New here and in desperate need of help!

pushkabounce

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Hey guys, I've come from a different forum, desperately seeking advise from free ears and eyes.

I'm having diarrhea issue with my 3 indoor cats and I keep getting different advise with no actual help or real experiences of this type of thing. It's quite a long story so I will break it down as best as I can. 

Thank you all in advance for your time

TINKER is 4 years old, rescue cat, has a heart murmur and has had an UTI. He doesn't drink water out of a bowl at all so I have to feed wet food with added water, twice daily. WILSON 1 year old, I've had him from a kitten of 8 weeks old. OSCAR 1 year old, Wilsons brother.

All 3 cats are INDOOR ONLY. During the very hot summer months I occasionally took them outside into my garden for half an hour or so. They are all wormed and flead with products from the vets. Drontol and Advocate was used nearly 2 weeks ago.

They all eat the same food. Dry food is a mix of Meowing Heads chicken and Hills Oral Care and Hairball. They have approx 10g each of this at about 6.30pm everyday. Wet food is given in the morning at about 7.30am and evening at about 10.30pm. One pouch each and it would be either a Whiskas, Felix, Supermarket own brand, NaturesMenu, Hills and Bozita. They all go through phases of liking a food so I have always offered a variety in order to keep them interested. I offer a range of qualities as I can no offered to feed the most expensive wet foods every day. On occasion I will feed them NaturesMenu raw nuggets for the 10.30pm feed instead of wet food.

Treats aren't very common for them, sometimes Dreamies, sometimes small bits of raw meat (chicken, beef). 

They are all active, happy, playful cats and all get along well.

They have no access to any chemicals, or plants. During my work hours they stay in my large kitchen/dining room/conservatory and when we get home they have range of most of the house.

I keep my house clean. I hoover 2/3 times a day (mainly because of the hair and cat litter), the floor in mopped once a week or more in needed. Kitchen sides are cleaned daily. I never let the cats near any cleaning equipment or washed sides or floors until they are 100% dry.

Cat litter I use OKO plus. They have 2 litter trays. One MASSIVE deep container with a whole cut out the front (Wilson is a massive digger) and another standard, high backed tray. We clear out poops and wee's 3 times a day and do a full dump of litter once every 5/6 weeks (more often when diarrhea strikes). Tinker does 1/2 wee's a day and 1 poop, the kittens do 2/3 wee's a day and 1 poop

Ok so.. the Diarrhea Diary!!

Approx 12th September Wilson had diarrhea (d++ for short), We first of all thought that it was from a new treat (Good girl chicken pieces). He went about 4 times in one evening, each time in the tray and each time the amount decreased.

I withheld food for 12 hours and then just fed 10g dry. Slowly introduced him back to normal feeding.

Approx 1 week later, Oscar has d++. Withheld food and did the same as I did for Wilson. He was ok for about 24 hours with soft poop but not runny.

D++ on/off for approx 7 days and then..

30th September Tinker got 2 bad bouts of d++. So now this is both Tinker and Oscar with d++, Wilson is fine.

Withheld food from both for 12 hours, then just fed 10g biscuits each time, did this for about 4 meals (with added water for both to keep them hydrated)

In this time I completely blitzed the kitchen and the litter trays. 

I slowly introduced wet food again, just with the sauce, then with just a few chunks of meat etc etc

At this time, the only wet food we fed were the lower quality ones. Felix, whiskas, supermarket ones.

Normal poops for nearly 2 weeks.

13th October Oscar has a soft poop, followed by d++. 30 Minutes later, another bout of d++. 

Withheld ................ same same.....

Went and got worming treatment from vets

All good poop

28th October, 2 weeks later, Tinker just had d++!!! I could cry, honestly!

WILSON, NO D++ SINCE 12TH SEPT, OSCAR, NO D++ FOR 2 WEEKS..

I called the vet and asked if I could bring in the poop for analyses but they said no, they had to see the cat first. In my mind, they just want to waste my time and money. With Christmas coming up funds are low. Of course I will take them to the vet but it's kind of my last resort.

All cats are happy, they get a bit sleepy after a bout but in general they seem fine.

The nasty bit. Let's talk about the poop!

Always brown, paler than coffee but I'd say it was normal. No blood. Tinker had a a bit of mucus the first time but no one else has had any. It smells. It's kind of like watery jelly. When you pick it out it almost wobbles.

The receptionist at the vets said it sounds like they can't deal with change of foods but I'm not so sure. Yes if it was just one cat but it was all 3. And why would they go 2, 3, 4 weeks with nothing, then get a bout again? It's never after the same food, it's completely random. I've always thought it was good to give variety but anyways, my next move is plain boring samey food.

I've never slowly changed foods. They have all had sooo many different things with no problems at all. I just can't see that all of a sudden all 3 of them can't handle food changes.

I'm just going to give Meowing Heads biscuits but I NEED to add water to it for Tinker, he just won't take water any other way. Is it ok to add water?

Everyone keeps saying to feed just boiled chicken and rice but I don't think I should really, if it's a food change then surely it will cause d++ again and then cause it again when I put them back onto normal food??

Please help me, give me ideas of what it could be. What should I do? It's driving me mad, I'm so down about it :(

I've searched the internet hi and low for stories like mine but I can't find anything quite the same :(
 

ondine

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Have you noticed if their problem started after a particular food?  You have a lot of foods with which I am unfamiliar, so I can't help you with particulars.  But I would watch closely and see if anyone reacts after a particular food or sequence of foods.

I'd find the money for the vet, too.  He or she may be able to tell something by the exam.  good luck - it's awful when they are sick!
 

mrsgreenjeens

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The change up of foods is normally only supposed to need to be and easy when it's DRY food.  Your switch up is with the wet only, it sounds like, if I followed the story correctly, isn't it?  So I wouldn't think that would be the problem.  But Ondine might be onto something...it could be one specific flavor of the wet food that is causing the issue?  From the foods you mentioned, you are across the pond from us, are you not?   I'm pretty sure Bozita is a European brand, and both Ondine and myself are located in the USA.  Have you checked to see if any of the foods you are feeding have been recalled? 

As to adding water to dry food and then feeding, it's ok to do as long as you don't leave it out for too long.  Couple of hours at most.  Then be sure to wash up the dish, just like you would when feeding wet food, because bacterial can certainly grow faster when water is mixed in. 

The chicken and rice thing does work to stop diarrhea, but you are right, if it's food causing it,then if you go right back to the same food, you'll go right back to the diarrhea.  So, the question is...is it the food causing it?  The only way to find out is to remove some of the food, one at a time and see what happens.  You may end up doing this whether or not you take one or all to the Vet, but at least if you take them to the Vet, you can rule out any parasites (other than worms)  BUT, if it's food, other than BAD FOOD, why would they all 3 be having the issue?  I can't imagine all 3 have IBD, or even are allergic to the same protein...that would just been too much of a coincidence. 

I wonder if it's possible they picked up something from the raw chicken or beef?  Now, don't get me wrong, I feed raw, so I'm definitely an advocate, but it's still possible for them to get something from it.  Since you do give them the occasion raw meat, do you give them probiotics?  Can you associate their eating raw with the diarrhea?  It's possible that could be the cause, because it IS a whole different thing, and the way it digests is different even. "they" say not to feed raw and canned or kibble within a couple hours of each other simply because of the digestion issues.  Maybe that's it?  Do you freeze the raw for a few days before giving it to them to kill anything that might be lurking in the meat? 

OK, I think I'm out of ideas for the moment
  I'll wait to see how you respond


.
 

catwoman707

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My thoughts, and rule of thumb I can usually count on is, when more than one cat in the home has diarrhea, there's a good chance it's a parasite.

It's uncommon for an indoor only cat to get parasites, but you do allow them outdoors during the summer, and the diarrhea started mid September, so I tend to think that is the culprit.

ALSO< the mucousy diarrhea, sounds like Ghiardia to me.

Diet change caused diarrhea is not usually mucousy. Ghiardia poop stinks to high heaven too.

Hate to say this, I understand money issues quite qell! But I think you need to bite the bullet on this one and do a vet visit with the worst diarrhea having kitty, have them do a poop panel. haha, okay fecal float :)
 

lcat4

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Taking Sally's thought process in a different direction...what about the dewormer and/or flea control medicine?  Although it would be weird that they all have the same reaction...but perhaps those medicines are putting a strain on their GI systems and causing the diarrhea.  Since they are primarily indoor cats, do they need the flea control on a regular basis?

I concur with the idea of giving them probiotics.  One type strain to consider including is the S. Boulardii variety, which has been discussed quite thoroughly in other threads on this site.  Apparently is was a sure cure to other cats' diarrhea issues.  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/259985/trouble-in-raw-paradise-clostridium-perfringens-and-my-cats      http://www.thecatsite.com/t/263336/probiotic-not-sure-which-one-to-pick

Digestive enzymes might help as well. 

Another side topic is hydration.  With all the runny stools, you might ask your vet (when you do make it in) if they could use sub-q fluids to perk them up and flush them out. 

I feel your pain!
 

jcat

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My thoughts, and rule of thumb I can usually count on is, when more than one cat in the home has diarrhea, there's a good chance it's a parasite.
It's uncommon for an indoor only cat to get parasites, but you do allow them outdoors during the summer, and the diarrhea started mid September, so I tend to think that is the culprit.
ALSO
 

catwoman707

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Excellent point JCAT, it is quite common for an in-house poop test to NOT show Ghiardia, as it is sneaky and will only shed the tiny cysts intermittently.

Because of this, Ghiardia is commonly diagnosed under assumption and treatment is given simply by the signs your cat is showing.

Foul smelling, soft/liquidy diarrhea, on and off usually, (this is the cat's system attempting to fix the problem on it's own btw, so you will often not see diarrhea daily, but on again off again)

Excess mucous in poop, sometimes a bit of blood (don't stress on that, it's their body's way of saying their intestines are being irritated by something)

A bit less active is another sign.

Since money is an issue here, hopefully your vet will be understanding of this, if he has ever seen your cats in the past, he may allow you to simply take him a poop sample, perform a fecal float, whether or not it tests positive, give you enough metronidazole to fully treat all 3 cats for a good 7 days to get rid of it.

If he has never seen any of them, he will want to see at least one before giving you the med.

Now that I think of it, you already mentioned he wants to see the cat.

Plan on around $100.00. Office visit/exam, fecal float, and meds.

Should not be more than that though.

You might get lucky and find a vet who will give meds with only the office visit and symptoms, especially ones who work with shelters and humane societies. You can call around different vets, and ask the receptionist if they work with rescues or shelters.

If so, you will find that vet is MUCH more lenient with procedures/protocols. They are not quite as much after the money but equally after helping animals.

Good luck!
 

catwoman707

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I meant to say too, do not be concerned about giving metronidazole even if you do not get a definite, positive test result, metro is VERY mild, will not harm your cats, can be given to young kittens even, and also is given in lower doses long term for kids with IBD (irritable bowel disease) because it helps with diarrhea. Long term meaning like a year or more!

Just be sure to give the full dose, don't let them spit it out, shoot the syringe in the back of their cheek as far as you can so they taste it less, and don't miss a dose.

Cleaning their areas and bedding is easy, 1 part bleach to 16-20 parts water, maybe add a dash of dishsoap for smell :)

Wash bedding and thoroughly dry.
 

procat

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I meant to say too, do not be concerned about giving metronidazole even if you do not get a definite, positive test result, metro is VERY mild, will not harm your cats, can be given to young kittens even, and also is given in lower doses long term for kids with IBD (irritable bowel disease) because it helps with diarrhea. Long term meaning like a year or more!

Just be sure to give the full dose, don't let them spit it out, shoot the syringe in the back of their cheek as far as you can so they taste it less, and don't miss a dose.

Cleaning their areas and bedding is easy, 1 part bleach to 16-20 parts water, maybe add a dash of dishsoap for smell :)

Wash bedding and thoroughly dry.
... need to be careful mixing dishsoap and bleach. Check the soap label before you mix it or you could wind up with a houseful of toxic fumes.
 

catwoman707

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I've never had dishsoap react to bleach water like that before.

It's not necessary regardless, just makes it smell better.
 
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