TBT: Today, I am thankful for cat medications. They used to be versions of low-dose human meds but now they are specifically for pets, And last year, I learned that dog and cat rabies shots are slightly different. So hurray!
Lori was given 2 meds for her diarrhea. One is Loperamide (halved due to her small size - about 7.5 lbs) 1x a day that needs to be ground up and mixed into her food. I use small knife to split it, and then a spoon to crush it. Then I brush it off the plastic mat onto her food and mix it in. And not much food. She resists eating anything with "stuff" mixed in, so less food encourages her to eat it all.
The other is Proviable-Forte. It is a capsule of powder I have to pull apart and mix in. She is getting that 2x a day. That also comes to her with little food.
I hate to limit her food, but it is temporary (3 more days) and I give her a larger meal with nothing added when I go to bed. I've been feeding her in the bedroom with the door closed for about 10 minutes. The good news is that she really leaves a clean bowl these past few days, so I she has been eating all of it herself.
She also got 2 reguar annual shots. But not the rabies vaccine. They were out of stock, but will call me when their get more.
At the vet at checkout, the staff started explaining about the shots and other reasons to visit them. I held up a hand to stop her. As I told her, "you tell me when to visit and which cat to bring, and you do whatever your best schedule says to do". I'm not the vet, LOL...
Not to get totally off-topic, but I'm much more likely to ask my own Dr about suggested treatments than I am to question the vet about the cats. Well, see, my Dr assumes some things about my lifestyle that I can correct. My Dr assumes I eat an average US diet. Lots of fast food, too much salt and sugar, snacks, desserts, and too much meat.
My lunch is a half sandwich surrounded by raw veggies (carrot, celery, scallions, radish, cucumber, broccoli). And I have a mug of green tea, a mug of barely-chocolate milk with vanilla, and a small glass of soda (for the fizz). Dinner is about 4 oz of meat, a green veggie, an orange/red/yellow veggie, and a tossed salad with oil/vinegar dressing. "Dessert" is assorted fresh fruits.
I'm not perfect (I still smoke some cigarettes and drink a few glasses of red wine with dinner). But it isn't like I'm on some specific diet or food plan. I just like that "good stuff", so I don't even have to think about it.
The same Dr is surprised everytime I tell him about that. Don't they keep notes? I suppose he has a memorized lecture to give all patients, LOL! THere is something they teacher students in medical school about diagnosing patients; look for horses not zebras. "Horses" are the routine things to look for (being common). "Zebras" are the rare weird things that are less likely to be the problem for most people. I'm the zebra...
Anyway, back to Lori. She hasn't "puddled" in the house since after the first 2 pills. I haven't seen a bad stool in 2 days. I now think she just found something bad to eat inside or outside. There isn't anything I can think of outside that is bad to eat. I have a poinsettia plant that is in a place where "no cat has ever reached" but maybe a leaf fell with reach. I have a small cage over it now.
I naturally looked up "causes of cat diarrhea" before I visited the vet. The sites suggested food problems of course, but also new pets in the house, and other stress. When I mentioned that to Head Vet, he said 99.99% is all some illness or food.
So Lori is just getting the plainest Fancy Feast "Chicken" with her meds for now. Then I will re-introduce her to another (previously familiar one) every few days and see "what comes out". I expect she will do fine with familiar flavors.
Thank you all for the comments of care and well-wishes. I now think she will be fine. I was worried so much because diarrhea can be temporary some times but very serious at other times.
And of course, there has to be a picture. It is from March 2023, but it is still so like her.