In September 2018 I trapped a family of ferals in my back yard. An experienced rescuer took mom and dad; I kept the two approximately 5 month old kittens. They are awesome young cats now, sweet, playful, healthy, and get along great with my other cats. Both have been to the vet multiple times with the usual feral start-up things (spay, chip, vaccines, parasite checks).
The only catch in all this has been diarrhea that goes away to the point of them having perfect stools, but then comes back. There seems to be no rhyme or reason as far as what they're eating or anything else. Every time I think it's beat, it comes back. FWIW, the diarrhea does not appear to bother them in the least, they are 100% active normal young cats, wrestling, playing, and eating normally.
Their fecal samples have been tested for parasites at least two, maybe three times. ALL were negative for everything, even the very first tests after trapping. They have had Revolution, and then a month later Profender. The first one I trapped was on Panacur early on as the vet thought based on symptoms that she might have giardia (notwithstanding a negative test). I've tried goat milk yogurt and goat milk kefir, and I've tried pumpkin puree. They were both on Forti Flora for two weeks. Since January 8 they've been on Pet Ultimates Probiotics for Cats in the evening meal, and NaturVet Digestive Enzymes Plus Probiotic in the morning meal.
Their food has not changed, aside from now the need to transition from kitten food, but I have been doing that VERY slowly (two weeks or more, and not fully transitioned yet). They eat Fancy Feast Kitten pate and now also Friskies pate. They also get a small amount of American Journey grain free duck kibble. These are all the same things that all my other kitties eat.
I am being careful to keep them hydrated. I mix water in their wet food. I also mix water in their dry food since it does not sit out and is only there for a few minutes. Again, this is same as the other kitties.
Any ideas what's going on here? Any suggestions other than what I've been trying? I'm considering adding a small amount of Metamucil to their wet food, but ultimately I'd really like to know what's happening and fix it permanently.
The only catch in all this has been diarrhea that goes away to the point of them having perfect stools, but then comes back. There seems to be no rhyme or reason as far as what they're eating or anything else. Every time I think it's beat, it comes back. FWIW, the diarrhea does not appear to bother them in the least, they are 100% active normal young cats, wrestling, playing, and eating normally.
Their fecal samples have been tested for parasites at least two, maybe three times. ALL were negative for everything, even the very first tests after trapping. They have had Revolution, and then a month later Profender. The first one I trapped was on Panacur early on as the vet thought based on symptoms that she might have giardia (notwithstanding a negative test). I've tried goat milk yogurt and goat milk kefir, and I've tried pumpkin puree. They were both on Forti Flora for two weeks. Since January 8 they've been on Pet Ultimates Probiotics for Cats in the evening meal, and NaturVet Digestive Enzymes Plus Probiotic in the morning meal.
Their food has not changed, aside from now the need to transition from kitten food, but I have been doing that VERY slowly (two weeks or more, and not fully transitioned yet). They eat Fancy Feast Kitten pate and now also Friskies pate. They also get a small amount of American Journey grain free duck kibble. These are all the same things that all my other kitties eat.
I am being careful to keep them hydrated. I mix water in their wet food. I also mix water in their dry food since it does not sit out and is only there for a few minutes. Again, this is same as the other kitties.
Any ideas what's going on here? Any suggestions other than what I've been trying? I'm considering adding a small amount of Metamucil to their wet food, but ultimately I'd really like to know what's happening and fix it permanently.