toxoplasmosis... fear my baby is dying

gailuvscats

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It's been 10 days now, Pansy had diarea, I took him to the vet, got bloodwork started and antibiotic, got stool checked the next day, has toxoplasmosis in his stool. Not sure how he got it, the other 4 cats are fine, although the newest had soft stool while in the crate, was treated and had firm stool before being free in the house, and I know Pansy licked his behind.  They are all indoor cats.

Anyway, giving two antibiotics, appetite stimulas, and subq fluids.  He is lethargic, ate yesterday, but not today eventhough I gave him two doses of appetite stimulant. Tomorrow we go for an ultrasound, and if it shows what I fear, a tumour , I will have to put him down. I can't put him through anymore misery, he is so unhappy. But if it is just the toxoplasmosis that is doing this, can he get better? 

Has anyone ever had this happen?   He is my profile picture.

thanks for any input.
 

red top rescue

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Here is a very comprehensive article about toxoplasmosis in cats.

  http://www.vet.cornell.edu/fhc/Health_Information/brochure_toxo.cfm

It's long, but below is an excerpt from this article which could indicate that what your cat has is NOT actually toxoplasmosis. 

"Sometimes the oocysts can be found in the feces, but this is not a reliable method of diagnosis because they look similar to some other parasites. Also, cats shed the oocysts for only a short period of time and often are not shedding the oocysts when they are showing signs of disease. A definitive diagnosis requires microscopic examination of tissues or tissue impression smears for distinctive pathologic changes and the presence of tachyzoites.

Can toxoplasmosis be treated?

Most cats that have toxoplasmosis can recover with treatment. Treatment usually involves a course of an antibiotic called Clindamycin. Other drugs that are used include pyrimethamine and sulfadiazine, which act together to inhibit T. gondii reproduction. Treatment must be started as soon as possible after diagnosis and continued for several days after signs have disappeared. In acute illness, treatment is sometimes started on the basis of a high antibody titer in the first test. If clinical improvement is not seen within two to three days, the diagnosis of toxoplasmosis should be questioned."

He may have some other disease, or perhaps it is a tumor, and the ultrasound will give you more information.  If he has been treated with the appropriate medication for 10 days and he isnt getting better, you need to look for some other cause of his problem.
 
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gailuvscats

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well, technically, he has only been treated for it for 6 days, with one antibiotic, and then 4 days with 2 antibiotics, but he is not showing any improvement. the subq fluids help, and the appetite stimulant worked better yesterday than it did today. But he does not feel good, and I think he might be in pain, he cries a little sometimes.  But the vet said he should have shown improvement by now. He had diarrhea today also. 
 
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