[edelweiss]

Kitzel has been doing more poorly since last Thurs. He has been waking me in the night w/urgency & has had very terrible stools---last night he had blood in his stool although we had thought yesterday it was a bit better. He woke me around 2:30 & again around 5:30 to take him out. About 3 wks ago we did a diagnostic US on him & other than the issue w/gallbladder sludge & a bit higher liver enzymes they could not identify anything. I have altered his diet & tried different things w/out much success. We finally opted to do a diarrhea canine realPCR panel to help us figure out what is up. Last night he had, for the first time, apparent blood in his stool.
Lisi seemed fine but when I took her off the kibble (she only gets 1/8 cup per day but it helps her to have a firmer stool) her stool went downhill. It was better today so we just decided to do Kitzel since it is over 200$ for the one test. If he has some sort of parasite we will just treat them both. Kitzi still has an appetite & drinks well---so a bit of a puzzle. I also thought maybe a loose tooth but D probed them all & none are loose. He is on some heart meds but that would not cause issues for Lisi.

 

[maddysmom]

I’m so sorry. It’s never ending with these fluffs. I hope Kitzel feels better and your able to get to the bottom of this.

 

[maggieh]

Sandi, how are your babies doing this morning?

 

[Abella's Mommy]

Sandi - So frustrating. Praying the specialists can quickly get to the bottom of this. Our precious Lisi & Kitzi sure have had a rough time lately. This makes us understand the saying "one day at a time" - Uplifting & healing prayers nightly coming your way. I just wish there was more I could do. 😢

 

[wkomorow]

Sandi,

I am so sorry. How is he doing today. Thers is a good chance it is a parasite. Is he on a new medication, that and a new diet could account for the watery stools, but not the blood.

 

[edelweiss]

Thanks all---last night was better. I am fearful of Giardia or Coccidia infection. I also think it has been going on for a while & finally hit a peak. We have had C-diff & it was hard to get rid of but no international travel since last March. Even I have been seeing a GI doctor for "tummy" issues so hopefully it is all non-related & a figment of my imagination---which is fairly vivid! We do have lots of squirrels & Lisi esp. likes to eat squirrel poop. We also use organic stuff in the grass so who knows what kind of something she might have eaten. Dwt. took the sample to the vet so I have not talked w/her yet (he did curbside). I should know in a couple of days. Until then I will be washing everything in boiling water but will wait to throw out Kitzi's toys until we know more.
Wish us luck!

 

[maddysmom]

Thanks all---last night was better. I am fearful of Giardia or Coccidia infection. I also think it has been going on for a while & finally hit a peak. We have had C-diff & it was hard to get rid of but no international travel since last March. Even I have been seeing a GI doctor for "tummy" issues so hopefully it is all non-related & a figment of my imagination---which is fairly vivid! We do have lots of squirrels & Lisi esp. likes to eat squirrel poop. We also use organic stuff in the grass so who knows what kind of something she might have eaten. Dwt. took the sample to the vet so I have not talked w/her yet (he did curbside). I should know in a couple of days. Until then I will be washing everything in boiling water but will wait to throw out Kitzi's toys until we know more.
Wish us luck!

You would know giardia...it has a very distinct rancid smell 🤢

im glad last night was better for you 🙏🏻

 

[edelweiss]

Unfortunately we had that w/Kitzi's stool & lots of mucous. It was sort of a green color until I gave him carrots & rice which turned it orange. Then it turned back (after left off carrots) to a greenish w/blood.

 

[edelweiss]

Joanne, I knew it was a strange smell--even mentioned it to Dwight but I did not know why. We have never had neither of these even living in 3rd world countries at times!

 

[maddysmom]

Joanne, I knew it was a strange smell--even mentioned it to Dwight but I did not know why. We have never had neither of these even living in 3rd world countries at times!

Ling Ling had it for almost a year. My other two never got it. She likes to eat snow which is a very common way to get it. Its very foul smelling, similar to c-diff, so i hear.

 

[edelweiss]

Joanne, how was it treated? Did she do a RealPCR panel-ID to diagnose? Did you have to really deep clean every single thing in the house?

 

[maddysmom]

Joanne, how was it treated? Did she do a RealPCR panel-ID to diagnose? Did you have to really deep clean every single thing in the house?

Its thru fecal sample. You have to bring fresh stools and it doesnt always show up, so taking in several samples a week is key. You also need to do the Elisa test, which test for cyst waiting to hatch, otherwise, you think they are gone and 6 months later the eggs hatch and it would start all over. This is what was happening to Ling and of course, once i started researching, did i find that one test that my vet never did 🤦🏻‍♀️
Anyway, no treatments worked for Ling. My vet gave up and said some dogs will have it for life.
Do you remember Kathleen from here. She gave me holistic protocol to follow and it worked. I retested many times after and she finally came back negative.
You must follow exactly or it wont work, trust me!

Giardia Natural Treatment Protocol | Little Big Cat

This is a protocol that I heard about many years ago for getting rid of Giardia, and have used many times successfully (and safely) in cats and dogs. This protocol utilizes digestive enzymes on an empty stomach. With no food in the system, the digestive enzymes go to work on anything else that...

littlebigcat.com

As far as cleaning...everything must be cleaned. i sprayed bleach after she went potty outside, otherwise the dog will reinfect itself. Damp weather is worse, sun kills it. I only handled her with gloves, in fear I would get it.

 

[maddysmom]

This is from Dr. Becker site regarding Giardia.

Another problem in diagnosing giardia is that the parasite isn't shed in every stool. This means there can be cyst-free stool samples from infected animals. If one of these samples happens to be the one collected for analysis, it won't show evidence of giardia, even though your pet is infected.
I recommend an ELISA or PCR test for giardia for any pet with a history of GI issues. A fecal ELISA or PCR test is preferable to a fecal flotation test because it checks for the presence of giardia antigens. A fecal float only detects giardia cysts, which may or may not be in the particular stool sample being tested.
Unfortunately, many veterinarians don't routinely run the ELISA or PCR test and instead, use only stool sample results that may or may not pick up evidence of infection. So make sure to ask your vet for a fecal antigen test in addition to a fecal float. Labs also offer diarrhea panels that check for other common causes of diarrhea and this is an excellent diagnostic choice for any pet with intermittent GI issues.

 

[edelweiss]

Joanne, thank you. I have copied the web-site in the event we need it.
I am pretty certain this is the test my vet ordered---they send it out & is called RealPCR panel-ID. It was expensive. We only gave one sample.

 

[maddysmom]

Joanne, thank you. I have copied the web-site in the event we need it.
I am pretty certain this is the test my vet ordered---they send it out & is called RealPCR panel-ID. It was expensive. We only gave one sample.

One sample test for cyst is plenty. Its the in house fecal test is when more in a week is needed.
i hope its not giardia for your sake. Its a real pain keeping everything sterilized.

 

[edelweiss]

Thank you so much Joanne for all the info! I am scared to be honest. After our long battle w/c-diff I know what this entails & I am already exhausted & we don't even have a diagnosis!

 

[maddysmom]

Thank you so much Joanne for all the info! I am scared to be honest. After our long battle w/c-diff I know what this entails & I am already exhausted & we don't even have a diagnosis!

I totally understand. Hopefully its nothing but tweaking his diet 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

 

[zooeysmom]

I'm so sorry you and Kitzi are going through this, Sandi! Sending hugs and support <3

 

[edelweiss]

Joanne---that would be a God-send!

Thank you Elizabeth---I am on pins & needles! Hopefully I will hear something tomorrow or Thurs. Waiting has never been something in which I excel.

 

[maddysmom]

Just in case you decide to try the holistic protocol, I use the prozyme. I’m actually going to reorder because enzymes are excellent to give to dogs with GI issues.

Prozyme 200 gm

entirelypetspharmacy.com