Great News!! Glad to hear Starr is doing much better!! :D
Printable View
Great News!! Glad to hear Starr is doing much better!! :D
Awww. how great - hug that little guy for me! :)
Glad to hear Starr is doing so much better! That is such great news!
Willie :)
Oh- this is REALLY good news!
Now this calls for new Starr pictures :)
I'm glad to hear Starr has improved, and hope he'll continue to get better! :) To pill a cat can be hard work, and I agree that it's best to it when you're both relaxed!
Kisses and scritchies from me.
I'm so glad to hear the good news Tracey!
Thanks everyone.:) Starr started having more runny diarrhea again.:( Tonight he was using the litterbox while I was home and I could hear him squirting it out.:( I gave him more bene-bac tonight even though it says to give it every 3 days. I'm also going to start giving him yogurt daily too. If after 2 weeks he still hasn't improved then we'll start him on a new diet. I've already spoken to the vet about this. I sure hope that something will help my baby boy.
Prayers for Starr.
Tracey, I know how draining this can be when you worry over your kitties.
I hope Starr will respond soon to the meds and be his old self again.
Well this morning Starr managed to poop in the hallway, kitchen, and both living room and dining room.:( Some of it was very mushy and some was somewhat formed. If this contniues, I know I won't be able to wait 2 weeks before trying a new food for him. It's just so frustrating to see some improvement and then to go back to square one in a matter of days.:( Thanks for the continued prayers.
Awe... Poor Starr! I hope that you and the vet can figure something out shortly. You'll both be in my thoughts and prayers. Take care, hugs... Jennie
Ugh! Poor baby. Poor mom! :(Quote:
Originally Posted by krazyaboutkatz
Liz
Starr decided to poop on the carpet this morning again. This time his poops were much firmer though which is a good sign. They looked black,tarry, and were very sticky so it was very hard to clean them up. Some of them were embedded in the carpet. He even pooped on top of the dining room table.
I keep talking to him and telling him that I'd really appreciate it if he'd poop in the boxes and that this would make me so proud of him but he just doesn't get it. It looks like it's more of a behavioral problem than a can't get to the litterbox in time problem. I may need to contact Nancy again. He also hates the yogurt so it's a battle to spoon some of it in his mouth.
Any chance, did you report the tarry, black stools to the vet?? In humans, that is signs of an old blood in the GI tract OR too much iron supplement.
Oh gosh, I'm so sorry that you're going through this with Starr. :( Was yesterday and today the only times Starr has not used the litterbox, or has he gone outside the boxes before? I can imagine how frustrating this is. Continued prayers for you.
**hugs**
Oh wow, poor you and poor Starr. I'm sorry to hear he is doing this. Do you think he associates bad things with the litter box? Do you think a new box in a new location, at least for a little while might help him?
No, I haven't called the vets about Starr just yet. I don't know how Starr would be getting too much iron because I don't give my cats any kind of vitamin supplements. I was just giving Starr some bene-bac and just started the yogurt too.
Starr has gone poop outside of the litterbox many times and I always thought that it was a behavioral problem. It started and got worse while I was painting my condo in June and July because the cats had to be cooped up in either my bedroom or my roommates bedroom. I used to use all covered litterboxes but have since taken the covers off of 2 of them because the pet psychic,Nancy Efrusy, said that Starr feels claustrophobic. It seemed to help for a while.
The litterboxes have been in the same place since July and I'm very limited as to where I can put them. I also haven't changed litter and Nancy said that he's fine with the litter. I added some fresh litter to all of the boxes this morning because I've also noticed that sometimes when they get a little on the low side that Starr will go outside of the box. Hopefully this will help. I have 4 litterboxes that I'm currently using and I'm scooping 2 times a day.
I used to also have 2 back in my bedroom but they really didn't get used very much so after I painted I decided not to put them back in use. I also keep my bedroom door closed when I'm not at home so the cats can't go in my room. I still have a bunch of junk and paint supplies in my room that I need to sort through and put away so until this is done I won't keep my bedroom door open unless I'm home. I think I'm going to contact Nancy again to see if Starr will let her know what's going on. Thanks again for all of your concerns.:)
I am so sorry. Do you think it would help to add a little bit of fat (like cream) to the yoghurt.
We have 10% fat Greek yoghurt here- and the kitties are crazy about it.
I don't even think that the yogurt is helping him.:( This morning there weren't any messes on the carpet but when I came home this evening I smelled something. Starr had pooped on his placemat and it's back to diarrhea again.:( There was some more in the litterboxes so I guess that by adding some new litter it's helped him use the boxes. I gave him a little more yogurt and some more bene-bac. He actually likes the bene-bac. I think I'll call my vet tomorrow to let them know what's going on. I also e-mailed Nancy but I haven't heard a reply yet. I've also noticed that when Starr has diarrhea that he doesn't eat as well. I think that his tummy may be hurting him.:( I'm ready to go ahead and try a new diet. Hopefully something will work.
Tracey,
Forgive me if I missed this already, but, I was reading this am, kind of quickly, as Jonah will wake up any minute.
Anyhow, Georgia is going through what sounds very similar to Starr's issues. Somethings I have discoverd. Amoxicellin **CAN CAUSE** loose stools. So, sometimes it can be complicated by the antibiotic. Georgie needs calm. All the time. Monte had to go live with my mom because of his stressful nature. Georgie is now on the metronidizale AND the pred, to help things calm down. So far, it isn't working. Diarhea can be caused by a hyper thyroid. Has Starr been tested specifically for that? I made the mistake of switching foods from SD to Hills, as another herd member was having UTI issues. So, it is possible Georgie's condition is made worse by the food change.
Just some thoughts from my experience. I hope Starr gets better.
One of my guys had similar problems this past summer. It turned out that he had feline irritable bowel syndrome. Of course he was fussy enough not to want the prescription food :rolleyes: so I ended up converting almost everyone over to a raw diet and that seems to have done the trick. I think that by removing the preservatives and dyes in commerical cat food it helped alot. There are also some holistic cats foods out there with no graing (e.g. Evo by Innvo). So you might want to give this approach a try...
Thanks everyone.:) I just found out the Petsmart carries a very good allergen food called Natural Balance Venison & Green Pea Allergy Formula For Cats. I think I'm going to try this for about a week before I call my vet. I really don't want to have to put Starr on steroids either because this will compromise his immune system which is already a weak one. Here's the link:Natural Balance Venison & Green Pea Allergy Formula. I'll let you know how it goes. Thanks again.:)
Tracey I am so sorry to hear that Starr is back to square one. Poor baby and poor you.
Prayers and positive thoughts on the way that the new food will help him.
{{{{{{HUGS}}}}}} for you.
Poor Starr! I hope that the venison and green pea works. I know we used it at the one shelter for a certain kitty. We also have another kitty that is on the raw diet. She was pooping outside the box and having issues before the switch. She seems to be doing much better on the raw diet.
I hope you'll find something to make Starr feel better soon!! My pooper just poops because of emotional stuff I believe. Even when I moved the box to where he was pooping, he pooped outside of it. Sometimes it's formed, sometimes it's runny. He is supposed to go to the vet... had an appt. the other day but he hid from me for 45mins, and then the power went out for 3hrs, so needless to say, we didn't make it to the vet!
Poor Starr! The black, tarry stool got me concerned, too! I'd rather tell the vet about it on Monday.
Hopefully Starr will improve with the new diet! Poor boy!!
Best wishes to him,
Kirsten
For two weeks I have been petsitting for a 13 year old cat with IBD. She was already under control when I got her, on Wellness wet only. I have no clue how long it took to get under control. Her purrents are visiting today, and I can find out her history. Good luck with your Starr baby! He's had more than his share of issues, poor thing.
Thanks again everyone.:) He seems to like his new food but it's a litter bit crunchier than his old food so it makes it a little harder for him to eat. I'm supposed to mix in some of his old food with it for 3-5 days so I really won't know much until he's on the new food exclusively.
Yesterday was a good day with no accidents but sometime between 8-10am this morning he pooped all over the place again.:( It was mushy poo but not black and tarry looking like before so it looked more normal. I had just cleaned out all of the litterboxes at around 7:45am so they weren't dirty. I just don't know if some of this is still due to behavioral problems or health related. Nancy e-mailed me and she'll be talking to Starr in a few days. I hope he's able to let her know what's going on.
I've also noticed that when I give Starr the bene-bac that he seems much better the next day. When I gave it to him 2 days in a row though, this is when he had the black tarry stools so it may have been related to this. I know it may take some time for his system to get under control so I'm trying to stay positive about this new food. Thanks again.:)
Just checking in for an update. Hope the new food helps.
Starr didn't really want to eat very much this morning and I thought that he just didn't like the new food. He went to the litterbox a few minutes ago and had very bad diarrhea:( and then a few minutes later he had very runny diarrhea again and he did this on one of my little rugs.:( His tummy must really be hurting him.:(
I called the vets office and left a message with receptionist to let the doctor know that Starr is still having diarrhea. I hope that he'll be able to give me something that will help calm down Starr's colon. I'm also having some minor surgery tomorrow morning so I'll probably be out of it for most of tomorrow so I was hoping that I could get Starr back on trackbefore this. Please continue to send some good vibes his way. Thanks.
Poor Starr.
Try Metamucil! This was the one thing that helped Lucas with his diarrhea. Also ask about Endosorb. It worked wonders on the babies Chip and Dale when they had diarrhea.
Neither of these things will "fix" whatever the underlying cause, but if it firms the stool, he may begin to feel better.
Is he on antibiotics right now? Could this be causing the diarrhea? Also, you can get (Lactose free) Lactobacillus acidophilus tablets in a drug store. Giving him that would be the same as giving him yogurt.
Awe... poor Starr!! That little guy must have a tummy ache! I hope you can figure something out at the vet! Gentle hugs for the little guy!
The vet called me at home again and I wasn't home yet. He said to call him tomorrow because he'll be there. I have to be at Kaiser at 8am for my surgery tomorrow and will hopefully be home by 10:30am or so but I'll probably be too sleepy to call him. The only thing I can do is call at 7am and leave another message about Starr and let them know exactly what's been going on.
He said Starr should probably be put on another round of metronidizale or however it's spelled and some probiotics and maybe a diet change. I know he needs a diet change because he's having problems with his current diet. I think his tummy needs to calm down before he starts a new diet. I've read that in cases like this that you should fast the cat for 24-48 hours and then feed them some rice and then slowly start to feed them their diet again. This is what I'm going to try to do. Because I need to rest the next couple of days and I don't need the extra stress of cleaning up diarrhea.
I put Starr in my bedroom tonight while I fed the others. When I let him out he started searching for food. It was so sad to watch him.:( He seems fine now though. Thanks again for all of your advice and well wishes.:)
Jen, Starr isn't on any medication right now. Even before all of these episodes, he's always had mushy stools. It's just gotten much worse lately.:(
Gosh Tracy, I'm sorry to see that Starr is still having tummy troubles! I am also sorry that you are having surgery tomorrow. I hope everything goes well for you, and the vet can get little Starr's problems corrected as well!
Hugs,
Kim
Quote:
Originally Posted by krazyaboutkatz
Follow the package directions for Bene-bac, I think it call for one tube, then another 3 days later.
I hope he feels better and the vet can find the cause of this.
Tracey, I haven't posted recently, but I have been following this thread.
Good success with your surgery and I hope you recover rapidly.
Poor baby Starr - I sure hope that this problem can be solved for you soon.
Hugs - Gini
Thanks everyone.:) My surgery went well but I've been in a lot pain and felt very nauseated for most of the day. I'm finally starting to feel better.
I had my roommate pick up Starr's meds for me tonight since I wasn't able to drive today. He's on another round of metronidizale liquid 2 times a day and is also taking panacur liquid 1 time a day and I'm putting fortiflora in his food. The fortiflora comes in packets and it's dry and it says to use it once a day. I tried it and there's so much in there that I think I'll give him half of it in the morning and the other half in the evening.
I fed him some rice mixed with chicken broth earlier this evening and then later I gave him a little bit of wet food mixed with the Venison and Green Pea dry food with 1 whole packet of fortiflora. He was so hungry that he gobbled it down but about an hour and a half latter he threw it up. It may have been too much for his system.:(
Nancy the pet psychic checked in with him and she feels his problem is more physical than behavioral. He told her that his stomach feels funny and gurgly and that he has no control at times.:( My guess is that he has colitis or IBD. I'm going to try to feed him small portions of the new food and I also need to buy some of it in the cans so I can mix in the fortiflora. I had to use some of Storm's Royal Canin Urinary S/O this evening and this may have upset his stomach. I just hope that I can get his condition under control and then hopefully he'll stay this way. Please send some more positive vibes his way. Thanks.:)
You might try talking with Kelly - she isn't online much now due to living with her parents and work but if you have her number, give her a call sometime. Her Micah has the feline equivalent of IBD or Chron's (? not sure which) and she feeds him a raw diet when he has flare ups. He loves it and it reallllly helps him a lot. He is the only cat of her's that gets it and I think only when he has flare ups.Quote:
Originally Posted by krazyaboutkatz
Tanner was diagnosed this summer with IBD. After alot of trial and error I decided to switch him over to a raw diet. In doing so I switched everyone in my house (it would have been too difficult to feed just him different food). He is doing much better and Nancy "talked" with him and she told me that he is feeling fine and his tummy isn't bothering him any more. I decided to keep them on the raw diet permanently because then I don't have to deal with flare-ups and they see much happier with it.
Chipper can sympathise Starr.
We hope you feel better real soon! *Hugs and headbumpies*
Sorry for the delayed update but I've been very sick for the last few days. I must have picked up a virus either while picking up my meds before my surgery or sometime while I was in the surgery center. I'm just now beginning to feel better.
Starr seems to be doing much better. He sure is acting much happier, perkier, and very goofy.:) He did have an accident yesterday afternoon on my new carpet runner. One of his stools was very firm but the rest were still on the mushy side. He loves his new food and I give him some wet mixed with dry in the morning and evening and this is also when I mix in the fortiflora. His other 2 meals are the dry. Tonight is his last dose of panucur liquid which he hates. I think he still has several more doses of the metronidizale liquid. Hopefully after the meds he'll still continue to do well and also continue to go in the litterbox. Thanks again for all of the advice and concerns.:)