Continued diarrhea and spirochetes bacteria

I have posted numerous times about Kabou and Brandon and now need some additional input. For background, see the thread below.

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=89822

Since the first of April when I adopted Brandon as a companion to Kabou, I have been fighting stinky runny poos, mainly from Brandon. We got rid of the tape worm, hook worms that he had when he jointed us and Kabou was wormed as well just in case, at the same time. Brandon has tested negative for the usual parasites/bacteria such as giarrdia. About 3 weeks ago, Kabou's stools began looking much like Brandon's and then she developed diarrhea. The vet found the bacteria spirochetes, which she said is very rare and is not usually the cause for diarrhea, but a symptom of other massive bacteria. We put her on Amoxicillin for 10 days which caused further diarrhea and did not get rid of the spriochetes. Last week the vet did a spcecial fecal panel which she sent off to a lab for analysis. It came back negative for giardia, cocci, and every other bacteria they could test for. She is now on flagyl. This is the 6th day and although her stools have improved, they are still very soft.

I have felt all along that there is something that Brandon is passing along to Kabou, but so far it cannot be identified. I have had her for over a year, with no health problems whatsoever. They are both now on Hills I/D, which seems to have helped Brandon's frequent poos. They are not perfect, but are better and less frequent. Not sure that it has made a difference in Kabou's.

Has anyone ever run into a situation like this where the cause cannot be identified? Has anyone ever had a cat with spirochetes bacteria?

Two more questions: Can flagyl cause loose stools? Would you recommend that I have the same special fecal panel done on Brandon that we did on Kabou last week or find a specialist?

I love my little Kabou so much and I am desperate for some answers. This is breaking my heart. Thank you for whatever help you can give me. Thanks, Cris

Have you tried adding some probiotics to their food?

Which type of bacteria are they affected by? Spirochetes just implies the shape of the bacteria (a spring-like shape). Many forms of bacteria are spirochetes, like borrelia burgdorferi which causes Lyme Disease or leptospira interrogans which causes leptospirosis.

You really haven't gotten a clear answer on what type of bacteria is causing the spirochetes. I would see a specialist. In the meantime, I would definitely be adding some probiotics and a vitamin supplement to their food.

Flagyl can cause diarrhea. It's an antibiotic that will work against anaerobic bacteria . Spirochetes can be both anaerobic or aerobic, so it's possible the Flagyl won't help if the bacteria is aerobic.

Good luck!
Rachel

Thanks Rachel, I have not tried adding probiotics to their food, but will now that you have suggested it. As for which type of bacteria they are affected by, I don't know and that is a good question. When I told the vet that the only hits I had from a google search on spirochetes, was one that was linked to Lyme Disease and I believe the other was venereal disease? Anyway, she said the one that Kabou has is neither and that is all she said.

Appreciate the input on going to a specialist. The vet I use has one of the best reputations in town, but I am not making much progress with this situation. Thanks again for your help. Cris

I have a cat with a similar problem. While he doesn't have diarrhea in the classic sense, his stools have always been runny (I rescued him as a feral cat 3 years ago). He's been to the vet many times about this issue; she can not identify the cause. He seems in good health. He has no worms or parasites. He's been on the Eukanuba Low Residue diet. He tends to be a nervous wreck so I thought his digestive issues might be psychological. I tried giving him Bach's Rescue Remedy to calm him; I tried isolating him from the other cats, all of which seem to have no effect. Currently, he's on a 30-day regimen of metronidazole, which, so far on the 5th day, does not seem to have any effect (maybe this takes longer than 5 days to take effect) but even the vet said this might not be the answer. I can only mix medication with food because he's still very feral and the more stuff I mix with his food, the less inclined he is to eat it. So, as far as probiotics are concerned, does anyone have any idea how much to give to a cat? What about Kaopectate (yes, the stuff for people)? My vet seems to be against anything other than regular medicine but I take a more holistic approach. The added complication is that because the cat is feral (or formerly feral), I have to have this vet come to the house for a house call so bringing him to another vet isn't that simple, as she's one of the few vets who makes house calls in my area.

I can only relate my own experience with a cat with extreme diarrhea.
When I first brought Blondie in, (feral), he had diarrhea that was bad with a real foul odor.

He was vetted which included being wormed. When he went back for boosters I had her check because he still had the problem. The vet checked and saw no sign of worms in the fecal, but she gave another dose of worm meds just in case he still had them and weren't showing. The second worming took care of the problem and he has never had diarrhea since.

I'm not saying that's your problem, but I do know that worms can cause problems and don't always show up in a fecal.

I hope you can get to the root of the problems with your furbabes.