Cat has diarrhea, not eating. Are Kaopectate & antibiotics safe?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Since you are in day 1 of the antibiotics I think it would be fair to give it a bit more time to see if Musika gets better. You can try to entice his appetite with things like tuna, tuna water and chicken. If his appetite does not improve by tomorrow, let your veterinarian know as anorexia can be detrimental to a cat's health. Good luck and have a great day!

Actual Kao-pectate (which contains only kaolin and pectate) is safe to use. PetCo sells it as NutriVet Antidiarrheal Liquid for cats. On the other hand the brand name “Kaopectate” is not actually kaolin and pectate but is made of the same ingredients as pepto-bismol (bismuth subsalicylate). This is absolutely TOXIC to cats and is not recommended under any circumstance. If you’d like to try something over the counter for diarrhea, and can’t get the NutriVet or aren’t sure, I’d much rather you try out a probiotic like Purina Fortiflora. Of course, if these remedies aren’t working, it’s time to see your vet to rule out parasites, infections, or inflammatory bowel disease. Best of luck to you and Walker!

I would not give human kaopectate in a kitten that young. You are better off trying pro-pectalin/probiotic paste made for animals and if the diarrhea does not clear then consult with your vet. The label instrucitons say 1cc up to every 8 hours. I suggest only giving half that amount in a kitten that young. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Vetoquinol-009VET-15CC-Pro-Pectalin-Gel/43412669 Hope this helps. Best wishes.

Stopping the diarrhea usually requires stopping the cause of the diarrhea. In a young cat, it is often an infection that causes them to stop eating/drinking with diarrhea. However, this can happen with other illnesses or poisoning. Diarrhea is actually beneficial with infections, because it's the body's way of getting rid of the toxin/disease. And, most diarrhea resolves on its own within three days. The concerning thing with Samantha's case is that she could quickly become dehydrated if she is not drinking and continues having diarrhea. If this continues for more than a day, then she will need to go to the vet for an evaluation and treatment to keep this from being a serious problem. Other criteria for going to the vet are as follows: 1) Blood in diarrhea 2) Very watery diarrhea 3) She starts acting very depressed 4) Diarrhea lasts longer than three days You can help her get through this by feeding bland food (boneless chicken and tuna is good). Feed small portions (1 Tbsp or less) three times a day. Ensure fresh, clean water is always available. I hope this helps and Samantha gets better soon.

Unflavored PediaLyte or a similar electrolyte replacement fluid would be a better option. If necessary, you can add a bit of water from the tuna to get Angel to drink. Feed a bland diet in small, frequent amounts to manage the diarrhea. This can be plain white rice and boiled boneless/skinless chicken breasts mixed in a 1:1 ratio. Feed until the stool is normal then transition slowly to the regular diet.

I would recommend seeing the vet. At this point even if the diarrhea was initially related to the antibiotics Jasper may now have a disruption of his normal intestinal flora that requires additional treatment. It's also possible that the diarrhea is unrelated to the antibiotics and instead is due to intestinal parasites or a food sensitivity. If you wait until he stops eating or loses weight he may require more intensive treatment so I'd recommend making an appointment to see your veterinarian this week.

Make sure he is getting plenty of fluids. I would syringe him water and feed him wet food to get more moisture in him. I would feed a diet of chicken and rice and add in a probiotic such as Purina fortiflora which can be found online quite easily or at your local pet store. If there is no improvement or he worsens, I would recommend having a veterinarian examine him so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.