Discouraged...

**epistoliere** · 10-12-2008, 01:04 PM

Hello to all of you,

I do not know what to do with my 5 years old female cat. Since October 2007, she had a few episodes of diarrhea. Of course , I went to the vet in Oct. 2007, everything was fine, she said, it was probably a fragile stomach. Since then, she had another episode in May, and now, again. This time, she urinated in a basket. She had a mild episode 10 days ago of diarrhea, and it returned to normal. Since yesterday, another diarrhea. I am discouraged. Could it be possible that she does not like her litter's place ? And she stops from defecating, and then it comes out as diarrhea ? She acts normally, she eats, plays and sleeps as usual. I bought her special food with rice, and she eats it, and I gave her half of an Imodium (as my vet told me). I thought that it could not be a serious problem since after a while, all returns to normal. My two other cats have no problems. Anyone can reassure me and give me some feedback ?

Thanks !!!

**Karen** · 10-12-2008, 01:19 PM

She may have a food allergy that has developed. Have you tried limiting what she eats to simple ingredients?

**epistoliere** · 10-12-2008, 06:42 PM

Last summer, we changed food, we gave our cats Cat Chow; before that, it was Iams. Do you think that could be the problem ? Now she is on I-D, vet food, with a mix of Cat Chow. We went out for a few hours this afternoon, and no diarrhea since this morning. I sure hope she will return to her litter box !

**Catty1** · 10-12-2008, 07:28 PM

I hope the food helps. Some kitties are allergic or sensitive to some foods.

Another person here, Emeraldgreen, has had these troubles with one kitty, and he is fine. I am sure others with similar experiences will write here.

A change in food has always seemed to help.

Prayers that your little one has healed and is fine. What is her name?

**epistoliere** · 10-12-2008, 10:00 PM

Thanks Catty1 ! No diarrhea since this morning. I hope that all will be fine. Choupinette has been so affectionate with our little one, Ninette, and still is, that I would not want anything bad happening to her. They cuddle together, she often puts her paw around her neck, and they sleep together when I am not there. She is not a lap cat, but she is so sweet, never hisses, never aggressive, a model of patience with her little one. Thanks a lot for your concern !

http://miaoumiaou.site.voila.fr/

**Catty1** · 10-12-2008, 10:36 PM

Ninette is ADORABLE! And is Choupinette the darker kitty? (mi-figue, mi-raisin).

I loved the picture of your grey cat, so relaxed: "Ouais?"

French is not at all my first language, but I could enjoy most of the captions!
<<clarte inassouvie>> I don't know; <<renversant>> and <<Grisouille>> are two more.

Your cats are all beautiful and very charming! I think Ninette is still the baby even after two years, as far as Chouinette thinks, hein?

Thank you for the link. Beautiful kitties!

**Moesha** · 10-12-2008, 10:45 PM

Very cute kitties!!

**Emeraldgreen** · 10-13-2008, 01:04 PM

Originally Posted by epistoliere

Last summer, we changed food, we gave our cats Cat Chow; before that, it was Iams. Do you think that could be the problem ? Now she is on I-D, vet food, with a mix of Cat Chow. We went out for a few hours this afternoon, and no diarrhea since this morning. I sure hope she will return to her litter box !

I have a cat who has been dealing with diarrhea and it is now much improved. He was put on some medications because his diarrhea had progressed so much that an infection was occuring in his bowels. This was detected through blood tests that showed his white blood cell count was very high. As well, an ultrasound was done that showed that the inflammation was in the lining of his bowels so the vet determined that was where the infection was located. But it was ultimately decided that the diarrhea was caused by a food allergy that was not known to us until now. He had diarrhea for years and it was always thought that he had a case of IBD and we tried to control it with Prednisilone (steroids) but thankfully it is clearing up very well with a change of diet and another drug called Metronidazole that we are hoping he will only need for short time.
He may still have IBD but now we feel that it is aggrevated by certain foods.

He was put on to a very gentle/bland diet called Medi-Cal Gastro and then slowly switched over to Medi-Cal Hypo Gastro. He is doing very well. He has had a few relapses that occured when I tried to feed him Hills I/D. I believe the reason for this is because he is dealing with a food allergy and while I/D is mild, it probably has ingredients in it that don't agree with him. Once I stopped feeding the I/D and went back to the HypoGastro, the diarrhea stopped.

As others have mentioned, I wonder if your cat is possibly dealing with a food allergy. The HypoGastro has limited ingredients in it that are not common and it works well for cats that have allergies that can lead to diarrhea.
There is another food made by Hills called Z/D that is also a hypoallergenic diet.

You mentioned that you have your cat on a mix of I/D and cat chow. You may want to try and just feed one kind of food because the mixture may be upsetting to your cat's stomach. But you might be in the process of weeding out the cat chow to switch over to the I/D?

I hope your kitty begins to feel better soon.

**krazyaboutkatz** · 10-13-2008, 09:16 PM

Welcome to PT.

I'm sorry to hear that your cat is having diarrhea issues.

I also have a cat that's been battling this for several years and he's been diagnosed with colitis and IBD. He's now on a grain free diet and he's also been getting a little raw chicken. He also has to have some other supplements and he was also on prednisolone for quite a while.

Unfortunately, he's now having problems again and will most likely need to go back on the pred. I wish I had some answers for you but it does sound like it's most likely diet related. I hope that your cat will start doing better soon. I've read that once you change a cats diet that they should be on it for at least 3 months or so to determine if it's going to work or not. Good luck.

**epistoliere** · 10-14-2008, 03:27 PM

Thank you all ! I think also that it may be related to food. Choupinette had diarrhea again this morning (not as bad as before, she had it once). Fortunately, we changed carpets for laminated floor

last month, so it is not that terrible, even when she does not have the time to get to her litter box. Like you all, I always get worried when one of my cats is not as usual. Choupinette is still in great shape, she plays with her two feline companions and meows to go on the balcony. I was wondering though : is it possible that she ate fallen leaves and that upset her stomach ? Last week, she brought one indoor to play with, and a few minutes later, it disappeared. I noticed also that diarrhea had begun last fall, with a relapse in June, and then again, in October. No diarrhea when she spends winters inside only. Bugs perhaps ?

**Medusa** · 10-14-2008, 06:06 PM

Welcome to Pet Talk! Such pretty kitties! I do hope that Choupinette feels better and gets over the diarrhea quickly. Hope to see more of you and your lovely fur family.

**epistoliere** · 10-17-2008, 07:16 PM

It's been a few days, and I want you to know that Choupinette is much better. I still wonder what caused her diarrhea, but everything seems fine now. Thank you all for your support and your experience, I appreciate it a lot.