Any vets or cat lovers in the house?

Dealt with it with my Smudgee. He also developed diarrhea after a change in diet and I thought it was a food issue since a sample just before I adopted him had come back negative. I dialed back on switching the food and did it slowly, still very loose stools. He didn't seem to be in any distress, but it was messy and bothered me. Another test a few weeks later showed tapeworms. I was surprised as at six months he was already a sturdy nine pounds, glossy fur, full of energy, not your typical skinny, listless cat with worms. Not a vet but maybe in some stages of their life cycle they're harder to spot? The one sign seemed to be the enormous amount of food he was putting away--apparently much of it was going to his worms.

I'd be careful with Taste of the Wild--not familiar with the brand but is it formulated for kittens? Kitten food's usually intended to be more digestible and in smaller pieces, which matters for the little ones. All my kittens except Smudgee (since we're in Vietnam) have done well on Iams or Science Diet kitten food. He got Royal Canine Kitten, the European equivalent. It's been my experience that the more expensive food pays for itself as the cat eats less (since it has fewer filler ingredients) and tends to have fewer health issues.

Then again, also possible it's something bacterial--if he's been at a shelter or pet store, there's lots of chances to pick up bugs from other cats, especially with the stress of new owner, food, etc. It seems odd that the vet would prescribe an antibiotic without seeing the cat, though--ours wouldn't. I know vets are expensive but I'd be careful with a kitten--they can quickly deteriorate if they get dehydrated and/or have an infection. A final, depressing possibility is that he left Mom too young--they seem to have impaired immunity in that case from not getting enough of her milk, and tend to come down with, and usually succumb, to pretty much everything. It's why I won't get kittens in developing countries unless they're born to a friend's Mom Cat and spend a full 6-8 weeks with her. I don't know what the solution is in that case. Best of luck!

Anything ending in "azole" is likely an anti-parasitic and not antibiotic. Likely some kind of parasite and not a bacterial infection.

BUT: This thread is worthless without pics! Where's the cute kitten shots?

Thanks for the replies. I really appreciate it. The taste of the wild doesn't come in kitten variety but has an all stages formula. I feel like like it is a good quality food. We have had our dog on the canine version for a long time and she does well. It is grain free for both cats and dogs. It may not be right for my little kitty though. Ugg! We are so broke right now too. Maybe should have waited on adding a new family member. My hubby felt bad for me as I am injured and can't run for probably a few months. He said I needed something else to fixate on. Lol

As far as pics go, let me see if I can figure out how to post. I am not very computer savy.

If it is indeed an anti-parasitic then my guess is the vet is treating pre-emptively for worms. If Mom Cat was a street/shelter kitty then the kittens have probably had them from birth and that's a reasonable assumption. I'd check with the vet that it is and if so, go ahead and worm him. (Actually, I think both Smudgee and I may have taken that particular one--not at the same time for the same tummy bug, though!) If still not resolved, I'd try some different foods; if that still doesn't do the trick, back to the vet. Good luck--already have kitten envy and mine's only 1 1/2!

i would recommend only using kitten specific food for a kitten. they pack a ton of extra nutrients in it which it needs since it is going to be doing a lot of growing very quickly; full grown cats don't need this. feeding a kitten cat food can cause it to become malnourished.

also you mention its a male cat... do some research on the food brand you choose. some will cause bladder infections in male cats which can lead to kidney infection/failure if you don't catch it fast enough. there are a few brands out there which are better than others, and if your cat requires it you can usually get "prescription" grade cat food from the vet.

Good advice. And if you're changing foods, do it gradually. Mix in a little of the new food and slowly transition to all new food. Any sudden change is liable to upset his stomach. Also some cats wolf their food down and barf it right back up. My male cat will occasionally do this. Better to do multiple small meals if possible.

I repeat the deworming of any kitten with persistent diarrhea, even if fecal exam is negative. False negatives can occur. Deworming would be my first choice in addressing the diarrhea.

PS - Metronidazole is an antibiotic, not a dewormer

Thanks for all the replies. I ended up having kitty fast for 12 hours and then started him on boiled chicken breast and rice this morning. I also picked up the metranidazole. He's had one dose of that. Seems a bit better this afternoon and evening. He had one huge diarrhea in the morning but nothing since. I will see if these things help and gradually put him back on the science diet kitten formula. Maybe I should save the Taste of the Wild for when he is older. If the diarrhea doesn't improve I will definately look into deworming. Thanfully he is still very active and not acting sick at all.

I sure can't figure out how to post a pic. :-( Can I do it from my phone?

Edited by desertchica 2013-08-26 9:32 PM

I used taste of the wild pretty much exclusively on both my cats and dogs, and both from when they were babies - my german shepherd came with TotW from the breeder (although, I think she has changed now) - he loves going to Tractor Supply Company to get his food because he gets to come in (the goof)

I would say that it is most likely too much too quickly, like others have said.

re: kitten/puppy food - my vet actually recommends against doing those because she feels in the long run they can cause more harm - because they are so high in nutrients - she often sees young animals who weigh too much because they continued to eat that food past when they should (on top of not getting enough exercise)

Here's my kitten pic.









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Thanks for sharing. My guy still has diarrhea but it is less frequent and he doesn't seem to be leaking any more. I thin he was sharting. We are on day two of chicken and rice and the metranidazole. He is still a handful and doesn't act sick. I can't wait to see some formed poops!

What a cutie!

awesome! looks like a maine coon kitten. should count his toes to confirm, most have a few extra.

He is a maine coon. I got him from http://ironclaws.com/. His dad is huge, so I'm hoping that he will be as well.

I had no idea of the extra toes. I'll count them tonight.

Edited by jeng 2013-08-28 1:55 PM