Ongoing diarrhea in 6 month old kitten

[stephanietx]

I know you're probably scared at this point, but your kitty's health is in dire need of attention.  I fully second what @StephenQ has suggested.  Your little guy needs some kind of IV nutrition, something to stop the diarrhea, and more fecal testing than what's done locally in-house.  Don't give up fighting for your baby.  Get him to the new vet, or I know Houston is big enough to have several emergency vets.  Get him to one TODAY.  I know it's late in the day, but find someone to see your baby today.  Keep us posted and know we're pulling for you and your kitty.

 

[mother of cats]

Thank you everyone for your concern and support. I took Jasper in to the vet I had been seeing on Tuesday last week and they gave him a blood test and an ultrasound. he had lost another .3 pounds so the vet was very concerned. He gave him some antibiotics because his red blood cell count was low, his heartbeat was also low. After 2 days on the medication he started doing much better. The vet discontinued the rice in his diet, so he is currently just on boiled chicken. (He has not had any diarrhea with that) Which I know is not a long term solution for his diet.. I tried adding pumpkin back in but the next morning he was having diarrhea again. So pumpkin is out. Right now I just need to try to find a food that works for him. He has dry food that he eats, it's Purina One Chicken and Rice. Is there a food you guys would recommend for him? He obviously has a sensitive stomach and can't handle much. The biggest concern is getting his weight up. 

Thank you again! 

 

[zed xyzed]

I am glad that Jasper is a little better, I would try feeding a limited Ingredient  canned cat  food. Hope you can find a food that agrees with his sensitive tummy. Let us know how he is doing. PS post a picture of the little guy if you can, we love pictures 

 

[catpack]

Agree. You might consider Nature's Variety Instinct canned (I usually start with the Turkey formula) as it has no thickeners and has fairly simply ingredients.

I would forgo dry food all together for the time being.

You may also want to consider doing a balanced home-cooked food for him. U-Stew is one supplement that can be added to cooked meat to make it balanced. You can check out the Raw and Home-cooked diet forum here if you decide to go that route.

There is also the option of doing commercial raw...freeze-dried (I like Stella & Chewy's) or frozen (Stella & Chewy's or Nature's Variety Instinct both make limited ingredient formulas.)

 

[zed xyzed]

Agree. You might consider Nature's Variety Instinct canned (I usually start with the Turkey formula) as it has no thickeners and has fairly simply ingredients.

I would forgo dry food all together for the time being.

You may also want to consider doing a balanced home-cooked food for him. U-Stew is one supplement that can be added to cooked meat to make it balanced. You can check out the Raw and Home-cooked diet forum here if you decide to go that route.

There is also the option of doing commercial raw...freeze-dried (I like Stella & Chewy's) or frozen (Stella & Chewy's or Nature's Variety Instinct both make limited ingredient formulas.)

I too am a huge fan of the Nature's Variety Limited Ingredient food. 

 

[stephenq]

 
Thank you everyone for your concern and support. I took Jasper in to the vet I had been seeing on Tuesday last week and they gave him a blood test and an ultrasound. he had lost another .3 pounds so the vet was very concerned. He gave him some antibiotics because his red blood cell count was low, his heartbeat was also low. After 2 days on the medication he started doing much better. The vet discontinued the rice in his diet, so he is currently just on boiled chicken. (He has not had any diarrhea with that) Which I know is not a long term solution for his diet.. I tried adding pumpkin back in but the next morning he was having diarrhea again. So pumpkin is out. Right now I just need to try to find a food that works for him. He has dry food that he eats, it's Purina One Chicken and Rice. Is there a food you guys would recommend for him? He obviously has a sensitive stomach and can't handle much. The biggest concern is getting his weight up. 

Thank you again! 

Hill's I/D prescription food in wet and dry is for sensitive stomachs.

 

[talkingpeanut]

Did the vet not feel the need for the more extensive parasite testing advised here?

 

[stephanietx]

We feed one of our kitties Royal Canin Gastrointestinal HE. Unfortunately, it's only available in a dry food.

 

[zed xyzed]

How is little Jasper doing?

 

[mother of cats]

Hello Everyone. 

Jasper is doing better for the most part. He is still on a chicken only diet and I know that is not good for him and I need to incorporate other foods. I just don't know where to start. My vet suggested I go to petdiets.com and have them go over his medical history and plan a diet for him, for a small fee ($300) I don't have the extra money for that. I was hoping someone on here could suggest something. I do not mind boiling his chicken for him and making his food. I am afraid to try anything else that comes from a can though.. 

Thank you all for your continued concern for Jasper. 

 

[LotsOfFur]

Someone mentioned U Stew... It will make the chicken that you are giving him "balanced". If Jasper is doing well on the chicken you've been cooking for him that is one thing I would try. Also, have you tried any limited ingredient canned food such as the Nature's Variety Limited Ingredient formula?

 

[stephenq]

 
Hello Everyone. 

Jasper is doing better for the most part. He is still on a chicken only diet and I know that is not good for him and I need to incorporate other foods. I just don't know where to start. My vet suggested I go to petdiets.com and have them go over his medical history and plan a diet for him, for a small fee ($300) I don't have the extra money for that. I was hoping someone on here could suggest something. I do not mind boiling his chicken for him and making his food. I am afraid to try anything else that comes from a can though.. 

Thank you all for your continued concern for Jasper. 

You may want to post in the nutrition forum for more food assistance at http://www.thecatsite.com/f/64/cat-nutrition

You can get balanced healthy recipes for home cooked food.

 

[zed xyzed]

How is Jasper doing? I hope he is all better

 

[bombshellbonny]

 
Hello Everyone. 

Jasper is doing better for the most part. He is still on a chicken only diet and I know that is not good for him and I need to incorporate other foods. I just don't know where to start. My vet suggested I go to petdiets.com and have them go over his medical history and plan a diet for him, for a small fee ($300) I don't have the extra money for that. I was hoping someone on here could suggest something. I do not mind boiling his chicken for him and making his food. I am afraid to try anything else that comes from a can though.. 

Thank you all for your continued concern for Jasper. 

Your case sounds very similar to my cat's problems when I first got him: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/305730/kitten-with-horrible-diarrhea-for-a-month

We did all the fecal tests and blood work and everything came back as normal.  None of the medicine or probiotics helped.  Even the metamucil didn't make a dent in the diarrhea.  However, despite the 3 negative fecal tests, he did end up having tape worms (which I spotted in his stool).  The vet said that the eggs are so small that it's easy to miss in the tests.

The food I put him on to get his diarrhea under control was: Primal Freeze-Dried Turkey ().  After 4-5 days of feeding him ONLY this (no treats, nothing) he had his first solid stool in months.  After being on this for a month, his stool was normal.  My other cat eats dry food, so I wanted to work him over to that.  Let's just say, he doesn't do well on dry food -- it brought back diarrhea with each kind I tried.  The ONLY dry food I've found that doesn't cause him to have diarrhea again is Orijen's Cat and Kitten food:
I think in the case of my kitten, he just cannot handle gluten or rice at all.  The vet had also mentioned that some kitten's tummies just take a while to switch to a non-milk diet and that it may be something he'd grow out of.  Either way, this food seems to work really well for him and my other cat. 

Good luck!

 

[mother of cats]

Hello everyone. Thank you for your continued concern for Jasper. I am hoping I've found a food that works for him. I've been giving him Iams grain free chicken and he's been diarrhea free for a little over a week now. We caught him eating kitty litter yesterday and again today. His gums are also very white. I researched this and found these are signs of anemia. I've made an appointment with a vet for next Monday. I set up a go fund me account, because I just didn't have the extra funds to pay for more tests. Luckily we have some pretty awesome friends and strangers and have raised enough money for his first round of tests. I'll keep ya'll updated on his results.

 

[zed xyzed]

If you are using clumping litter please change is ASAP and get another type. Eating clumping litter can be very bad and possibly fatal 

 

[catpack]

Having very white gums is very critical. I understand finances are tight; but, if he is severely anemic and/or dehydrated he needs medical attention ASAP.

At the VERY least, please contact your vet and get advice.

 

[mother of cats]

I wanted to update all of you since you have all been so kind and helpful. We put my sweet kitty to rest yesterday. We thought he was getting better and it seemed as though he just got worse overnight. I woke up yesterday morning to find him sitting in the kitchen by the window, I petted him and he looked at me, but he was struggling just to move his head. I tried to feed him and he wouldn't eat. I picked him up and brought him to my room and just layed next to him on the floor and cried. We took him to the vet and he said that his gums were extremely white (which had gotten better if you read my previous posts) he was extremely dehydrated and he had lost .3 pounds in a week.The vet was almost positive that Jasper had lymphoma. He said that he could do a biopsy but was not sure Jasper would survive it, and even if he did, he would have to be put on chemo and he probably wouldn't survive that. It's been a tough road for my little guy and I was hopeful that he was getting better and that he would have a normal, long happy life. But he was just too sick... He fought really hard. I'll never forget him and the way that he looked at me lying on that table, as if he knew and was telling me goodbye. I love Jasper so very much. I have been crying every waking hour since yesterday morning. It is one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. Though his life was short and he was too sick to play and run around... I know that he was happy in my arms. I'm going to miss him terribly... 

 

[LotsOfFur]

Oh sweetie I'm so sorry you had to say good bye to Jasper

You fought very hard for him and loved him and he knew it! Again, I'm so sorry!

 

[betsygee]

So very sorry to read this news.  We'll lock the thread now out of respect for your loss.  We invite you to post a tribute to Jasper in our Crossing the Bridge forum.