Update On Both Storm & Starr Updated:Sat. Feb. 24th

[krazyaboutkatz]

Storm had his recheck today and he's now back to a much more normal weight of 13.5lbs. He's been eating very well and acting normaly so I was hoping to see this weight gain. He had another senior profile done to recheck his blood and urine and I'll hopefully know the results in few days. I already feel so relieved.

I decided to also bring Starr in again because he hasn't been doing well on the Hills I/D. I started feeding him the Natural Balance Venison & Green Pea again but he's still having problems. He's now on prednisolone 1/4 tablet 2 times a day for 1 week then 1/4 tablet 1 time a day for 1 week and then 1/4 tablet every other day until it's gone.

I'm also trying a new diet called Purina EN and it's a semi moist food in pouches. The vet said that soon they'll be reformulating the food and making it a dry one. If the pred doesn't work then we're going to try tylosin but since it's very expensive and has to be compounded by another pharmacy we'll try the pred first. Starr also had a fecal culture done and it takes about 1 week for the results. I sure hope that something will work this time. Please keep him in your thoughts. Thanks.

[jazzcat]

Glad to hear things were good with Storm.

Poor little Starr. He deserves a break!!! I really hope the pred helps and you won't have to go to the expensive meds. Please keep us posted.

[krazyaboutkatz]

Thanks, Lori. I'm starting the pred tomorrow and I hope that he'll cooperate while I try to give him his pill. He hates the new food so I'm just going to continue feeding him the Natural Balance Venison & Green Pea and see how it goes. Luckily the Purina EN was just a little under $3.00 because it's sold in packets of eight so I didn't waste a lot of money this time. I'll continue to keep you updated.

[Felicia's Mom]

I am glad that Storm is feeling better!

Starr is in my thoughts. I hope he feels better soon.

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Tracey, glad to hear the good news about Storm, but so sorry to hear Starr's problems continue. My vet said that if the pred works, it's definitely an allergy. Even once I knew what CJ was allergic to, it still took me awhile - and a ton of money and wasted food - before I found the one that works. All I can say is read the ingredients of the food. For example, CJ is on the DRY Hill's Duck & Green Pea because I determined he was allergic to rice. When I knew this food was working, I asked the vet for some of the canned version of the same food. Turns out there is a ton of rice in the canned version so it is not an option for CJ even though the dry version is what work's best for him.

Oh, and I ended up giving all the "wasted" food to my mom for her cats, but I'm sure a shelter would appreciate any leftovers you have too. And you probably know this already, but when trying a new food, buy the smallest amount possible, even though it may be a week or two or three before you see results.

Oh, and one more thing, CJ's allergy results showed a slight allergy to dust mites. I didn't think this was really an issue for him until we moved full-time into the motorhome. We have practically NO carpet in the motorhome so CJ has been really doing well lately. Between the right food and no dust mites he's good as new again. If I remember right, your apartment is mostly carpet? CJ's diarrhea got way worse when we moved from the house (mixture of carpet, tile and hardwood) to the apartment (100% carpet except for the high quality linoleum [yeah, right ]in the kitchen).

It's a long drawn out process trying to find the reason for diarrhea, so I will continue hoping and praying that you find [i]something[/b] that works for Starr, and soon.

[Taz_Zoee]

Keep up the good work Storm! Now Starr, you need to get better so mommy will not have to worry about you. It breaks her heart to know you are not feeling well and she only wants the best for all of you kitties.
Taz and I will be pulling for a speedy recovery Starr!!

[krazyaboutkatz]

Thanks everyone. I sure hope that this will help Starr. I have noticed that he does better on the dry than on the wet food. The Natural Balance wet doesn't have any rice in it and I've only been using it sparingly when I've been adding the foriflora which is supposed to help boost his immune system and give him the good bacteria that he needs.

Pilling him is a battle but luckliy he only takes 1/4 of a pill so it's very tiny and not hard for him to swallow. I think I may just try feeding only dry food for a while because after he eats some of the wet food he seems to have runny diarrhea.

Debbie, Since I live in a condo and I'm on the second floor, I can only have hard floors in my kitchen and bathrooms so yes the rest of my place is carpeted. I wouldn't think that dust mites would cause diarrhea though. Starr does always seem to have eye crusties and this may be due to allergies. Sunny also has them. Please continue to keep Starr in your thoughts and prayers. I hope to see an improvement by the end of the week.

[TopCat3]

As you know I've always had a soft spot for Starr and I'm sorry to hear he is having health issues again, and I hope they get sorted out soon. Take care Starr, eat up all your food and take your medicines like a good boy.

[KittyGurl]

I'm so glad to hear that Storm is better!
I hope that Starr will get better soon. She will be in my prayers and thoughts. Get better Starr, please! Make sure you take all your medication like a good kitty!

[krazyaboutkatz]

Thanks. I still haven't received the results from either Storm's or Starr's tests. I had called last Monday about Storm's and they said that the vet would call me back but he never did. I found out today when I called that he didn't call me back because I saw a different vet last Sat. and she's on vacation until until Feb.28th. I let the receptionist know that this vet even told me that she'd be on vacation and that another vet would be able to let me know the results. I hope to hear something about both of them on Monday.

Starr is still not doing well on the pred and he's extemely hard to medicate. I also let the receptionist know about this. I'll start weaning him off the pred tomorrow and unless he makes a dramatic improvement then we'll be trying the expensive tylosin medicine next. If this doesn't work then I don't know what I'm going to do. Does anyone want to adopt a cat with chronic diarrhea? J/K Please continue to keep Starr in your thoughts and prayers. Thanks.

[krazyaboutkatz]

The vet just called me a little while ago with Storm's senior profile results and now his calcium levels are even higher. He's still telling me that this can be due to tumors or his calcium levels may just be on the high side which may be normal for him. For now since he's gained his weight back and he's eating, drinking, and acting fine I'm going to wait about 6 months and then I'll take him in for a recheck. Of course I'll take him in sooner if he starts acting sick or stops eating etc.

Starr's fecal culture came back negative so this means that he doesn't have any bacterial growth going on that's causing his diarrhea. I'll be weaning him off of the pred for the next few weeks and then I think we'll most likely be trying tylosin on him. If this doesn't work then the vet suggested doing a biopsy. The tylosin usually takes about 2 days to work so I hope it'll work on him. Please keep both Storm and Starr in your thoughts and prayers.

[Taz_Zoee]

Both Starr and Storm will be in my thoughts. It's not fun having a sick kitty.
(I like your new siggy by the way. )

[kallisto4529]

I will keep both of them in my thoughts and prayers. I sure hope they get better soon.