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How long to see improvement in Giardia treatment?

post #1 of 12
2/7/11 at 12:27pm
Thread Starter 
i'm sub-fostering a cat for a friend who turns out to have Giardia (the cat, not the friend!) My vet gave me 3 doses of Panacur and a week's worth of Metronidzole; I am supposed to bring in a new fecal sample after 10 days.

We're almost through all the meds now but I don't see any outward signs of improvement, her poop is still basically liquid. Tomorrow will be the current cat's last dose, shouldn't I see some improvement by now?

Since Giardia testing can be hit-or-miss, I fear getting a clean bill from the vet, only to have it flare up again.
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post #2 of 12
2/8/11 at 10:01am
Thread Starter 
just an update: last night the cat's stools were better than in the past. Not great yet, but perhaps this is a sign the meds are working. She may have other digestive issues as well, I will update this once we get to the retesting stage.
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post #3 of 12
2/8/11 at 1:29pm
Our experience with Giardia has been excruciating. I pray yours will not be as horrific as ours.
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post #4 of 12
2/8/11 at 2:13pm
I never had a cat that had Giardia. I just wanted to tell you I hope your friend's cat feels better soon!
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post #5 of 12
2/8/11 at 4:04pm
Dark Mavis just adopted a kitty and they also had the 3 days of panacur. I think it worked.

Whenever we've had a kitty with giardia, we've done a 10-day course (panacur and metro), and the last kitty took about 4-5 days to see things basically back to normal, though we did the full course of meds.
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post #6 of 12
2/8/11 at 4:17pm
Yes, we did 3 days of Panacur, finished it about a week and a half ago. I took the samples in today for the re-test. I will say that Dorothy's poo is still stinky. It never was runny, just soft, but pretty much formed (sorry to be graphic, haha). Genever's has been the same as before we got Dorothy, so I don't think she caught it. (knock on wood)

Anyway, Dorothy's is still soft-ish and stinky. So I have no idea if she still has giardia or not, I'm guessing she does.. I really hope she doesn't though, I don't want to do more meds....
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post #7 of 12
2/8/11 at 4:31pm
Sometimes it can take FOREVER to get rid of, sometimes not. IMO, younger cats & senior cats have a harder time getting over it - perhaps because they don't have the best immune systems?
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post #8 of 12
2/9/11 at 7:26am
Thread Starter 
thanks for the kind words. Our cat (Gilda) is a senior so I'm concerned about the difficulty of getting her cleaned up for good. i feel so bad for her, she was an only cat with a little old lady her whole life. Her person died and was taken in by a friend who does rescue. Giardia swept through her whole group so I took her and another old lady cat to ease her burden. Poor Gilda's been upended again and again. Now I just hope she can get over this and put some weight back on.

BRB: I've been reading your harrowing stories, you have my sympathies, I hope things get better soon.
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post #9 of 12
2/10/11 at 10:35am
I know this isn't my thread, but I thought I'd post anyway (sorry!). I finally got a call from the vet this morning about the giardia re-tests.

Genever is negative! (she never got it!)

Dorothy is... clinically negative! Meaning the fecal was positive but the cysts were negative. Meaning, I'm not sure I understand what that means. But they said she does not need more medicine. I guess there's a trace of giardia somehow, but no cysts, so we're good. But that may be why her poop is still stinky. And they said if it ever gets worse, to bring in a sample.

So that's that then. I can go back to my regular (more expensive) litter now!! I switched to on-sale cheaper litter because I was scooping and changing so much and didn't want to waste the good stuff. It's sooo dusty though. Ick. I think we'll all be happier with the better litter again.

I hope your Gilda is getting better!!!
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post #10 of 12
2/10/11 at 10:46am
Oh yes, what a mess for you and the poor cat!! It can take up to a week to see improvement. Your cat is on the right meds. And the metronidazole may need to be extended a bit to help with healing of the gut. Just wanted to say, it is nice of you to take this cat and "sub-foster"!! Good luck with her
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post #11 of 12
2/10/11 at 12:11pm
Thread Starter 
good news all around then! Gilda's poop continues to improve. So it took a full week before I could see the improvement, which may be longer than average. let's hope we got it completely.
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post #12 of 12
2/12/11 at 11:37am
Thank you got your sympathies. Turns out (just found out Thurs), we weren't fighting giardia (at least not JUST giardia) before. We suspected giardia because Bear tested positive for it...but Blue and Rex actually (also?) had coccidia. Now that we are treating the coccidia, the stools are getting better every day! We are still having soft ones, but there is form to it and not just a pie anymore.

I am glad Gilda is doing well!
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