Constant Diarrhea With No Cause?

[AllatorCat]

I got my cat Spencer from the shelter a few months ago, and ever since he's come home he's had diarrhea. I've taken him to the vet three times, he's been vaccinated, dewormed, tested for parasites, viruses, and bacteria, but they can't find anything wrong. He's eating fine, drinking fine, and a very active kitten, but the diarrhea just won't stop. I've even changed his food twice, and right now he's on a mix of Science Diet kitten food and Purina One Sensitive Systems food, which seemed to help for a while but now his stool is practically liquid. And I'm worried that he might have some bloating happening, and he's been gassy since I got him too.
I'm honestly at a loss of what to do, and any suggestions would be welcome. He's 7-8 months right now if that helps at all.

 

[fuschiafrog]

This sounds a lot like my cat when we first got her. She was about 6 months old, loved food, played like crazy, had plenty of energy and had the stinkiest gas and loosest stool imaginable. We tried all sorts of things. The poor baby was racing to the litter box so often it was sad.

One vet gave us some tablets that we crushed up and put in her food when her diarrhea was at its worst. She said that it wouldn’t treat the underlying problem but would help firm the stool. We used that for about a week and it gave Abby a break from the constant litter box visits.

Her diarrhea finally resolved as soon as we tried her on Primal freeze-dried venison. It was amazing how quickly it worked for her. So for Abby, her diarrhea was a food issue. As soon as we found a food that worked for her, the diarrhea went away. (She’s having problems now but I hope you can find a food that works permanently for your cat!)

 

[jen]

Ok here we go.

How about an ultrasound of the intestines? Or an xray? Maybe something to keep in mind in the future.
Or you could start food trials.
Look at the first few ingredients in the food he is eating.
You didn't mention if it is Science Diet Indoor kitten formula or healthy development....
Science Diet Indoor kitten: Chicken, Brown Rice, Wheat Gluten, Chicken Fat, Egg Product, Whole Grain Oats, Whole Grain Wheat, Cracked Pearled Barley
or;
Science Diet Healthy Development: Chicken, Whole Grain Wheat, Corn Gluten Meal, Chicken Fat, Chicken Liver Flavor, Whole Grain Corn, Dried Beet Pulp, Soybean Oil
and;
Purina One Sensitive Systems: Turkey, brewers rice, corn gluten meal, soybean meal, turkey by-product meal, oat meal, animal fat... dried egg product, whole grain corn

All the highlighted ingredients are fillers and carbs and things cats do not need and over time can cause issues if they aren't already.

Also the proteins (Chicken mostly in the first 2, turkey in third) could cause allergies or sensitivities.

SOoOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooooo...
You could ask the vet for a select protein prescription food.
You could search on your own.
I would start here.
Read this page and some of the links. You will learn a WHOLE lot of stuff about how to properly feed your cat.
For now if you don't want to consult your vet (which is ok, most aren't nutritionists anyway) look for a food with no chicken or turkey. Try a different protein. Also consider switching to mostly canned food with lower carbs. Again that website I linked you to will help you greatly. Canned is especially good for a male cat to help prevent urinary issues. As he grows most people like to have dry available too. So look for a food without those proteins.

In the meantime, you can ask your vet for Fortiflora or a probiotic to top the food with, canned pumpkin can help too. Maybe you will get lucky and one of those will do the trick and problems will be solved.

And good luck.

 

[posiepurrs]

What type tests for parasites did the vet do? Tritrichamonas feotus requires a PCR test to correctly diagnose. This test must be sent out to a lab.