I can tell and she looks okay otherwise. She'll need another bath for sure as the one we gave her was primarily to remove the matted on feces, but she is clean and dry. My suspicion is that she may have had a harder bowel movement which clung to her fur and then it blocked her anus causing her to mess on herself (as there wasn't evidence of diarrhea in the litter pan -- only on her body). Her bottom does look pink and a little tender, but she doesn't appear to be in pain and allowed me to wash and wipe her gently. She gets brushed daily, but, as with any DLH cat, matted fur can come quickly (especially if they get litter, urine, or feces stuck to their fur). We also clipped the fur directly around her anus and legs so as to prevent further matting and she may need a sanitary shave done in the very near future. But, by all appearances, she doesn't seem ill. I know cats can hide or mask illness or pain, but I'm just not getting that sense from her.
We are taking my roommate's cat, Theo, who has the coccidia to the vet tomorrow. I'll, at the very least, be bringing a stool sample from Cass in with me. If, for any reason she seems off, she'll be coming in as well, but the vet assured me that, while diarrhea is a problem, it can seem much worse in a DLH than it actually is. However, I know what to look for and she'll be taken in to the vet in a blink of an eye should she need to be seen. But, the vet didn't think an appointment was necessarily imminent at this stage in the game. I'm concerned, though, nonetheless, and would appreciate any suggestions or insight you may have as to why this occurred or how to best go about dealing with it. I'm confident Cassidy is okay tonight, but I worry still. Can this really have just been a one time deal? Or, is there always something more sinister at play? She has never shown any food intolerances or allergies, but I know that is also something I should be aware of. I don't cut corners where my pets are concerned and want to ensure that I'm doing everything possible for Cassidy. Like I said, she is okay for the night and is acting normally and is drinking and resting comfortably (not to mention she found the two pieces of kibble in the crate and downed them in seconds). But, I do have the E-vet on speed dial should the need arise. And, of course, she'll be seen if need be tomorrow and, if not, she'll at least have a fecal brought in. But, those of you who know me should know that I'm a worrier by nature. And, with everything else that's been going on, I'm a tad overwhelmed. So, any reassurances or experiences you can share would be very much welcomed and appreciated.
But first, let me provide some additional info. Cass is 2 years old and has no known health issues with the exception of gingivitis and the herpes virus (of which she hasn't had a recurrence for at least 8 months). To date, while she's had the very occasional loose stools in the past, she has never had an episode like this one. There have been no food changes for at least the last 5-6 months and she eats a 75% wet, 25% dry food diet. Her dry is Taste of the Wild and her wet is rotated on a regular basis (Wellness, EVO, TOTW, ZiwiPeak, TikiCat, and the like). She has no access to anything poisonous and has not gotten into anything she shouldn't have. No new treats were added or removed from her diet. And, up until now, there has been no sign that she has not been feeling well. All of my other cats (and dogs) are healthy with no known issues. They all receive preventative and routine veterinary care. She does get Revolution monthly, but she was last dosed 3 weeks ago and so I doubt that is the issue. She also gets L-Lysine daily.
The stool, I'm assuming (based on what I saw on the floor), appeared to be the consistency of pudding -- maybe slightly thinner and more watery (though my roommate says that it was a pudding consistency, if not slightly thicker, so, there you go). No blood, no mucus. It was dark brown with possibly a slightly green tint. It did smell...a lot. But, I've had cats with active parasitic infections and this smelled like cat feces, very strongly so, in fact, but not like illness. I know that's vague, but some of you may understand where I'm coming from. She has been eating and drinking and there has been NO cross-contamination of ANY kind with my roommate's cat who has coccidia. I have been extraordinarily vigilant and the cats aren't even on the same floor of the house. We clean obsessively and take every precaution we can imagine. Of course, I suppose there is still a possibility that we're dealing with coccidia with Cassidy, but I really don't think so. Otherwise, no one has any known parasites and all of the animals have recently (in the last month +) have had fecal tests done with negative results -- they were, however, de-wormed as a preventative measure despite the results. So, as far as I can tell, there's nothing that I can outwardly see as being the cause for her diarrhea.
I did call our vet and was told to withold food for the night, but ensure that she has plenty of water. And, the vet didn't want me to remove her from the other cats, but did suggest I crate her for the evening so that they don't share the same litter boxes and so that, if there is another incident of diarrhea, we won't have the issue of the mess to deal with. Everything has been cleaned, scrubbed, and disinfected and Cassie has been resting peacefully in her crate. All of the other kitties seem fine and there was nothing odd in the litter box when I scooped it for the night. And, come to mention, Cassidy has not yet had any more diarrhea. We came home at 6:30pm and noticed it then and it's now midnight, so we're not doing too badly. Cassidy has been grooming herself on and off and is alert. She doesn't have a fever that I can tell and she looks okay otherwise. She'll need another bath for sure as the one we gave her was primarily to remove the matted on feces, but she is clean and dry. My suspicion is that she may have had a harder bowel movement which clung to her fur and then it blocked her anus causing her to mess on herself (as there wasn't evidence of diarrhea in the litter pan -- only on her body). Her bottom does look pink and a little tender, but she doesn't appear to be in pain and allowed me to wash and wipe her gently. She gets brushed daily, but, as with any DLH cat, matted fur can come quickly (especially if they get litter, urine, or feces stuck to their fur). We also clipped the fur directly around her anus and legs so as to prevent further matting and she may need a sanitary shave done in the very near future. But, by all appearances, she doesn't seem ill. I know cats can hide or mask illness or pain, but I'm just not getting that sense from her.
We are taking my roommate's cat, Theo, who has the coccidia to the vet tomorrow. I'll, at the very least, be bringing a stool sample from Cass in with me. If, for any reason she seems off, she'll be coming in as well, but the vet assured me that, while diarrhea is a problem, it can seem much worse in a DLH than it actually is. However, I know what to look for and she'll be taken in to the vet in a blink of an eye should she need to be seen. But, the vet didn't think an appointment was necessarily imminent at this stage in the game. I'm concerned, though, nonetheless, and would appreciate any suggestions or insight you may have as to why this occurred or how to best go about dealing with it. I'm confident Cassidy is okay tonight, but I worry still. Can this really have just been a one time deal? Or, is there always something more sinister at play? She has never shown any food intolerances or allergies, but I know that is also something I should be aware of. I don't cut corners where my pets are concerned and want to ensure that I'm doing everything possible for Cassidy. Like I said, she is okay for the night and is acting normally and is drinking and resting comfortably (not to mention she found the two pieces of kibble in the crate and downed them in seconds). But, I do have the E-vet on speed dial should the need arise. And, of course, she'll be seen if need be tomorrow and, if not, she'll at least have a fecal brought in. But, those of you who know me should know that I'm a worrier by nature. And, with everything else that's been going on, I'm a tad overwhelmed. So, any reassurances or experiences you can share would be very much welcomed and appreciated.
