Sick Cats?

Okay. So I have three cats at home. One 4.5 year old and two maybe 6 month old kittens. A few weeks back, my oldest was puking and one of the cats was pooping outside the litterbox (my assumption was it was also my oldest). I took her to the vet, and he couldn't find much of anything wrong with her. He didn't suspect any foreign objects had been ingested, and she was perfectly hydrated. He gave her some anti-vomit injection and suggested some prescription food. My older cat vomited again a couple days after the injection. When I got home I realized one of my kittens was also vomiting (he just vomited up a little pile of mucus). So I figured there had to be something in common. Also, all the cats had diarrhea, one of them with a pretty bad bout of it. I realized that I had switched them from Authority to Meow Mix, due to some tight cash (which I now realize is the devil of cat foods, and it has been discarded, never to be seen again). I took it that Meow Mix was the culprit, and gradually switched the cats to just be on the prescription food. Vomiting has since stopped, and the diarrhea has been reduced to a mild case, although it is not completely gone. I'm going to try doing a 12 or 24 hour fast to see if that helps the diarrhea. Anyway, my worry is about my oldest. Although all the cats seem to have the diarrhea, my oldest is the only one showing any weird behavior. The kittens behave completely normal, playing and causing trouble as usual. All the cats are eating, drinking plenty, and doing normal grooming. What I've noticed is different is that my oldest cat is becoming increasingly affectionate. She now sleeps behind the pillow on my bed, and is constantly begging for attention at night, and sometimes throughout the day. Since my vet really expressed little concern about her when I took her in, I'm not sure if she's really not feeling well or if it's for other reasons. We moved three hours away from the home she grew up in about 7 months ago. 3 months ago, I got my two kittens. Since then, the kittens are kept in the basement with me at night, and the past month or so my oldest is also being kept in the basement with both me, and the rambunctious kittens. My cat has become a little aggressive towards the kittens, when she wasn't previously. She never attacks them (she regularly grooms them, actually), but if she is with me she will actively growl, swat, and/or chase any kitten within sight or reach. Then she will return to me. So I was wondering if maybe her increased affection is a jealousy thing, not related to the recent health issues. I just don't want to spend 300 dollars running diagnostics if her behavior is simply a reaction to all the changes in the past months. What are your thoughts? I'm just such a worry wart. And since all three are having the mild diarrhea, I find it confusing that she is the only one with strange behavior. And any advice for the loose bowels? It's improved since the prescription food was started, but the fact that it is still present at all worries me. It cost me 80 bucks for a single visit, so if there is something I can do at home that would save me from paying 500+ dollars in visits and tests for three cats then let me know. If I have to cash out my savings then that's that, I just don't know what to do. I'd feel stupid if I go back to the vet and pay him to say the same darn thing again "nothing feels too wrong, should go away, keep with prescription food". Or maybe I didn't switch from meow mix to prescription food gradual enough, I'm not sure. I really don't think anything bad was ingested. There aren't any chemicals I can think of that they could have gotten, and I haven't noticed any potential hazards being chewed. Sorry for the long post and the back and forth. I'm just at a loss at what I should do at the moment.

First off do not fast cats. They are not dogs and cannot go long periods of time without food. You can withhold food for a few hours but do NOT go 24 hours. Your best friend with sick cats is freeze dried meat only treats (Bravo, Whole Life make good ones) and meat flavored baby food NO onions or garlic. These are mild and perfectly good and safe for cats short term. 

My at home treatment for diarrhea is probiotics and slippery elm syrup. In fact 4 of my cats came down with some "virus" that was causing diahrrea and i treated them mostly with slippery elm, and increased their daily probiotic dosage. Here is more information.

http://www.littlebigcat.com/health/slippery-elm/

http://www.foodfurlife.com/my-cat-has-diarrhea---what-do-i-do.html

Yes, meow mix kibble is nearly the worst thing you can feed your cats. Ideally you should feed at least 1/2 wet food to your cats, but in my opinion all kibble is bad and all cats should at minimum eat 100% wet food. 

I used to have them on an all Authority wet food diet, which is what I'll be switching them back to as the prescription food runs out. Or, if anything, they'll get kibble on my early days when I don't have much time and wet food the rest of the time. I've never heard of slippery elm syrup so I'll have to look into it. The only reason I thought of the fast is because I had seen a variety of people recommend it, although that'll be a no-go now. I'm just glad that it seems the diarrhea is curable at home. Do you have any thoughts on the behavior change of my oldest?

KlugeKrake said:

 
I used to have them on an all Authority wet food diet, which is what I'll be switching them back to as the prescription food runs out. Or, if anything, they'll get kibble on my early days when I don't have much time and wet food the rest of the time. I've never heard of slippery elm syrup so I'll have to look into it. The only reason I thought of the fast is because I had seen a variety of people recommend it, although that'll be a no-go now. I'm just glad that it seems the diarrhea is curable at home. Do you have any thoughts on the behavior change of my oldest?

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Slippery elm is really mild and safe. You can find it at most health food stores or you can buy it online. It's a powder you then make into a syrup, which you can mix into food, baby food, or syringe. It's good for diarrhea, nausea, and constipation. 

I don't think your oldest cats behavior sounds all that weird. I'd be concerned if she was hiding, not eating, or acting lethargic, but being more affection is just something cats do sometimes, and perhaps she just feels annoyed with the kitten due to being in the basement. 

Update: I was not able to get slippery elm at any health stores near me, so I just tried out the meat-only baby food for a couple days and then introduced them to some wet food. Their poop is no longer orange, but a dark brown. And it doesnt seem to be loose and no longer smells awful enough to clear a room! So I think we're on a road to recovery! I should have known that switching their food like that when they've been on good quality food their whole lives was a terrible decision. Thanks for the help, atleast now I have an idea of what to do in the future if they get sick again.

KlugeKrake said:

Update: I was not able to get slippery elm at any health stores near me, so I just tried out the meat-only baby food for a couple days and then introduced them to some wet food. Their poop is no longer orange, but a dark brown. And it doesnt seem to be loose and no longer smells awful enough to clear a room! So I think we're on a road to recovery! I should have known that switching their food like that when they've been on good quality food their whole lives was a terrible decision. Thanks for the help, atleast now I have an idea of what to do in the future if they get sick again.

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Good stuff. Baby food/slippery elm are always in my house as emergency prep in case someone gets sick. You can order slippery elm powder online for pretty cheap, amazon carries it.