IBS?? IBD?? Please help--no one can diagnose whats wrong with my cat

jmull

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I am desperate to save my cat . We have been dealing with blood and mucus in her stools, diarrhea, and her leaving presents on our carpet. We have 2 cats, but have had them both since 2009. We have 2 litter boxes in different rooms in the basement, she only poops on the floor in the basement (sometimes its the carpeted areas sometimes is the concrete floor) (sometime she hides it behind the couch and other times its left in the middle of the floor). She always urinates in her litterbox. She poops in her litter box maybe 25% of the time and that goes in waves. We have done multiple blood panels, fecal samples and everything comes back normal. We have treated her for Giardia as a precaution, she has been on multiple antibiotics, an anti-diarrheal's and now steroids...nothing seems to help her. We have tried a hypo allergenic diet, gastrointestinal, high fiber, high protein (Science hills ZD, EN, Royal Canin gastrointestinal and hypo allergenic diets) She is now on a high protein no grain raw freeze dried diet by Natures Instincts, steroids and probiotics, and its still not working. This is all over a  5 year span. We have tried different kinds of cat litter, adding more boxes, moving boxes around, different types of boxes-covered, uncovered, deep, shallow etc...We have seen 5 vets (2 feline specialist, 2 regular vets, and an internist). I truly think its something medically wrong with her. I just feel like a bad cat mom because I cant figure out what's wrong with my first fur baby .

Any ideas you have would be appreciated...I know the vet said out next step would be an endoscopy if we choose to go that route which is $7900!! We cannot afford that. I feel like we are headed down a euthanization path if we cant get this solved. We have a 17mo old son and we cannot have her pooping all over the floor, as its not safe. I don't know if she is in any pain as cats tend to hide this.
We just spent $700 for an ultrasound, results came back with no findings...I feel like I am at a loss and I don't know what to do.

Thanks in advance
 

Mamanyt1953

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Hang in there...this is a slow week, with so many members doing "back to school" for themselves or their kids.  SOMEONE with some knowledge will see this soon!  Meanwhile, for what little it is worth, I'm here, I hear you, and I care.
 

mingsmongols

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Why not talk to your vet about a fecal microbiota transplant. If her gut flora isn't working as it should then replacing them is a relatively inexpensive option. The new flora from a healthy cat will quickly out compete the old flora. It's kinda like upgrading the whole digestive tract with that of a healthier cats.
 

frajude

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I think there could be two issues.  Now it is possible that she can not hold it and then just does i wherever she is closest to but not using the litter box could also be a behavioral issue.  Did you have both cats always or was one introduced to the other.  I have two cats which were fairly close to each when they were adopted. The one cat vomits a lot.  She is very skinny.  When we first got her she developed a bacterial infection so that ran tests and scans and nothing was abnormal including an ultrasound.  I think she was always vomiting.  She is fairly skinny but very active and alert.

I have noticed that recently, we took our first cat which was an outside cat into the house.  A year later we adopted another kitten and then five or six months later another male kitten.  It seems like there are more issues arising.  I am wondering if one issue has to do with one cat wanting to be a solo cat.
 

slufferk

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An endoscopy should only run you about $2,000 (a lot still, but not the 7k you were quoted). How is your cats behavior? Has anyone pulled its tail, which could cause poop issues? A friends cat got their tail stuck in a door, and it ripped the lining and caused bloody poop problems. On another note, Blood and mucous could indicate IBD, or cancer/tumors of the intestinal track. Have they done an ultrasound to see if her intestine appears discolored? Where are you located? I'm in the San Francisco area and your prices appear steep! We paid less than 100 for an ultrasound.
 
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laura mae

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My cat with the past pelvis fracture is an uneven box user for pooping (very good about it for urination) and I think it is because it takes him awhile to go once he gets the urge (cisapride and miralax kitty) and when he was recovering it was impossible for him to hold the pose long enough to go. With the cisapride, the urge hits him where ever he is.

With your cat, the blood might indicate that it hurts to go. Perhaps colitis or some other condition makes it painful and so she associates the box with the pain.

There's something called "Cat Attract" that comes in litter and something you can sprinkle on the litter to make it appealing again--replacing the old memory with a new one, so to speak.
 

posiepurrs

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In all those expensive tests that were run, did they do a complete fecal? Test for Giardia, coccidia, Tritrichamonas Feotus? These are just 3 things that could cause those symptoms.
 
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jmull

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An endoscopy should only run you about $2,000 (a lot still, but not the 7k you were quoted). How is your cats behavior? Has anyone pulled its tail, which could cause poop issues? A friends cat got their tail stuck in a door, and it ripped the lining and caused bloody poop problems. On another note, Blood and mucous could indicate IBD, or cancer/tumors of the intestinal track. Have they done an ultrasound to see if her intestine appears discolored? Where are you located? I'm in the San Francisco area and your prices appear steep! We paid less than 100 for an ultrasound.
We are in Washington DC.
 
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jmull

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My cat with the past pelvis fracture is an uneven box user for pooping (very good about it for urination) and I think it is because it takes him awhile to go once he gets the urge (cisapride and miralax kitty) and when he was recovering it was impossible for him to hold the pose long enough to go. With the cisapride, the urge hits him where ever he is.

With your cat, the blood might indicate that it hurts to go. Perhaps colitis or some other condition makes it painful and so she associates the box with the pain.

There's something called "Cat Attract" that comes in litter and something you can sprinkle on the litter to make it appealing again--replacing the old memory with a new one, so to speak.
We tried the cat attract--worked for 3 days
 
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jmull

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In all those expensive tests that were run, did they do a complete fecal? Test for Giardia, coccidia, Tritrichamonas Feotus? These are just 3 things that could cause those symptoms.
Yep..everything came back "normal"
 

posiepurrs

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Yep..everything came back "normal"
Was the tests done in house at the vets or sent to a lab? Giardia and T. F. are both very difficult to diagnose. I am not sure what else to suggest. It sounds like you have tested for everything I can think of. Maybe take her to a teaching clinic? One associated with Vet school. They handle more difficult cases than a local vet. Have you tried slippery elm? I sometimes use it for my cats when they have an upset stomach. It is a long shot that it will help at all, but worth suggesting.
 

catsknowme

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I agree with PosiePurrs that you might consider using slippery elm and perhaps marshmallow root - hopefully, you have a holistic vet in your area. Also, I am fairly sure - but have you used unscented litter at all times? 

Meanwhile, if you know of anyone who is a caretaker of someone with incontinence, they may be able to give you a good price on those large disposable pads for you to keep on the floor, for your cat to use - it is much easier to toss and put out a fresh one than it is to constantly be cleaning the floor.

Your cat is probably embarrassed and uncomfortable because of what she is doing. Not to mention being tired of the frequent testing...and you too much be exhausted - a toddler AND a sick kitty.  
 

whatsonemore

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Jmull, let me add my two cents to this, albeit a bit late.

A few years ago I took in a young cat that showed up who, almost every time he ate, had immediate watery diarrhea.  He had so many foot baths during that time, I'm surprised he still has feet.  When I didn't catch him before he exited the litter box, I had poo feet tracks in my utility room.  It was a nightmare for all of us.  I bought different foods, fed him slippery elm with lean turkey and pumpkin, tried potions and powders to no avail.  After three months of doing everything I could find or think of to do to help him with little or no success, I took him to a new vet.  My previous one had killed one of my dogs with her prescription for my dog with deadly side effects she didn't warn me about, so she was no longer my vet.  This new vet ran tests, which were all negative, and gave science diet prescription food to try and some other clay stuff, similar to what I'd already tried at home, to try.  Nothing helped.

Finally, after about another 2,000 hours of online researching, I found that he could have developed an allergy to something in his food, like chicken.  Chicken, in some capacity, had been the common denominator in all the foods I'd tried.  It only takes a very small amount to cause issues if that's the cause.  I FINALLY found a food that had no chicken or chicken by-product of any kind whatsoever in it (Nature's Logic Rabbit) and ordered that, hoping that was finally what the cause was.  Within a few days he was going normally.  After keeping him on it for a good month and a half to give his gut time to heal, I added their chicken flavor into the rotation and continue to rotate the two to this day.  Several more cats have come along over the years and they are all on this brand and rotation and we have had no problems at all.  The food is Nature's Logic and you can get it from chewy on auto ship for a discount (cheapest place I've found for the chicken) or from Amazon on prime (cheapest I've found for the rabbit).  The cat and dog formulations are the same (verified by the company), but the dog food can size is more economical, especially with several cats, so that's the route I go with it.  The ingredients are really good and all of my cats are soft, shiny, healthy and alert. 

I'm not sure that that's what your cat's issue is, but it might be worth a shot.  I know Nature's Logic will send you a sample to try.  Also, carrageenan is known to cause inflammation as well, so if you are feeding your cat any foods with that in it, it could be a possibility too. 
 
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