Adding a new cat to an existing cat family? Some advice I wish I had, hopefully it will help you avo

[calicosrspecial]

If you are adding a cat to a household with existing cats here are some ideas I would suggest given my recent experience with this issue.

Keep the new cat in quarantine until it is certain the cat is free of parasites or any other contagious issues

Ask your Vet specifically about Giardia in your cat on the initial visit as it is much easier to handle it before the new cat meets the existing cats. If the cat has it and you don't know it the work involved if and/or when it spreads to all the other cats is exponentially more challenging.

Even if your new cat is treated for worms etc. with Revolution assume the cat may have something else (Giardia) which Revolution does not deal with

Assume the cat has Giardia with regard to handling, cleaning litter/litter boxes, cleaning the area the cat is quarantined in, wash your hands after any contact etc and test multiple times (TEST TEST TEST) to try to make sure the cat is free of Giardia or any other pesky issues even if the cat does not have any symptoms. How many tests I am not sure but I plan on doing at least 5 tests. I believe Giardia is not always passed and some tests done by the Vet do not always catch the Giardia if it is passed. Ask the Vet about the tests they use and whether it is done in house or at an outside lab. I believe a routine Fecal Flotation test may not always show the presence of Giardia so what kind of test your Vet uses is very important. 

Here is a thread about tests:  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/208777/can-i-trust-the-fecal-test

I know this sounds a bit excessive but this is what I will be doing the next time I take in a cat. It may be overdoing it but the risk of missing something like Giardia is so great that any precautionary work will be a wise investment.

I hope this helps and that you never have to deal with something like Giardia across multiple cats and in the whole house.

All my best and it will be worth it as any cat finding a new home is truly a special addition and well worth it to the humans, the other cats and the rescued cat.

Please feel free to add any other advice.

 

[margd]

I see you have been through a real nightmare with Giardia recently.  Is everything cleared up now?   Your post is a good reminder that this parasite needs to be taken into consideration when adopting a cat.  I know when I've adopted cats from the shelter, they were never tested for giardia and I could very easily have contaminated my entire home.   

 

[calicosrspecial]

Margd,

Sadly, my new cat is still battling the giardia, thank you for asking. I am trying to do everything, quarantine, clean often, but my weak link is I can't bathe her, she is a feral, but not too feral, so even though she likes to be pet she is not able to be picked up and beyond. My existing cats do not have giardia as of now so I am trying a put up a firewall so that it does not spread to the existing healthy cats.

The problem with giardia is that it does not always show up because of the type of test or because they were not shed in the particular sample. So I really recommend multiple tests of the right kind. A little more upfront effort really prevents a lot of work if proper care is not taken in advance.

The difficulty with giardia is that there are not always symptoms. So it is very easy to assume all is clear when it is not. That happened to us when the new girl on the first test was clear and in my ignorance I thought she was free of anything but in reality the test missed it or she did not pass the giardia. I want to make sure others do not make the mistakes I made.

I hope that your cats do not have giardia. It isn't that nasty for a healthy cat from what I seem to understand but it is nasty to get rid of at times and it is a lot of work to get rid of in the environment. It is also possible that it can pass from the cat to a human (what the probability is is not really known so good hygiene, hand washing is very important). Since my new kitty is part of a feral colony that I have been handling for the past 3 years and I have been petting her and with that petting my hand goes down and around her tail (because she likes that) and I do not have giardia (or giardiasis) it seems to me that with proper hand washing and care it can be prevented from jumping from cat to human but from what I have read there is risk.

I would suggest getting them tested just to be on the safe side. The past is the past but we can change the path of the future with proper actions. I can always give you some advice if they are diagnosed with giardia.

I have a lot more I could write but please feel free to ask any questions and hopefully I can help you understand giardia a bit more. Hang in there and please don't panic. It can be handled.

CRS

 

[margd]

Thank you for the offer of help.  The cats I adopted from the shelter have gone to the bridge already and Paul and Chula were adopted from their original owner so I'm pretty sure they are okay.  They've always been indoors except when they were discovered as kittens three years ago.   If I ever do adopt from a shelter or rescue, though, I will definitely have the test for giardia run.  

I am really sorry to hear you're still having the problem.  You're wonderful, hanging in there with this little girl.   I really hope you get rid of it soon.  

 

 

 

[calicosrspecial]

One addition to the original post.

Through the help of another member of the site I was pointed to the PCR test. This test seems to have better test results in testing for Giardia and other parasites. https://www.idexx.com/small-animal-...ces/reference-laboratories/realpcr-tests.html

My vet charges a fair amount for this test but it does seem to be a worthwhile test that will help me get the confidence that my new cat will be healthy and be able to be mixed in with the existing cats without posing a health care risk. I have had this test done on the new cat already (showed she had giardia) and will be using it again to make sure she is free of her giardia.

Hope this helps.

 

[calicosrspecial]

Margd,

You are welcome. Sorry about the shelter cats but I am sure they had a wonderful like with a family like yours.

Thank you for the best wishes. We will get through this and she'll be able to join her adopted indoor brothers and sisters soon. She can't wait.

CRS