1 year old cat with constant diarrhea issues -- help !!

Hi there,

Just looking for some thoughts or ideas on this ... I have had my now 1 yr old Abyssinian (male) Loki since April of this year.  When I first got him, he had loose stool problems that had worsened over the span of a few weeks.  My initial vet visit turned up nothing (fecal check etc) so he was put on FortiFlora .. which did help for a few weeks.  Then the loose stool returned ... after another vet visit, they found he had roundworm and was given the de-worming meds - Drontal and Flagyl to get rid of the diarrhea, which both worked, and his 2 subsequent fecal exams confirmed the worms were gone.

Then a few weeks later, loose stool is back yet again !!!    Another/longer dose of the Flagyl and Loki has been back to normal for over a month now ...

Yet again .. diarrhea is back ...

All of Loki's vet checks have come back normal -- ie temp, etc .....  and he has had no change in food, etc.   Over the past few days (about when the diarrhea started again) I noticed he was a bit 'stressed' and had his back up a few times (not sure why) so it might be stress related ??

I dont want to keep having to put him on meds/Flagyl ... and was reading up on alternatives online and found Metamucil could help .....  I did try a little in his wet food yesterday, and although his stool is still loose this morning .. he is not 'running to the bathroom' every hour like he has been .. or leaving little 'poop spots' all over the house...

Just wondering if anyone else has tried the Metamucil for loose stool/diarrhea probs in cats and how safe it is to use over a period of time ?   If the loose stool keeps up I will have to take him to the vet (again) ... but I dont want to keep having to take him to the vet/keep him on meds constantly .. it cant be good for him ....

Any thoughts would be very helpful .. as this is getting very frustrating !!!  ;o)   On a side note, I do have another Aby girl, Foxy who is 6yrs old and no stool problems at all .. they both eat the same food,etc ....   They are still in the 'introduction' phase as its only been about 4 mths that they have been together now ... and I've noticed that Foxy is being more dominant towards him than she was initially ... possibly this is what may be stressing him out ??

It could still be parasites, one that hasn't been checked for or it's food related.  You could try putting him on a bland diet for a few days.  For a cat that would be boiled chicken, if the diarrhea continues add some rice to the chicken.  A cat can be given this diet for a week.  If this clears up the diarrhea then it probably is a diet related issue.  If the diarrhea continues then you are probably dealing with another parasite.  

The flagyl should have cleared up a bacterial cause and it is also effective against giardia but there are other possibilities.

I would not give a cat Metamucil long term.  You could try pumpkin though.  (not the pie filling, just plain canned pumpkin).  It's a good kind of fiber which can be added to his (hopefully) wet food with every meal.  Just a teaspoon per meal should help.  Oddly, it will help with either diarrhea OR constipation.  Also, I would try adding a good human probiotic to his diet.  We give all our cats the same one we take, They get one capsule per day, sprinkled into their food.

But as Denice mentioned, it could still be some other kind of parasite that is not normally tested for.  you might ask the vet if he has done a PCR GI panel. This will test for cryptosporidium, tritrichomonas, campylobacter, Giardia, Coccidia and other parasites/protozoans. It is more sensitive than what can be done in a vet clinic.

What are you feeding?  How long has he been on it?  Has he been tested for giardia, coccidia, and tritrichomonas foetus?  Those require a different test than a regular fecal float.  If it's not food and all of the above tests come back negative, you can try a limited diet or a special diet food such as Royal Canin Gastrointestinal HE.  Also, you can try Slipper Elm Bark.  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/262185/slippery-elm-bark-is-helping-mazy-so-much

Have you tried plain yogurt (not fat-free and not sugar-free)? Just a teaspoon or so? I've got a guy that gets periodic diarrhea for no apparent reason, but it clears up after his yogurt dose. About one teaspoon a day for two days fixes him up. He shares living quarters with 2 other cats and gets fed the same thing they do, but he's the only one that has the problem with diarrhea. 

Thanks everyone !!!   Because I have 2 cats ... it wouldn't be possible to keep Loki on a bland diet on his own .. as I leave their dry food out all day, and my other one grazes throughout the day ;o)   Right now, they are both eating Royal Canin Special33 for sensitive digestive issues, as my Aby girl had a gastrointestinal infection a few months ago, and this food seems to work well for both of them ..  previously they were on Blue Buffalo Wilderness ... they also split a Wellness wet food packet in the morning ....  although, being Abys ... they like to get into EVERYTHING in the kitchen ....

I picked up the canned pumpkin yesterday and Loki was ALLL over it ... licking it right out of the can !!!  I mixed some in with his wet food yesterday and today and HUGE improvement so far !!!!   Litter runs are down from 10+ per day to about 2 ... so far so good !!!!

I'll give this another few days and see how he is (other than the diarrhea, he is completely normal) ....  otherwise .. back to the vet he goes !!!!

Thanks again ;o)

Cheers

Good news!  I would still add a probiotic to his diet too, though.  Hers also     You could mix it right into their Wellness packet every morning.

An update on Loki ... I did take him to the vet on Tuesday b/c his symptoms got worse and he was diagnosed with Colitis ....

Back on the Flagyl and high fibre food ... and finally today he seems to be doing a little better ....   Just worries me a little bit that such a young baby could get Colitis ???

He previously had roundworm (from the breeders I'm guessing, since he would not have contracted it from my home)  but has been dewormed twice and no other health issues other than the diarrhea ....

I havent had more tests done yet since the vet seemed sure this was the only problem .....  hopefully he gets better soon and its not a permanent thing ;o))

Thanks everyone again for your thoughts

You have two cats with GI problems?

Foxy (I have had her since she was 2 mths) has never had an GI problems until I got Loki .... and she got sick about a month after I got him.
She was in emerg for 3 days with fever, high blood pressure and after running a bunch of tests, they treated her for a GI infection but told me 'they weren't sure' if thats what it was (although she responded to treatment) ..... I dont know if maybe Loki's roundworm got her infected ?? As she got sick before they were both dewormed ....
Otherwise ... Foxy has never had health issues ..... its just Loki ;o) lol

They were both on Blue Buffalo Wilderness but are now on the Royal Canin & Hills for GI (+ high fibre) .... the problem is, Loki likes to get into EVERYTHING (people food I mean) .. so I'm not sure if that has something to do with it too ???