Mama And Kittens With Diarrhea

[nycats]

Hi! I'm fostering a beautiful mama and 5 little ones. About 2.5-3 wks old. Their eyes are open and are starting to crawl around everywhere! Shortly after arriving at my place, mama cat had diarrhea and vomiting. Possibly from stress and food change, as her fecal came back negative for worms and parasites. I treated her with probiotic and slippery elm bark powder, and she seemed to be on the mends, she had firm stool and stopped vomiting.

While she was sick and not eating, I supplemented the babies with kitten formula, weighing them often. They have slowly gained weight, and even with mama now doing better, they are just slow growers. The last few days, mama and two of the kittens have had diarrhea. We've tested them both again but fecal came back negative. I've been treating mama with probiotic and pumpkin, and babies with benebac. What could be causing this diarrhea if not parasites and worms? The vet will deworm them just in case. I will continue with probiotic etc., but when should I expect it to help with the diarrhea and when should I be concerned?

Any help from experienced member is appreciated, as this is my first time fostering kittens this young. Thanks!

 

[StefanZ]

Coccidia does not always show on tests.

Also be sure they get plenty of pedialyte bough or homemade.

 

[Sarthur2]

Mom probably needs a round of metronidazole. The kitten(s) with diarrhea should get a round of Albon.

As stated, not everything shows up in a fecal, and mom may have irritation in her colon that metronidazole will resolve.

What formula are you supplenting with?

 

[nycats]

T

Coccidia does not always show on tests.

Also be sure they get plenty of pedialyte bough or homemade.

Thank you. I just got Pedialyte from store and will be using it with formula. I've asked the rescue person who is in touch with vet about possibility of them still having Coccidia. Yesterday, we treated them all with Strongid.

 

[nycats]

Mom probably needs a round of metronidazole. The kitten(s) with diarrhea should get a round of Albon.

As stated, not everything shows up in a fecal, and mom may have irritation in her colon that metronidazole will resolve.

What formula are you supplenting with?

I've been giving mom probiotic + pumpkin, and her stool as of last night was normal/solid. We'll see if it stays that way. I'm talking to the rescue person to see if her vet wants to treat for Coccidia.

I've been giving them Petlac, but I ran out and switched them to the can of KMR I had. Afraid of their diarrhea being reaction to change in formula, I have gone back to Petlac. Yesterday I got them started on Benebac, and today I will be adding Pedialyte. Oh why do they have to be so fragile? We lost one sibling a few days ago because he was not able to metabolize what he was eating. We suspect he had a birth defect. I hope the other runt doesn't have the same issue... but overall, those kittens are growing very slowly.

 

[StefanZ]

Can you get raw goats milk? Sometimes it gives an edge.

 

[nycats]

Can you get raw goats milk? Sometimes it gives an edge.

Hmm I'm not sure where I can get that around here! But I'll look.

 

[Sarthur2]

The premixed formula is known to cause diarrhea in kittens. I always recommend powdered formula. Good you switched back!

 

[nycats]

The premixed formula is known to cause diarrhea in kittens. I always recommend powdered formula. Good you switched back!

Ah I meant powdered can of KMR. I've started them on Pedialyte, and they seem to have perked up a little. But they are still having diarrhea from what I can tell (mom cleans them up). I have also started adding a little rice cereal. The rescue person is talking to vet about possibly medicating them as caution for Coccidia. I hope something works and get them feeling better. I'm so glad I'm around for the long weekend to keep an eye on them.

 

[Sarthur2]

It really sounds like the kittens need Albon for coccidia ASAP.

Even though mom is cleaning them, they are still likely sick from parasites.

Albon is mild and will cure them over the treatment period. Please push for this. Diarrhea in young kittens is never normal and needs treating ASAP.

 

[nycats]

It really sounds like the kittens need Albon for coccidia ASAP.

Even though mom is cleaning them, they are still likely sick from parasites.

Albon is mild and will cure them over the treatment period. Please push for this. Diarrhea in young kittens is never normal and needs treating ASAP.

I agree, as mom's poop is better with pumpkin and probiotic, but still not quite the normal firmness. It also has bad smell, which is usually indicative of parasite. We are talking to the vet about medicating them for Coccidia/Giardia. We will likely figure it out tomorrow, as today is a National holiday. In the meantime, the kittens seem to be doing better with my maintenance treatment of pedialyte/probiotic/rice cereal. They are walking around and eating well, even gained more weight! I hope we get this fixed soon for good! I've been so worried. Thank you for your help!