We may have to take one of our kitties back

coasterqueen wrote: I am so sad about this, but am trying to remain positive. When we picked out our kitties we made sure the APL knew we'd be getting a dog and they said the two kitties we picked would be good with a dog. The first kitty I SERIOUSLY wanted they said was bad with dogs and wouldn't adopt him to me, so that's why we got the other two. Sox had coccidia when we picked him out and so they said they would treat him and then we could take him home and then a week later we'd have to pick up more meds for him to be treated again. Well we've had him since June 30 and the coccidia keeps getting worse. It's so bad now (don't read any further if you don't have a strong stomach) that he's leaking massive amounts of diarrhea all over my house (LITERALLY!) with lots of blood in it I have a call into the APL, but my vet said stress can cause coccidia to keep coming back and the stress of the cat not getting used to the dog may keep bringing it back if Sox never gets used to Gavin.

I don't know what to do. I don't want to bring him back to the APL. I want to stick this out and try to get the two of them to get along. I don't like the disgusting mess this cat is leaving all over my house, though, but am dealing with it.

Has anyone had to deal with this before???? Any advice. I hope the APL calls me soon so they can give us advice on what to do. If they don't I'm taking him to the vet to be examined.

cameragirl21 replied: I'm so sorry to hear that, Karen.
Idk anything about coccidia but I'd be inclined to ask an expert before making a decision like taking the cat back.
Maybe try Dr. Jon's pet place...he is a vet who only treats cats and is a cat specialist, you can contact him via email or call and have someone answer and explain your situation...if you let them know you really want to keep the cat and don't know what to do, I'm sure they'll have some advice for you if there is a solution here.
KUP.

coasterqueen replied: No, we do not want to take him back. Coccidia never goes away, though, it is just "maintained" so symptoms don't arise. Stress causes it to come back. I'm just hoping he'll settle in the house and with the dog so stress doesn't continue to keep it coming back. I talked to the APL and they are going to call me back. I just don't want him in an environment where he is always going to be stressed, which is why I wanted to make sure he'd be ok with dogs. So we'll see. I think I'm going to take him to the vet this afternoon and have them check him out.

jcc64 replied: It seems like all cats whig out to some degree when acclimating to a new environment--throw a dog into the mix, and i'm not surprised the cat is exhibiting physical symptoms of stress. I never heard of whatever it is your cat has. I guess if it was me, I'd give it a little time (a month seems like a reasonable amount of time for the cat to calm down and get used to things) and if he's still "leaking" all over the place (which I agree is A LOT to put up), then I'd probably assume his issues are a little more serious than simple stress, and you'd need to decide how much you want to endure from a sick animal. I"m sorry, Karen, I hope it all works out for you guys!

coasterqueen replied:
Thanks. We are going to the vet as soon as I get all the kids ready (niece is here). He just leaked watery blood all the way from the patio to the kitchen, back into the living room, on the couch then on Kylie (literally). I can't take it. I can take diarrhea, etc, etc, but this I can't take. I'm not even going to wait for the APL, we are going to the vet so they can diagnosis and hopefully help him. Poor thing.

coasterqueen replied: Then I'm calling a carpet cleaner.

moped replied: Let us know what the vet says Karen!

DVFlyer replied: From what I understand, blood in a dog's stool is VERY dangerous. I imagine it's the same with kittens.

Poor kitty....

coasterqueen replied: Well, the APL called when I was getting ready to go to the vet and said they wanted to see Sox. That they would treat him until he gets better and then they gave us the choice of leaving him there and picking out another kitty or bringing a healthy Sox back and see if the stress of kids and the dog brings the coccidia back. If it comes back they asked us to let them keep Sox and let them find him a home without kids or dogs. DH came home from work and we all went out there as a family to take him and all decided we want to try with him once he is healthy. So we are praying once they get him healthy that he does well here. I have this very bad feeling, though, like something is seriously wrong with him. Being home and him not being here...it feels sorta empty. Poor Hayley (our other cat) is lost.

My2Beauties replied: Awww my heart is breaking for Sox I hope he gets better and can come back a new happy healthy Sox

cameragirl21 replied: Poor Sox I'll say a prayer for him.

punkeemunkee'smom replied: Karen not to be a downer but some types of coccidial parasites can be transmitted to humans. Use a 10% ammonia or bleach solution and sanitize all hard surfaces as well as your other cats bowl and any shared toys, etc... If your other kitten has not contracted the parasite I would be concerned that maybe Sox has something other than coccidia. Sorry I hope Sox gets better

coasterqueen replied:
Yeah, I knew that. Those are in cases where people aren't cleanly - I've scrubbed down all areas that he's been in. We've contained him to the two main rooms in the house. Our other cat has already been treated a long with Sox, just Sox wasn't getting better. Hayley is going to get treated again once this treatment (we did on Friday) is through her system. So hopefully while Sox is away getting treated then Hayley can get 100% well as well. She has only had sporadic loose stools in the litter box. Nothing like what Sox had. He couldn't even control it, it would just come out and everywhere, anywhere and had blood in it.

We are definitely taking the necessary precautions as always when dealing with fecal matter. We do the same precautions when dealing with raw food for Gavin.

A&A'smommy replied: oh no poor Sox I hope he gets well quickly!!!