Blood in her diarrhea

**jbayer** · 04-07-2009, 02:20 PM

New to posting here.....I hope those of you with experience in this have some advice for me!
I have 2 indoor cats, Xanadu (female) and Gizmo (male). Both are about 6 yrs old, fixed and indoor only. Xanadu had issues with explosive diarrhea when she was young....the vets could never figure it out. Eventually I figured it might be red dye she was allergic to and took her favorite red toy away. Her diarrhea stopped.
Recently Xanadu has been having diarrhea again and I noticed it had red blood in it. I took a sample to the vet. He said nothing is wrong and she must have irritable bowel. Xanadu is on the plump side, she hasn't lost her appetite and doesn't seem to be in pain. She has seemed grumpy towards Gizmo lately. I guess I'm having a hard time with the vets diagnosis and think it is just a cover up for "I don't know what's wrong". From what I've read, it doesn't sound like Xanadu exhibits the signs of irritable bowel.
Could there be another explaination?
Jen

**krazyaboutkatz** · 04-08-2009, 12:12 AM

Hi and welcome to PT.

I'm sorry to hear about cat.

It sounds to me like your cat may have colitis. My cat Starr has both colitis and IBD. Here's a good link about colitis:http://www.petwave.com/Cats/Cat-Heal...s-in-Cats.aspx.

My Starr also had explosive diarrhea and sometimes it would also have mucus and blood in it. He now has to be on a grain free diet and prednisolone for the rest of his life. He was also very grumpy and his coat and whiskers were in bad shape. If your current vet doesn't really seem to know what's going on, I would suggest that you get a second opinion. I did and if I hadn't my Starr wouldn't be here with me today. Good luck and please continue to keep us updated.

**Medusa** · 04-08-2009, 06:33 AM

I haven't had experience w/this so I can't really comment other than to say "Welcome to Pet Talk" and I do hope that you're able to get a valid diagnosis and solution to your cat's problem right away. I'd definitely get a second opinion if you're unhappy w/what your vet told you. Good luck and please keep us updated. Keep the faythe.

**jbayer** · 04-08-2009, 11:07 AM

Thanks for the responses. I will try changing her food and if it doesn't help then a trip to the vet.
I'm wondering if stress isn't part of the issue. I brought 2 strays in this winter but kept them separated from my 2 cats. Xanadu pitched a fit and has since turned on Gizmo. I now have moved the strays out to the mudroom and have to keep Xanadu and Gizmo separated because of their fighting brought on by the strays. Argh!
So it could be that Xanadu is acting mean because of the strays or it could be that she is mean because she doesn't feel good. So complicated!

**krazyaboutkatz** · 04-08-2009, 11:32 AM

Yes, this can definitely be caused by stress and then the diarrhea problem would make her not feel well. I'm glad that you moved the strays. I hope she'll feel better soon. Good luck.