New to the Forum...Issues with diarrhea

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GD410

GD410

Member Since 2017
Hi everyone,

I am very grateful to discovering this forum earlier today. I very much looking forward to reading many more posts to educate myself further on this disease. Right now, however, I feel I am in a bit of a bind and could use quick advice. I have a cat (actually, two) that I took on from a dying neighbor 16 months ago. The older of the two, Shadow Cat, was diagnosed 8 weeks ago with diabetes. He was already a HUGELY sensitive cat and I travel for work ... a lot. My significant other was amazing with the cats and cared for them while I was gone. We broke up 2 weeks before his diagnosis. You can imagine the painful process this has been already as it became clear after only my first wkend trip that my leaving town (despite now having a GREAT house/cat sitter that stays in my home when I am gone) drastically affects this cat now that he has this disease. Not only are we struggling to get his numbers controlled, he has a diarrhea issue that is seemingly getting worse. I am not thrilled with my vet (although I don't think the system really allows for them to do much) as I have brought up the diarrhea before and after doing a fecal test, told me it had nothing to do with the diabetes. In my reading, it seems it is quite normal for there to be GI issues. Translation - I need to find a new vet. BUT...I leave town first thing this Monday for 7 days. I am fearful that another full week of diarrhea may really harm him. At this point, I can't do much, I know, but perhaps someone out there can guide me to a way to address this diarrhea immediately upon my return and/or offer some thoughts on what my cat sitter should be on the lookout for. Thank you in advance for all of your contributions to this site. It will be my new favorite reading material.
 
The only way I've been able to deal with prolonged diarrhea in my cat is medication from the vet along with fluids. A full week of diarrhea could cause severe dehydration and weight loss. Interestingly enough my kitty had a few days of diarrhea right at the time he was diagnosed with diabetes and his glucose was high. Is there any way your sitter could take him to a different vet while you're gone? I would be cautious about using home remedies for diarrhea unless you know what is causing the diarrhea. Could it possibly be the food you're feeding him that doesn't agree with his digestive system?
 
Have you changed the cats food recently? That can cause intestinal distress. If not, then you could ask your vet for Metronidazole or something similar. Your pet sitter would need to be able to give ShadowCat the pills while you're gone. Lillie is right though - diarrhea can lead to dehydration fairly quickly in cats. I would be nervous to leave him without treatment for a full week. At the least make sure your sitter has the number of an emergency vet and permission to get him treated while you're gone.

It could also be a symptom of IBD or I'm sure a number of other things. In the long-term, you might consider adding a probiotic to Shadow Cat's diet. My cat had diarrhea fairly often, and after a few weeks with a probiotic mixed into his food, it's cleared up and not returned. That won't help right now, but it may be helpful going forward.
 
GD410 said:
Hi everyone,

I am very grateful to discovering this forum earlier today. I very much looking forward to reading many more posts to educate myself further on this disease. Right now, however, I feel I am in a bit of a bind and could use quick advice. I have a cat (actually, two) that I took on from a dying neighbor 16 months ago. The older of the two, Shadow Cat, was diagnosed 8 weeks ago with diabetes. He was already a HUGELY sensitive cat and I travel for work ... a lot. My significant other was amazing with the cats and cared for them while I was gone. We broke up 2 weeks before his diagnosis. You can imagine the painful process this has been already as it became clear after only my first wkend trip that my leaving town (despite now having a GREAT house/cat sitter that stays in my home when I am gone) drastically affects this cat now that he has this disease. Not only are we struggling to get his numbers controlled, he has a diarrhea issue that is seemingly getting worse. I am not thrilled with my vet (although I don't think the system really allows for them to do much) as I have brought up the diarrhea before and after doing a fecal test, told me it had nothing to do with the diabetes. In my reading, it seems it is quite normal for there to be GI issues. Translation - I need to find a new vet. BUT...I leave town first thing this Monday for 7 days. I am fearful that another full week of diarrhea may really harm him. At this point, I can't do much, I know, but perhaps someone out there can guide me to a way to address this diarrhea immediately upon my return and/or offer some thoughts on what my cat sitter should be on the lookout for. Thank you in advance for all of your contributions to this site. It will be my new favorite reading material.
Click to expand...
Same thing happened to my kitty last week. She's also recently diagnosed. I gave her some probiotics. She was fine in less than 2 days. Purina Fortiflora is the best. It's good for them even when they don't have diarrhea. My kitty loves it. I also heard you could add a 1/4 tsp of pure pumpkin with zero additives. Just pumpkin. Good luck.
 
flora stor is very good for diarrhea .... I will add on to getting kitty on a good pro and prebiotic as well.
There are many quality ones to choose from such as Micro Flora from Herbsmith-
Jarrow makes a good one with MOS and I use GI Support from Only Natural Pet.

I personally am not a fan of forti flora for a supplement although it encourages many cast to eat and each cat is different.
Pumpkin is very good as stated above 100% pumpkin if cat will eat it. Slippery Elm Bark is very good too.
Good Luck!
 
A teaspoon of plain pumkin added to the food sometimes helps... It actually helps them with both diarrhea and constipation.


I have one cat that had diarrhea for a week though and we finally deduced she has a sensitivity to pork which was in the food.
 
GinnyBarr said:
Same thing happened to my kitty last week. She's also recently diagnosed. I gave her some probiotics. She was fine in less than 2 days. Purina Fortiflora is the best. It's good for them even when they don't have diarrhea. My kitty loves it. I also heard you could add a 1/4 tsp of pure pumpkin with zero additives. Just pumpkin. Good luck.
Click to expand...
Thank you so very much!!! I also hope your kitty continues to do well. Much thanks!
 
Lillie said:
The only way I've been able to deal with prolonged diarrhea in my cat is medication from the vet along with fluids. A full week of diarrhea could cause severe dehydration and weight loss. Interestingly enough my kitty had a few days of diarrhea right at the time he was diagnosed with diabetes and his glucose was high. Is there any way your sitter could take him to a different vet while you're gone? I would be cautious about using home remedies for diarrhea unless you know what is causing the diarrhea. Could it possibly be the food you're feeding him that doesn't agree with his digestive system?
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for taking time to reply, Lillie!!
 
JanetNJ said:
A teaspoon of plain pumkin added to the food sometimes helps... It actually helps them with both diarrhea and constipation.


I have one cat that had diarrhea for a week though and we finally deduced she has a sensitivity to pork which was in the food.
Click to expand...
Thank you, Janet for taking the time to reply!
 
Great advice from everyone and I hope something works for Shadow Cat. Following up with Djamila, did you do a sudden diet change? I am a little concerned about him getting dehydrated as others have stated. Have you done any check? Pinch some skin, like scruffing but just with thumb and two fingers, see how long it takes to "snap" back flat. If it takes a while, I would try to get some fluids from your Vet before you leave (if possible). Also add 1-2 tabelspoons of warm water to his wet food.
 
Yong said:
Great advice from everyone and I hope something works for Shadow Cat. Following up with Djamila, did you do a sudden diet change? I am a little concerned about him getting dehydrated as others have stated. Have you done any check? Pinch some skin, like scruffing but just with thumb and two fingers, see how long it takes to "snap" back flat. If it takes a while, I would try to get some fluids from your Vet before you leave (if possible). Also add 1-2 tabelspoons of warm water to his wet food.
Click to expand...
Thank you so very much, Yong. Nope...no change in food ... we were advised to get him on the Royal Canin wet food immediately upon diagnosis. I have been mixing cooked chicken and sometime some mackeral or pink salmon in with the Royal Canin for 8 weeks now and he has never hesitated to eat as he is all of a sudden doing. So...sorta strange because he definitely has an appetite. He doesn't seem too dehydrated. In fact, he seems quite well, other than his liquid feces. I have taken all the advice here into consideration and will do what I can before tomorrow morning and hope that with a little luck from above, he will be with us another week to continue to give me a chance to figure out the best food and supplements for his body. Thank you again for taking the time to respond. What a great forum! I am so grateful to have found this. Have a wonderful day!
 
Hi Djamila! Thank you so very much for taking the time to respond. I haven't changed his food since his diagnosis. We were advised to go on Royal Canin wet food immediately, which we did and I mix in cooked chicken, canned pink salmon, or mackeral, at times with the royal Canin still comprising the majority of the meal. He had been absolutely fine with eating up until yesterday. My sitter absolutely has all the vet info and the emergency vet info for a worst case scenario while I am gone. Additionally, I emailed my vet last night asking if she could prescribe anything that my sitter could pick up and administer. And, after reading these wonderful responses, I just ordered a probiotic online that will arrive Tuesday and will have pure pumpkin here to try as well. Other than that, at this point, I must throw some wishes up to the Higher Power that we make it through this week allowing me more time to continue to figure out the right combination of things for him. In my opinion, however, the absolute biggest factor that I cannot do anything about this calendar year, is my travel. He is so sensitive and every time I leave and return, even though he really does vibe with my sitter friend, I can feel his anxiety, which then causes me to be even more anxious about leaving. It is an interesting symbiotic relationship right now. I hate to sound cheesy, but it has been very powerful taking this healing journey with Shadow Cat for the past 2 months. These next 2 weeks are the toughest stretch I will have until October so I am just praying that we can make it through to the summer when we will have more time to put it all together. Thank you again!
 
Did he have diarrhea on just RC wet food by itself? My suggestion is to try consitancy with what you are adding, he may not agree with the RC wet food, cooked chicken, canned pink salmon, or mackerel. But switching them around makes it difficult to determine if one of them is bothering him. Unless you've always done that, then it may be the RC.
Also wouldn't overload him with the probiotic and pumpkin, one thing at a time. The healing journey is such and not a day trip. We often say to remember this is a marathon, not a sprint. Complimentary patient pants are given here :bighug:
 
Travel is tough - I just got back from a trip myself and it's hard to be away from our fut babies, even when they have a good pet sitter!

I am concerned that you're saying not only is he having diarrhea, but also not eating. Are you testing for ketones? If not, you can pick up the ketone test strips at any pharmacy for about $15. You either catch a urine sample (we can explain how to do that), or if your cat will let you, you can just stick the strip under him while he pees. Ketones are very serious with diabetic cats and not eating is a leading symptom.
 
Thank you again, Yong. I have created a bit of a challenge for myself to try to identify which food is perhaps the biggest culprit to his bowel issues. I actually cannot answer whether or not he had the diarrhea when just on the RC because I was so overwhelmed with the whole situation that I didn't know yet what to observe or even exactly how to observe. So...we are aiming for some consistency this week to try to identify what may be disagreeing with his system. And yep...very quickly I realized it was going to be a marathon. I only want to sprint out of fear and panic that I may lose him before I figure out the best combination for him. All good, though. Trying to keep perspective and remain as positive as possible. :)
 
He is in fact, eating. The past three meals (yesterday and this morning), he wasn't chowing down on the RC/mackeral combo as he was the previous days so it was definitely interesting seeing as he had no problems (seemingly) before. But he ate a full meal (albeit a bit less than 'normal') all three meals. I made sure of that - especially before administering his insulin. Once I return, I plan to also begin testing him at home for his BG and will likely get the ketone testing materials on hand too. I definitely don't think he is anywhere near that serious at this point. He is rolling around and playing with his sister, Peanut and doesn't seem to have any of the dangerous symptoms of anything worse. I do sense, however, that I will be on the phone at least once a day with my sitter while I am gone as he has never had to deal with any eating issues so ... we shall see. Thank you again!
 
I'll leave you with some more information, don't feel rushed to do it right this minute :).
Setting up some information in your signature will help those of us with bad memories: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/editing-your-signature-profile-and-preferences.130340/

The Spreadsheet template when you start testing: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/

Good to be prepared for these: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-treat-hypos-they-can-kill-print-this-out.15887/

Testing Shop List
A lot of us use a human meter from Walmart, ReliOn Confirm or Micro (Only difference is meter size). If you decide to use the pet meter, Alpha Trak 2, list stays the same but pricing changes.
1. Meter ($15)
2. Test strips ($35.88 / 100)
3. 26 or 28 gauge lancets ($4)
4. Neosporin or triple antibiotic ointment ($3)
5. Ketone test strips
6. A treat for yourself :cat:
 
Yong said:
I'll leave you with some more information, don't feel rushed to do it right this minute :).
Setting up some information in your signature will help those of us with bad memories: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/editing-your-signature-profile-and-preferences.130340/

The Spreadsheet template when you start testing: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/

Good to be prepared for these: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-treat-hypos-they-can-kill-print-this-out.15887/

Testing Shop List
A lot of us use a human meter from Walmart, ReliOn Confirm or Micro (Only difference is meter size). If you decide to use the pet meter, Alpha Trak 2, list stays the same but pricing changes.
1. Meter ($15)
2. Test strips ($35.88 / 100)
3. 26 or 28 gauge lancets ($4)
4. Neosporin or triple antibiotic ointment ($3)
5. Ketone test strips
6. A treat for yourself :cat:
Click to expand...
And look on eBay for things. I get killer deals on test strips. Just make sure they're not expired.
 
Yong said:
I'll leave you with some more information, don't feel rushed to do it right this minute :).
Setting up some information in your signature will help those of us with bad memories: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/editing-your-signature-profile-and-preferences.130340/

The Spreadsheet template when you start testing: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/

Good to be prepared for these: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-treat-hypos-they-can-kill-print-this-out.15887/

Testing Shop List
A lot of us use a human meter from Walmart, ReliOn Confirm or Micro (Only difference is meter size). If you decide to use the pet meter, Alpha Trak 2, list stays the same but pricing changes.
1. Meter ($15)
2. Test strips ($35.88 / 100)
3. 26 or 28 gauge lancets ($4)
4. Neosporin or triple antibiotic ointment ($3)
5. Ketone test strips
6. A treat for yourself :cat:
Click to expand...
 
Hi Yong,

I have a quick question for you...do you happen to know what excessive shedding may indicate? In the week that I have been gone, the care for Shadow Cat and Peanut was less than adequate, in my opinion and I was wondering ... could the shedding become that bad in a week without proper grooming of him.

I still haven't filled out his stats and will do so tomorrow...I just got in the door from the airport and am assessing the first week-long absence and how things went.

Thank you, in advance.
Alyson
 
And to be more clear ... when I brush Shadow Cat, insane amounts of hair is coming off of him ... WAY, WAY more than just a week ago. I also changed his food right before I left to try to address the diarrhea issue and potential reaction to his prescription food. Could that be causing this?
 
Hi GD,
Is Shadow Cat still grooming himself? Their coats can be affected by diabetes, usually hear more of oily / matted fur. The food could be a possibility. Could also be due to stress of you going away, does he have any history of that? Here's a thread I found with a short discussion of someone else who had a similar issue: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/excessive-shedding-grooming.164577/

I'm sure some others may chime in too :). Other than that, how is Shadow Cat?
 
Yong said:
Hi GD,
Is Shadow Cat still grooming himself? Their coats can be affected by diabetes, usually hear more of oily / matted fur. The food could be a possibility. Could also be due to stress of you going away, does he have any history of that? Here's a thread I found with a short discussion of someone else who had a similar issue: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/excessive-shedding-grooming.164577/

I'm sure some others may chime in too :). Other than that, how is Shadow Cat?
Click to expand...
So weird. Since Pia's off dry food and on insulin, her fur is fluffy and fresh like a kitten. It was so oily before.
 
jayla-n-Drevon said:
flora stor is very good for diarrhea .... I will add on to getting kitty on a good pro and prebiotic as well.
There are many quality ones to choose from such as Micro Flora from Herbsmith-
Jarrow makes a good one with MOS and I use GI Support from Only Natural Pet.

I personally am not a fan of forti flora for a supplement although it encourages many cast to eat and each cat is different.
Pumpkin is very good as stated above 100% pumpkin if cat will eat it. Slippery Elm Bark is very good too.
Good Luck!
Click to expand...
Hi there Jayla, how come you do not like fortaflora? Just curious I know alot of peeps use it. :)
 
Phoebes said:
Hi there Jayla, how come you do not like fortaflora? Just curious I know alot of peeps use it. :)
Click to expand...
Hi!
I think it is fine to get a cat to eat but I would personally not use it as a pro/pre biotic. They like it because they are attracted to the yeast smell...
I prefer to use human grade products whenever possible.
That being said I know what a struggle the food battle is so you have to do what works and sometimes you have to bite the bullet:cat:
 
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