Hello,
I adopted a six month old kitten from the Humane Society approximately one week ago. Everything has been going great except for the fact that she is having issues with her bowels. The Humane Society provided me with her health history and when they first got her, they treated her for "soft pudding-like stools". They supposedly remedied it with a bland diet. They didn't really provide a follow up stating whether or not she got better (I'm beginning to think she didn't in fact improve while at the shelter) and just suggested I keep her on a "digestive health" cat food.
I bought the required cat food and sure enough, her first BM in the litter box was more like a cowpie as opposed to normal cat feces. Initially I didn't think much of it since she was probably stressed from the move (which I know is a contributing factor) as well as her diet shifted slightly. I took her to the vet the next day and the doctor didn't seem too concerned either. She said it's likely that Sybil has a sensitive stomach and will take a week or two to get regular. She did send a fecal sample to a lab to test for giardia and coccidia (which I haven't heard the results yet) and sent me home with some FortiFlora and Hills I/D wet food.
Now let's fast forward to today. She hasn't shown any improvement and when I got home from work today, the stool was actual diarrhea as opposed to just soft. What's even worse is she hasn't developed good litter box habits and doesn't bury her feces. So she ends up getting her paws and tail in it and tracks it all over. I feel terrible for her and I just want her to be better. She is still very energetic like a typical kitten and doesn't outwardly show that she is in pain. I might also be overly paranoid and anxious as this is my first cat and I'm not totally sure what to expect. Do I need to give the diet adjustment more time? Should I take her back to the vet ASAP (I'm calling the vet tomorrow regardless)? What about natural remedies? Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!
I adopted a six month old kitten from the Humane Society approximately one week ago. Everything has been going great except for the fact that she is having issues with her bowels. The Humane Society provided me with her health history and when they first got her, they treated her for "soft pudding-like stools". They supposedly remedied it with a bland diet. They didn't really provide a follow up stating whether or not she got better (I'm beginning to think she didn't in fact improve while at the shelter) and just suggested I keep her on a "digestive health" cat food.
I bought the required cat food and sure enough, her first BM in the litter box was more like a cowpie as opposed to normal cat feces. Initially I didn't think much of it since she was probably stressed from the move (which I know is a contributing factor) as well as her diet shifted slightly. I took her to the vet the next day and the doctor didn't seem too concerned either. She said it's likely that Sybil has a sensitive stomach and will take a week or two to get regular. She did send a fecal sample to a lab to test for giardia and coccidia (which I haven't heard the results yet) and sent me home with some FortiFlora and Hills I/D wet food.
Now let's fast forward to today. She hasn't shown any improvement and when I got home from work today, the stool was actual diarrhea as opposed to just soft. What's even worse is she hasn't developed good litter box habits and doesn't bury her feces. So she ends up getting her paws and tail in it and tracks it all over. I feel terrible for her and I just want her to be better. She is still very energetic like a typical kitten and doesn't outwardly show that she is in pain. I might also be overly paranoid and anxious as this is my first cat and I'm not totally sure what to expect. Do I need to give the diet adjustment more time? Should I take her back to the vet ASAP (I'm calling the vet tomorrow regardless)? What about natural remedies? Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!