14 Yo Kitty With Acute Diarrhea

[flowergirl]

Hi everyone,
I'm new to these forums (although apparently I registered 10 years ago!). I currently have a 14 year old tuxedo cat named Pierre that I inherited from my mom when she passed away 2 years ago. His main issue is chronic vomiting (once a week or so for a few hours), which my vet thinks may be allergy related because he also has itchy skin. Over the past year I've tried him on several different diets, and for now I've settled on a Science Diet sensitive stomach formula, which he's been on for several months. He had a vet visit 2 weeks ago for bloodwork and because I have noticed him licking his lips a lot. It turns out he needs at least one tooth extracted, so we have a dental consultation scheduled for February 4th, and in the meantime, we have him on buprenorphine for pain (.3/mg and I give him .2 ml per day). His bloodwork came back fine, but the vet also said he seems to have some arthritis, and the bupe will help with that also. Finally, his urine was very concentrated, so they suggested I start adding water to his canned food, which I have been doing for about the past five days. He drinks it right up from the food, where he will barely touch it in the water bowl.

This morning I got up and everything seemed fine. He ate his breakfast with the water in it and went to the litter box. I noticed he was in there several times so I went to watch him and saw him have a big bout of diarrhea. Near the end he was even crying a little bit as it came out. I have occasionally found diarrhea in the box in the past, but it's uncommon and I haven't seen it in several months. It didn't have any blood in it, but was fairly watery.

So I'm trying to figure out the source of this. I know bupe can actually cause constipation, and he's been on it for 2 weeks already, so it seems weird that that side effect would start now. Could increasing his water intake cause diarrhea? That's really the only other change I've made, but it's really getting him to drink a lot more water when he was barely drinking any before (he's been peeing twice a day instead of once). Does anyone have thoughts on this? I am monitoring him this morning and if he keeps it up I will call the ER vet, but I'm hoping for just a single bout. Sorry for the long intro post and thanks for any input!

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi! Is the vomiting gone now? Just curious; if it is not, then it could be tied to an illness that is now also causing diarrhea. I cannot imagine that adding some water to his food would create diarrhea like that.

Given his age, I would definitely call the ER vet if he has any more runny/watery bowel movements, especially since he was crying - that is likely a sign of pain.

 

[flowergirl]

Hi! Thanks for your response. His vomiting is intermittent and his last bout was a week ago today. He typically has them about once a week, so I'm nervous he might start that today too. I have seen three different doctors at this vet practice; they all suggest a food allergy, but say colitis or IBD is also a possibility. Lymphoma has been mentioned in the past, but since he's not gotten much worse in over a year they think it's less likely.

It could also be coincidence, since he does have diarrhea every few months and it's been awhile; it just seems suspect since we added meds and changed the water routine. He's otherwise normal right now, but thankfully I'm home today and can keep an eye on him.

 

[FeebysOwner]

It is probably related to what ever gastrointestinal issue he has. But, I guess since both the vomiting and diarrhea are intermittent, just make sure this bout of diarrhea is pretty much the same as the previous ones. If it doesn't subside like it has in the past, or is much worse than what it has ever been, you can pretty much guess what ever he has got is getting worse.

On the other hand, bupe can cause stomach and digestive tract issues - not necessarily constipation. Given your cat may already have stomach issues to begin with, perhaps the bupe has built up in his system enough to cause the diarrhea? You might want to call the vet and ask about that.

 

[flowergirl]

Yeah, I was thinking that too, that it could still be related to the bupe. I wish my regular vet was open on Sundays, but I will call them in the morning to ask. I hope we don't have to stop it, it's so easy to give and seems to help him. I will have to decide whether to give tonight's dose, I guess.

I'm hypervigilantly monitoring him right now. He's sleeping away on the couch as usual, but we'll see what happens when he wakes up and gets more active. I sure wish these little guys could talk and tell us what's wrong.

 

[FeebysOwner]

I sure wish these little guys could talk and tell us what's wrong.

Oh, how much easier life would be!!!!

 

[flowergirl]

Wouldn't it, though? Well, he woke up, played with his toys for a few minutes, went up to finish up his breakfast, and didn't run back to the litter box. I will take the small good sign and keep my fingers crossed.

PS - my avatar is a picture of my sweet boy.

 

[Jcatbird]

Welcome! I’m glad you came. We see a lot of digestive issues with kitties. I’m glad you are using a vet for help. Often food is an issue. What are you feeding him now? I have found that switching me kitties has sometimes stopped the problem. Recently there have been some issues with cat foods on the market. I have one cat that has a digestive issues, perhaps what is working for him would help your kitty. He is getting Rachel Ray dry food with an immune s system booster. He also gets flaked Fancy Feast fish and Shrimp flaked. Might be worth trying. He is frequently affected by foods.
s far as allergies, have you changed anything I’m your house recently? It can be something as simple as new clothes washing detergent, your pest control many spraying or even a perfume you use. I suggest you start keeping a list of what kitty has had or been doing st the time just before getting sick. It can help eliminate things.
Very glad to have you here. I think you’ll find lots of great helpers here. This is a wonderful resource of people with lots of experience with kitties. Please keep us updated!

 

[LTS3]

What hypoallergenic foods have you tried so far and how long was your cat eating each? It takes about 13 weeks if not longer to see if a food helps with allergy symptoms or not. So patience is needed

Per My Vet: How Long For Food Allergies Test

What does the vomit look like? Food? Hair? Clear and foamy? Has your vet ruled out digestive issues such as IBD?

 

[flowergirl]

They were both duck based - after I started one, I realized it still had some chicken in it and thought that might be causing continued problems, so I switched to one that didn't (I think it was Blue Basics). I believe he was only on each of them for a month or maybe two. He really didn't like either one but especially not the second one. It was hard to get him to eat it. He seemed to throw up more on it too. I think I did a grain-free trial in there, too. Then I moved him to Science Diet Sensitive Stomach. He's been on that one since September and it's reduced his vomiting from 3x/week to one time or less, even though it's not hypoallergenic, and mostly eliminated diarrhea which used to be a bigger problem. When the vet was here two weeks ago, she suggested I try something rabbit-based since duck is still in the bird family. There aren't that many I can find that are single protein rabbit, but I'm planning to order a couple to try. I'm feeling a little (okay, a lot) overwhelmed juggling the upcoming dental procedure, the new pain meds, now maybe more diarrhea, and my vet also wants to put him on Adequan for arthritis and try a nausea med. I don't want to try too many new things at once and lose track of what might be helping and what might be causing new symptoms, or put too much stress on his little body.

In terms of the vomit, he mostly throws up clear fluid or clear fluid with hair (not a true, formed hairball). It's slightly foamy but not a lot. Occasionally he will throw up food, but not that often. I don't think they have ruled anything out, they have mentioned IBD and colitis, but I think are first leaning toward a food allergy being responsible, or at least wanting to try that as the first avenue.

 

[flowergirl]

Welcome! I’m glad you came. We see a lot of digestive issues with kitties. I’m glad you are using a vet for help. Often food is an issue. What are you feeding him now? I have found that switching me kitties has sometimes stopped the problem. Recently there have been some issues with cat foods on the market. I have one cat that has a digestive issues, perhaps what is working for him would help your kitty. He is getting Rachel Ray dry food with an immune s system booster. He also gets flaked Fancy Feast fish and Shrimp flaked. Might be worth trying. He is frequently affected by foods.
s far as allergies, have you changed anything I’m your house recently? It can be something as simple as new clothes washing detergent, your pest control many spraying or even a perfume you use. I suggest you start keeping a list of what kitty has had or been doing st the time just before getting sick. It can help eliminate things.
Very glad to have you here. I think you’ll find lots of great helpers here. This is a wonderful resource of people with lots of experience with kitties. Please keep us updated!

Thanks for the welcome! He's currently eating Science Diet Sensitive Stomach, it's worked the best so far but is not perfect. I think the vet is thinking the allergy is to blame for the digestive issues as well as itchy skin. If all of that could be cured with the right food, it would sure be a miracle. He's had GI issues and itchy skin for a couple of years - the vet said it could be something in my house or he might be allergic to something like dust or pollen, or even himself, but she is hoping it is food-based.

 

[LTS3]

Try Rawz. It's not a sensitive / food allergy type food but it's good for many cats with food intolerance and the like. RAWZ | 100% Rendered Free Cat Food

You can also try these:

Blue Buffalo Basics
Merrick Limited Ingredients
Koha Limited Ingredient
Natural Balance LID
Instinct Limited Ingredient Diet | Instinct Pet Food
Single Novel Protein Grain Free Wet (not Raw) Food? Help!
Your favorite brands of "novel protein" canned cat food
Recs For Low-carb, Grain-free Pork Without Chicken Or Fish?
Canned - Pure Vita - Natural Holistic Pet Foods
NutriSource Pet Foods

 

[Jcatbird]

Hmmmm. I was using a cat litter that caused some dust. At first I didn’t notice a change but over time two of my cats got similar symptoms. I have switched litter twice now. The first was scented and there was no change. It anything they got worse. I also though that maybe a flea had caused it but they get treated for that. I finally tried another, low dust, unscrnted litter and it seems to be the answer. It is a slow process of elimination and watching for any change but I didn’t want to change too much at a time or I wouldn’t be able to pin point the cause. Food, litter, cleaning supplies, fleas? It’s all possible. You mentioned the sickness is every few months. Anything regular happening those months like pest control in the house it outside?
The crying and drinking of water sounds like he wants to clear something out. If he is licking a lot it may just be trying to clear out fur. I guess they have checked for URI?

 

[flowergirl]

Try Rawz. It's not a sensitive / food allergy type food but it's good for many cats with food intolerance and the like. RAWZ | 100% Rendered Free Cat Food

You can also try these:

Blue Buffalo Basics
Merrick Limited Ingredients
Koha Limited Ingredient
Natural Balance LID
Instinct Limited Ingredient Diet | Instinct Pet Food
Single Novel Protein Grain Free Wet (not Raw) Food? Help!
Your favorite brands of "novel protein" canned cat food
Recs For Low-carb, Grain-free Pork Without Chicken Or Fish?
Canned - Pure Vita - Natural Holistic Pet Foods
NutriSource Pet Foods

Thank you for this list! I've been trying to get something similar from my vet but they don't have it well organized.

 

[flowergirl]

Hmmmm. I was using a cat litter that caused some dust. At first I didn’t notice a change but over time two of my cats got similar symptoms. I have switched litter twice now. The first was scented and there was no change. It anything they got worse. I also though that maybe a flea had caused it but they get treated for that. I finally tried another, low dust, unscrnted litter and it seems to be the answer. It is a slow process of elimination and watching for any change but I didn’t want to change too much at a time or I wouldn’t be able to pin point the cause. Food, litter, cleaning supplies, fleas? It’s all possible. You mentioned the sickness is every few months. Anything regular happening those months like pest control in the house it outside?
The crying and drinking of water sounds like he wants to clear something out. If he is licking a lot it may just be trying to clear out fur. I guess they have checked for URI?

The diarrhea is every few months, the vomiting is much more often. Pest control is a good question. I get it done quarterly (outside only) but I don't actually know when it happens so I could call and find out. Litter drives me nuts because even with dust free he gets in there and kicks it around like a maniac and ends up with a sneezing fit each time. They checked him for URI when they were here a couple of weeks ago and he was okay. He has very occasional sneezing and coughing but no discharge and they seemed to think it was pretty normal. He's also a big boy (17 pounds), so they said snoring and wheezing will be expected when he's laying down.

I agree this morning he wanted to clear something out. The only other thing I can think of is that he ate something I don't know about. I'm pretty careful to keep the floor clear but it's possible.

 

[flowergirl]

Here is a brief update. No more diarrhea (or any poop, yet) since yesterday's incident. He was normal overnight and went in the box to pee but didn't seem to be upset or trying to defecate. I even went home at lunch to check on him and nothing yet.

I heard back from the vet. She said she thinks the sudden increase in water could be to blame and that I should stop it for a few days, then start more slowly again if he gets better. If the diarrhea continues, she said there is a med to put him on, but we would like to avoid that. There is a slight chance it's related to the bupe, but she thinks it's pretty unlikely.

I'm still hoping this is isolated or at least related to the water so he starts having more normal stools again soon! I will update once I get home and see what's happened this afternoon.

 

[LTS3]

Saccharomyces boulardii may help with diarrhea. There's info on page 9 here:

Probiotics for Cats - Why and Which Ones

Most vets aren't familiar with using probiotics or supplements so don't expect much help from your vet.

Could there be something in the water that is upsetting your cat's tummy? Check with your water authority for the most up to date water quality analysis report. If the results are within limits, then maybe the pipes that carry water into your home is a possible issue. Try giving bottle water or filtered water (Brita, PUR, etc) for week or so.

 

[flowergirl]

Thank you LTS3! I had no idea there was so much to know about probiotics. My vet has had him on Proviable for over a year. I keep him on it because it's no big deal, but I always wonder if it really does anything.

Good news! Solid poop in the box tonight! Never thought I'd be so excited to see it. I cleaned it up and then went and gave Pierre an extra snuggle, he probably thought I was crazy.

In terms of the water, I think the vet is thinking it was the sudden increase in amount (he went from hardly drinking to me giving him about 1/3 cup a day in his food with no ramp up). She said to stop with the extra until his diarrhea is gone for a couple days, then start back up gradually. I do normally use the filtered water from the fridge so I don't think it's the water itself.