I would love any research input from veterinary professionals as well as anecdotal feedback on prophylactic treatment for giardia and coccidia in kittens, specifically young kittens under 8 weeks old. And whether symptomatic and/or not symptomatic at the time.
This kitten season has been rough, and I can count on one hand the number of young kittens that came in and did NOT have at least one of the following: giardia, coccidia, cryptosporidium, campylobacter. The coccidia has been rampant. Many kittens have come in with multiple parasites and bacterial infections making it even more challenging for them to fight it. They get very sick. We have had so many kittens in ICU getting full supportive care this year, and it's exhausting. It takes so many resources, and we don't have a lot of staff. It ends up limiting how many kittens we can even take in.
I have had several people reach out to me and suggest prophylactic treatment for giardia and coccidia. I'm not sure if this means: kittens are having diarrhea and they go ahead and treat (with symptoms). I think in some cases it's full treatment at intake with no symptoms yet? They are saying that it has helped a lot in regards to getting ahead of cases and limiting severity. However, what are the risks for creating drug-resistant forms of giardia or coccidia, which would be awful and a much bigger issue in the long run!
We are currently collecting our own data by doing fecal tests on young kittens when they arrive, just to see how many are coming in with active cases of coccidia and giardia. But giardia isn't shedding while it's incubating. If I understand correctly, treating it during the incubation phase should kill it, but it won't show on a fecal test yet. BUT if a kitten is symptomatic (diarrhea, low appetite) what is the risk involved in treating prophylactically instead of waiting for test results? Sometimes the delay in testing causes the young kitten to get a lot sicker in the meantime. Is there any way to get ahead of it?
I know there is no simple solution for any of this, and prophylactically treating sounds good but may create bigger problems. Does anyone have anything to share from their own research or experience?
Thank you!🙏
#CaseManagement*#FosterPrograms#Medicine,SurgeryandSterilization------------------------------
Michelle Flowers
Foster Program Manager
Seattle Area Feline Rescue
UW-AAB
------------------------------