Why does cat diarrhea come back after finishing medication?
Prescription diets and temporary medications often fail to resolve chronic feline digestive issues long-term, causing severe diarrhea to return as soon as a treatment course ends. This leaves owners trapped in a stressful cycle of recurring symptoms, extra vet visits, and painful flare-ups like gas and liquid stools that standard foods cannot fix.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
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Why does cat diarrhea come back after finishing medication?
- 1Trying different specialized foods like Hills Gastro Biome and Royal Canin HPDid this help you?
- 2Adding water to food to increase hydrationDid this help you?
- 3Adding a probioticDid this help you?
- 4Consulting a veterinarian for exams, blood panels, and ultrasoundsDid this help you?
- 5feeding prescription foodDid this help you?
- 6giving Pedialyte and probioticsDid this help you?
- 7administering medications like Panacur and FlagylDid this help you?
- 8seeking advice and recommendations from others who have dealt with similar feline health issuesDid this help you?
- 9Waiting to see if the cat eventually uses the litterbox normallyDid this help you?
- 10Considering emergency vet visitsDid this help you?
- 11Changing the cat's foodDid this help you?
- 12Calling a vet to ask if a visit is necessaryDid this help you?
- 13Trying dozens of different commercial foods like Friskies to find anything the cat will eatDid this help you?
- 14Implementing community-recommended adjustments for stool consistencyDid this help you?
- 15Taking things one step at a time due to financial and resource constraintsDid this help you?
- 16Giving Miralax mixed with a Churu treat.Did this help you?
- 17Adding water to dry food to increase hydration.Did this help you?
- 18Adding 100% pumpkin purée to their food for fiber.Did this help you?
- 19Switching to a prescription high-fiber food or offering brothy treats.Did this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“She was eating a prescription diet, but recently she stopped eating it completely.”source ↗
“Her stool is also still not normal.”source ↗
“She is anemic, and we will repeat her bloodwork this Friday to see where her levels are now.”source ↗
“At this point, we are wondering whether she could have IBD or lymphoma, but we don’t know yet. She needs further testing, including an ultrasound, to help us understand what is going on.”source ↗
“Her poop improved while she was on treatment, but after the 10 days of medication, the diarrhea came back and became the same again.”source ↗
“She is currently on a prescription diet, and we are also giving her Pedialyte and probiotics. She has already had another vet visit and additional testing.”source ↗
“my cat is on prozac and ended up getting constipated. the vet said I should give him miralax, but he’s still only going like once a week.”source ↗
“I don’t really have the money to go back, atleast not for awhile, and I don’t know what to do.”source ↗
“I feel like I have to encourage him to use the litterbox almost? like he doesn’t want to do it on his own. he’s also been licking his hole a lot”source ↗
“I started to worry about possible blockages and was getting ready to take him the emergency vet.”source ↗
“I don’t want to miss any signs of potential health issues, but I can’t financially afford to jump the gun and have unnecessary vet visits either.”source ↗
“My cat is 5 years old and has always had loose stools. About 6 months ago she developed a new symptom of yowling followed by farting or BM.”source ↗
“Now we’re on Royal Canin HP dry food and treats. Her diarrhea has been almost fully liquid for about a week and a half”source ↗
“She’s been vomiting for a couple days and it’s either food or bile.”source ↗
“Unfortunately they don’t like to bring the cats to vets because of money and what not so if there is anything I can do to help her I’ll do anything if I DONT have to take her in.”source ↗
“I don’t want to waste money on the vet for something I can take care at home.”source ↗
“the thing i’m worried about most is him getting blocked or a megacolon :(”source ↗
“I have a chronically constipated cat and if he went a week he would be screaming in pain.”source ↗
“also this is gonna sound dumb af but can I like. massage him???? i’ve heard of it working for people so idk”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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