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[Brigitte Cowell]

I agree with Angie, if your vet has not done this then you need to have a fecal PCR test done to make sure that the cause of the diarrhea was correctly diagnosed and treated. So you need to ask them what test they did when they diagnosed the Giardia, and then find out what you treated your kitten with too.

And agreed that a probiotic is a good idea, kittens' gut bacteria can get very unsettled by antibiotic treatments and so rebalancing with good bacteria can make a difference. http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=21534 is a good choice because the paste also has kaolin and pectate which will firm stools and soothe the gut while the good bacteria are there too...

 

[Joey Jordan]

I agree with Angie, if your vet has not done this then you need to have a fecal PCR test done to make sure that the cause of the diarrhea was correctly diagnosed and treated. So you need to ask them what test they did when they diagnosed the Giardia, and then find out what you treated your kitten with too.

And agreed that a probiotic is a good idea, kittens' gut bacteria can get very unsettled by antibiotic treatments and so rebalancing with good bacteria can make a difference. http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=21534 is a good choice because the paste also has kaolin and pectate which will firm stools and soothe the gut while the good bacteria are there too...

Thank you for the information. I'm going to the vet's office this afternoon and will ask about a probiotic and performing the Fecal PCR test.

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

I went to the IDEXX website to get the link to the test but the website says it is down for maintenance, your vet should have a list of the tests IDEXX Laboratories do though...

 

[Joey Jordan]

Thanks, I'll follow up on that.

 

[admin]

YOu also may want to test for TriTrich...there are many posts on this subject...

 

[DChap]

Definitely ask them to test for Tritrich. Tojo went over a year before they finally diagnosed it correctly and now has IBD

 

[Joey Jordan]

Definitely ask them to test for Tritrich. Tojo went over a year before they finally diagnosed it correctly and now has IBD

Oh, I'm sorry for Tojo. I will have him checked. Thank you.

 

[Patti]

You would probably remember if they ran a diarrhea PCR as it is quite expensive. However, isolating the culprit is usually worth it for an ongoing problem. You might want to simply try probiotics first in case this is just a case of the normal flora of the gut being screwed up by the antibiotics. Also if the Green Pea and Duck is ineffective consider giving a diet higher in fiber (the hairball formulas are the best) or adding fiber to the diet (you can purchase unflavored psylium at your local drug store). If the PCR is unrevealing, and the probiotics and diet change doesn't help you might want to consider treating him for inflammatory bowel disease.

 

[Angie Panczak]

YOu also may want to test for TriTrich...there are many posts on this subject...

I am sure sure tritrich is part if the full fecal pcr?

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

Yes, it is one of the pathogens in the PCR gastrointestinal panel