[rachel_grace]

My orange short hair tabby has been sick ever since I brought him home. Originally, the only cats in the house were father and son, but I found this really cute orange tabby kitten in an adoption firm near my home. I filled out all the proper paperwork and he had been neutered with all his proper vaccinations up to date. After I brought him home, I noticed he had some serious diarrhea. I didn't do anything about it until I noticed blood in his defecation, so I took him to the vet and it turned out he had an intestinal parasite, Giardia. They gave me some medicine to give to him and when I brought him back for a check-up, the vet said he was fine, but he wasn't. He still had bloody diarrhea and I couldn't afford to take him back to the vet, so I changed his food. Now, his bloody diarhhea is gone, but he can't stomach the new food. I've already had to clean up three cases of vomit within the past 24 hours or so. What do I do??? I can't afford to keep wasting money on BAGS of food and vet bills... Any advice???

 

[Jeanie]

Of course, my first choice would be to call the vet. I would not buy large quantities of any food right now. Buy the smallest sizes or try to get samples. Good luck. Let us know how your kitten gets along.

 

[Sol]

If the vet says he's fine maybe it's just that his body hasn't fully recovered. Not only does the parasite affect the body, most medications do more than just "kill the disease", often the medication affects the body in a negative way.

I would't experiment with different kinds of food at this time. I would give him "stomach friendly" food so his body gets a chance to recover. Your vet can probably recommend such a food.

And I would at least call the vet and discuss the problem. And this may sound mean, but that cat is your responsibility so if the cat needs to go to the vet, it's your responsibility to make it happen. Something one have to think about before bringing a new pet home, it can become expensive.

 

[Jeanie]

Sol is so right! The last think an upset stomach needs is a sudden change in food. If and when you do make a change, it must be very gradual. My apologies. I should have emphasized that. However, don't buy the largest size of new foods when you're trying to find out what your cat can tolerate.