[Dman]

The doctor that treated Pierre thinks he might just still have a UTI, I guess the urinalysis said he had slightly high white blood cell count.

They gave him more antibiotics to take and a flagyl for Diarrhea. I guess the Flagyl reduces the problematic bacteria in his gut.

The vet ordered me to only feed him 9 lives, because he likes the taste and eats a lot of it.b

But if there are more problems he needs to get the bladder tests done.

Otherwise the vet noticed that Pierre seemed more heatlhy and alert then his first visit.

 

[marie73]

That's great news.

 

[Megan1216]

Good to hear! But, why 9 Lives? Can you ask the Vet about something a little more nutritious than 9 Lives?

 

[Dman]

She wanted to eliminate a change in foods as a cause of diarrhea. And she thinks at this point I should stick with a food that he likes.

 

[Megan1216]

Ok, that makes sense! That very well could be the cause of it. Did you talk to the Vet about the link I gave you for the Acidophilous just for Cats?

 

[Dman]

No I didn't talk about the Acidophilus. The vet told me that when stray cats are taken in they get an overabundance of a certain type of bacteria that causes diarrhea and that the flagyl brings their numbers down.

 

[doodlebug]

Dman...cats (as well as people) have good and bad bacteria in their digestive tracts. The flagyl is an antibiotic and doesn't discriminate and kills off both. Giving acidophilus as a supplement while on antibiotics can only help keep the population of good bacteria up. And it won't hurt anything at all, so I'd suggest giving it to her. I always give acidophilis whenever I need to give antibiotics.

 

[Dman]

I was at the vet and forgot to ask about the acidophillus. they tested his stool for parasites and it came out negative.

They gave me some dry food that is high protein, low carb and high fat. They also said it was okay to feed him Kraft Singles, he has had solid stool twice after I fed him the cheese.

 

[Dman]

Pierre had diarrhea again today, I tried looking for acidophilus at the pet store but they didn't have any. I

bought some plain fat free yogurt with six different cultures and used a syringe to shoot 1/2 a teaspoon into his mouth. He didn't seem to mind too much and swallowed it.

Is it okay to do this? I heard that cats shouldn't eat dairy, but I don't think there is that much lactose in yogurt.

If it is okay should I feed him more?

Thanks!

 

[Nini]

You can get the acidophilus (also called probiotics) in capsules in any health food store or pharmacy. It would be a lot more gentle on his digestive system than dairy.

I would not feed him exclusively dry. It is more than likely to make the diarrhea worse, not better. Did you try adding canned pumpkin to wet food? That helped adding bulk to the stool when my kittens had persistent diarrhea.

He has been treated with Flagyl, right? How much longer do you have to give it to him? If he has giardia (which very rarely shows on a fecal exam), it might take some time for him to get rid of it. If after the Flagyl treatment he still has diarrhea, you might want to ask your vet to treat him for coccidia, which is a very common protozoan parasite, very often elusive of fecal exams too. The treatment for it is called Albon.

In the meantime I would pick the healthiest wet food he likes (preferably no fish and low grain or grain-free), and stick to it. Try adding a little canned pumpkin, or psyllium husks (available in health food stores too) to help with the diarrhea, and the probiotics/acidophilus.

 

[doodlebug]

I would stay away from the yogurt, giving capsules would be more effective.

 

[Dman]

Today was Pierre's last day taking Orbax, hopefully the diarrhea will go away. He has been on it for 2 weeks.

I am just scared that he will start urinating blood again. The vet said that a tumor could have caused the infection. If symptoms appear again I will get xrays.

 

[Megan1216]

Did he do an Ultrasound or anything to see if there were Tumors?

You really should get the Acidophilous. The link I gave you specially for cats is a good price. Capsules are good, too, like Lisa said. It's just a good idea to start him on it.

 

[Dman]

no tests were done to see tumors yet, I didn't get acidophilus either. But the vet said it was okay to give him plain yogurt twice a day.

Wouldn't the cultures in yogurt be better since they are already alive?

 

[Nini]

Wouldn't the cultures in yogurt be better since they are already alive?

No, because there are a bazillion more in a single capsule than in several pounds of yogurt... and the capsules are formulated to be resist digestion til they reach where they are needed in the digestive tract.

In addition, most cats cannot digest milk or dairy well at all, especially older cats, so yogurt is most definitely not a good idea if your cat already has diarrhea. Most vets are not completely up to par on nutrition, so I would recommend you do your own research on cat nutrition online, and judge from the facts you can read about with your own eyes... there are tons of excellent sources of info around if you google holistic cat, or holistic pet care - I am sure it will help you a lot, to make your own informed decisions about Pierre.

 

[Megan1216]

A lot of cats are Lactose Intolerant (allergic to dairy), and, like Nini said, wouldn't help if Pierre is already having a problem. You really need to get Acidophilous for him, whether it's the stuff Lisa (doodlebug) suggested, or the stuff in the link I gave you. Like I said, it helped my dog when he was having a diahreah problem. :wink:

 

[doodlebug]

You can get refrigerated capsules with live acidophilis.

 

[Dman]

Hey guys, Pierre is doing great. His diarrhea went away a couple days after he went off of the antibiotics, and I haven't seen any bloody urine. Hopefully everything will be okay now.

He won't eat the Nutro, or Natural life foods. He likes Friskies and 9lives. He seems to like the food that looks like sliced meat instead of patte. Any suggestions?

 

[Nini]

That's excellent news Maybe the antibiotics were enough to upset his tummy and cause the diarrhea...

There is a thread about "chunky" healthy foods that might be of use to you if he does not like the pate texture: http://www.catforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=44852

I hope he keeps doing well! Please keep us posted!

 

[Dman]

RIP Pierre

On Saturday Pierre was on my lap purring and I noticed that he was breathing through his mouth, and was taking quick breaths. My Girlfriend and I were concerned and called the emergency clinic. We thought maybe had a cold because he was still eating, drinking and acting normally.

When we arrived at the vet they immediately gave him oxygen, suddenly I realized that something was seriously wrong. The vet asked if they could Xray him and of course we agreed. Later the vet brought us into another room and showed us an Xray of a normal, cat and then showed us Pierre's. His lungs were filling with liquid, and only the section toward his back was functioning. He also had a large tumor in the kidney area, and the vet suspected another tumor near the heart and lung. The vet drained some of the fluid and believed his lymphatic system was being interrupted by the tumors.

Since Pierre was already under some anestesia from the Xrays, and the other options only prolonged the inevitable for a matter of days we thought the only unselfish thing to do was say goodbye to Pierre.

I have never had to have a pet euthanized, both my girlfriend and I were devastated. We only had Pierre for a year, we were hoping to have him longer. The vet told us she thought he was 13 years old, but to me he looked much older than my childhood cat that is 18.

Pierre was always thin, had missing teeth, and was deaf but to us he was perfect. I guess our love for him blinded us to the fact that he wouldn't be around forever.

My girlfriend and I are eager to adopt an new cat(s), our house seems so empty now and I enjoy caring for cats. Pierre needed a lot of attention, his litterbox needed to be cleaned constantly or he wouldn't use it, he would only eat certain foods and demanded hours of petting daily. I look forward to coming home to be greated by a new friend or friends, while still mourning the loss of Pierre.