Conference misery::feline

    Does Snoopy get canned food as well?  Liver flavored canned food
    (gross!) will give my cats the hershey squirts for days!

    How about separating Snoopy from the other's for a while to see what
    happens?  Stress can really cause strange physical problems in animals,
    as well as humans.  When we brought two abused cats into our home, they
    had back end (poop) problems for a few weeks! Part of that was
    attributed to our giving them canned food (they were used to eating dry
    food only) and also the new environment they suddenly found themselves
    in.

    Be sure your vet knows that your cat's symptoms are unchanged.  Also,
    ensure that your cat is drinking plenty of water.  You don't want
    Snoopy to get dehydrated!

    I just went thru a less severe, but similar problem with my 
    [foster|new addition], Peanut.  I couldn't tell from your note, but it
    sounds like Snoopy has had a few changes (diet, worming, etc.) fairly
    close together.  So it might take some settling down to get him back in
    order.
    
    With Peanut, we first tried Kaopectate (~3 cc's 2 times per day) to try
    to stop the diarrhea.  That had no effect, so we went to LoMotil (your
    vet must prescribe this) for two days.  All this was while keeping his 
    food (amount and type) constant.  The LoMotil worked for a couple of
    days,  then the diarrhea came back.  So I tried him back on the LoMotil
    for a couple of days, and when that had no effect I switched his food
    to a higher bulk food (from Hill's CD to Hill's WD) over 2 days,
    keeping him on the LoMotil once a day.  The trick to all this was to
    change one variable at a time and give it a couple to a few days to see
    the results.  I kept a log of all his bowel movements (amount, time
    consistency (pasty or watery), any blood, etc. - interesting reading,
    eh?? - only cat people would do this!). Finally, after about 5 days on
    the LoMotil and WD alone, the diarrhea cleared up, so I then took him
    off the LoMotil too, again changing only one variable at a time.
    
    My vet was very good thru this, and was the one who told me to keep the
    log, and it helped him.  He said if you change too many things too
    quickly, you can't tell what helped and what didn't.  
    
    There are other things you can do for a cat with these types of
    problems - work with your vet.  My vet wanted to proceed with the
    Kaopectate 1st, then LoMotil, then diet change, then to stonger
    measures (steroids, I think, which we never had to get to), in an
    orderly and measureable fashion.  
    
    Of course, if Snoopy's case is more severe, your vet may want to do
    something entirely different.
    
    Good luck to you and Snoopy!
    
    Sue B. + Smokey, Spike, Trouble & Peanut

    Back in as I move out my last few boxes -- Sweetie exhibited
    symptoms like diarrhea when his bowel(?) was obstructed.  This can lead
    to megacolon which is dangerous.  Has this been ruled out?  (Yes,
    it's strange that blockage leads to diarrhea, but.....)
    

    If you're interested in reading about Megacolon, Sandy Merritt's cat
    had that, and note 63 tells lots about it. This may not be your
    problem, but you may want to read up on it just in case.
    
    Yonee

    Ahhhh I remember those days!!!  As a matter of fact it will be
    one year ago on February 16th that Van Gogh had been operated to
    have 80% of his intestines removed!!!
    
    Please feel free to contact me off-line if you would like more
    information about Megacolon.....
    
    It also could be just a case of stress...change in diet...worms...
    virus etc!!!!  
    
    Sandy

    Sounds to me like a basic problem of food intake.
    Try Science Diet food (dry) for everyone and I bet you will find quite
    a difference.  This is balanced and works for me.  Don't be tempted to
    give them can food with it as this will start your problem over again. 
    They also need fresh water daily.  Water get's stale and never give
    them people food or milk.  This is what my vet has recommended and it
    works.  If this doesn't help, you have a serious problem and you should
    see your vet again.  Poor thing might be getting dehydrated.
                                                         

    re: blockage and diarrhea and re: Peanut's problem
    
    I forgot to mention we think Peanut's problem was caused by a hairball 
    which might have been irritating his intestinal lining.  The reason we
    think so is because one of his 1st normal BM's was full of hair.
    
    I hope Snoopy's problem turns out to be something minor like this, and
    not like Van Gogh's battle with megacolon!
    
    Sue B + 4
    
    BTW, Sandy, I almost renamed Peanut to Peanut Van Gogh - one of his
    ears was chewed half off by something while he was lost and trapped. 
    He looks a little goofy, but he's cute.

    Thanks for all the suggestions.  It will take me a bit to sort 
    through them all.  For all who worried about Snoopy being dehydrated, 
    the vet warned me about that so I give him plenty of fresh H2O.  
    He's mopey and uncomfortable, but on the other hand, he seems to enjoy
    the extra attention from Mom.  (Of course, Mom's SO doesn't appreciate
    having to go get things all the time because I don't want to 
    disturb Snoopy on my lap.)  Sigh.  Thanks again - I'll update in 
    a few days. 
    
    Adrienne
    

    Even though you may be giving your kitty plenty of water doesn't
    mean he'll feel like drinking it.  Sick kitties don't always
    know what's good for them.
    
    One way to tell if a cat is dehydrated is to pull his skin.  If
    it snaps back quickly, he's ok.  If it tends to stay in the "pulled"
    position for several seconds, I'd take him back to the vets for
    IV fluids.
    
    good luck with your baby,
    Pam

    You might want to ask your vet about inflamatory bowel disease.  Misha
    had that, and diarrhea is often one of the symptoms. (Although Misha's
    only symptom was weight loss).  My regular vet referred us to an
    internist, and she diagnosed Mish.  Stress seems to affect Mish, and he
    loses weight.

    Peanut Van Gogh....   Van Gogh would be honored!!!!  He's so
    darn cute with is squished ear!!!!
    
    Sandy