Hi! I'm Lei-Ann, and I have a pure bred feral Burmese (breeder lost about 40 of them when they escap

Hi. I'm Lei-Ann from San Diego. I have a feral cat, Hershey Rose. She was fostered by Humane Society mom Trish for 2 months, and I picked her up from Denver two weeks ago today. Anyone out there that has worked with feral cats, I would welcome any advice or suggestions. She had her shots at the Humane Society after being trapped, but right now has very bad diarrhea. It has been two weeks now. I brought a stool sample to the vet (transporting the actual cat is not possible without knocking her out with drugs) and she tested negative for any parasites. The vet thinks it is stress. California law prohibits a vet from prescribing any medication to an animal that they have not examined, so she gave me Hills I.D. canned food and some probiotics. Yesterday Hershey Rose ate only breakfast, and today she hardly touched her morning meal. I think she is tired of eating the same food all the time. I am going to give her some Wellness food with the probiotics and see if she will eat that. She has been on the vet stuff for 4 days and has shown no improvement. I will be calling her vet when I get done typing this but welcome any suggestions for treating her. As for her behavior, when she was with Trish, Trish could enter the room, pet her, and sometimes get her to lick tuna off her finger. When I took her through TSA (security at Denver airport) they took her into a private room, unclipped the cable ties on her cage (despite my pleading and crying hysterically), and pulled her out, so they could examine her cage, which you could see into from any angle. (This is a whole big story, but short version is TSA is NOT supposed to remove feral animals from their carriers, I was promised by them this would not happen, the person who did it has been reported to their headquarters not for animal abuse but because I had a lamp fall and break on my head during this incident). She then ran up the walls, did a somersault on the ceiling, hit the floor, repeated this several times and then ran across the room, back and forth, scaling the walls, hitting the ceiling, falling, and all the while I am crying and begging these idiots to leave her the hell alone. Finally, a Supervisor puts an end to the whole thing, an incident report is taken, and we get on the next plane home. But thanks to TSA, any trust Trish may have established with her was destroyed. After 2 weeks, she still runs and hides when I enter her room. If I happen to come in and she is behind something and can't run, I sit on the floor and talk with her. She has gotten to the point that I can put her food bowl down in front of her, sit down, and she will eat without hesitation in front of me. She has let me pet her briefly, very briefly, before she hisses and I back off. She is very timid and non-agressive, just scared. She is in my computer room which is small but comfy. She has a tent bed, a regular bed, a cat tree, a window seat, and a 6' cabinet to hang out on. I talk to her when I am doing homework on the computer (night school) or just come in here and hang out with her. I have another cat, a Tortie. They are aware of each other, Minja puts her long legs under the door and Hershey Rose has put her nose under the door, but they have not been introduced. There is no hissing or sign of agression between them, but I can't chance Hershey Rose getting out of this room or I'll never get her back in.

Please, anyone with suggestions, feel free to pass them on. This is my first feral cat. I have worked with an abused cat and a totally undisiplined cat (Minja) and they both turned out fine. But this is a whole new bag of wax for me. Any help?

Hi Lei-Ann,

First of all, UGH TSA... That's all I'll say about that. Unfortunately, this isn't the forum to get up on a soapbox about that...

Second, you seem to be doing all the right things so far. Here are some more suggestions I have.

1. Does she have a cardboard box in there? Most cats love them. It can also serve as a safe space for her. When she's in the box in her room, you don't disturb her. That way, she can come out and socialize more on her own terms.

2. How much time are you spending with her? Is it on a schedule? Try to spend at least a few hours in her room with her every day, and try to make it at the same time. If you're free-feeding her kibble, try to stop that and make it so you bring her meals when you come in on the schedule. Cats love routines, and establishing one with her now will go a long way toward helping her come out of her shell.

3. When you're in her room, what are you doing? Try to do your normal activities in there... being on the laptop (if you have one), doing paperwork, and if you take a book or a newspaper, try to read it out loud so she can get used to the sound of your voice. If you don't already have one, get a wand toy (stick with a string and feathers or a furry object on the end) and use that to play with her. She'll be terrified of it at first, but eventually she'll come out and play with it.

4. Since you're planning on keeping her permanently, I would start the introduction of scents now from your other two cats. Rub a towel or a cloth on each of them and leave it in her room. Do it with the same cloth every day to "refresh" their scent. This way she'll be used to them when you try the real introductions. (Cats recognize each other by scent, not sight.)

Good luck and keep us updated!!

No, no cardboard box. She has a tent and a cat tree with a hidey-hole cube. I spend half my time with her, well, more than half, and the rest with Minja, my Tortie that I adopted 6 weeks ago before I learned about Rose. She has kibble 24/7 in a small bowl. She gets fed wet food three times a day, same time every day unless I am taking mom or myself to a doctor appt. I bring the bowl in (tap on the door first so I don't startle her), sit down about 2 feet from her and put the bowl in front of her. She is now at the point where she no longer hesitates for 5-10 minutes before eating, she just dives in. As long as I don't move a muscle, she is fine with that. When she is done, I put the dish behind me and talk to her for a while, then get back on the computer which is a few feet from her. I talk to her when I am working also.

She and Minja have already "met". Minja likes to stick her long, Tortie legs under the door, and when she leaves, I can see Hershey Rose's nose peeking out, she is smelling Minja's scent. There is no hissing when Minja plops outside the door (she wants attention too), and no running into a corner. Trish, her foster mom, had 2 dogs and a cat and they walked in and out of Hershey Rose's room with no problems. I am just afraid that if I let Minja in, HR might get out, and then I'd really have a problem - way too many places she could get into where I couldn't get her out. But I will give your idea a try, I'm sure Minja won't mind the rub down!

I tried the dangling toy thing, and you're right, it scared her. Will have to try it again.

I am sorry if I confused you - I have only Minja and Hershey Rose (two cats). Hershey Rose's name was just Rose when I adopted her. Hershey was my late chocolate Burmese, she passed in June from cancer. She was the love of my life. So when I got Rose, who could be Hershey's sister (they look so much alike), I just started calling her Hershey Rose. Sorry for the confusion and thank you for the suggestions.

Blessed be

LeiAnn

I am sorry to hear that Hershey Rose had the bad incident at the airport. We trapped a true feral cat July 7, 2011 which had not been handled by humans before. She had been roaming around our neighborhood in Fl. for a year or more and started feeding her early 2011. One day I noticed she was pregnant and since we had our home up for sale and leaving the state we could not leave her behind expecting to be fed by us. We took her to our vet as soon as I got her in the trap and she was terrified of us and the situation. We got her checked out, shots and microchipped. We kept her in our 1/2 bath for 5 months and we spent a lot of time with her, talking to her in a soft voice.  She travelled with us to NV. and did very well on the trip across country with our other 4 felines. Anyway, it is going on 15 months since we first got her and with the patience and understanding that we have shown she has really adapted well and responded very positive toward us. She is no longer afraid of us is a very happy puss. She does not hide from us either. She lays right out in the open during the day in our bedroom in the sun. She has the run of our new home and she does not want us to pet her or touch her but her tail is up all the time and does not mind us being in a room with her. She is not an agressive cat and does not hiss or growl. In fact our master bedroom where we sleep is where she prefers to be as this room is like her safe haven.

Just be patient with Hershey Rose and I think with time and understanding she will respond. Just give her space and keep talking to her and being near her. This is the first time we have ever taken in a feral like this and fortunately she is doing well and is very content being an "indoor" only puss. Sox is our girls name because she has white tipped front toes and rear white feet. She is a Tuxedo cat.

You got good advices. I want to add.  The vets suggestion was  the diarrhea was mostly  because of  stress.  May  be so.   So  lets reduce  stress...  This cat -  tent you  have  and  hidey in the  climbing tree is  good.   Climing tree is also a scratching  post?  Good.

Calming music is another tip. There is a sticky  tread  here above  about it.

You  may  also  try   with  Feliway   diffuser.

What  happened  with  the  breeder?   Although,  hovever  he  lost them,  with 40  of  them  them  simply  cant be  well socialized. Unless he   has lotsa of  dedicated  volunteers.

Schrecklisch,  as   the  germans says.

Welcome to our   Forums!

Good  luck!

The Humane Society in Denver trapped many of the Burmese in a rural area running wild, but claim they don't know how they got away, or why they were not chipped. My guess it was an illegal operation that knew it was about to get raided and let the cats go. I had a chocolate pure bred Burmese for 12 years (she just passed in June), and I wanted a cat that looked just like her. Chocolates are so hard to find, especially with the Siamese facial bone structure and green eyes. I called every breeder on the internet and they all wished me good luck in finding one. Fortunately, I also listed with all the Humane Societies on the internet, which is how I ended up with this sweet beauty. She will take food from her bowl when I put it in front of her, and allow me to sit and watch her eat. She is still scared of human contact, but each day I try to get closer to her with the food bowl. She hides behind the sisal legs of the cat tree, and does not use the cube or the tent bed. I went to the post office and got some free priority mail boxes (large ones). I was going to create a hidey hole at the base of the cat tree as soon as she moves out from there (I don't want to scare her out), but now I am wondering if that will encourage her not to come out at all except for food, water & the potty box. Right now she feels safe behind the legs as I don't bother her there except at meal time when I present her with the bowl. Am I doing the right thing, or should I build the hidey hole?

Also, I ordered Bach's Rescue Remedy & Mimulus for her (flower essenses you put in her water) to help her with her fear of people and calm her down. I have looked into the plug in stuff and spray stuff but here in ultra-expensive San Diego it runs about $40, much more than the essenses (which Jackson Galaxy (My Cat From Hell)  also uses). The biggest milestone was when she licked food from my fingers and let me pet her briefly. But I am patiently waiting for her to come out and investigate me!

I don't have any advice about the diarrhea, but I will say that the socialization process can be sloooow. 

I read somewhere that it takes, on average, 3 weeks to socialize an 8 week old feral kitten.  Well, I rescued three feral kittens this summer and my experience has been:  One (the only male) was pretty much socialized in three weeks and is now my love sponge. One went to a friend to socialize because she wasn't getting very far after two weeks at my house and I was just too stressed by the whole experience; she took another 3 or 4 weeks (and has now been adopted to a friend of my friend and is doing wonderfully from what I hear).  And the third kitten?  Well, after two MONTHS and no real progress (she'd only allow me to touch her while she was eating) another friend took her for 3 weeks, got her partly socialized, and returned her to us.  I'm kinda losing track of time now, but we've had her back for about a month (?) and she's doing pretty well but it seems like with each step (from very small area to small room to large open area in basement) it takes forever for her to reacclimate so to speak.  She now will approach my BF for petting and will sometimes let me pet her but won't approach me yet.  We did end up having to take away almost every hiding place...

Don't give up and it sounds like you're doing a great job! 

Boo hiss to TSA at Denver International, which happens to be my home airport. 

Thank you for sharing your story. It gives me hope that Hershey Rose will eventually come around. I know Minja, my Tortie, is excited to meet her; she keeps hanging around outside HR's room and putting her long legs under the door for HR to smell. The picture I just put up is of Hershey, my beloved companion of 12 years, who passed in June from cancer. She also was a purebred Dark Chocolate Burmese, and yes, that is her real eye color. I actually had a woman stop me in Pet Smart when I had her in the child's seat of the cart and ask me where I got the cat contacts she was wearing! When I told her that was Hershey's natural eye color, the woman didn't believe me. I have never seen that shade of green in a cat's eyes and I probably never will again. Hershey Rose also has green eyes, but the normal shade of green you see in a cat. She is also a Chocolate, and looks very much like my late Hershey. I am hoping she will overcome her fear of me and let me love her like I do my Minja who came to me a crazy, undisciplined wild child but who is now a very sweet young lady who is very well behaved. It's amazing what time, love, and a whole lot of patience will do!

AWWW Hershey Rose sounds just beautiful and I think with your love and patience she will adapt quickly. Not much to add as it seems you are doing everything quite well. Just lots of patience and no expectations. The slower the better and let Hershey Rose come along at her own pace and on her own schedule. Much luck to you in this wonderful journey you are embarking on with this lovely kitty! :rub:

Wow, what a story! :rub: POOR BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Feeding her the wet food on schedule is a great idea. The more you can do on a schedule, the better. :nod: Change out her water, clean her litter, etc. at the same times.

....and what you might want to consider, is in addition to working on the computer, spend some time down on the floor, as you do when you sit with her while she eats. Read out loud, sew, knit.... whatever. Sit with your side to her, not facing her.

I read through quickly, but I didn't see anyone mention not looking her in the eyes. To feral cats, this is a sign of aggression. Look at her forehead, if you have to look at her at all. When you're on the computer, or on the floor, or while she's eating (again, sit sideways to her for this), every once in a while sloooooowly turn your head towards her, and slowly close your eyes. Hold them closed for 10-15 seconds, slowly open them, and slowly turn your head back to whatever's comfortable. The "slow blink" is a signal of trust, the closed eyes a sign that you mean her no harm.

As to the diarrhea... it could be stress. It may or may not be parasites. I don't know the profile of the ID food, but it could be that her gut flora is just all out of whack from having had to survive on her own (eating garbage or hunting), and then being fed cat food.... I HIGHLY recommend a food with a simple ingredient list - like Nature's Variety Instincts, By Nature 95% foods, or even Before Grain (though this is higher carb). You also want a high-protein, low carb food, it will be easier on her system. For the dry food, again, I'd consider a high protein, low carb food. There aren't many. EVO happens to be one of them. It doesn't take much, and given she already has diarrhea, I'm not sure I'd worry about a slow transition with it. To help her GI system, I'd sprinkle a probiotic on her wet food once a day. I give my cats a probiotic once daily, and will always do so on the advice of our holistic vet. She recommended we find a human acidophilus supplement with 10 billion active CFU (colony forming units) for a feral boy we rescued that is FIV+ and had unstoppable diarrhea. We buy Natural Factors acidophilus+bifidus (double strength). We buy it from a local health food store: it is available on Amazon. This may go a long way to helping her diarrhea.

As to the toy.... she doesn't know what toys are yet. You might want to see if you can find any acorns or pine cones or anything outside. You might find that they'll be in different places when you visit her room in the morning. If you want to try a wand toy, you can't make it dangle or move quickly like with cats that know you and toys, or with young kittens. To use a wand toy with a feral, you have to place it on the ground. Let it sit so they can see it's not scary or dangerous. Then VERY slowly make it move gently. MAYBE wiggle it a little as you move it - but don't lift it off the floor. I wouldn't place it near her at first. I wouldn't expect her to interact with it for a while, she has to get over her fear of it at first. I would definitely try with different things at the ends. A feather might be more enticing than a mouse; my two most recent feral kitties find the Karantula (looks like a spider) end on the Neko Flies toys irresistable: we started by just making it "crawl" on the floor. :nod:

I know you're full of love and concern. But it might help if before you tap on her door.... try taking a deep breath. Say to yourself, "I'm just here to see to her needs. Nothing else matters." Then knock on her door. And try to adopt an attitude of... indifference when you're in there with her. That may sound strange, but it will release some of the "intensity" that you feel for this poor baby girl, and that will also help her relax, because you simply do not want anything from her, and that is what you need to "communicate" to her. :rub:

I think you're well beyond needing something like this, but here's an article I wrote on socializing a feral cat: http://catnipchronicles.com/may2012/laurie.htm

Oh - I forgot to mention harp music. I recommend celtic harp music, or Harp of Hope by ...Diane Schneider. :nod: Stressed animals find this incredibly .... relaxing. And if you haven't sprayed her room with Feliway, or aren't using a Feliway plug-in, I'd consider either one of those as well. And you can also use Bach's Rescue Remedy (flower essences). I'd put the drops in her food and/or water.

She's gettings Bach's Resuce Remedy for pets and Mimulus now. No way to play music in her room except the computer, and the closest thing I have on CD to classical is Josh Groban. I have sung & played guitar in her (softly) to see her reaction. She was not disturbed by it at all. I keep hearing about Feliway, may have to check it out on the internet. Our Pet Smart wants $40 for the small spray bottle of some "calmer". Most of the brands folks recommend are not available here in San Diego, so I am trying to locate them on the internet. Finally got our Pet Smart to carry Wellness. Just about an hour ago she was eating out of my hand, the big NO-NO - KITTY TREATS!!!! Hey, it got her to eat out of my hand, and the treats had Bachs on them, so I know she is getting the essense. Today it is 106 degrees. I am sitting in the room with her, montoring the temperature in here. So far, so good. I just turned around and she is sound asleep - something she never does when I am in the room - sleep. Looks like the Bachs worked! A baby step each week is great, she is about 11-12 months old and a mommy (no, I don't have the kitties) so it may take a while longer. Fortunately, retired early (not rich, disabled) so I can devote my time between my two babies!  

Blessed be

She is on a very regular schedule, has been since I got her. She was fostered for two months in Denver before I flew out and picked her up. As for the eye contact, we are beyond the not looking directly at each other. I give her long blinks and she returns them (thank you Jackson Galaxy for that tip), and I do sit facing her when I talk to her, read to her, sing to her, and feed her. She would hesitate for 3-5 minutes before her tummy got the best of her when I put her food bowl down in front of her and sat there. Now, a week later, she dives in. If she looks up to see if I am watching her eat (and yes, I am), I give her a long blink and she returns to eating. I watch My Cat From Hell and Jackson has some good suggestions, the long blink is one he uses constantly, while looking directly at the cat. I think this worked easier than it should have because she did have two months of fostering before the Denver Airport TSA terrified the hell out of her for 40 minutes. It took me over a week before I could enter the room without her jumping on the 6' cabinet and trying to disappear into the wall. Now she dwells mostly on the floor, and does not startle when I tap gently on the door and enter. And yes, you are right, the urge to hug her and love her is overwhelming! She gets probiotics daily, and Backs Rescue Remedy and Mimulus in her water. The brands of food you mention do not appear to be here in San Diego. Right now she is on Hills I.D. (gentle on the digestive track) and the probiotics as that is what my vet put her on. She cannot be transported at this point, and in California it is illegal for a vet to prescribe any medication for an animal they have not examined. Hopefully, when she is better socialized and can be handled, she will go to the vet, get a good check up (my vet does this for free on any shelter-adopted pet as they consider the adoption saving the pets life), get her second distemper shot, and get her micro chipped. I don't know why she does not have a chip now, especially since she was from a breeder - my guess is she was too young when she escaped to have the process done. I am glad though, or I would not have her now!  I gave her a treat (yes, I know, my bad) with Rescue Remedy on it, and for the first time since I have had her, she is sleeping with me in the room. What a lovely sight!

Today her diarrhea seemed a tiny bit more solid, perhaps there is a chance she is calming down. Luckily, she eats, drinks and uses the potty without and trouble. Today is third time she has eaten from my hand (Bach's infused treat today, food yesterday). As I am typing this, she just got up, walked right behind me, and is using the potty 2 feet from me. Yup, definite progress there. Okay, spoke too soon. Bad diarrhea again. Maybe in a few more days not that I have started her on the Bach's. If you watch My Cat From Hell, you might hear Jackson mention the essences. This is day two she is on them, and right now she is washing her face in the open - not in a hiding spot! Here's to hoping, have to clean the potty before we both suffocate!

Blessed be

It sounds like she - and you - are doing GREAT! :rub:

Yeah, we got rid of cable/satellite/live TV of any kind five years ago. The only show I'd have any interest in watching is that one. :lol3: But we've used flower essences since we began working with ferals over 10 years ago.

As to her diet and diarrhea... how long has she been on the I/D? If it's been a few weeks, and the diarrhea shows no sign of letting up, obviously the food isn't agreeing with her OR it's a parasite problem.

Can you take a sample of her poop to the vet for analysis? Has that been done already? They can check for giardia, coccidia, etc. I know they can't prescribe anything for them if something is present, but at least you'll have an understanding of whether you need to pursue a different diet or whether she needs medication.

BTW, for healthy treats, consider buying freeze dried meat treats: chicken, turkey, etc. I'd skip fishy ones for now. If you're putting together an online order from Amazon or somewhere, I highly recommend Whole Life freeze dried treats. These are healthy for her, she'll probably love them, and then you needn't worry if the treats you're using are contributing to her diarrhea problem.

As to the probiotic, all I can add is that the type of probiotic can make a difference. If you're not giving her a human supplement that is primarily acidophilus or bifidus, and is 10 billion active CFU, that's good. If not, I would switch to one that is.

Hello again Laurie. I've read many of your posts, and you really sound like you know what you are doing. First thing I did was get her stool checked. Negative for any parasites. Vet put her on ID and probiotics. No help. Put her on Rescue Remedy to calm her, and Mimulus to help with her fear of humans. Have to call them. Her fear of human is definitely gone - now instead of being a timid little thing when I approach her she growls, snaps and bites. First bite resulted in sausage finger and a week on antibiotics. She has been her a month and is unaproachable for the most part. She did lick food off my finger before the essenses, now she doesn't. You have to wait until she is in a corner (or someplace small) before you can approach her with food or she takes off. I sit in the room with her for hours, talk to her while I am on the computer, made her two hidey-holes, but nothing seems to work. I think this may be a long road. This scares me as yesterday I underwent a series of test for 4 hours and the doctors have found a blockage in my heart. I will get the whole story next week when I see my regular doctor, but if I get laid up, I have no one to care for her special needs. My Tortie just needs food and a clean potty and she is fine. My feral, Hershey Rose, needs food, water, probiotics, special diet, special routine, lots of love and patience. If I get bad news next week, I will ask the list if anyone knows who can help out. Maybe the Humane Society has someone that makes housecalls (not to take her, just to take care of her.) I didn't fly from San Diego to Denver and back to get her and then fall in love with her to have her taken away. So I will just hope for the best. In the mean time, can't seem to get the diarrhea stopped. Tried the vet stuff, tried pumpkin, tried chicken and rice. She must be miserable. I have her on Wellness now, the I/D didn't seem to do any good. Our pet stores don't have any of the really good stuff - had to pester them to get Wellness, The best they have is Blue, Iams and Science Diet (Hills).

I really don't want to tranq her and take her to the vets - the trauma TSA at Denver airport put her through really did a number on her. She has a fear of cages and carriers, and is still not approachable. Doping her up and putting her in a towel and then in a carrier is not going help her trusting me. Vet is aware problem still going on and is willing to treat her, feral or not, but transporting her may make her worse. Vet believes it is stress induced and will pass as she calms down. One more week and I just may give in and play chase the kitty around the room and get bit a dozen times if they think they can help her. Will keep you posted!

Oh no! I'm so sorry about the blockage. !!!!!!!!!!!

OK. PLEASE do not be offended by me asking this. Most fecals check for typical things: round worm, etc. Giardia, Coccidia, T. Foetus require special lab work. You're SURE all these things were checked for? Also, even if they were, because they are basically cysts or spores, they are not always necessarily shedding, and ESPECIALLY with diarrhea, they may not turn up in every stool sample. More than one person on TCS has pulled their hair out trying to find a solution to kitty's diarrhea.... I don't remember who, but someone recently had a kitty with Coccidia, I think it was, and they discovered it on the FOURTH stool sample. So because one sample was clear, and they DID check for these things, I wouldn't stop there. I'd take at least one more sample in.

In the meantime, I don't know if you want to consider this route. It treats the symptom, it does not treat the source of the problem. But our most recent rescue was a 3 or 4 year old feral kitty that is FIV+. He had allergies, explosive diarrhea, and getting him figured out/fixed up was not easy, let's say. In the end, after six months of trying, we looked to find a holistic D.V.M. We looked for a vet trained in Chinese Medicine (in addition to nutrition and western herbs). He was prescribed several herbal treatments to correct his "extreme spleen Qi deficiency" and his "extreme yin deficiency." She prescribed a tincture, Consolidate Qi to stop his diarrhea - because whatever the cause, his body needed the rest from the diarrhea. She recommended specifically the formula sold by Kan Herb. He was (at the time) an 8 pound cat. His recommended dose was... start with 2 drops, twice a day; if no improvement is seen after 2-3 days, increase it to 2 drops 3x a day. If no improvement is seen increase it to 3 drops, 3x per day. In fact, all Chumley needed was 3 drops, twice a day. I just dropped it on his wet food, held it in front of a fan for a minute or two to evaporate off some of the alcohol, and he ate it up, no problem. He began having normal stools. So if you want to try this, it will not harm her. This is where I ordered it: http://www.easyhealthzone.com/SearchResults.asp?Search=Kan+Herb+Consolidate+Qi&Submit=Search You can start with the 1 oz; if it works, it's cheaper to buy the 2 oz.

To help improve the environment in her colon (in addition to the probiotics), you can also try the other recommendation we followed with Chumley: 1/4 teaspoon of slippery elm bark powder mixed with 1/4 teaspoon of aloe vera juice (I recommend George's - it's not organic, but it is distilled and has NO smell). This will gel up a bit, then you just mix it into her wet food. Now - the slippery elm bark does have a distinct smell, and some cats won't eat the food. Chumley didn't have a problem with it. But it's a fiber that helps the stool and it helps coat the colon, acting as a soothing agent and an anti-inflammatory. This alone should not be expected to resolve her diarrhea, but it can help (especially in addition to the Consolidate Qi).

....other than finding something in her stool to treat, my experience with traditional vets is that they are not very good at solving gastrointestinal problems. In fact, western medicine in general is not very good at resolving immune-mediated problems. They can do a biopsy to see if she has IBD. Beyond that... it's pretty much guesswork. Their arsenal is prescription foods, treating as if it's allergies or IBD - and then they can try steroids in addition to their prescription foods. They can image her with ultrasound to see the status of her intestines and colon. Now - that's not a bad idea. But that's about it. FYI, those prescription foods are not overly healthy for a cat. What cats need is a high protein, low carb diet. I looked up the I/D kibble, and it, for instance, is 30% carbs. For some cats, that alone would cause diarrhea, let alone resolve it (as is expected with I/D). Cats have no dietary requirement for carbs; they don't eat them in nature; and while they cause no problem for some cats, for some kitties they really mess up their GI system.

With the health issues you're facing, you obviously don't want to make even-more-difficult-to-manage changes in caring for Hershey Rose. :heart2: In the long run, it would be better to get her off of kibble altogether (true for all cats. If you want to learn more http://www.catinfo.org is a great place to start). But EVO makes a high protein, low carb kibble, so if kibble is going to be fed, this is probably the best option. Because it is so calorie dense, it doesn't require much. If I'm remembering correctly, I think all most 10-12 pound kitties need is about 3/8 of a cup daily. And if you're giving her wet food, obviously that amount would need to be reduced a bit. Just something to consider trying at some point (though ANY food transition should be made slowly). And down the road, please do consider timed meals of canned food only. But like I said - given the health issues you're facing, I wouldn't worry about that now.

Thank you for the information. I am at a loss to finding EVO, but will keep checking. Recently, about a week ago, I started her on Bach's Rescue Remedy and mimulus. Rescue Remedy is supposed to calm her down, mimulus is supposed to help her get over her fear of people. Well, she did that alright. Now, instead of being a timid sweet kitty, she snarls, hisses and bites when I approach. The first bite resulted in a sausage finger, a visit to the ER and a week on antibiotics. I made her a new hidey hole, and she still isn't happy. If I had diarrhea for 3 weeks I wouldn't be happy either. But she is getting downright mean. I took her off the mimulus, so hopefully she will lose the nasty temper shortly. As for testing her stool, I did bring them several samples. At $72 a poop, and my disability check at $1300, the other tests may be a problem financially. Rose had begun having diarrhea before I adopted her, and then was terrorized by TSA at the Denver Airport, and then brought into a new home, so her problem may be completely stress related like the vet thinks. I am considering pulling her off canned food and feeding her protein only (like cooked chicken, as she was not give raw food when fostered), and will try to find EVO kibble. My first concern is the temper she has developed. Hopefully, it is just a reaction to the Bach's. I keep calling them but keep getting an answering machine, and I will be in and out today so I won't be home if they call back. Will have to try again Tuesday (Monday is a holiday) after the cardiologist visit when I get the lowdown on how bad my blockage is. Will let you know, and again, thank you.

Oh it may definitely be stress related. :nod:

...and since the change in her character happened after adding the Bach's and the mimulus, I would definitely consider doing as you are - stopping one - if it doesn't change her behavior, stop both.

As to her diet, I think it's a much better idea to pull the kibble and keep her on the canned. Feeding her chicken meat is NOT a good idea, unless you keep it to under 15% of her total diet. Just meat is not a balanced diet.

If you want to give her system a break, a chance to "reset," what the vet advised us to do was feed Chumley boiled chicken and rice in some of the boiled chicken broth water for a week. We did that. It did make the diarrhea go from explosive to "just" diarrhea.

She's brown/Sable, not chocolate. Choc Burmese are much lighter and have a mask. The brown/sables are a more solid, rich dark seal colour. Burmese should also never have green eyes, it's a fault and against the standard. No breeder wants to be breeding for green eyes, probably why you got told by 'every' breeder that they couldn't help you. 

To show the difference in colours - the first queen here is a brown (sable in the US)

http://charlburycats.com/burmese_queens.htm

And a chocolate boy 

http://charlburycats.com/burmese_studs.htm

Hi Missymotus. Hershey always photographed darker than she actually was. Her green eyes are a "defect" to breeders, as are blue eyes. At least, that is what I have been told. Also, she did have the oriental bone structure. She weighed about 7 1/2 lbs. I am not a breeder, but I can tell you she was purchased from a reputable breeder here in San Diego, and her papers (which were lost when her mom moved to England) state she is a dark chocolate. Her eyes were definitely luminescent and not a normal green, more to a bright sage green. Right before she passed, I took several pictures of her and she showed up black! I think this picture may be the closest to her actual color. Of course, I have a $200 digital camera. A better camera probably would have shown her true color more.

I've seen sables, and they are not the same color as my Hershey was. Maybe she just had weird DNA. But her vet also identified her as a chocolate on his records. He said he had only treated one other purebred Burmese that color (and it had green eyes also) and it belongs to Nicholas Cage (yes, the actor).

Hershey


This is Hershey Rose, the feral I just adopted. She too, was listed as a chocolate. However, she is definitely darker than Hershey. Note: She also has green eyes and the oriental facial structure. What are the odds of that? She also photographs a bit darker than she really is, but personnally, I would not call her a chocolate. I would call her a sable. She is also larger than my Hershey was, though she weighs only 1/4 lb more. She is 11 - 12 months old (at least that is what it says on her adoption papers). She is dark brown with lighter brown highlights (as seen in her tail).

Hershey Rose


Personally, I have never seen a Burmese as light as the one in the link you sent me. Pretty little thing he is!

Blessed be

LeiAnn