Help with Coon kitten

Hi everyone,

I'm new on here, first post [emoji]128522[/emoji]
I need help with my new kitten. I got a Maine coon kitten last Friday (1 week ago). She is the cutest, sweetest little girl! However we had some big problems right out of the gate...

Friday when I picked her up everything was great. She didn't seem stressed on the ride home even with my 2 kiddos poking their fingers in the crate. She would just bat at their fingers and play, then she curled up and slept most of the ride. When we got home she explored and played and everything was awesome!

On Saturday, things started to go downhill. She started having loose stools but not too too bad so I wasn't overly concerned because I know kittens can get stressed in a new environment and have that a little so no big deal.

On Sunday though, it turned into watery, horrible diarrhea.
The poor little girl couldn't even control herself. It just came out without warning [emoji]128553[/emoji] She didn't eat or drink at all so by 3pm I had her in the car on the way to the emergency vet because I was afraid she would dehydrate and die! The vet said her mucous membranes were pink and her scruff didn't have tenting so she was ok, not too dehydrated. He took a fecal sample with a loop (which was horrible!) but he didn't see anything under the microscope. He prescribed Flagyl and sent us home.

Next day was still really bad so I decided to get into my own Vet for a check. They were wonderful! Cleaned up her bottom and trimmed the long hair so it wouldn't be so messy, gave her some fluids under her skin and got a stool sample to send to the lab. Results came back today that it is Coccidiosis. My vet gave me Albon but now after reading stuff on here I'm thinking it would be better to get the other med that actually kills the parasite- what's the name? Starts with a P.

Anyways, the diarrhea has now gone to the opposite end of the spectrum and now she has constipation. She pooped a small amount this morning but has not since and has tried about 3 times without success. Is there anything I can do to help her?? Is it the Flagyl that made her constipated? Ugh, so stressed.

Also, she wants to be on the bed right up next to me at night. Should I not let her? How easy can humans get this?

Thanks for reading, sorry this is so long. Here is a pic of my baby girl Gwen

Welcome to TCS and I'm sorry that it's under these circumstances. I'm moving your thread to the cat health forum where I hope it can get more attention. 

I see no reason not to go with the vet's recommendation at this point. Albon works on the the protozoa's ability to make its own folic acid. It doesn't affect mammals because we make our own. It's a drug used to treat various bacteria and protozoa including members of the coccidia family.

I'm not sure about the other drug but obviously, it's something to be discussed with your vet. Maybe give them a call, describe the constipation and see if they think it requires switching to a different drug? Do you have a number where you can reach the vet over the weekend? I wouldn't wait until Monday for a phone consultation.

gwenandpaco

Sorry your new kitten is ill.

The most effective drug for coccidia is Ponazuril. It will kill the coccidia parasite in 3 days' time, though it may be prescribed for longer. Please consult your vet on this.

Albon serves to inhibit growth of the parasite only. Kittens usually get better on Albon, but the diarrhea can come back because the organism is still there.

The Flagyl will kill giardia, which is a different parasite. Did it show up in the original fecal test?

Antibiotics can cause constipation or diarrhea. I suggest you mix a few drops of olive oil into her wet food to soften her stool.

I hope your kitten improves soon!

sarthur2 said:

@gwenandpaco

Albon serves to inhibit growth of the parasite only. 

Click to expand...

That's true but the idea is to suppress it to the point of letting the animal's immune system take over and beat the infection so that eventually the animal is healed. I think Ponazuril for cats is still an off-label use? According to this video there are potential neurotoxicity issues with Ponazuril if used in high doses. I just watched it and she says Albon works well but shelters were looking for something that would work faster so that could treat the cats/dogs within a few days and get them to their adopting homes as soon as possible.  

I agree with asking the vet about Ponazuril but I would make sure he or she is comfortable with the off-label usage for cats and familiar with the recommended dosage. 

@sarthur2  do you know of more recent publications/resources on this? It would be interesting to see if Ponazuril indeed becomes the drug of choice out shelters as well. I guess in that case the company would have to get it properly approved for use in cats?  

Anne

You are correct that Ponazuril is used off-label in felines and canines. It is approved for horses.

The video presentation is based on research conducted by Dr. Lister and fellow veterinarians at Purdue University in 2014. It is the most recent study that I am aware of at present.

The abstract for this peer-reviewed, published article is here with full citations:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/24679485/#fft

It would be great to see further studies done, which might hopefully lead to Ponazuril being approved for regular use in cats! [emoji]128077[/emoji]

Thank you both for the advice! I will check with the vet.
So I did put a couple drops of olive oil in her food and she finally ate a little. I don't think she feels much like eating right now. Then I noticed when she tried to go this last time there is like a centimeter of a large stool that is out of her rextum but she can't get it out [emoji]128553[/emoji] Poor little girl! Should I gently try to pull it out?? Ugh! I don't want to hurt her.

I will call the vet -I just remembered I think they are open a half day on Saturdays... I'll let you know what they say.

gwenandpaco

Yes, try to get the stool if you can. You can also use infant glycerin suppositories. Shave off a tiny piece and insert it. A bowel movement should follow shortly.

Ask your vet if your kitten should remain on the Flagyl that the emergency vet prescribed. It's strong stuff and may be causing loss of appetite.

Do keep us posted!

@sarthur2 @Anne
Thank you so much for the advice! I will try that the baby glycerin! Also I just got off the phone with the vet and he said the same thing. He told me I could try and pull it out gently and I could use a q-tip with Vaseline too to try and just break pieces off as they come out.
She is still so sweet and purrs whenever I come near her even though she's feeling like poo (pun intended [emoji]128513[/emoji]). I think she knows I'm trying to help her [emoji]10084[/emoji]️
He also told me I could stop the Flagyl and just go with the Albon. The Flagyl initially was from the emergency vet because he thought she only had "stress colitis" from being in a new home so he said it would help with the inflammation and help with the diarrhea. My vet told me to continue with it for a couple more days for the same reason but she's now had 5 days worth so I think we're good on that. It did help with the diarrhea but it helped a little too much!
Anyways, I really appreciate all your help. This site is awesome! So glad I'm on here.
I'll let you all know if there are any changes.

Thank you for the update! We'd love to see more of her, she's so adorable!   

What a little darling.    Hope she gets better very soon.  

Yay!!!! She did a big poop and feels so much better!! And so do I. Oh man, what a relief! I felt so bad for her. She is playing and eating like her usual self. How do u put a video on? I have a cute one of her playing [emoji]128513[/emoji]

I just put a video of her on YouTube. Here's the link! [emoji]128514[/emoji][emoji]128514[/emoji][emoji]128514[/emoji][VIDEO][/VIDEO]

She's adorable! [emoji]128149[/emoji]

Glad she finally pooped!

What a precious little girl.  I wanna gobble her up, she's so cute! 

So glad she's doing better.