Kitten diarrhea that just won't quit - even after treatment

[stephenq]

 
Ah Found it.  This is what I was looking it when I was thinking about whether he should be tested.   I saw that the test wasn't that expensive, but what I remembered was this that you needed a fecal loop (i.e., veterinarian) to collect it otherwise the test was relatively unreliable,  That isn't mentioned in the documentation from the test manufacturer, but it is here (see page 6):  http://www.cvm.ncsu.edu/docs/documents/ownersguide_tfoetus_revised_122009_final.pdf

Perhaps this is what her vet meant when he told her it would get relatively pricey to do the test.  Or maybe he's not even familiar with it (never came up in the two vets I brought my cat to.) 

What I was picking up on in her post was her concern about the cost, to me that's more of a barrier to treatment than people not understanding what they should do.  I don't doubt that it may be apples and oranges here, it's just that a lot of people only have a choice of apples.

I personally don't think a $75 test is expensive in the grand scheme of things.  I read the doc you linked to and they are being very nudgy for lack of a better word.  You collect a full wet stool sample and put it in a bag and there will be plenty of quality poop to do a PCR test.  I've collected 100's of stool samples for PCR testing and none was rejected.  As for cost, vet care isn't cheap, we all know that.  But whatever it costs today to test and treat this kitten, ignore it long enough and it will cost plenty more.

 

[reba]

My first impression was that it was a more sensitive test for another parasite.  But  then why isn't it recommended as a matter of course by vets.  Like you said it's $75.

There are also the concerns about her other cat getting infected, but if she's not careful she'll end up both spending the money and putting the other cat in danger if it's a false negative.  That being the case I'd be darn sure the sample was collected exactly as the test manufacturer recommends.  I guess I just don't have a lot of faith that these things are explained to people so that that happens.

Finally, I'm confused by your statement that the lab hasn't rejected any samples, the lab just tests what is sent to them.  It would be impractical to do otherwise.

 

[stephenq]

 
My first impression was that it was a more sensitive test for another parasite.  But  then why isn't it recommended as a matter of course by vets.  Like you said it's $75.

There are also the concerns about her other cat getting infected, but if she's not careful she'll end up both spending the money and putting the other cat in danger if it's a false negative.  That being the case I'd be darn sure the sample was collected exactly as the test manufacturer recommends.  I guess I just don't have a lot of faith that these things are explained to people so that that happens.

Finally, I'm confused by your statement that the lab hasn't rejected any samples, the lab just tests what is sent to them.  It would be impractical to do otherwise.

I don't know why more vets don't use PCR testing, perhaps ignorance.  All the vets I work with routinely use PCR testing.  As to your confusion with what i said about samples, perhaps what I should have said is that I've never had a sample not be able to be used to get an accurate result.  If the lab couldn't amplify the DNA in the sample they would reply with "inadequate sample" or similar and I've never had that happen.  A tablespoon of nice wet poop is perfect and more than needed for an accurate result.  Collecting poop isn't hard.  Idexx labs requests that we put a spoonful of fresh stool into container and ship it expeditiously with a dated label and the animal's name.  That's it.

 

[reba]

"Collecting poop isn't hard."

LOL.  Easy for you to say!!! 

I had to put the litter box next to the bed so I could wake up (or hopefully wake up) when he was about to go.  It seemed no matter how careful I was I would get there too late to get a clean catch, so to speak, ewwwwwwwwww.

Oh and he did get an IBD diagnosis.  I think one of the tests hey did (Feline Cancer Panel) might be done by the same lab.  Texas rings a bell for some reason. He's also a nervous nellie, definitely the most emotional of the three siblings.  He has a hard time just relaxing and allowing himself to be petted, but when you try he purrrrrs louder than any of the others and his whiskers curve forward.  I love that about him. 

 

 

[stephenq]

 
"Collecting poop isn't hard."

LOL.  Easy for you to say!!! 

I had to put the litter box next to the bed so I could wake up (or hopefully wake up) when he was about to go.  It seemed no matter how careful I was I would get there too late to get a clean catch, so to speak, ewwwwwwwwww.

Oh and he did get an IBD diagnosis.  I think one of the tests hey did (Feline Cancer Panel) might be done by the same lab.  Texas rings a bell for some reason. He's also a nervous nellie, definitely the most emotional of the three siblings.  He has a hard time just relaxing and allowing himself to be petted, but when you try he purrrrrs louder than any of the others and his whiskers curve forward.  I love that about him.