The more I read about T. Foetus...

It is all starting to make some sense. Metro doesn't help. The other cats have it. The vet kept seeing what he said were "live giardia" in every fecal sample even though seeing live giardia is almost unheard of....

My new vet sent off a sample of Blue or Rex's poo (who knows which cat it was...it was just runny poo in the litter box and they both have it) and I should have results tomorrow or Monday. I hope and pray they will run a T. Foetus test at the lab. My gut is just telling me that this is what we are dealing with rather than the giardia. It just all fits together so much better and would completely explain why none of my cats ever really got better on Metro.

I am calling the vet tomorrow to request the T. Foetus test be done, specifically. I will take her 5 fecal samples if she needs them!

I have my fingers crossed for some good news for you.

The test for T. Foetus is very specific, and not the same as the Giardia test. The sample needs to be collected and very fresh, delivered to the lab within a couple of hours from collection, without litter contamination and it must be a sample of diarrhea. Basically, you see the kitty going to the box, follow him, wait for him to finish, and don't let him cover it. Immediately you collect the sample with a minimum possible of of litter, none if all possible, and go to the vet's office.
The vet will send it to the lab to run a PCR Test. It is not cheap... Sometimes they do an in-pouch test, but the PCR is much more sensitive.... A clean fresh diarrhea sample is a must. A regular poop sample will be ineffective.
Because of this difficulty, usually the vet will collect the sample in the office with a loop tool straight from inside the kitty's bottom. That way the sample will be clean and fresh. They do not need much.

I am going to have a to find a vet who will do this test! I have spent hundreds - into the thousand mark - treating giardia with absolutely NO response what.so.ever. I am so over it!

I hope you found a vet that is good and cares, and won't cost an arm & a leg.

for Blue and Rex!

With all the threads you've made I would have thought someone mentioned it to you already and that you already tested for it. Who finally did?

Like with other protozoa, the best you can hope for is likely to just be controlling active infections and trying to get the kitties strong enough to keep it under control themselves. As I mentioned before, there's another member who deals with it, you may have to use the search to find her and try to contact her for some good tips. I'll try to find her in a bit unless someone remembers who it is first. (I'm terrible with username, but never forget cats )

ETA: PM twokatz. She was last on the 11th, but she may have pm's set to go to her email and see it.

Oh my gosh! I can't believe we didn't advise you to have this checked! I usually tell people to research and read about it and then talk to the vet. I really hope you get some answers soon.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

With all the threads you've made I would have thought someone mentioned it to you already and that you already tested for it. Who finally did?

Like with other protozoa, the best you can hope for is likely to just be controlling active infections and trying to get the kitties strong enough to keep it under control themselves. As I mentioned before, there's another member who deals with it, you may have to use the search to find her and try to contact her for some good tips. I'll try to find her in a bit unless someone remembers who it is first. (I'm terrible with username, but never forget cats

)

ETA: PM twokatz. She was last on the 11th, but she may have pm's set to go to her email and see it.

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Hi, just saw this by chance, Is there anything I can answer for you? Sorry, haven't been here in a while. I still have links, I think , to answer any questions. I have been dealing with it for 4 1/2 yrs now !

I talked with my vet today. We are doing one more round of panacur treatment for the Blue and Rex. It will be finished in two days. The doc feels we have absolutely medicated enough to have cured the infection and it is time to look into more things if these do not clear it. Rex's stools are starting to formp again about 50-75% of the time. Blue's are not. Blue is 14, so I think he is just having a harder time fighting it. The stool sample I gave on Thursday was not found to have any giardia, coccidia, or anything else in it. Of course, I know that it doesn't always shed in the stools and it is no telling which cat's stool I got anyway! They were both the same consistency at that time.

So...here is the "plan." We will medicate with Panacur for two more days. I am giving Blue Prednisone for 7 days straight (5mg) and then giving the cats 1 week to produce hard stools. If they are not hard stools, then we go back for more testing including the T. Foetus and some others for IBD. If they are hard stools, they need to continue to be hard for 2 weeks without relapse to diarrhea for him to declare them "cured." Er...whatever. Dr. thinks that most likely the giardia is gone in these two and the bowel is inflamed. Occult blood was found in the stool on the lab test.

I do hope it's "just" their bowels are inflamed from what's been going on. Keeping up the vibes for your babies.

You and me too! Rex is really doing pretty well. His poos have been more formed, but not as solid as I like them. Blue, at his age and with his thyroid issue already against him, is having a much harder time fighting this. However, neither cat seems sick. Blue is eating and drinking, is not dehydrated, and will even chase the laser mouse like a wild man! Rex acts like there is nothing in the world wrong with him. He is active like a kitten should be, gaining weight like a horse, playing, purring, snuggling, and happy as a clam. If I didn't check the box, I wouldn't even know he had had a problem just by his behavior.

Oh...and my dog, Rosco, is absolutely fine. He was treated as a precaution, but he can't get to the litter boxes to eat the poo (yes, he does that when he can get to them! YUCK) and he does not step in the cat poo and lick his feet like a cat, so I really think he is "good."

Originally Posted by BlueRexBear

He is active like a kitten should be, gaining weight like a horse, playing, purring, snuggling, and happy as a clam. If I didn't check the box, I wouldn't even know he had had a problem just by his behavior.

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sounds familiar.... Been dealing with this for almost 4 months now... sooooo tired.... Not giardia though... That is the good thing... The bad, well, we just don't know what it is... Vibes for your clan!

Just FYI, dogs eat cat poop because cats don't digest their food well, and it has a very high content of undigested protein in it. It smells like food to a dog, not like poop.

It is such a draining experience, isn't it Carolina? Financially and emotionally.

People think I am crazy for still wanting another cat - even after all of this. But the love goes deep. I am just trying to be "smart" this time and adopt a healthy cat/kitten - and for goodness sake...ISOLATE THEM FIRST before I let them meet the other cats. Live and learn, right?

Originally Posted by BlueRexBear

It is such a draining experience, isn't it Carolina? Financially and emotionally.

People think I am crazy for still wanting another cat - even after all of this. But the love goes deep. I am just trying to be "smart" this time and adopt a healthy cat/kitten - and for goodness sake...ISOLATE THEM FIRST before I let them meet the other cats. Live and learn, right?

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ohhh you got that right! I barely have $$$ for food here, lately it goes all to Bugsy and Gracie... I just bought Bugsy's Diagel (gel for diarrhea) $12 a pop, x 14 (2x a day)... $168 for a 7 day treatment... And that is a supplement!
My emotions are all over the place for not knowing where this is going to end... on the 10th it's going to be 4 months of straight, daily diarrhea... Trips to the vet, blood tests, fecals, urine tests, ER trips... It is a lot... I love that little guy so, SO much... I caught myself crying yesterday because I just want him to be ok, and it is out of my control... Definitely draining... That is for sure...

Hi, it has been awhile. I just posted this link to Blue Rex and thought it may be of use to others dealing with chronic diarrhea or loose stools. Sadly Dr Jody Gookin is running out of funds for her research on TF. Under her plea for help there are several links on information on TF, an owners guide and testing information.

Many cats get a diagnosis of Giardia, and IBD in error. My Vet and I worked with Dr Gookin to try to clear my cats, Dr Gookin said that it is not uncommon for cats with TF to also have Giardia and Clostridium, the gut is not healthy and allows other pathogens to take hold. My cats have chronic Clostridium issues, although they have been clear for a while. My girls will still have outbreaks of TF if stressed or have food changes, they always will. Cats may in time manage it but if not successfully treated they remain carriers.

I hope this helps some.

Dianne

http://cvm.ncsu.edu/docs/personnel/gookin_jody.html